WRESTLEMANIA 35

Ken Hoffman reports from WrestleMania's record-breaking bash

Ken Hoffman reports from WrestleMania's record-breaking bash
Becky Lynch became the first undisputed Raw and Smackdown women's champ in a controversial finish. Becky Lynch/Facebook

This article originally appeared on CultureMap.

Defending champions were an endangered species on April 7, as only two of 10 title-holders escaped WrestleMania 35 with gold belts still around their waist. When the dust cleared well into Monday, April 8 morning at sold-out MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, Kofi Kingston was the new Universal champion, Seth Rollins was WWE champ, the "Demon" Finn Balor was Inter-Continental champ, and Braun Stroman practically launched Saturday Night Live players Colin Jost and Michael Che into orbit to win the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal.

A beer-drinking, villain-boo-ing, souvenir-buying crowd of 82,265 fans saw "The Man" Becky Lynch become the first undisputed Raw and Smackdown women's champ in a controversial finish to her match against "Rowdy" Ronda Rouseyand "The Queen" Charlotte Flair. It sure looked like Rousey's shoulders were off the mat when the referee counted 1-2-3. This one could be headed to the Supreme Court — right behind the Democrats' effort to get President Trump's tax records. Good luck on both.

MetLife Stadium, home to the NFL's New York Giants and New York Jets, was rockin' and 'cringin' during a brutal "No Holds Barred" match between "King of Kings" Triple H and "The Animal" Batista. Triple H grabbed pliers and ripped a ring from Batista's pierced nose. Yeeoww! Triple H ultimately triumphed when "Nature Boy" Ric Flair tossed a sledgehammer into the ring and Trips used it to dispatch Batista. Pliers, hammers … Chip Gaines on Fixxer Upper doesn't have this many DIY tools.

The "Greatest Stage of All" grossed $16.9 million, a MetLife Stadium record.

The press box was jammed with hard-hitting journalists from 68 countries, who dined on All-American hot dogs, barbecue brisket, Philly cheesesteaks, and chocolate chip cookies. If anybody believes that media is the enemy of the people, let me set you straight. After the matches, the line for the train to Manhattan was backed up to Snooki's place on the Jersey Shore, and there weren't nearly enough Uber drivers to go around. Drenched in a pelting rain, I bummed a ride from a Newsweek writer and got back to my hotel at 2:30 am.I didn't know that Newsweek was still around.

The biggest pop during the "Showcase of the Immortals" celebrated Kofi Kingston's long-time-coming victory over arrogant, pedantic WWE champion "The New" Daniel Bryan. It was Kingston's first singles title in his 11-year career.

Continue reading on CultureMap to find out who won the Women's Battle Royal.

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Fred VanVleet agrees to new contract with Houston. Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images.

For the Houston Rockets, it's already been an exciting offseason, with the team trading for NBA superstar Kevin Durant earlier this week. The Rockets also inked extensions with big man Steven Adams and head coach Ime Udoka in recent weeks.

Apparently the action isn't slowing down as the Rockets have reportedly agreed to a contract extension with guard Fred VanVleet.

Senior ESPN NBA analyst Sham Charania is reporting that VanVleet intends to sign a 2-year, $50 million contract with Houston.

Charania is also reporting that VanVleet has a player option for the 2026-2027 season.

In 60 games, VanVleet averaged just over 14 points and 5.6 assists per game last season.

Per NBC Sports' Kurt Helin:

This is a team-friendly deal for the Rockets that gets them below the luxury tax line, helping them avoid the repeater tax. It also opens up the full $14.1 million mid-level exception to add more talent to the roster. For VanVleet, it's more total money and an extra year of security.

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