Fans watching WrestleMania were thrilled as iconic WWE characters returned for the company’s biggest box office event.

The Rock, John Cena and The Undertaker were in the ring for the two-day show, which saw Cody Rhodes end Roman Reigns’ three-year title streak on Sunday.

Viewers described being left “speechless” by the Philadelphia event.

WWE’s chief content officer Paul ‘Triple H’ Levesque said it was “the biggest WrestleMania of all time”.

The Rock, also a board member of TKO – the company formed when WWE merged with UFC – said Saturday night was the “highest selling single night” in the history of WWE.

Before his defeat, Roman Reigns also confirmed his ongoing treatment for leukaemia.

Roman was first diagnosed almost 20 years ago and told reporters he is on oral chemotherapy which he says he expects to remain on “my entire life”.

He previously announced in 2018 he was taking a break for treatment, before returning to the company in 2019.

“That’s just a part of my personal battle,” the 38-year-old said. “Thank God, I’m still able to perform.”

But he was beaten by Cody Rhodes in the culmination of the bloodline saga – one of WWE’s biggest storylines – and Cody says “what we do next has to be extremely special”.

The Rock, real name Dwayne Johnson, made his return to the event, which was held in Philadelphia, more than 25 years after his wrestling debut.

He partnered with Roman Reigns to take on Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins in a tag-team match in the main event of the first night.

At 51, “he’s still moving like a cruiser-weight,” says fan Joe Clarkson, 22.

“I thought he was absolutely fantastic and can clearly still run a main event scene in the WWE,” says Joe.

“Considering all the build-up that went into this and him not performing since 2016, a lot of pressure was on his shoulders to deliver and that main event was absolutely fantastic.

“It was 45 minutes of pure cinema.”

Fans took to social media to praise him, with one on X saying “The Rock is the GOAT of WWE” and another commenting that his entrance to the ring was “the greatest” in history.

Elsewhere over the weekend, Philadelphia Eagles NFL stars Jason Kelce and Lane Johnson made a surprise appearance at their home ground, becoming involved as Rey Mysterio and Andrade beat Dominik Mysterio and Santos Escobar.

Rhea Ripley also retained the Women’s World Championship against Becky Lynch while Bayley claimed the new WWE Women’s Champion title against Iyo Sky and Intercontinental champion Gunther lost his title to Sami Zayn.

YouTuber Logan Paul was also in action against Randy Orton and Kevin Owens.

Wrestlemania 40 has been described by many fans as the “best WrestleMania ever”, with one fan on X describing the Cody Rhodes-Roman Reigns main event as the “best I’ve ever seen”.

Speaking of Cody’s victory, Triple H said it was “an incredible moment” but saved most of his praise for Roman.

“If he is not the, he is one of, absolutely for certain the greatest of all time,” he said.

From next year, fans will only be able to watch pay-per-view events including WrestleMania, SummerSlam and Royal Rumble exclusively on Netflix.

It’s after bosses signed a deal which comes into force from January 2025.

Earlier this week, it was announced that WWE will host its first event in Scotland this summer, as Clash at the Castle will take place in Glasgow in June. (BBC)

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