CJ Perry: I saw my husband destroy himself at WrestleMania 42, and I loved it

WrestleMania 42 was a tale of two halves. Or a two-night PLE. It’s shows like this that make it difficult to know what to talk about and what’s best left unsaid.

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So, let’s start with the most important thing: Babies!

As an expectant mother currently undergoing IVF, it was surprising to hear Bianca Belair’s announcement at that time on Night 1. WWE’s EST has done it all in her relatively short WWE career, but now she’s also the most pregnant. Many television shows call themselves variety shows, but what other show can go so quickly from gloating over someone’s dead father to revealing a pregnancy?

Suck that, “American’s Got Talent.”

Now that we’ve got the soft stuff out of the way, let’s focus on how much my husband killed it in his ladder match!!

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Okay, it’s still soft, but I’ll get back to that.

But first, let’s fast forward to the end of Night 1.

Watching Cody Rhodes headline again alongside Randy Orton, I couldn’t help but remember all the hours “The American Nightmare” put in to get there. All the time the fans don’t get to see. I remember Cody always watched all the matches when I was in WWE. It’s prophetic now looking back, but John Cena always sat ringside and watched every match, and Cody was always there watching from the first match too, telling incredible stories about wrestling and his own experiences in the business as he watched.

John sat in the driver’s seat, but Cody was co-pilot: the current and future “Guy” of the company knew the value of being there with everyone, from the first game to the last. And their styles for doing even that were very different: John loved to give honest, direct feedback whenever someone asked him, but Cody always told jokes to surprise everyone before giving his opinion when asked.

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Well, if the last few years didn’t indicate it strongly enough, and especially with the company having so many retirements in quick succession, Cody is now in the driver’s seat, so it will be interesting to see who takes the shotgun.

CAN WE TALK ABOUT MY HUSBAND NOW?!!

Well, soon, my love. Soon.

Trick Williams is a “superstar” in the classic sense of the word. I see people talk about how his wrestling is not up to the level of his charisma, and I can’t help but think: Who cares?! The general public certainly doesn’t. And that doesn’t mean the “Lemon Pepper Stepper” can’t fight. He had a great match on Night 2 with Sami Zayn, but again, who cares? Everyone from Gorgeous George to superstar Billy Graham to Hogan to Rock had better “fighters” working under them on their cards. But the key here is that those “top fighters” were on the card for a reason. In WWE, and entertainment in general, magnetism is key. Charisma is king. And that’s what mainstream artists know better than most: the people who show up to see them are paying their money to feel.

We can’t all be Trick. We can’t all walk around strutting around like he does; We don’t have the confidence to be that cool or that visible. But it’s fun to see someone be that which we can’t be. And the journey is watching them get rewarded for being “arrogant” by the company that employs them and the fans who pay to see it.

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We may not be Trick Williams, but we can certainly live through him.

And that’s what has always, and always will, make a star artist a star artist: someone who has the balls to make his decision and then has the talent to follow through with it time and time again.

Speaking of headliners who haven’t been headliners yet, DID YOU SEE MY HOT AND FLEXIBLE HUSBAND AT THAT LADDER MATCH?

Well, I have more to say about this, but for now all I can divulge is that I already went to Home Depot for a tall ladder and put it at the end of our bed.

What does that have to do with the times of the women’s matches? Nothing more than they should be longer and the constructions of those matches should also be better.

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More time doesn’t always mean more entertainment, but not enough time means your women’s division is fighting from a losing position before you even start.

Speaking of things that need to be highlighted more: RUSEV DAY!!

And you know who else had a great day on Sunday? Jade Cargill.

That’s how it is. She proved once again why the company is so excited about her. Built like a goddess, with the self-confidence of a… eh, goddess? I guess they were pretty proud of themselves anyway. It certainly didn’t hurt that Jade was right there with WWE’s biggest female star, but “That Bitch” certainly held her own, and then some.

