PHILADELPHIA -- Night 1 of WrestleMania 40 was filled with compelling action and surprises.
The Rock and Roman Reigns defeated Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins in the main event of WrestleMania 40's first night of action, stacking the odds even higher against Rhodes for his title match on Sunday against Reigns.
After a grueling match that featured a dozen finishing moves and near falls -- and The Rock exerting his influence on the match referee, as a board member of the WWE's parent company, TKO -- Rhodes was pinned following a Reigns spear and The Rock delivering a Rock Bottom and the People's Elbow.
Sunday's Undisputed WWE Universal championship match will now be contested by "Bloodline Rules," meaning anything goes and Reigns' faction will have free reign to do anything they want to prevent Rhodes from "finishing his story." This was The Rock's first WWE match since 2016.
Rhea Ripley retained the Women's World Championship against Becky Lynch after delivering a Riptide into the turnbuckle. Ripley won the championship last year at WrestleMania 39 against Charlotte Flair. The announcers said that Lynch had been battling strep throat and a fever in the week before the match. Lynch, who wore ring gear that referenced her recently released autobiography, received boos from the Philadelphia crowd.
The RAW and SmackDown tag-team titles were on the line in a six-team ladder match. A-Town Down Under -- Austin Theory and Grayson Waller -- won the SmackDown tag-team titles early in the match, but R-Truth of Awesome Truth received one of the biggest ovations of the night when he grabbed the RAW belts for himself and The Miz. It lived up to the brutal reputation of WrestleMania ladder matches, with broken tables, ladders and bodies by the end.
The team of Rey Mysterio and Andrade defeated Santos Escobar and Dominik Mysterio, thanks to a little local assistance: Philadelphia Eagles offensive lineman Lane Johnson and the recently retired Jason Kelce manhandled Dominik Mysterio while wearing green-and-white Luchador masks.
Jey Uso defeated his twin brother Jimmy with a top-rope splash in the latest chapter of their Bloodline-related feud. Jimmy got Jey to drop his defenses by apologizing for betraying him in the past -- and nearly earned the win -- before Jey recovered for the pinfall.
In a trios tag team match, the team of Bianca Belair, Naomi and Jade Cargill defeated Damage CTRL. Cargill, making her first appearance in a traditional WWE match, hit her finisher on Dakota Kai. Asuka mistakenly blew mist in the face of partner Kairi Sane, and Belair hit Asuka with her braid-whip followed by the Kiss of Death finisher.
In the night's biggest upset, Sami Zayn ended Gunther's 666-day reign as Intercontinental Champion in a punishing match in front of a divided crowd. Zayn overcame four power bombs, two top-rope splashes and chest-bludgeoning chops to win the match with a Helluva Kick that followed a top-rope brainbuster on Gunther. An emotional and exhausted Zayn collapsed in the ring, as his wife celebrated from ringside.
Night 2 of WrestleMania is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET on Sunday. Along with Rhodes vs. Reigns, Logan Paul defends the U.S. title against Randy Orton and Kevin Owens; Iyo Sky defends her WWE Women's title against Bayley; and Rollins defends the World Heavyweight championship against Drew McIntyre.