Ranking Every WWE Title Match At WrestleMania Worst To Best
5. WrestleMania 39 - Roman Reigns Vs. Cody Rhodes
With his wife, daughter, mother, sister, and Brodie Lee. Jr in attendance, Cody Rhodes was destined to finish his story at WrestleMania 39 and finally win the title that his father was cheated out of at Madison Square Garden all the way back in 1977. Much like Dusty against 'Superstar' Billy Graham on that September '77 night, though, Cody left 'Mania 39 empty handed.
At least in the American Dream's case, he actually won his match, with the countout victory over Superstar meaning the title didn't change hands. For the American Nightmare, he was pinned 1-2-3 in the middle of the ring by Roman Reigns as the 2023 Showcase of the Immortals concluded.
That Rhodes vs. Reigns contest was one of the best in recent 'Mania memory, with the two putting on an epic war full of edge-of-your-seat nearfalls. In that regard, there was a fantastic false finish as Cody countered Roman's intentions of using Rhodes' own weight belt on him, with Cody hitting a superkick and a Cross Rhodes for an extremely close two-count. And that was just the tip of the iceberg.
Finishes were kicked out of or brilliantly countered, there was interference from Solo Sikoa, the Usos, and Paul Heyman, and the arrival of Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn had the crowd's excitement levels turned up to 11. With Owens and Zayn having both been previously screwed by Roman Reigns and the Bloodline, it was perfectly cathartic that the Tribal Chief's past would catch up to him and play a role in him losing his Undisputed WWE Universal Title.
A Stunner from KO to Reigns, a Helluva Kick from Sami to Reigns, and surely all it would take was one more Cross Rhodes to seal victory for Cody and all three babyfaces can stand tall to close out WrestleMania, celebrating at the downfall of the nefarious Head of the Table and his Bloodline.
Instead, there was no final Cross Rhodes this time, as Cody crawled over to get a slow near-three-count on Roman while the Usos, Owens, and Zayn brawled out into the crowd. Before you knew it, the fix was in once more, as Paul Heyman distracted the referee, the previously-banished Solo Sikoa returned to use his Samoan Spike to stop Rhodes from hitting that final, match-ending Cross Rhodes, and Reigns hit another Spear to get the crowd-stunning victory.
This wasn't how it was supposed to go, but man, what a wild ride this match was.
With Rhodes vs. Reigns II set for WrestleMania XL, that rematch has a hell of a lot to live up to. Given the two exceptional talents involved, though, you wouldn't bet against them matching or somehow even bettering the high standards set at 'Mania 39.