WrestleMania 37 night 1 pre-show:
Arlington, Texas
March 27th 2021
AT&T Stadium
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The first segment on the pre-show we focus on is THE NEW DAY sitting backstage in their locker room. BIG E, KOFI KINGSTON and XAVIER WOODS look deep in thought ahead of the biggest night of their careers as a group. The silence sits for about 30 seconds before Kofi breaks the silence saying tonight is the night. Big E looks up with a nod and a slight smile on his face. Woods takes a big sigh and says it is but they are ready for it, with a slight smile on his face.
He gets to his feet and says thanks to his brothers he is feeling ready for tonight. Thanks to them he knows he can and will beat Lio Rush tonight. Kofi gets up to his feet saying he knows that Swerve Strickland is a future star but right now, he is still Kofi Kingston and he knows something about winning at WrestleMania. He looks at Big E with a nod as he says tonight is not his night, it’s their night and they will show the world New Day rocks as the group shares a hug ending the segment.
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We then cut to the backstage area, where we can see CATHY KELLEY standing ready for an interview. She welcomes her guests at this time: BAD BUNNY and DAMIAN PRIEST! The duo gets a loud pop from the live crowd, as Cathy asks Bad Bunny how he is feeling ahead of their WrestleMania debut tonight. He says this has been a lifelong dream of his to fight at WrestleMania, looking forward to kicking Noam Dar and Logan Paul’s ass at WrestleMania!
Cathy then turns to Damian Priest asking how he is feeling ahead of tonight, getting to team with his friend and get a huge WrestleMania moment against two men who have been a thorn in their side. He promises to give them a beating they haven’t forgotten and then he is going to have the wildest after-party the world has seen with Bad Bunny. Damian then gives Cathy a wink hoping to see her there. Cathy can’t help but blush as we cut to the ring for the only match of the pre-show.
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We cut to the ring with the majority of the superstars in the match standing in the ring: AR FOX, APOLLO CREWS, ARIYA DAIVARI, BO DALLAS, CURT HAWKINS, CURTIS AXEL, DAN MOLONEY, DANIEL GARCIA, DANNY BURCH, DUKE HUDSON, EJ NDUKA, EPICO, ERICK ROWAN, GRAN METALIK, JAMES STORM, JINDER MAHAL, KARL ANDERSON, KENNY WILLIAMS, KILLIAN DAIN, LUKE GALLOWS, MANSOOR, MARK ANDREWS, MOJO RAWLEY, ONEY LORCAN, OTIS DOZOVIC, PRIMO, RICK BOOGS, RICOCHET, RIDDICK MOSS, ROWE, SAMIR SINGH, SCRYPTS, SUNIL SINGH, THE BRIAN KENDRICK, THE MIZ, TITUS O’NEIL, TONY NESE and ZACK RYDER before we get the entrance for:
*3 KINGS*
DAVID HART SMITH makes his way out getting a decent pop from the live crowd. He slaps hands with some of the live crowd as Michael Cole says David Hart Smith has been impressing on NXT UK since his return to the WWE, winning the Heritage Cup down over there. Byron Saxton says he could be a dark horse to win this match and bring even more gold to the Hart family!
*SHADOWS OF A SETTING SUN*
SHINSUKE NAKAMURA makes his way out getting boos from the live crowd. He has a smug smirk on his face before slowly walking to the ring. Michael Cole brings up the accolades that Nakamura has held in WWE over the years and he has to be one of the favorites to win the match. Byron Saxton says there won’t be any Ungovernable members to help Nakamura tonight, he will have to do it alone!
*I BRING THE DARKNESS (END OF DAYS)*
BARON CORBIN makes their way out getting loud boos. He talks a whole bunch of trash to the live crowd, promising he is going to be the first-ever two-time winner of the Andre the Giant Battle Royal. Michael Cole says Elias is not here for this match due to his issues with Baron Corbin before getting injured and to avoid a conflict of interest. Byron Saxton says there will be 49 other men hoping to get the chance to kick Corbin’s ass!
*GRIT YOUR TEETH*
THE GRIZZLED YOUNG VETERANS make their way out next getting boos from the crowd. JAMES DRAKE walks on ahead as ZACK GIBSON mouths off to several of the fans in the front few rows. Michael Cole says these two have proven themselves to be an elite team holding the NXT UK and NXT tag team titles. Byron Saxton reminds us of the fact they lost their tag team titles at Stand and Deliver to MSK so will be looking to get their hands on gold once again!