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Speaking of goddesses, did you see Paul Heyman’s performance at the end of the FIVE STAR CLASSIC Oba Femi vs. Brock Lesnar? I know the world will talk about the two epic performances by the big, meaty men beating each other’s meat (Big E’s line will live in infamy), but as a fellow manager, I couldn’t help but be impressed by Heyman again on this final night (if you consider it that way) of Brock’s career.

Paul has been there since the beginning of Brock’s career, and seeing them hug like that after the match was over would bring tears to your eyes. Who would have thought the farmer’s killing machine and the New York con artist’s mastermind would fit together so epically? In a business that seeks to bring together similar people, it’s wonderful to see the strangest duo on paper become the most successful couple of all time.

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And boy oh boy, did that odd couple help create a new star on their way out (if this is the end).

Oba Femi has all the necessary tools and has completed his part of the preparation for this huge game. That man can move, talk, intimidate and strut. But he also beat up my hero Rusev, so he could kiss my Russian ass (via Latvia).

Talking about RUSEV!! Did you see that ladder match? Oh my god, I’m still hoarse from yelling at six people who couldn’t hear me. But he knew Rusev was going to defend himself in a match that was outside his comfort zone. Give him a fish, a tank, a ladder, or an attractive, flexible wife, and that man will always rise to the occasion. Yes, I said it.

He said his plan was to stand firm until the end, but instead, that crazy Bulgarian went up the ladder, through the ladder, out of the ladder, and through the ladder. (He did it twice, my sweet lion).

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I’ve never been more proud of how Rusev was once again able to show the world that if you give him some screen time, he’ll make the most of it. Now, aim that brute at a title program and watch it fly. MACA!! CRUSH!!

And speaking of gold, Sunday’s main event…

I remember the first day I went on tour with Rusev in 2014 for the Royal Rumble. (CRUSH!) “The Super Athlete” had an incredible first performance and fought CM Punk in the Rumble. But the first time I saw Punk was on “Monday Night Raw,” the night he left WWE in 2014. I’ll never forget: I was in the ring and Punk just walked to the ring, looked at the names and matches on the sheet, walked up to Vince McMahon and quit.

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Then fast forward to 2023 when I ran into Punk again in AEW when I started working with Miro and “AEW Collision.” I was very happy to finally work with Punk on what was essentially his show. I thought I could learn a lot from him and after everything I had heard, I would finally get to see him in action up close and personal.

Until, as soon as I got there, he quit and left AEW too.

Now he was starting to take it personally.

(Come to think of it, he didn’t return to WWE either until I was there.)

(Jesus, am I Danhausen’s curse on Punk?)

Either way, a magnificent build that peaked a week earlier was punctuated Sunday by an incredible WrestleMania main event where two big names gave it their all for the sport’s biggest prize. And in this case I had a lot of fun with sports. Punk vs. Roman Reigns had it all: passion, fire, callbacks, blood and, in my opinion, the right winner too.

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Reigns announced after the match that he will be back full-time with WWE over the summer and I’m guessing that will be, in part, to help restock the main event shelves after recent departures from the company. And who better to measure up to the next one than “The Tribal Chief”? If Cody is currently in the driver’s seat, it’s because Roman was part-time, but now that both men will be there week in and week out, it will be interesting to see how each helps bring in the next generation of leaders, champions and main eventers.

And as for Punk, he plays that role wonderfully too.

Two years ago I ran into him at WrestleMania and finally had the chance to ask him if he had any advice about my career and wrestling. I told him I had waited years to pick his brain because he kept abandoning companies when he saw me coming. I remember admitting to him that I was a big fan of his and perhaps “a small mark” for his career. He responded: “We should be brands for this business and the people in this business. I’m a brand too.”

I believed him then and I definitely believe him now.

To stand out is to love, and we all love this business very much.

Now wait for 52 ads. This column goes on so long I’m going to have to cut a woman’s match somewhere.