All matches announced for WWE WrestleMania 42 so far ft. Brock Lesnar, CM Punk, Roman Reigns, Rhea Ripley & more
(Courtesy :Ā Getty)
The Road to WrestleMania kicked off with the Royal Rumble.
WWE kicked off the Road to WrestleMania 42 with style in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on January 31 with the Royal Rumble PLE. The event saw Liv Morgan and Roman Reigns win the womenās and menās Rumble matches, respectively, to punch their ticket to the āGrandest Stage.ā
The 42nd edition of WrestleMania will take place as a two-night event on April 18 and 19 at Allegiant Stadium in Paradise, Nevada. The city will host the PLE for two consecutive years, after the original plan to hold the event in New Orleans, Louisiana, was scrapped.
On the Road to Mania, WWE will deliver the 2026 edition of Elimination Chamber, which is scheduled for February 28, 2026, and will take place at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. The remaining two contenders for the World titles will be decided at the aforementioned PLE.
The promotion has started building for the āGrandest Stageā as feuds and storylines take shape. Let us now take a look at all the matches announced so far for the event.
Roman Reigns has picked CM Punk after winning the Rumble
Following his win in the Rumble match, Roman Reigns made an appearance on the fallout show of Monday Night Raw in Philadelphia. Reigns engaged in a scathing promo battle with the current World Heavyweight Champion, CM Punk.
Both stars engaged in a promo battle, addressing the bad blood and the decade-old history between the two. All this was enough for Reigns to make up his mind, after initial hesitation in his pick.
Reigns picked Punk as his opponent, which means CM Punk will defend the World Heavyweight Championship against āThe OTCā Roman Reigns in the main event of Mania.
This will be their second singles meeting and their first clash after last yearās Night One main event of Mania, where the two battled in a triple-threat match also involving Seth Rollins.
On the other hand, Liv Morgan made her pick on the February 23 episode of Raw, attacking the Womenās World Champion Stephanie Vaquer during the segment, making her choice loud and clear. Vaquer will now defend the title against Morgan in Las Vegas.
With the Rumble winners making their pick official, Undisputed WWE Champion Drew McIntyre and WWE Womenās Champion Jade Cargill will face the winner of the menās and womenās Elimination Chamber match, respectively.
On the other hand, Brock Lesnar made his return on the February 23 episode of Raw and issued an open challenge for the āGrandest Stage,ā declaring that he is now waiting for any opponent bold enough to step up to him.
During the March 16 episode of Raw, Brock confronted Seth Rollins, when Oba Femi appeared, taking down Lesnar with a fall from grace, before pointing to the WrestleMania sign. Later in the show, WWE confirmed that Femi will indeed be answering Lesnarās open challenge for Mania, making the match official.
During the 2026 edition of Elimination Chamber, Rhea Ripley won the womenās Chamber match, securing the number one contenderās spot against Jade Cargill. The two will battle for the WWE Womenās title at the āGrandest Stage.ā
On the other hand, Randy Orton outlasted the competition to secure the win in the menās Chamber match and punched his ticket to Mania, where he will face the Undisputed Champion. Drew McIntyre, who was originally set to headline Mania, has now lost his chance all due to his constant meddling, despite severe warnings from GM Nick Aldis.
After interfering in the menās Chamber match at Elimination Chamber and attacking Cody Rhodes, GM Aldis announced a title match for the March 6 fallout show of SmackDown, where Rhodes managed to pin McIntyre and capture the title, securing his Mania main-event spot, where he will now face his friend Randy Orton.
AJ Lee interrupted Becky Lynchās promo during the March 23 edition of Raw to make their Mania clash official. This will be their title rematch from Elimination Chamber, where Lee captured the title and is looking to embarrass Lynch once again, while Becky wants to regain the title as Mania is her domain.
During the March 27 episode of SmackDown, Sami Zayn defeated Carmelo Hayes to capture the US title, with a little unintended help from Trick Williams. GM Nick Aldis then made the title match between Sami and Williams official for Mania.
Additionally, during the show, Aldis also announced that Drew McIntyre and Jacob Fatu will get to settle the score at Mania in an unsanctioned match.
John Cena returns
John Cena via X (Twitter) has confirmed that he will take over hosting duties for the 42nd edition in Las Vegas. This will be his first appearance since hanging up his wrestling boots at the December 2025 edition of SNME.
During the March 30 edition of Raw from MSG, Finn Balor challenged Dominik Mysterio for a clash at Mania in a promo, while Penta, after defending the Intercontinental title against Kofi Kingston, announced that he will defend it in a Ladder match at the āGrandest Stage.ā
Also on the show, WWE announced a Fatal four-way match where The Irrestible Forces (Nia Jax & Lash Legend) will defend the Womenās Tag Team titles against The Bella Twins (Nikki & Brie Bella), Bayley & Lya Valkyria, and Charlotte Flair & Alexa Bliss.
Additionally, after the attack by Gunther on Seth Rollins, GM Adam Pearce provided an update and annunced the clash between Seth Rollins and Gunther official for Mania.
All matches announced for WWE WrestleMania 42
- CM Punk (c) vs Roman Reigns ā World Heavyweight title match
- Stephanie Vaquer (c) vs Liv Morgan ā Womenās World title match
- Brock Lesnar vs Oba Femi
- Cody Rhodes (c) vs Randy Orton ā Undisputed title match
- Jade Cargill (c) vs Rhea Ripley ā WWE Womenās title match
- AJ Lee (c) vs Becky Lynch ā Womenās Intercontinental title match
- Sami Zayn (c) vs Trick Williams ā United States title match
- Drew McIntyre vs Jacob Fatu ā Unsanctioned match
- John Cena to host the event
- Finn Balor vs Dominik Mysterio
- Penta (c) vs JeāVon Evans vs Dragon Lee vs Rusev vs JD McDonagh ā Ladder match for the Intercontinental title
- The Irrestible Forces (Nia Jax & Lash Legend) (c) vs The Bella Twins (Nikki & Brie Bella) vs Bayley & Lya Valkyria vs Charlotte Flair & Alexa Bliss ā Fatal 4-way for the Womenās Tag Team titles match
- Seth Rollins vs Gunther
When and where will WrestleMania 42 take place?
The 42nd edition of WrestleMania will take place as a two-night event on Saturday, April 18 and 19, at Allegiant Stadium in Paradise, Nevada.
Who will be the main event at WrestleMania 42?
The match between CM Punk and Roman Reigns is widely expected to headline Night Two of the PLE, while Cody Rhodes vs. Randy Orton is anticipated to close Night One. However, this remains speculation, as both matches have been confirmed as main events, but WWE has yet to officially announce which bout will headline each night.
For more updates, follow Khel Now Wrestling on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram; download the Khel Now Android App or IOS App and join our community on Telegram & Whatsapp.
Abhijit Singh is a budding sports journalist with over three years of experience in the field, and a photographer capturing stories through his lens since 2018. With a background in philosophy and political science, he brings a thoughtful, analytical edge to his reporting where every word is guided by curiosity and intent. Whether he's capturing the emotion of a moment or unpacking the deeper narratives within the game, Abhijitās work is rooted in insight and passion. When heās not covering sports, heās often exploring new ideas through reading, traveling or just procrastinating.