*NO MORE WORDS*
JEFF HARDY walks out getting a loud pop from the fans before heading to the ring, dancing to the ring in signature fashion. Mansoor, his tag team partner inside the ring, even joins in with the dancing. Michael Cole says Jeff Hardy is one of the most beloved superstars in WWE history. Byron says we might get the loudest pop of the night if Jeff Hardy were to win tonight and even wonders if he would go for the North American title having never won the belt before.
*WRITTEN IN MY FACE*
SHEAMUS makes his way out, beating his chest in signature fashion and firing himself up for the live crowd. Michael Cole says Sheamus has had one goal in mind as of late: to become Intercontinental Champion before he retires and ends his career. Byron Saxton says he has been single-minded in his focus as of late, wondering who would be able to stop the former World Champion.
*THE RISING*
THE CHURCH OF SETH ROLLINS slowly marches out with KARRION KROSS leading the way with SCARLETT BORDEAUX by his side. He is then followed by NATHAN FRAZER, AKAM and REZAR as they march to the ring. Michael Cole says it is a big night for The Church as their leader and self-proclaimed God will be marching into hell to try to defeat Aleister Black. Byron Saxton says this group has been a menace on Smackdown, saying their numbers could be a problem for the entire field. In the ring, the 49 men who have made their way out stand in the ring as Corbin is talking trash to everyone until…
*AMEN*
ELIAS makes his way out getting a huge pop from the live crowd! Baron Corbin in the ring looks in shock as Michael Cole says Elias has been out of action for 15 months after Baron Corbin injured him towards the end of 2019. Byron Saxton says Elias will have one goal in mind now he is back in the ring. Elias slides into the ring holding a guitar and SMASHES IT OVER CORBIN’S HEAD AS THE REFEREE RINGS THE BELL TO GET THE MATCH UNDERWAY!
Andre the Giant Battle Royal (Winner gets an Intercontinental, United States or North American title shot):
Entrants: AR Fox, Akam, Apollo Crews, Ariya Daivari, Baron Corbin, Bo Dallas, Curt Hawkins, Curtis Axel, Dan Moloney, Daniel Garcia, Danny Burch, David Hart Smith, Duke Hudson, EJ Nduka, Elias, Epico, Erick Rowan, Gran Metalik, James Drake, James Storm, Jeff Hardy, Jinder Mahal, Karl Anderson, Karrion Kross, Kenny Williams, Killian Dain, Luke Gallows, Mansoor, Mark Andrews, Mojo Rawley, Nathan Frazer, Oney Lorcan, Otis Dozovic, Primo, Rezar, Rick Boogs, Ricochet, Riddick Moss, Rowe, Samir Singh, SCRYPTS, Sheamus, Shinsuke Nakamura, Sunil Singh, The Brian Kendrick, The Miz, Titus O’Neil, Tony Nese, Zack Gibson and Zack Ryder
Match summary: Baron Corbin gets picked up by Elias and is quickly tossed from the match to loud cheers from the fans as Elias has made an immediate impact upon his return! Meanwhile, The Authors of Pain show their power and toss the B-Team from the ring whilst Frazer manages to toss Titus O’Neil out of the match! Otis Dozovic in the other corner grabs NXT UK star Duke Hudson and tosses him from the ring!
Eliminated by Elias: Baron Corbin
Eliminated by The Authors of Pain: Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel
Eliminated by Nathan Frazer: Titus O’Neil
Eliminated by Otis Dozovic: Duke Hudson
Elsewhere in the ring, EJ Nduka starts to go on a tear as he grabs Epico and Primo grabbing them by the neck and he tosses them over the ropes. Killian Dain sees the big man and makes a point to confront EJ Nduka as the two powerhouses charge at each other. Jinder Mahal meanwhile stays in the corner but sends the Singh Brothers after the NXT UK stars Moloney and David Hart Smith… who take care of each other! AR Fox meanwhile tosses Daivari out of the ring who is noticeably holding his bicep.
