Original WWE WrestlePalooza Main Event Plans Revealed

WWE WrestlePalooza is set to launch the ESPN era in a major way, but behind the scenes, the main event plans went through some surprising changes.

Fightful Select reported that the original plan was for Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena to close the show. It was later confirmed that those plans shifted, not because of Lesnar’s usual desire to leave early after matches, but simply due to creative direction.

“It was confirmed to us that at one point, Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena were slated to main event. We were told it in fact was not changed because Brock wanted to fly out early, which is something he does actually like to do.”

Instead, WWE and ESPN settled on Cody Rhodes defending the Undisputed WWE Championship against Drew McIntyre as the official headliner. The decision ensures ESPN’s first WWE event ends with the spectacle of a major title match, while still keeping Cena and Lesnar in one of the show’s most high-profile bouts.

The rest of the WrestlePalooza card features CM Punk and AJ Lee teaming against Seth Rollins and Becky Lynch, IYO SKY battling Stephanie Vaquer for the Women’s World Championship, and The Usos facing Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed. Still, the biggest shakeup was the move away from Cena and Lesnar closing the night.

WWE WrestlePalooza takes place tonight at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, airing live on the ESPN app in the U.S. and Netflix internationally. Be sure to tune in live and follow along with Ringside News for full play-by-play coverage over in our Wrestlepalooza coverage hub.

Do you think WWE should have kept Cena vs. Lesnar as the WrestlePalooza main event, or was switching to Cody Rhodes vs. Drew McIntyre the right call? Drop your thoughts in the comments below.