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One of the biggest moments from WWE WrestleMania 35 came at the start of the show when Paul Heyman surprisingly announced that the Universal Championship match between Brock Lesnar and Seth Rollins would kick off the main PPV. In the early stages of the match, Rollins hit “The Beast” with a low-blow and he was able to follow up with three Stomps to pick up the win.
Post-WrestleMania, Lesnar’s career in WWE remains unclear – Heyman teased a switch back to UFC before the match – while the future of some of his fellow Superstars is now a little more certain after Sunday's event.
Triple H, for example, will continue his in-ring career following his victory over Batista, while the controversial finish to the main event seems to suggest that Ronda Rousey will stick around in WWE to continue feuding with Becky Lynch.
For others, WrestleMania 35 was a time to bid farewell to the WWE Universe once and for all. So, with that in mind, let’s take a look at two WWE careers that ended after the show and, if rumours and teases are to be believed, three careers that could be about to begin.
#5 Career ended: Kurt Angle
Up until the referee signalled for the bell to sound, many fans still expected there to be a twist in the Kurt Angle vs. Baron Corbin match, with names including John Cena and The Undertaker touted as possible Superstars who could be introduced as the Olympic Gold medallist’s real opponent instead of Corbin.
As it turned out, “The Lone Wolf” really was selected to face the retiring Hall of Famer, and not only did the match go ahead as planned, but Corbin hit the End of Days on his opponent and pinned him for the 1-2-3 to pick up the biggest one-on-one victory of his career so far.
Angle got on the mic after the match and asked the fans to chant “You suck!” along to his music one last time. Corbin, meanwhile, took straight to social media, tweeting: "To all the cry babies out there who complained and thought I should be replaced, hahahahaha eat that! There are people who deserve things and people who just take them, I just take them! @WWE #Wrestlemania35"
#4 Career could begin: Cris Cyborg
Cris Cyborg has spoken passionately about her love of sports entertainment over the years, and she even attempted to hype up a match-that-never-was against Becky Lynch ahead of SummerSlam 2017.
The MMA legend has talked trash back-and-forth with Ronda Rousey in the past, so it is only natural that a possible dream match with “The Baddest Woman on the Planet” is mentioned in interviews whenever she is asked about potentially joining WWE.
In February 2019, Cyborg told MMA Fighting, “A lot of people say, ‘You need to fight Ronda, fight Ronda.’ Now the rivalry would help the sport going and it’s, ‘You go to WWE?’ If something happens, I love challenges. If something happens I think it would be a cool fight. I think a lot of people are going to watch.”
The 33-year-old, who visited WWE’s Performance Center earlier this year, made two references to WrestleMania on Twitter during the show, tweeting flame emojis to Lynch before sending a message of support to Asuka, who was only featured in the kickoff show Women’s Battle Royal.
#3 Career ended: Batista
Heading into WrestleMania 35, Triple H was the one who put his WWE career on the line against Batista. However, after “The King of Kings” was victorious in their 23-minute No Holds Barred match, “The Animal” announced on social media that he is now officially retired from WWE.
He wrote on Twitter, "Thank you for letting me entertain you. I love this business and whether you cheered me or jeered me, I’m grateful for being a small part of your life. I am officially retired from sports entertainment and I am grateful for every second of my amazing journey."
The six-time world champion regularly stated in media interviews in the last few years that he wanted to face Triple H in the final match of his career. Now that it has finally happened, he can bid farewell to WWE on his terms, just as his character has been saying in recent weeks, and as a legend who is certain to be inducted into the Hall of Fame in the near future.
#2 Career could begin: Rob Gronkowski
Three-time Super Bowl champion Rob Gronkowski announced in March 2019 that he has decided to retire from the NFL. He wrote a lengthy message on Instagram to bid farewell to football, closing his statement by saying, "Cheers to all who have been part of this journey, cheers to the past for the incredible memories, and a HUGE cheers to the uncertain of what's next."
What’s next, according to the wrestling rumour mill, could be a possible switch to the squared circle. The 29-year-old is close friends with WWE Superstar Mojo Rawley, while he previously appeared at WrestleMania 33 in 2017 to help Rawley win the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal.
Gronk has not commented on the WWE speculation since his retirement, but that has not stopped interviewers from asking WWE’s decision-makers about getting in touch with the former NFL star.
Stephanie McMahon told TMZ Sports that she would "love to have Gronk" in WWE, while Triple H said to Sports Illustrated, "Gronk has mentioned WWE before, that he loves it and said had so much fun doing it. I don't know if it's something he'd be seriously interested in, but that's how the conversation started with Ronda Rousey, too. Certainly, the door is open for him at WWE."
#1 Career could begin: Conor McGregor
MMA great Conor McGregor has a habit of trolling people, but we would be foolish to ignore his post-WrestleMania 35 comments about possibly appearing in WWE.
In the build-up to the event, Stephanie McMahon did not rule out discussing business with McGregor in the future. She said during an interview with TMZ Sports, “Conor McGregor, huge personality. It's really about bringing in the biggest personalities with the best athletic ability.”
Shortly after Becky Lynch defeated Ronda Rousey and Charlotte Flair in the main event of WrestleMania 35, McGregor took to Twitter to issue the following kind words: “Congrats to Irelands Becky Lynch, the WWE’s first Champ Champ. Wow! What a match these ladies put on! Ronda Rousey is something special in that ring, as is Charlotte Flair of the Flair dynasty! Stephanie McMahon you are right, I could not do what these athletes do. Or could I…”
McGregor is the biggest box office attraction that WWE could approach to realistically compete in a match. For now, it’s all rumours and teases, but then so were the Rousey-to-WWE rumours for a long time, and look at how the WWE landscape has changed since her arrival!
