At WrestleMania 42, we saw stars made, championships change hands, and above all else, the future of WWE on a fantastic display. Oba Femi squashed Brock Lesnar in a match that established Oba as the next true powerhouse, while Je’Von Evans looked absolutely fantastic in the six-way ladder match for the Intercontinental Championship. We also saw one other major moment that cemented a young star as the future of WWE.
After defeating Carmelo Hayes for the United States Championship, Sami Zayn went on to WrestleMania to defend his title against one of the hottest young talents around today on the main roster, Trick Williams. This marked Williams’ very first WrestleMania, and with his win, his very first main roster championship, with many more undoubtedly to come. This was absolutely the right move, and a move WWE got right, in picking Williams to dethrone Zayn.
Trick Williams Winning The United States Championship at WrestleMania 42 Was The Right Move
Sami Zayn knocked off Carmelo Hayes in an open challenge to win the United States Championship a mere couple of weeks before WrestleMania 42. This caused many fans to turn on Zayn, with all of them wanting to see Carmelo Hayes make it to the show of shows after putting the United States Championship on the map. While Hayes wasn’t there, Trick Williams was, and he was going to do what he had to do to defeat Zayn.
Many fans didn’t think that Zayn needed the United States Championship to begin with. He was already a main-event level talent, and there was no reason he had to be the one to dethrone Hayes. Some were hoping that Williams would be the one to dethrone Hayes at WrestleMania 42, and they were half right. Williams did win the United States Championship at WrestleMania 42, just not in the match they wanted. Despite Hayes not being in the match, this was absolutely the right move.
Fans wanted to see Williams in a high-profile match at WrestleMania, and that’s exactly what he got. Accompanied by Lil Yachty, Trick Williams is one of the most charismatic stars in the WWE today, and casual fans who only tune in for WrestleMania’s got a taste of that charisma at WrestleMania 42. This was a chance to establish Williams as the top guy, and WWE hit this one out of the park.
From his entrance to the actual match, Williams looked out of this world. He didn’t have an easy task either, as Zayn is an incredible talent in his own right, despite being overly pushed at times. With that said, Williams’ presentation was absolutely excellent. His entrance, accompanied by Lil Yachty down to the ring at Allegiant Stadium, saw over 55,000 fans screaming “WHOOP THAT TRICK!”
If that type of ovation doesn’t tell you all you need to know, I don’t know what will. The crowd was very firmly in his favor, and WWE did well to put Trick Willy in the tweener role in this one, and Zayn as somewhat of a heel. Sami behaved like a heel in certain spots in this match, and Williams did very well to keep the crowd on his side. The wildest part about this is that Williams was never meant to be the babyface; Zayn was. But that’s just a testament to how over Williams is with the WWE Universe.
In the end, Williams had a somewhat clean win as he hit the second Trick Shot of the match for the three-count and to win the United States Championship. This was the former NXT Champion’s first title win on the main roster and first win at WrestleMania in his entire career. It couldn’t have come at a bigger stage. WWE clearly sees something in this charismatic star, and the fans are seeing it too.
Williams is showcasing many traits that made fans love John Cena back in the day. That’s the territory we’re getting closer to with Williams. Similar to Cena, Williams’ first-ever title in the WWE on the main roster was the United States Championship, and this is no coincidence. If Williams can be half the wrestler that Cena was, that would be a majorly successful career.
There are many reasons for this being the right move; number one is how over he is. Similar to Oba Femi and Je’Von Evans, Williams is now one of the most over talents on the entire main roster. Whether he played a heel or a face, fans were going to cheer him at WrestleMania, and that’s exactly what they did. The saying goes, strike when the iron is hot, and that’s exactly what the WWE did on Sunday.
Not only was Williams backed by one of the most famous rappers around today, Lil Yachty, but he had over 50,000 people in his corner as he was presented like a champion from his entrance down to the ring. Zayn should have never won the title to begin with, and Williams winning the title opens up to some very fun rivalries to see him defend the United States Championship against.
For example, with all of their history, we could easily see Williams and Carmelo Hayes run it back at any time. However, this is one I’d rather save for a big match at a big four show – Royal Rumble, WrestleMania, SummerSlam, or Survivor Series. With that said, there are plenty of other talents it’d be fun to see him work against, like Ilja Dragunov, someone else he had some fun wars with at NXT. Even someone like Aleister Black, Matt Cardona, or Kit Wilson could be fun to see Trick Willy go against.
Overall, this was just a tremendous move on WWE’s part to give Williams his crowning achievement at WrestleMania 42. They have been notorious for not always striking when the iron’s hot, but with Williams and Oba Femi, it’s great that they did. If WrestleMania 42 showed us anything, it’s that the future of WWE is very bright, and this could be the moment that we all lock back on and see that this was the start of Trick Williams rocket to the moon in the WWE.
What do you think? Share your thoughts, opinions, feedback, and anything else that was raised on Twitter @PWMania and Facebook.com/PWMania.
Until next time
– Scott Mitchell
You can follow me on X (Twitter) and Instagram @Scott44Mitchell
