This week on Ringside Report’s Wrestling Uncensored, co-hosts Dave Simon and Champion Pro Wrestler Genesis Johnny North dove deep into the from WrestleMania 41 fallout, dissecting the latest developments involving John Cena, Randy Orton, the controversial absence of The Rock, and the ongoing drama within the Bloodline, alongside other major news in WWE and AEW.
WrestleMania 41 Fallout
SmackDown Highlights: Title Aspirations and Bloodline Interference
The episode kicked off with a look at the latest happenings on SmackDown. A key match featured LA Knight and Drew McIntyre battling for the number one contender spot for Jacob Fatu’s United States Championship. LA Knight was seeking a rematch after losing the title at WrestleMania. Drew McIntyre, on the other hand, was looking for a new challenge, stating that John Cena was no longer the top guy and he wanted to go after the toughest champion on SmackDown, Jacob Fatu.
However, the match took a turn when Solo Sikoa attacked LA Knight outside the ring with a Samoan spike behind the referee’s back. Solo then rolled LA Knight back into the ring, but Drew McIntyre seemed conflicted. Before a decision could be made, Damien Priest attacked Drew McIntyre, ending the match without a clear number one contender. Johnny North suggested that this could lead to a fatal four-way match at Backlash involving Drew, Priest, LA Knight, and Jacob Fatu. Dave Simon agreed, noting that Backlash is coming up soon, leaving limited time to build matches.
Dave and Johnny also discussed the promo between John Cena and Randy Orton to start the show, which set up a match for the WWE Championship at Backlash in St. Louis. Johnny North called the promo fantastic. Randy Orton questioned Cena about his heel turn, suggesting he needed to “have kids and grow up”. Cena responded by saying he didn’t have kids because he spent the last 25 years “raising their kids” – the audience – and that he had been “a better parent to your children than you could ever be”. Dave Simon found this surprising and felt
Randy’s comments hit home, while Cena seemed genuinely upset and targeted specific people in the crowd. Randy emphasized that he is here to stay in WWE and has the respect of his peers, while Cena is just a part-time guest. Cena called the audience hypocrites for labeling him a guest when he tried something different. Dave Simon felt Randy’s personal comments shook Cena. Johnny North noted that Randy, who was a true villain for so long against Cena, showed change by saying kids changed him and that’s what Cena needs.
The hosts also touched upon John Cena’s claim that he would retire the WWE Championship, taking its lineage with him. Dave Simon strongly disagreed with this, stating that the WWE Championship has over 60 years of history, tracing back to Buddy Rogers, and retiring it would be a disservice to professional wrestling. Johnny North noted that WWE has retired titles in the past, like the Universal Championship. Dave Simon highlighted the difference in history between the two titles. He also found it ironic that Jey Uso came out to celebrate winning the World Title shortly after Cena devalued other belts.
Other SmackDown topics included Zelina Vega winning the Women’s United States Championship from Chelsea Green, and the return of Alistair Black (formerly Malachi Black in AEW), who attacked The Miz. Johnny North felt the rusev return on Raw was awkward, beating lower-level talent like Alpha Academy. Dave Simon didn’t see much potential for either rusev or Alistair Black. They discussed WWE signing former AEW talent, despite saying AEW isn’t competition.
The Rock’s WrestleMania 41 Absence
Among the controversies and biggest WrestleMania fallout headlines was where was The Rock? The hosts discussed The Rock not showing up at WrestleMania 41. Dave Simon mentioned the Rock went on Pat McAfee’s show and claimed he was never supposed to be part of WrestleMania, only appearing at Elimination Chamber because Ari Emmanuel personally asked him to boost ticket sales in Toronto. Dave Simon found it hard to believe that Ari Emmanuel was concerned with Elimination Chamber ticket sales.
Dave Simon also felt the Rock buried WWE Creative by saying he would have done the WrestleMania finish with Cena on top differently. He speculated that the Rock still hates Shawn Michaels, given their history, and they are now the two bosses of creative.
WrestleMania Storylines Heading Towards SummerSlam 2025
Looking ahead, Dave and Johnny discussed potential storylines leading into SummerSlam 2025.
Regarding John Cena and Randy Orton, Johnny North hoped Randy would take the title from Cena quickly, as he didn’t want Cena’s reign to last until December. He felt Randy was better than Cena in every way possible. Dave Simon agreed that Randy is bigger and moving better than Cena, and their match at WrestleMania was awful, which has led to universal panning of the event. However, Dave didn’t see Randy winning the title in St. Louis, predicting Roman Reigns or Cody Rhodes would be the one to take it from Cena. Johnny North thought Cody would eventually get the title back, possibly at SummerSlam or Money in the Bank.
The hosts noted that several wrestlers, including Bianca Belair (due to injury) and Cody Rhodes, were taking time off after WrestleMania. Johnny North felt Cody deserved time off after working hard as champion for a year.
