Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens Flirt with Perfection in All-Time Great WrestleMania Night 1

Going into the main event of WrestleMania 39's opening night, it was fair to wonder how it could match the amazing card that preceded it.

Somehow, Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens becoming unified tag champions with a triumph over The Usos managed to surpass it all.

The match had to overcome a predictable outcome, making the feat all the more impressive.

In a testament to brilliant storytelling and character work, four surefire Hall of Famers put on, arguably, the best WrestleMania tag match ever while proving that predictable can be good.

As expected, the match was undoubtedly worthy of the main event slot, becoming the first tag team title match to headline 'Mania.

The psychology and in-ring storytelling was off the charts. The Usos, the 600-plus-day champions, took an early advantage before momentum swings and near-falls after finishers.

But this wasn't a tag match one might find on Raw or SmackDown. Jey Uso and Zayn were especially emotional, with the former even making onlookers uncomfortable by beating down the latter in a way Roman Reigns had done to him in the early days of The Bloodline.

Fittingly, it was Zayn who delivered the comeuppance, apologizing to Jey while hitting the Helluva Kick three times to secure the pinfall.

Every little thing about the contest was perfect, to the point that it didn't rely on stale tropes such as interference from Solo Sikoa or someone else.

The announcers even called it perfectly, pointing out early how the champions had cut the ring in half while isolating Zayn and trying to goad Owens into a disqualification. They narrated the champions weathering the initial emotional storm from the challengers while sitting firmly on opposite sides of the Jey-Zayn fence.

Truth be told, only an all-timer of a tag match was going to be able to keep pace with what was one of the best nights of 'Mania ever.

It's hard to name a more robust, satisfying top-to-bottom card in the modern history of The Show of Shows.

Austin Theory beating John Cena was fine as an opener and will do much for the former's character. The men's WrestleMania Showcase was fun under-10-minute action, as was the six-woman tag match. Seth Rollins and Logan Paul were great leading up to and in the ring, as expected.

Rey Mysterio besting his son, Dominik, while paying tribute to Eddie Guerrero, was an incredible moment. And Rhea Ripley winning the SmackDown women's title from Charlotte Flair had no business earning anything less than a five-out-of-five mark across the board.

On paper, the Night 1 card looked like it would be a sign of the new Triple H-led creative era flexing what it can do. There wasn't much in the way of needless celebrity involvement (wild how Logan Paul doesn't count anymore, right?), the Pat McAfee segment was to give fans a breather, and there was no strange subversion of expectations just to get a reaction.

But fans reacted anyway, with 80,000-plus inside SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles on the edge of their seats and some of them in tears by the end of the main event—and it felt earned.

Call it validation for those fans who were adamant for years (decades, even) that a proper investment in long-form storytelling would unearth all-timer results.

The best part? The passing-of-the-torch theme heavily leaned on Theory (25 years old), Ripley (26), Dominik (25), Paul (28) and two long-time veterans taking over the tag scene and putting a wrap on an all-time storyline.

It isn't often pro wrestling comes together so well in a symphony of stories and characters that exemplify the sport at its very best. But that was what Night 1 of WrestleMania 39 provided, and it's fair to wonder if Night 2 can even keep up.

If it can, the WWE Universe has one of the best WrestleManias of all time on its hands.

Even if it doesn't, Night 1 goes down in the history books. The main event will rightfully get the biggest spotlight, as one-half of the conclusion to one of the greatest storylines ever.

Along the way, The Usos cemented themselves as one of the best teams ever, while Owens and Zayn—long known by other names in other promotions but main-eventing 'Mania together in 2023—cemented themselves as all-timers and a shining example of the current golden era of pro wrestling.