Eliminated by EJ Nduka: Epico and Primo
Eliminated by Dan Moloney: Sunil Singh
Eliminated by David Hart Smith: Samir Singh
Eliminated by AR Fox: Ariya Daivari
AR turns back around and gets into it with Kenny Williams as the match continues. Karrion Kross carries on The Church’s work within the match grabbing hold of Rick Boogs and tossing him over the top rope! Whilst this is going on, Akam and Rezar carry on their teamwork taking out The One Twos! The Authors of Pain look happy… BUT THEY GET CAUGHT OFF-GUARD AS OTIS AND ROWE WORK TOGETHER TO ELIMINATE BOTH!
Eliminated by Karrion Kross: Rick Boogs
Eliminated by The Authors of Pain: Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch
Eliminated by Otis Dozovic: Akam
Eliminated by Rowe: Rezar
The crowd goes wild delighted to see The Authors of Pain taken out of the match quickly. Elsewhere we see another giant exit the match as EJ Nduka tosses Killian Dain out of the match! The NXT UK superstars Dan Moloney and David Hart Smith carry on their teamwork as they manage to get The Good Brothers out of the match as well! The Miz meanwhile would manage to pick up an elimination taking out SCRYPTS! We also see Tony Nese trying to use his speed to overcome Garcia who counters and throws him out of the match!
Eliminated by EJ Nduka: Killian Dain
Eliminated by Dan Moloney: Luke Gallows
Eliminated by David Hart Smith: Karl Anderson
Eliminated by The Miz: SCRYPTS
Eliminated by Daniel Garcia: Tony Nese
Garcia though would soon find himself under attack from Karrion Kross who lays into him. Elsewhere across the ring, Mansoor would find himself on the end of a LAST CALL SUPERKICK from James Storm to send him out of the match! Jeff Hardy though would quickly follow up and eliminate James Storm from the match! The GYV would start to make their own impact on the match, tossing out Ryder and Hawkins before Zack Gibson then eliminated Mark Andrews as he tried to dive off the top rope to loud boos from the crowd!
Eliminated by James Storm: Mansoor
Eliminated by Jeff Hardy: James Storm
Eliminated by James Drake: Zack Ryder
Eliminated by Zack Gibson: Curt Hawkins
Eliminated by Zack Gibson: Mark Andrews
The GYV especially Zack Gibson starts getting loud boos before they get into a fight with the remaining NXT UK wrestlers! The Linebackers try to team up on Gran Metalik but the Lucha star counters sending Mojo Rawley out whilst Ricochet shocks Riddick Moss to eliminate him! Elias meanwhile keeps up his form from earlier in the match and tosses out The Brian Kendrick. EJ Nduka meanwhile grabs hold of Miz and launches him out of the ring with ease! Apollo Crews would be the next man out as Rowe would overpower him and send him out of the match!
Eliminated by Gran Metalik: Mojo Rawley
Eliminated by Ricochet: Riddick Moss
Eliminated by Elias: The Brian Kendrick
Eliminated by EJ Nduka: The Miz
Eliminated by Rowe: Apollo Crews
Final 20: AR Fox, Dan Moloney, Daniel Garcia, David Hart Smith, EJ Nduka, Elias, Erick Rowan, Gran Metalik, James Drake, Jeff Hardy, Jinder Mahal, Karrion Kross, Kenny Williams, Nathan Frazer, Otis Dozovic, Ricochet, Rowe, Sheamus, Shinsuke Nakamura, Zack Gibson
The ring is getting a lot freer as Kross and Frazer start to work together a lot more and they team up to take out Otis from the match! Elsewhere across the ring, the battle between GYV and the NXT UK wrestler sees Zack managing to eliminate Dan Moloney… BUT DAVID HART SMITH TAKES OUT JAMES DRAKE! Ricochet and Gran Metalik are having a battle with each other in an all Cruiserweight clash as Kenny Williams and Jinder Mahal try to sneak an elimination… but Ricochet and Gran Metalik send them out instead!
