Since the beginning of the year, former NFL Quarterback Tom Brady has been consistently taking shots at professional wrestling, having criticized the scripted nature of the sport. Brady also publicly mocked YouTube star turned wrestler Logan Paul, with his commentary over the last few months leading there to be rumors that he could be involved in a celebrity role at WrestleMania this weekend, and according to Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes on “Unsportsmanlike,” the NFL legend took things too far, despite being a massive supporter of his.
“Such a fan of Tom. So it’s very hard for me to hear Tom go against wrestling a little bit, and then the way he went against it was unique where I believe he called it cute. At the time that Tom Brady was calling pro wrestling cute, he was promoting a flag football game with his buddies. The definition of grab ass … It hurt, so now I do want that to happen. It hurt, but also it’s Logan Paul who’s on the other side of this trash talk and I feel I love a good moment when Logan talks an incredibly big game and puts himself in a situation that maybe is out of his depth. But then also Logan has risen to the occasion from time to time … Who knows? I’d be interested to see it. I can’t go against Tom, although cute was a bit much.”
Other WWE stars have called out Brady for his recent comments in the lead up to WrestleMania, with Charlotte Flair begging the football icon to show up this weekend and Seth Rollins claiming that the 48-year-old doesn’t have the guts to make a WWE appearance.
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit “ESPN” with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
It’s official: “The Alpha” Konosuke Takeshita will face the storm that is “The Rainmaker” Kazuchika Okada at AEW’s next pay-per-view event, Double or Nothing, on Sunday, May 24, at the Louis Armstrong Stadium in Queens, New York. This match will be for Okada’s AEW International Championship.
Following an unforgivable loss all due to a miscue by Takeshita, the Don Callis Family members took a big “L” from The Young Bucks at Dynasty this past Sunday. Tensions only intensified, when Takeshita’s only reply to the defeat was a sneering “Oops” on Wednesday’s “AEW Dynamite: Spring BreakThru.” Then, on “AEW Collision” Thursday, Okada told Callis that he would keep his promise and defend his title against his stiffest competition yet within the family.
After #AEWDynasty, @TheDonCallis tries to shut it down, saying the agreement is off and Konosuke Takeshita won’t face @rainmakerXokada at Double or Nothing!
But the #AEW International Champion welcomes the match!
Watch #AEWCollision on TNT & HBO Max pic.twitter.com/cySnWYgIDg
— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) April 17, 2026
Despite being on opposite ends of the ring several times in the recent past, their last ever singles match occurred this past December at Worlds End, as part of Continental Classic semifinals that Okada won. Currently, Okada has the single longest-ever run with the International Championship at 279 days. So far, Okada has had seven successful defenses. Right behind him is Takeshita, who held this title from late-2024 through early 2025 for 148 days. He dropped the title to “The God of Professional Wrestling” Kenny Omega at 2025’s Revolution.
Bully Ray is adamant that Oba Femi should walk away victorious at WrestleMania 42 when he faces Brock Lesnar.
Femi, who was called up to the main roster just a few months ago, has had an astronomical rise and become a fan favorite. Ray spoke glowingly about Femi following his latest promo on “Raw” before his clash with Lesnar, arguing that Femi looks and sounds credible enough to beat him.
“Do I believe what Oba Femi is saying? And the answer is a resounding yes. I truly believe that Oba Femi can beat Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania. After last night’s promo, there is no doubt in my mind. He’s not gonna run over Brock Lesnar, but there is no doubt in my mind that Oba Femi is confident enough to bring the fight to Brock and defeat ‘The Beast,'” he said on “Busted Open.” “That dude can back you up with his words. I’m trying to explain with the believability factor. Listen to his tone. Listen to the way the words come out. Oba knows he’s the man. Oba knows, you know, I’m the ruler. That mother trucker really thinks he’s the ruler. He’s a Nigerian fu**ing nightmare.”
Ray lauded Femi’s physique and appearance and said that his appearance would even get him on the cover of “GQ” magazine. He reiterated how believable the former NXT Champion is, while pointing out how not many have had as great a start on the main roster as Oba Femi. Ray is convinced that the former “NXT” star has to beat Lesnar at WrestleMania 42.
“Oba Femi is going to be wrestling Brock Lesnar on ESPN, where the biggest world championship fights happen,” he said. “You’ve heard me say a lot of times in our past ten years that winning and losing does not matter. But every once in a while, winning and losing matters. Oba Femi, in my opinion, must defeat ‘The Beast’ on ESPN at WrestleMania.”
The contest between Lesnar and Femi will open night 2 of WrestleMania 42, which will be held for the second year in a row at Allegiant Stadium.
