WWE Vegas Fallout: Attendance Slumps as CM Punk and Fans Clash in Viral Hotel Altercation

WWE’s record-shattering streak hit a roadblock in Las Vegas last weekend as WrestleMania 42 attendance plummeted by nearly 19,000 fans compared to last year’s historic turnout.

However, it was still enough to place fourth of all seven two-night Wrestlemania events. (Wrestlemania 39 in L.A. was the undisputed king, drawing 161,892 to SoFi Stadium, and WrestleMania 40 in Philadelphia came in second at 145,298.)

Early financial reports indicate that it likely fell just short of the record-shattering $66 million gate set by WrestleMania 41, though that can be explained as much by rising ticket prices as attendance.

The news outside Allegiant Stadium was better. According to WWE, the matches broadcast on ESPN2 on Saturday were the most viewed telecasts of the year for the network, while segments broadcast on ESPN on Sunday were the most viewed telecasts of the weekend for that channel.

The weekend also set a new digital record, generating more than 1.3 billion views across all social platforms, which WWE reported was up 18 percent from the record set last year.

Paid experience sales at WWE World, which was a five-day interactive fan experience in partnership with Fanatics, also reached unspecified “all-time highs,” according to WWE.

Unscripted Skirmishes

On Saturday, Cody Rhodes retained his undisputed WWE championship against Randy Orton — despite early interference from Pat McAfee. And during Sunday’s main event, Roman Reigns defeated CM Punk to claim the World Heavyweight Championship.

However, most of the headlines made by this year’s WrestleMania were made by unscripted fights outside the ring.

On Sunday night, CM Punk confronted a fan at the MGM Grand, smacking the phone out of his hand. Video posted by TMZ Sports the next morning showed the fan filming Punk’s WWE friend, Bayley, as she hugged his wife, AJ Lee.

According to TMZ, the fan had previously been asked to stop and touched Lee after she declined a photo request.

In addition, Sean Waltman — better known to WWE fans as X-Pac – posted on X that he was “physically assaulted” during the weekend. And WWE Hall Of Famer Booker T claimed on his podcast that he was filmed while using the bathroom.

“For me it was the toughest time I have ever had to deal as far as the fan interaction goes,” Booker T said. “A lot of them were outright disrespectful.”