One MIND-BLOWING Secret From EVERY WWE WrestleMania

4. WrestleMania 38 | The Original Plan

Day 1 - the supposed brainchild of WWE President Nick Khan - was a strange idea for a WWE show. 

Dreamed up as an annual event that would set the tone for the remainder of the year - an ambitious attempt to turn the “big five” into the “big six” - is that not precisely what the Royal Rumble is for? 

While title changes have unfolded in January before, the Rumble exists to solidify the champion and establish their biggest challenger. Promoting another major show in January tempts too much in the way of the happenings and title changes that are best withheld until WrestleMania for maximum effect - otherwise, it would not feel like a major show. Perhaps that’s why Triple H, who is very, very patient as a booker, binned the concept when he seized power. It also doesn’t help that the one-and-only Day 1 was cursed, and thus stigmatised as a show that got in the way rather than paved it. 

Originally, Roman Reigns was scheduled to defend the Universal title against Brock Lesnar. Big E was set to defend the WWE title in a Fatal 4-Way involving Kevin Owens, Seth Rollins, and Bobby Lashley. On the day of the show, Roman tested positive for COVID-19. Vince then smushed the two main events together, added Brock to what became a Fatal 5-Way, and booked Brock to win. This worked out very well for Roman, who ended up winning the subsequent game of double or nothing, but not for WWE: the Royal Rumble was a convoluted mess that needed tidying. 

Then again, not much was ruined. The WWE title side of things wasn’t hugely inspiring; per the January 10, 2022 Observer, Big E was meant to defend against Seth Rollins at WrestleMania.