The formation of a new group with Seth Rollins, Paul Heyman, and Braun Breaker was discussed. Johnny North felt being around Paul Heyman was good for Braun Breaker. Dave Simon questioned if this was a good move for Braun, who was on fire on his own, to become Seth’s goon. Johnny North saw a brighter future for Braun than Seth, potentially as WWE Champion one day. Dave Simon agreed, noting people are excited about Braun Breaker as a potential big star.
Dave and Johnny revisited the Randy Orton vs. John Cena rivalry, with Dave calling their past matches hated and predicting their Backlash match would be the worst yet. However, he acknowledged the nostalgia factor and wasn’t mad about the match happening. Johnny North pointed out that this will be the first time Randy is the babyface and Cena is the heel in their rivalry. They agreed this would likely be their last match.
The discussion turned to WWE’s booking pace, with Johnny North feeling things move too slowly and they take too long to capitalize on big matches. Dave Simon attributed this to Triple H’s slow, methodical pace as a wrestler and now as head of the company. Johnny North felt that with the large roster, they shouldn’t need to rely on rematches for PLEs.
Regarding Jey Uso’s World Title reign, Johnny North suggested Kaiser as a potential first challenger for revenge for Gunther. Dave Simon wondered about Jey’s next big feud, suggesting Seth Rollins. Johnny North thought Finn Bálor might be an in-between opponent before Jey eventually loses to Seth. Dave Simon agreed Finn would be the in-between guy. Dave Simon also suggested rusev could be brought in strong to face Jey, giving Jey a big win to legitimize his title run, unlike Damien Priest’s forgettable reign.
AEW Dynamite Review
Dave and Johnny also reviewed the week in AEW Dynamite.
They discussed the likely main event for Double or Nothing being a multi-man brawl, potentially an Anarchy in the Arena match. They speculated on the participants, suggesting a five-on-five match pitting Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli, Pac, Kazuchika Okada, and Wheeler Yuta against Kenny Omega, Swerve Strickland, Powerhouse Hobbs, Samoa Joe, and Katsuyori Shibata.
Dave and Johnny praised the tag team match between the Young Bucks and Speedball Mike Bailey and Kevin Knight, with Dave calling it a match of the night and Johnny agreeing it was too good for television. Johnny North felt the match should have been hyped more. Dave Simon felt it was a great moment for the newer guys to shine and the Bucks to look fantastic. He expressed his long-time support for the Young Bucks and felt the wrestling world was unfairly negative towards them.
FTR’s new alignment with Stokely Hathaway was discussed, with Johnny North believing FTR needed a new direction and Stokely would help. Dave Simon noted that beating up the Rock ‘n’ Roll Express helped solidify their heel turn, an old-school move of aligning with a heel manager.
The ongoing storyline with MJF trying to join the Hurt Business (formerly the Hurt Syndicate) was mentioned, with MJF offering gifts like ladies and a car to gain their favor. Johnny North suggested a match between MJF and Bobby Lashley to prove MJF’s worthiness. Dave Simon felt the storyline was dragging.
Jamie Hayter defeating Chris Statlander to advance to the finals of the Owen Hart tournament against Mercedes Moné was discussed. Johnny North was okay with the delay between the semi-finals and finals, as it allows for more build-up. Dave Simon felt it was a “slam dunk” for Mercedes Moné to win and face “Timeless” Toni Storm for the AEW Women’s World Championship at All In. Johnny North expected a fantastic match between Hayter and Moné, despite predicting a Moné win, and felt the history between Storm and Hayter wasn’t as compelling as a potential Storm vs. Moné match.
For the men’s Owen Hart tournament final, Dave Simon expected Will Ospreay to face Hangman Adam Page at Double or Nothing. Both hosts felt either man winning would be acceptable, and the match would likely determine the next AEW World Champion. Dave Simon preferred Hangman to win, while acknowledging Ospreay is an incredible talent. He highlighted the match as an example of what makes AEW great: two amazing wrestlers with uncertain outcomes and high stakes.
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Dark Side of the Ring: Superstar Billy Graham
Dave and Johnny briefly discussed the Dark Side of the Ring episode on Superstar Billy Graham. Dave Simon described Graham as the champion for Vince McMahon Sr. who held the title for a year before losing it and never being the same. Johnny North emphasized Graham as an innovator who influenced wrestlers like Hulk Hogan and Jesse Ventura.
Dave Simon noted his promo style and physique were copied, and Vince McMahon Sr. started calling wrestlers “superstars” because of him. Johnny North mentioned that Meltzer said if Vince McMahon Sr. had Billy Graham in his prime during the 1980s, he could have been Hulk Hogan. Dave Simon agreed, noting it was a case of McMahon Sr. sticking to his plan despite Graham’s popularity. They also sadly noted Graham’s health problems and difficult relationship with his children.