WrestleMania 42 is almost upon us, and a recent report has indicated a few stars who will come out on top after the show.
The show will feature some high-profile matches, as expected for an event of WrestleMania’s magnitude, while a few of the younger stars on the WWE roster will also get their time to shine in the spotlight. “Wrestlevotes on Fightful Select” has reported that three names will likely emerge victorious at the show, one of whom is Roman Reigns, as sources have informed them that he will get the better of CM Punk, the WWE World Heavyweight Champion, in the main event of night 2 of WrestleMania 42. Reigns hasn’t won the WWE World Heavyweight Championship since it was introduced in 2023, and in fact hasn’t held a title since losing the WWE Championship to Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania 40 in 2024.
Another title match that is set to take place on night 2 is the ladder match for the Intercontinental Championship, which many expect to steal the show, thanks to the high-flyers in the match. As per the report, Penta, the current holder, is reported to retain his title in the match, which will feature WWE Hall of Famer Rey Mysterio, Rusev, Judgment Day’s JD McDonagh, Dragon Lee, and the 21-year-old Je’Von Evans.
The third person whom the report has mentioned will win their match at “The Show of Shows” is Trick Williams, who will face Sami Zayn for the WWE United States Championship. Williams, a former NXT Champion, will be in his first WrestleMania match, and has the opportunity to win his first title on the main roster. The report added that plans could shift on the day of the show, but some backstage figures believe that the aforementioned results will likely happen.
CM Punk has opened up about the origins of his iconic name, his mindset on retirement, and the personal growth that ultimately led to his WWE return, offering a layered look at where he stands today.
Speaking on the Nightcap podcast, Punk revealed that “CM Punk” wasn’t a name created for television or carefully designed for branding. Instead, it dates back to his teenage years, when he was wrestling in backyards and embracing a nickname others used to describe him.
“So when I went and got trained, like I was wrestling in a backyard when I was 15 years old, I was CM Punk. That’s always been your, because Punk was my nickname. You know what I mean? Like I was a little punk kid. You know the older parents, ‘your little punk,’ you know? And instead, to me, I was like how is that insulting? Like I wore that like a badge, right? I was proud of that.”
As he transitioned into proper training, Punk initially believed he needed to reinvent himself with a new identity. However, his trainers quickly shut that down and encouraged him to stick with what already felt authentic.
“But when it came time to quote unquote go pro, you know, I find a training school, I get brought in the right way, broken in. And I’m trying to come up with a cool code name, you know what I mean? And my trainers looked at me and they’re like, ‘What are you doing? You’re punk. Just be punk,’ right? And I was like, ‘Oh, okay.’ I thought maybe I had to kind of leave that behind.”
Even after signing with WWE, Punk assumed a name change was inevitable, given the company’s history. Instead, he made it to television unchanged, something he now recognizes as rare.
“And then when I signed with WWE, I thought for sure that’s it. They’re going to change it. Because we do that sometimes. We changed people’s names and I thought I was going to be an astronaut or you know what I’m saying, like I don’t know what they were going to do with me. And somehow I made it to television as CM Punk. You know, like I’m just fortunate that way, I suppose.”
Beyond his name, Punk also addressed the topic of retirement, admitting it has crossed his mind but not because he feels ready to step away. At 47, he believes he is still performing at a top level and sees no reason to slow down.
“It’s crossed my mind, the retirement thing, but you know, hey, knock on wood, I feel like I’m operating at a very high level still. I’m still telling the same stories. People still invested. People are going to be going crazy Sunday night. I’m in the main event. I got to be doing something right. Why stop now?”
He acknowledged that seeing peers walk away has made the reality of retirement more tangible, referencing both AJ Styles and John Cena, but stressed that he is not planning an exit anytime soon.
“I also know it could end like that. So I’m not trying to plan anything. I just watched my friends AJ Styles and John Cena retire, you know. So yeah, it looms. It’s on my mind, but not anytime soon.”
Punk also reflected on how personal growth played a key role in his WWE return. Letting go of past resentment and focusing on himself helped him move forward after years away from the company.
“A lot of things that I would hold on to, you know, like if you’re angry about something that happened in the past or you hold a grudge, you know, you’re holding on to this hot coal and after a while, seven years, you realize like what I’m only hurting myself.”
That shift in mindset allowed him to rebuild bridges and approach situations differently, particularly when it comes to conflict.
“So just focus on you, not really worried about other stuff, you know, and just kind of shed some baggage. That helped me be able to come back. Just let stuff go, right?”
“You know, I had problems with people, and to me, what it amounts to is bad communication on both sides and then your pride gets in the way… if I got a problem with you, let’s just talk about it. Let’s have a conversation.”
