LOS ANGELES — Downtown L.A. is buzzing with WrestleMania this weekend at SoFi Stadium and WWE’s “Friday Night Smackdown”, NXT Stand & Deliver and “Monday Night Raw” all at Crypto.com Arena over the next few days.
Walk through the hotel lobby of the JW Marriott, and you might see Charlotte Flair or Bayley or catch NXT’s Trick Williams eating a meal (as I did Thursday).
The Los Angeles Convention Center has been turned into a WWE Superstore with plenty of merchandise and memorabilia on display. My favorite is Eddie Guerrero’s lowrider.
Thursday’s press junket with “Smackdown” and NXT wrestlers kept the morning interesting and worth sitting in L.A. traffic to attend.
Natalya was decked out in Louis Vuitton. The Viking Raiders’ Erik and his wife, Valhalla, discussed what it’s like to raise a child while working for WWE. The tag team of Braun Strowman and Ricochet were hilarious.
Charlotte Flair, Shayna Baszler, Santos Escobar, Zelina Vega, Joaquin Wilde, Cruz Del Toro, Zoey Stark, Isla Dawn and Alba Fyre were also part of Thursday’s media lineup. Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels spoke about NXT after the junket.
Friday’s media list is set to include: Bianca Belair, Omos, MVP, The Miz, Rhea Ripley, Bobby Lashley, Dakota Kai, IYO SKY, Grayson Waller, Chad Gable, Otis and…
Streaming on Peacock (U.S.); WWE Network (non-U.S.)NIGHT 1 MATCHESCharlotte Flair vs. Rhea Ripley – Smackdown Women’s ChampionshipThe Usos vs. Sami Zayn & Kevin Owens – Undisputed WWE Tag Team ChampionshipJohn Cena vs. Austin Theory – United States ChampionshipBecky Lynch & Lita & Trish Stratus vs. Damage CTRLSeth Rollins vs. Logan PaulRey Mysterio vs. Dominik MysterioThe Street Profits vs. Alpha Academy vs. Viking Raiders vs. Ricochet & Braun Strowman – Men's Fatal Four-Way ShowcaseNIGHT 2 MATCHESRoman Reigns vs. Cody Rhodes – Undisputed WWE Universal ChampionshipBianca Belair vs. Asuka – Raw Women’s ChampionshipGunther vs. Drew McIntyre vs. Sheamus – Intercontinental ChampionshipEdge vs. Finn Balor – Hell in a Cell matchBrock Lesnar vs. OmosRaquel Rodriguez & Liv Morgan vs. Shotzi & Natalya vs. Ronda Rousey & Shayna Baszler vs. Chelsea Green & Sonya Deville – Women’s Fatal Four-Way ShowcaseThe 2023 Hall of Fame ceremony is scheduled for 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT Friday night on Peacock while the NXT Stand & Deliver event will take place at Crypto.com Arena beginning Saturday at 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT.Follow along through the weekend as The Athletic brings you everything you need to know about WrestleMania.(Photo of Steve Austin: Joe Camporeale / USA Today)){kind=link}