Eliminated by Karrion Kross and Nathan Frazer: Otis Dozovic
Eliminated by Zack Gibson: Dan Moloney
Eliminated by David Hart Smith: James Drake
Eliminated by Gran Metalik: Kenny Williams
Eliminated by Ricochet: Jinder Mahal
EJ Nduka would carry on showing his insane power, lifting up Rowe with ease and throwing him out of the ring! Erick Rowan meanwhile would look like he was close to taking out AR Fox but the NXT superstar would be saved by a BROGUE KICK! Jeff Hardy has Karrion Kross in a lot of danger and looks like he might be about to eliminate him… Nathan Frazer catches him by surprise and eliminates Jeff Hardy! Elias charges in looking to take advantage but Kross sends him out of the match too! Elsewhere across the ring David Hart Smith counters Nakamura and sends him out of the match confirming our final 10!
Eliminated by EJ Nduka: Rowe
Eliminated by Sheamus: Erick Rowan
Eliminated by Nathan Frazer: Jeff Hardy
Eliminated by Karrion Kross: Elias
Eliminated by David Hart Smith: Shinsuke Nakamura
Final 10: AR Fox, Daniel Garcia, David Hart Smith, EJ Nduka, Gran Metalik, Karrion Kross, Nathan Frazer, Ricochet, Sheamus, Zack Gibson
We would see wrestlers pairing off as Karrion Kross and Nathan Frazer would get into a battle with Ricochet and Gran Metalik as the two Cruiserweights carried on working together. Sheamus would get into a battle with EJ Nduka as they traded strikes, Zack Gibson would grapple with Daniel Garcia and AR Fox would battle with David Hart Smith. The former tag team and Heritage Cup champion tries to use his power but AR Fox is a crafty veteran who uses his speed to eliminate David Hart Smith!
Eliminated by AR Fox: David Hart Smith
AR Fox rests by the ropes for a moment as across the ring we can see Ricochet and Nathan Frazer battling by the ropes with both on the ring apron struggling to stay on as Metalik looks to hurricanrana Kross out of the ring… BUT KROSS SENDS AN OPPORTUNITY AND TOSSES METALIK AT RICOCHET ELIMINATING HIM FROM THE MATCH AS WELL AS METALIK!
Eliminated by Karrion Kross: Ricochet and Gran Metalik
Kross has a smirk as Nathan Frazer is holding onto the ropes… AR FOX ELIMINATES HIM FROM THE MATCH WITH A DROPKICK!
Eliminated by AR Fox: Nathan Frazer
Karrion Kross looks furious and goes right after AR Fox laying into him. Fox stays alive and keeps in the match as across the ring the battle between Nduka power-wise sees the two men exchange strikes and chops. Sheamus is stiff but is struggling to get EJ out of the ring as Nduka lifts him… BUT SHEAMUS SLIPS BEHIND AND HITS A BROGUE KICK TO ELIMINATE HIM FROM THE MATCH!
Eliminated by Sheamus: EJ Nduka
Sheamus leans on the ropes whilst across the ring Zack Gibson goes for an eye poke to Garcia! The crowd loudly boos as Zack looks to use the cheap shot to throw out Daniel Garcia… BUT HE COUNTERS AND TOSSES GIBSON OUT OF THE RING!
Eliminated by Daniel Garcia: Zack Gibson
Final 4: AR Fox, Daniel Garcia, Karrion Kross, Sheamus
All 4 men in the match left head to a corner of the ring as the commentary team hypes up the fact that the winner of this match will get a shot at either the Intercontinental, United States, or North American title! AR Fox and Garcia meet in the middle of the ring as the two Cruiserweights battle it out. Kross and Sheamus meanwhile engage in a power exchange as the two superstars are evenly matched as they battle each other to take control of the match!
The crowd gets behind Sheamus as they want to see him get another shot at the Intercontinental title. Garcia meanwhile shows his in-ring experience beyond his years, targeting the arms of AR Fox to make it harder for him to grab onto the ropes. He gets AR Fox onto the ring apron and starts trying to pry his fingers off the ropes… but AR FOX BRINGS GARCIA ONTO THE RING APRON AND TRIPS HIM UP TO ELIMINATE HIM FROM THE MATCH!
Eliminated by AR Fox: Daniel Garcia
AR Fox rolls back into the ring under the ropes as Daniel Garica looks annoyed and shakes his head as he walks away. Back across the ring Sheamus grabs hold of Kross and looks to hit the CELTIC CROSS… BUT KROSS COUNTERS AND LOCKS IN THE KROSS JACKET! Kross is wrenching back on the hold and looks to choke the lift out of Sheamus. The crowd wills him on before Kross tosses the lifeless Sheamus out of the match to loud boos from the crowd!
Eliminated by Karrion Kross: Sheamus
Final 2: AR Fox, Karrion Kross
Kross turns around with a sadistic smirk, happy to have ended Sheamus's dreams before he locks eyes with AR Fox! Kross offers to let him leave the ring. Still, the veteran shakes his head saying this is the best chance and goes right at Kross laying into him with a bunch of strikes as the crowd gets behind the NXT superstar hoping for an upset! The commentary team even mentions the upset AR Fox pulled off in NXT last year when he dethroned Johnny Gargano to become North American Champion!
Kross though has no interest in letting an upset happen as he drags AR off the mat and tries to throw him out several times… BUT AR KEEPS FINDING A WAY TO SURVIVE! Kross is noticeably getting more frustrated with this and charges at AR Fox who bounces off the ropes and hits a FLYING CUTTER! Fox has dropped Kross to huge cheers from the crowd before grabbing hold of Kross, struggling to lift him up and hitting what commentary calls the FOXCATCHER (Cut-throat brainbuster)! Kross is out for the count as AR Fox picks the lifeless body up and tosses him from the ring for the win!
Winner: AR Fox (21:15)
The fans go wild as AR Fox gets to his feet and celebrates potentially the biggest win in his career. Michael Cole and Byron Saxton put over his performance tonight, saying he would have shocked a lot of people but now he has the choice of which title he wants to fight for. He carries on celebrating in the ring whilst Kross scowls outside the ring sulking before we cut to…
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SWERVE STRICKLAND is watching the match very closely backstage on a monitor inside THE HURT BUSINESS LOCKER ROOM! He has a slight smile on his face adjusting the Intercontinental title on his shoulder before turning to the rest of the locker room. We can see SAMOA JOE and LIO RUSH both getting ready for action with MVP saying a few words quietly to them before he walks over to Swerve. He asked what the outcome was and Swerve said EJ had a good showing but it was his friend Fox who won.
Swerve says they should look at adding him to the group but MVP shakes his head saying they have an elite group already and that would be too many members. Swerve goes to argue but Samoa Joe steps forward as the two men come face to face. Joe says that this is a group based on business not just their friends from the past. Swerve scowls at Joe with MVP agreeing with the WWE Champion saying that Swerve has an eye for talent but they need to focus on tonight and keeping their titles.
Lio Rush has been oddly silent until this point but gets to his feet saying tonight is the biggest night of his career and he doesn’t need arguing. Swerve turns to him and tells Lio that he’s right, they need to step up and make sure they stay at the top of Raw. Joe says he intends to do what he needs to do to keep his title, asking Swerve if he will do the same. The two men are face to face with each other with the tension clear between the two men before we cut elsewhere.
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We cut to NOAM DAR and LOGAN PAUL hanging out with each other backstage with cocky smirks on their faces. They are soon approached by KAYLA BRAXTON looking for an interview with the pair of them. She asks Logan how he is feeling ahead of his first-ever wrestling match and Logan Paul laughs. He says he is a YouTube icon and in everything he does, he is successful. He brings up his boxing career and says he has shown his athleticism but when has Bad Bunny shown it?
Naom Dar chimes in and says Damian Priest has proven he can hang in NXT but what happens when he steps up to a true star, a true supernova even! He says tonight he and Logan Paul will show the world what happens when you fly too close to the sun. Logan Paul says you get burned and does the most obnoxious laugh you can imagine. Kayla leaves, ending the interview but not before we see KENNY WILLIAMS appear in shot hugging his friend Noam Dar.
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We cut to a dark room for the final segment of the pre-show and we can see ALEISTER BLACK sitting down on a chair. He has his head down and his hands clenched together looking at the ground. He doesn’t speak until he lifts his head looking directly at the camera with an angry intense glare. He says it is time to send God to hell and gets up as we get confirmation from Corey Graves that Night 1 of WrestleMania 37 will be starting with Seth Rollins vs Aleister Black inside Hell in a Cell!
WRESTLEMANIA 37 NIGHT 1 WILL BE POSTED IN THE COMING DAYS