WWE Bombshell: Paul Heyman Spills on Scrapped WrestleMania 41 Plans—Punk vs. Gunther & Reigns vs Rollins Almost Happened!
The road to WrestleMania 41 could have looked very different—at least according to Paul Heyman. The WWE mastermind just revealed some shocking behind-the-scenes details about matches that were originally planned but never saw the light of day. Spoiler alert: fans might have actually gotten the dream match-ups they’ve been begging for.
Reigns vs Rollins & Punk vs Gunther Were the Big Ideas
On Netflix’s WWE Unreal and during an interview with Ariel Helwani, Heyman confirmed that early discussions for WrestleMania 41 included blockbuster clashes like Roman Reigns vs Seth Rollins and CM Punk vs Gunther.
“The original idea for this year’s ‘Mania was Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins and Gunther vs. CM Punk,” Heyman admitted. “We even talked about Cody vs. Roman III at one point. All options were on the table.”
Instead, fans got a very different story that left many disappointed. The actual World Heavyweight Championship bout—featuring Jey Uso—was slammed as one of the weakest matches on the card.
Jey Uso Wasn’t Supposed to Be in the Title Picture
Perhaps the biggest surprise from Heyman’s revelation is that Jey Uso wasn’t even in the original WrestleMania plans. His involvement came after veteran producer Michael Hayes pitched him as the Royal Rumble winner—a huge twist that completely reshaped the show.
Originally, WWE considered John Cena or CM Punk to win the Rumble and headline Night 1. But the company instead doubled down on Jey’s momentum, despite some hesitation backstage.
Fatal 4-Way Plans Scrapped
Another bombshell: WWE initially toyed with making the Night 1 main event a massive Fatal 4-Way match featuring Rollins, Punk, Gunther, and a fourth star. But late changes turned it into a Triple Threat—a decision that many believe hurt both the match quality and overall storytelling.
Heyman himself admitted, “Not all last-minute changes lead to magic.”
👉 What do you think—did WWE make a huge mistake changing these plans, or was Jey Uso the right call?
