As the anticipation builds for WrestleMania 41, WWE Chief Creative Officer Paul "Triple H" Levesque recently sat down with Peter Rosenberg to discuss the highly anticipated main event: a Triple Threat Match featuring CM Punk, Seth Rollins, and Roman Reigns. Set to take place on April 19, 2025, at Allegiant Stadium in Paradise, Nevada, this matchup has fans buzzing with excitement and curiosity.
Triple H characterized the main event as a "calculated gamble," emphasizing that while Triple Threat matches can be thrilling, they typically shine when a title is at stake. In this case, however, the stakes are different. "So, I think triple threats are good for the most part when there’s something that they’re chasing like a title and you’re sort of not sure who’s gonna win," he explained. "They all can make a claim to being the guy that should be the champion, that’s your normal triple threat. Normally, when there’s nothing on the line, triple threats to me are a bit odd. This one was a gamble and was a very calculated gamble on the fact that you have three talents at the top of their game, arguably the peak of their careers, that all have an interaction that is undeniable when you dig into it."
The build-up to WrestleMania 41 has been notably different from previous years, largely due to an extended timeline. Triple H pointed out that there are an additional two weeks from the Royal Rumble to WrestleMania this year, which has altered the traditional rhythm of the storyline development. He noted the impact of significant events leading up to the show, such as the January 6 Netflix premiere and Saturday Night’s Main Event, which have contributed to a unique narrative approach this time around. "Usually two weeks out of WrestleMania, you’re like, I feel like we’re already there and now you’re trying to figure out how to do things that are not redundant," he said. "Add two more weeks to that now. So we had to be judicious with how we do things."
Triple H delved deeper into the dynamics of the Triple Threat Match, highlighting the rich history shared between Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns. "What’s interesting about this triple threat to me is the fact that you have Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns, who arguably have more history than anybody in the company from The Shield, that came in the door together," he stated. "Seth turning on Roman to begin his singles journey, over time, just all of it with those two. The history is 10, 15 years of it."
Adding CM Punk into the mix complicates matters further. Triple H acknowledged the challenges surrounding Punk's previous tenure with WWE, noting, "Punk is really difficult to work with in that time frame, not making any criticisms of that or not, but just factual, right?" He continued, "A lot of people feel abandoned. A lot of people feel like, that we’re close to him, feel like he walked away from them and the reasonings didn’t make sense." This sentiment resonates strongly with fans and wrestlers alike, as Punk's departure left a lasting impact on the WWE landscape.
Reflecting on the aftermath of Punk's exit, Triple H remarked on the resilience of Rollins and Reigns, who have worked tirelessly to rebuild WWE into a thriving entity. "You have moments in time where CM Punk leaves here, but his name echoes here. People are saying it’s the downfall and all this stuff, and then you have guys like Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns that break their backs rebuilding this to a place where it is now bigger than it has ever been before, bigger than it was when Punk was here, bigger than the Summer Of Punk or whatever the deal was, right?"
As the match approaches, the animosity and unresolved tensions among the three competitors create a compelling narrative. Triple H expressed that there is a significant storyline potential in this match-up, stating, "There’s a lot of animosity there. Now he (Punk) comes back, changed person, he’s expecting everybody else to be changed and accepting and they’re not. There’s a lot of storyline here, there’s a lot of shoot here of these three guys that have so much, a 10-15 year history."
While the prospect of a singles match between any combination of the three—Rollins vs. Reigns, Rollins vs. Punk, or Reigns vs. Punk—could have been enticing, Triple H believes that the collective nature of the Triple Threat Match offers a unique storytelling opportunity. "You can make that argument that well, but you could have gotten a single with Seth and Roman, you could have got the single here with Seth and Punk, you could have got the Roman and Punk, right?" he said. "There’s so much individual stuff there, but there’s also so much collective stuff that I believe you can get this collective stuff off the table and then you haven’t even nicked the surface yet of where this goes between the three guys one at a time."
In an industry where WrestleMania is often seen as a definitive conclusion to storylines, Triple H suggests that this match could serve as a new beginning. "Sometimes, when you get to WrestleMania, people think, ‘Okay, but that should be the definitive end.’ Well, maybe we’re just giving you a definitive beginning. Maybe we’re just trying to figure out how to navigate this to get to WrestleMania to start a story that takes you to places that you haven’t thought of yet. That is, I think, the difference in what we do."
As WrestleMania 41 approaches, fans eagerly await the outcome of this monumental clash. The stakes may not be a title, but the implications for the future of WWE and the relationships among these three superstars are more significant than ever. Will CM Punk's return signal a new chapter in his storied career? Can Rollins and Reigns continue to thrive in a landscape they’ve rebuilt? The answers lie just moments away in what promises to be an unforgettable night of wrestling.
