Roman Reigns RETAINS The Undisputed WWE Universal Championship At WrestleMania 39

'Showcase Of The Immortals' ends with booking bombshell as Cody Rhodes fails to finish the story.

Roman Reigns Cody Rhodes
WWE

In what will surely go down as one of the most divisive and controversial booking decisions in recent memory, Roman Reigns is still the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion.

‘The Tribal Chief’ retained his gold after defeating Cody Rhodes in the main event of WrestleMania 39 Night Two with a Spear after Solo Sikoa had nailed the 'American Nightmare' with a Samoan Spike while the referee was distracted.

The shocking result extends Roman’s reign with the gold to 942 days, with 1,000 as the next milestone the company will presumably head towards.

Prior to the earth-shattering conclusion, Cody had hit Reigns with a Bionic Elbow, Goldust's signature drop-down fist and two Cross Rhodes. It was at this point that Paul Heyman took the official and allowed Sikoa (who had previously been ejected from ringside) to return and strike Rhodes with his devastating finisher. It was the second bout of interference after The Usos had been chased away by new Tag Team Champions Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn earlier in the contest.

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At 34:29, the epic headliner was the fourth-longest main event in WrestleMania history, but there'll be far more than half an hour of introspection from Rhodes' fans as they come to terms with not seeing what had felt for 12 months like a sure thing.

More on the fact and fiction of this incredible story as and when it breaks.

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Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 7 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 30 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz", Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 50,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett