In a major change to Saturday’s inaugural WWE Wrestlepalooza, the long-anticipated showdown between John Cena and Brock Lesnar has been shifted to the opening match, while the mixed tag team clash featuring Becky Lynch and Seth Rollins against CM Punk and AJ Lee is now positioned as the likely main event. The announcement, made by Pat McAfee on his show Thursday, sets the stage for Lynch to close out a premium live event for the first time in more than six years.
If the mixed tag team match headlines, it will mark the end of Lynch’s main event drought dating back to WrestleMania 35 in 2019, when she pinned Ronda Rousey to capture both the RAW and SmackDown Women’s Championships in the first women’s main event in WrestleMania history.
The decision reflects the intensity behind the rivalry. The conflict began when Lynch, aligning with her husband Seth Rollins, attacked CM Punk at Clash in Paris and declared he did not fit “the vision.” Lynch escalated the feud on Raw by repeatedly slapping Punk, aware he would not strike back, and dismissed chants for AJ Lee with the retort: “She doesn’t work here!”
That provocation set off a turning point. On SmackDown in Chicago, Punk confronted Lynch, stating he would never lay hands on a woman, but added, “…thankfully, I’ve got someone who will.” Moments later, AJ Lee made a stunning return after nearly a decade away, attacking Lynch and instantly elevating the feud to main event status.
Meanwhile, the Cena vs. Lesnar bout’s demotion is striking given its billing as a “final showdown between two generational titans.” Lesnar resurfaced at SummerSlam, delivering an F-5 to Cena just after his loss of the Undisputed WWE Championship to Cody Rhodes. Triple H later confirmed that Cena himself had requested the match as the final chapter of his career. Since then, Lesnar has continued his wave of destruction.
Cena’s path to Wrestlepalooza has been turbulent. Earlier this year, he stunned fans by turning heel for the first time in two decades at Elimination Chamber, aligning with The Rock and Travis Scott. That move paved the way to his record-setting 17th world title at WrestleMania 41—a reign he renounced before SummerSlam, admitting his legacy had been “flushed down the toilet” in pursuit of “shocking TV.”
Despite the reshuffled main event, Wrestlepalooza remains a packed card. Cody Rhodes defends the Undisputed WWE Championship against Drew McIntyre, whose brutal attack sidelined Rhodes after SummerSlam. Iyo Sky faces Stephanie Vaquer for the vacant Women’s World Championship following Naomi’s forced relinquishment of the title.