Damian Priest cashes in to win World title at WWE WrestleMania 40
Damian Priest is the new World Heavyweight Champion after robbing Drew McIntyre of his WrestleMania moment.
The World Heavyweight title changed hands twice at WrestleMania 40 night two. In the opening match of the show, McIntyre defeated Seth Rollins to win the championship. But McIntyre’s reign ended almost immediately after it started. Priest cashed in his Money in the Bank contract on McIntyre to leave WrestleMania as champion.
SEÑOR WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION!!!#WrestleMania pic.twitter.com/A7STQ6swzw
— WWE (@WWE) April 7, 2024
This is the first World Championship that the 41-year-old Priest has held in his entire career. Paul “Triple H” Levesque posted a tweet congratulating Priest on the moment:
The biggest moment of his career so far, at the biggest #WrestleMania of all time. Congrats to your NEW World Heavyweight Champion, @ArcherOfInfamy. pic.twitter.com/C5NqrhZz3Z
— Triple H (@TripleH) April 8, 2024
In storyline, Rollins was at a disadvantage against McIntyre after competing in the main event of WrestleMania Saturday. It took four Claymores for McIntyre to put Rollins away in their match.
McIntyre then taunted CM Punk, who was on commentary for the World Heavyweight title bout. Punk responded by attacking McIntyre. The injured Punk took off his arm brace and used it as a weapon to beat McIntyre down with.
Priest took advantage of the situation and cashed in. He quickly defeated McIntyre after hitting a South of Heaven chokeslam. Priest then celebrated on the stage with his Judgment Day stablemates.
#WrestleMania XL belongs to The Judgment Day! pic.twitter.com/DANWyAUquT
— WWE (@WWE) April 7, 2024
Before this, there had only been one Money in the Bank cash-in at WrestleMania. Rollins cashed in during Brock Lesnar vs. Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 31 to win the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.
In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.