"I acknowledge you Tribal Chief!" - UFC fighters react to WrestleMania 40 Night 1 that saw Roman Reigns spear 'The Rock'

The pop culture realm has seemingly been gripped by WrestleMania 40 and the incredible performances on Night 1 of the professional wrestling extravaganza. Over the course of two nights (April 6 and April 7, 2024), the WWE organization is putting forth its grandest annual event, WrestleMania.

One of the biggest WWE feuds heading into this year's edition of WrestleMania (aka WrestleMania XL), has witnessed the return of WWE legend and Hollywood megastar Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson. Johnson is an ally of Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns aka 'The Tribal Chief' and a part of 'The Bloodline,' a villainous faction.

On Night 1 of WrestleMania 40, 'The Rock' and Reigns competed in a tag team match against Cody Rhodes and Seth 'Freakin' Rollins. The back-and-forth matchup ended with the 'Final Boss' securing a pinfall over Rhodes, as he and Reigns emerged victorious.

Nevertheless, none of the four performers, not even the 'Final Boss' himself escaped unscathed. During an in-ring sequence, Reigns misjudged a spear maneuver and ended up hitting his own tag team partner and real-life cousin, 'The Rock.' Be that as it may, 'The Bloodline' brethren ultimately managed to beat Rhodes and Rollins.

Watch Reigns' inadvertent spear against 'The Rock' below:

While WrestleMania XL Night 1 was underway on Saturday (April 6, 2024) in Philadelphia, the UFC Fight Night: Allen vs. Curtis 2 event took place the same night in Las Vegas. Regardless, multiple former and current UFC fighters have watched the WrestleMania matches and taken to social media to chime in on the same.

UFC bantamweight athlete Adrian Yanez notably took to his X account and expressed his appreciation for the show by writing:

"I'm loving this #WrestleManniaXL"

Meanwhile, UFC welterweight Themba Gorimbo praised his ardent supporter, 'The Rock,' whereas UFC middleweight Bo Nickal predicted a potential crossover to the WWE. UFC Hall of Famer and longtime WWE fan Daniel Cormier lauded 'The Rock,' whilst also acknowledging Reigns. 'DC' tweeted:

"I acknowledge you tribal chief! #WrestleMania"

Check out the screenshots of a few reactions below:

Screenshots of reactions

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Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson's spectacular comeback underscores excellent Night 1 at WrestleMania 40

While the match outcomes are predetermined in the professional wrestling dominion, the WWE and its pro wrestling content boasts a loyal and gargantuan fan base worldwide. In 2023, UFC's parent organization, Endeavor, acquired the WWE. Following that, the UFC and WWE were merged under TKO Group Holdings.

Intriguingly, 'The Rock' is a member of TKO's Board of Directors. Speaking of him, he's earned tremendous laudation for his impressive in-ring comeback on Night 1 of WrestleMania 40. Had Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins won the tag team match, all members of 'The Bloodline' would have been banned from ringside during the Reigns-Rhodes title match on Night 2.

However, 'The Rock's' and Roman Reigns' tag team victory on Night 1 of WrestleMania 40 has ensured that Reigns' title defense against Rhodes on Night 2 will be under 'Bloodline Rules.'