Mark Shapiro has admitted that bringing WrestleMania 42 back to Las Vegas for a second consecutive year may have been the wrong call, given weaker business than in 2025.
Speaking with Yahoo! Finance, the TKO President reflected on the decision to move WrestleMania 42 away from its originally planned home in New Orleans and return to Las Vegas, following the success of WrestleMania 41.
“Maybe it’s a mistake I made,” Shapiro admitted. “Vegas was so huge last year and such a winner for our fans and the product.”
Shapiro explained that the success of the 2025 event convinced him and Nick Khan to immediately return to the city for another WrestleMania the following year.
“I said to Nick Khan, ‘We’ve gotta go back to Vegas next year. We have to move New Orleans down the road and we got to come back to Vegas.’”
However, ticket sales for WrestleMania 42 failed to match the previous year’s momentum, with the softer attendance even becoming part of WWE television storylines during WrestleMania season.
TKO President Says He Has No Regrets About Bringing WrestleMania 42 Back To Las Vegas
Despite acknowledging the criticism surrounding the decision, Shapiro made it clear he does not regret bringing the event back to Las Vegas.
“Absolutely no regrets on going back,” Shapiro said. “But the only reason you’re hearing some of the, ‘Hey it’s not what it was last year,’ it’s because we’re not benefiting from the first mover experience.”
WrestleMania 42 eventually took place in Las Vegas while New Orleans was pushed back to a future WrestleMania date.
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