Roman Reigns is a seven-time world champion. The Tribal Chief ended CM Punk's second World Heavyweight Championship reign at 169 days, pinning Punk clean in the WrestleMania 42 main event to win the title at Allegiant Stadium.
Reigns earned the shot by winning the 2026 Royal Rumble in January. Two days before the match, he told reporters he would leave WWE if he lost. He didn't have to. After 33:57 of back-and-forth with Punk, Reigns drove through the champion with a second running Spear to close WrestleMania 42.
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The Finish
Punk had the match won twice. He threw his wrist tape at the referee as a distraction, hit Reigns with a low blow, and drilled him with a Go To Sleep. Reigns kicked out. Punk followed with elbow drops, shoved Reigns outside, climbed to the top, and put him through the announce table with a flying elbow. Reigns answered with a powerbomb through the Spanish announce table moments later.
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Back in the ring, Reigns trapped Punk in the corner and punished him with clotheslines as the crowd counted along. Punk rallied one more time, hitting another GTS. When he tried to hoist Reigns up for a second one, he collapsed under the weight. Reigns recovered, hit a Spear, but couldn't follow up with a cover. Both men stared each other down from their knees. Reigns lined up, took a running start, and drove through Punk with a second Spear for the clean three count.
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A Record 11th WrestleMania Main Event
This was Reigns' record 11th WrestleMania main event, more than any performer in company history. His previous world title reign lasted 1,316 days. This seventh reign adds to a resume that already includes four Universal Championship runs and one Undisputed WWE Universal Championship run stretching from 2020 to 2024.
Reigns entered to a live stage setup — a singer, a piano player, and a drummer on the ramp — as photos of the Anoa'i family's Samoan dynasty flashed on the big screen. Peter Maivia. Afa. Sika. Yokozuna. Reigns held up the index finger. George Kittle and Tyrese Haliburton were shown at ringside doing the same.
Punk's Reign Ends At 169 Days
Punk won the World Heavyweight Championship from Seth Rollins at WrestlePalooza last September and successfully defended it against Finn Balor at Elimination Chamber in February. He went into WrestleMania 42 positioning himself as the fighting champion against a part-time challenger, a theme he hit hard in promos across the spring.
The loss closes Punk's second world title run. His first reign as World Heavyweight Champion ended when his WrestleMania 42 entrance proved to be the high-water mark of the reign — he walked out to AFI's "Miseria Cantare" in a tribute jacket, but walked back without the title.
The Feud Resolved
Punk and Reigns had not wrestled one-on-one since January 2014, weeks before Punk's original WWE departure. The feud this spring turned genuinely personal. Triple H told Joe Tessitore the backstage tension between the two was "palpable." Reigns cut a viral car promo on ESPN. Punk answered on Get Up with a line about making Reigns' orthodontist rich.
The real-life history between the two — Punk's 2014 podcast comments about Reigns that fans cite as one of the origin points of Reigns' early babyface rejection — was the subtext of every segment. Reigns addressed it directly on the Raw after the Royal Rumble, telling Punk he hated him for the damage those comments did to his career.
Sunday settled it. Clean. In the middle of the ring. Reigns wins.
What's Next
The new World Heavyweight Champion is advertised for Raw on Monday. Fallout from the title change, plus the first signs of where the title picture heads next, start there. Seth Rollins has already said publicly he would be interested in challenging whoever walked out of WrestleMania 42 with the belt.
