WrestleMania XL: WWE stars Bayley and Gunther preview biggest event of the year

Exclusive interviews: Ahead of their respective title fights, Bayley and the ‘Ring General’ spoke to The Independent about the key bouts in Philadelphia

WrestleMania XL is just days away and this year, the “Showcase of the Immortals” feels bigger than ever.

That, in part, is thanks to the return of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. With a string of blockbuster films and 397 million Instagram followers behind him, he will undoubtedly bring new eyes - and some old ones - back to WWE.

But it’s not all about The Rock. As WWE Superstars explain, there has been a serious shift backstage under Triple H. A former wrestler himself, Triple H (real name Paul Levesque) breathes the business and, since taking up the role of Chief Content Officer and Head of Creative, has taken the company to new heights.

The Rock is preparing for his first full match in 11 years (WWE)

Triple H has retired from in-ring action but has been praised for his creative direction (WWE)

“This is, I believe, the first WrestleMania that is all him. And that’s what is making this time in WWE so special,” Bayley told The Independent, ahead of her shot at Women’s Champion Iyo Sky at the event.

Gunther, the longest-reigning Intercontinental Champion in history, noted that it has been a “breath of fresh air” in recent months and expects this to be one of the most exciting WrestleMania shows of all time.

Speaking to Gunther and Bayley, The Independent offered two WWE stars a chance to preview WrestleMania – and some of the biggest matches of the weekend – in their own words.

Gunther (C) vs Sami Zayn – Intercontinental Championship

Gunther heads into WrestleMania having already shattered records – his 664-day Intercontinental Championship reign is the longest in WWE history. He has seen off every challenger thrown in his path so far, including Sheamus, Drew McIntyre, Ricochet, Rey Mysterio and Jey Uso.

Record-breaking Intercontinental Champion, Gunther (WWE)

But fan favourite Sami Zayn could be his biggest challenge yet - and that’s something Gunther is well aware of.

“Sami is someone who is great at connecting with the audience. How he is as a person really translates well to what he is in the ring,” the Austrian said. “People really like that and I can see why. He and I, we couldn’t be bigger opposites. At the end of the day, that’s all good for him, but I’m focused on still being the Intercontinental Champion after that.”

Iyo Sky (C) vs Bayley – WWE Women’s Championship

Bayley’s quest for gold at WrestleMania against her former ally, Iyo Sky, promises an intense battle. The pair are former Damage CTRL stablemates, teaming for over a year-and-a-half before Bayley was betrayed and kicked out of the group in February.

Flash forward two months, and Bayley has a chance to take revenge by de-throning Sky on the biggest stage of all, in what will be her first singles match at WrestleMania.

“I know this is the big one, it’s a very emotional story and it’s heavy on my heart,” Bayley said. “I’ve been saying for a few years that I’ve never had a singles match at WrestleMania, let alone for the title... It’s such an amazing time in WWE, too.

Bayley set up her title shot by winning the Royal Rumble in January (WWE)

“The fact I’m right there at the top, I’m honoured, and I feel it’s the perfect time in my career. Now it’s about proving to myself, and everybody, that I’m not going anywhere. I’ve done everything at WrestleMania besides this singles match... It’s like an out-of-body experience. Walking down that ramp, standing in that ring is huge.”

Rhea Ripley (C) vs Becky Lynch - WWE Women’s World Championship

Rhea Ripley will defend her title against the returning Becky Lynch on night one of WrestleMania. With Ripley’s raw power up against Lynch’s cunning, the match promises drama and will showcase women’s wrestling at its finest.

While she has her own match to focus on, Bayley will have her eyes on this one, too, admitting it is “deserving of a main-event spot”. “I’m always interested,” she said of watching other women on the roster. “It goes back to wanting to see the division grow stronger and stronger.

“Rhea and Becky, I don’t have to worry about; they know what they’re doing out there, but I’m very excited. Becky has a huge fanbase, Rhea has a ridiculously huge fanbase and has been at the top for the last year, so it’s interesting to me to see how the fans react to them and how the girls react to that.”

Rhea Ripley and Becky Lynch are two of the biggest women’s WWE stars in recent years (WWE)

The Rock and Roman Reigns vs Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins

In a match for the ages, Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins will team up against The Rock and Roman Reigns in the main event of night one.

This match needs no introduction, with the return of WWE icon turned Hollywood star Johnson sure to electrify all those watching.

“Business is booming, people are really excited all over the world right now,” Gunther said of The Rock’s return. “We have The Rock back, he’s very committed right now. When you grow up watching wrestling, you love those moments of somebody making a return years after their big run, and that helps the big storyline of Cody and Roman.”

The Rock and Cody Rhodes will meet in a tag-team match, partnering Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins respectively (WWE)

Roman Reigns (C) vs Cody Rhodes - WWE Undisputed Universal Championship

The main event of night two sees two titans clash for the biggest prize in WWE.

Reigns narrowly beat Rhodes at WrestleMania 39, sparking anticipation for Rhodes’s redemption. But will Cody finally “finish the story”, per his promise, and does he deserve his crowning moment?

“Who am I to say who deserves what? Roman is in this position because he worked for it. What does he not deserve?” Gunther asked.

“It didn’t fall from the sky, he worked hard and went through a lot of struggles. But so did Cody. That’s the unfair thing of being in this business sometimes. There are a lot of people that deserve things, but very few get it in the end, so we’ll see how it plays out. Most importantly is that it’ll be exciting for the audience.”

“When I think about wrestling, I just think about moments,” Bayley added. “The fact that we do WrestleMania for two nights, you’re going to get a ton of those. If you go there with your kids, parents, friends, boyfriend or girlfriend, you’re going share those memories forever.”

Many fans have hoped for 12 months that Rhodes will avenge his loss to Reigns (WWE)

Full WWE WrestleMania XL card

Night one

The Bloodline (The Rock and Roman Reigns) vs Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins

Rhea Ripley (C) vs Becky Lynch - WWE Women’s World Championship

Gunther (C) vs Sami Zayn - WWE Intercontinental Championship

Jey Uso vs Jimmy Uso

The Judgment Day (Finn Balor and Damian Priest) (C) vs #DIY (Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa) vs The Awesome Truth (The Miz and R-Truth) vs The New Day (Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods) vs A-Town Down Under (Austin Theory and Grayson Waller) vs New Catch Republic (Pete Dunne and Tyler Bate) – Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship ladder match

Bianca Belair, Jade Cargill and Naomi vs Damage CTRL (Dakota Kai, Asuka, and Kairi Sane) - Six-woman tag team match

Latino World Order (Rey Mysterio and Dragon Lee) vs Santos Escobar and “Dirty” Dominik Mysterio - Tag team match

Night two

Roman Reigns (C) vs Cody Rhodes - WWE Undisputed Universal Championship

Seth Rollins (C) vs Drew McIntyre - WWE World Heavyweight Championship

Iyo Sky (C) vs Bayley - WWE Women’s Championship

Logan Paul (C) vs Randy Orton vs Kevin Owens - United States Championship

LA Knight vs AJ Styles

The Pride (Bobby Lashley, Angelo Dawkins, and Montez Ford) vs The Final Testament (Karrion Kross, Akam, and Rezar) - Six-man Philadelphia street fight

Tune in to WrestleMania XL on Saturday 6 April and Sunday 7 April on WWE Network.