‘Jackass’ star Johnny Knoxville, YouTuber Logan Paul and retired NFL punter Pat McAfee are competing at WWE WrestleMania.
ARLINGTON, Texas — Johnny Knoxville as soon as landed on his head and nearly died after he was struck by a bull, attacked by a yak and nearly blown up on a rocket.
The stunt man is aware of methods to soak up a beating — and the “Jackass” star had the shattered bones and concussions to show it. However as for shelling out some punishment? The 52-year-old figured it was time to take the struggle from the bull ring to the wrestling ring towards Sami Zayn.
“For WrestleMania, it’s not going to be too protected for Sami Zayn, I’ll inform you that proper now,” Knoxville stated. “He’s going to be wishing he received run over by a bull.”
Knoxville is the newest superstar to lace up the boots for a function match at WrestleMania, becoming a member of the likes of former winners Unhealthy Bunny and Mr. T. Additionally on the cardboard is YouTuber Logan Paul in a tag-team bout and retired NFL punter Pat McAfee has a match towards WWE CEO Vince McMahon’s hand-picked protégé Austin Concept.
The WrestleMania card at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, runs Saturday and Sunday. Charlotte Aptitude defends her Smackdown girls’s championship towards Ronda Rousey and “Stone Chilly” Steve Austin returns to confront Kevin Owens in Saturday’s major points of interest. WWE champion Brock Lesnar takes on Common Champion Roman Reigns in a unification bout in Sunday’s major occasion. Each nights are streamed on Peacock.
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The Undertaker — who as soon as received 21 straight matches at WrestleMania — was set Friday evening to get inducted into the WWE Corridor of Fame. The one wrestlers at WrestleMania to beat Undertaker are Lesnar and Reigns.
“I see it going both approach,” Undertaker stated. “In the event you press me, I’m going to say Roman wins. That may be an upset however that’s type of what I’m pondering.”
WrestleMania returns to AT&T Stadium for the primary time since Dwayne “The Rock” fired a flamethrower in entrance of almost 94,000 followers in 2016.
Knoxville fights Zayn in an “Something Goes” match on Sunday. In different phrases, don’t be shocked to see Knoxville convey a few of his “Jackass” cronies alongside for the journey to assist him pull off a win towards the pesky Zayn. Knoxville appeared on WWE TV earlier this yr to advertise his film “Jackass Endlessly.” Zayn eradicated Knoxville from the over-the-top-rope Royal Rumble match in January to kickstart the full-fledged feud.
“It took 4 males — 4 males! — to get me out of the ring,” Knoxville stated.
The lads have tried to upstage one another as a part of the storyline for the final three months: Zayn crashed the “Jackass” crimson carpet premiere; Knoxville value Zayn a match and the Intercontinental belt.
“It’s simply speaking a lot smack on a regular basis,” Knoxville stated in an current interview with The Related Press earlier than “Smackdown.” “It’s one of many solely issues I’m first rate at. So to have the ability to use that negligible talent for that is great.”
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Knoxville insisted he’s been critically coaching for his skilled wrestling singles debut. He grew up watching wrestling, but it surely didn’t essentially steer him towards the trail of starring in his personal MTV actuality present.
“That was extra of the affect of my father and Evel Knievel and cartoons,” he stated. “However there’s a standard thread between the WWE and Jackass.”
The connective thread included an evening at a resort earlier than the Royal Rumble when Knoxville noticed Lesnar — the previous UFC heavyweight champion — strolling the restaurant. Knoxville egged on Lesnar to throw pint-sized “Jackass” star Wee Man by a desk.
Positive sufficient, the hulking Lesnar picked up Wee Man and slammed him by the dinner desk.
Knoxville stated he’d like to stay round previous WrestleMania and proceed his relationship with the corporate. He additionally hasn’t fully dominated out one other “Jackass” movie after “ Jackass Endlessly ” grossed roughly $80 million in a pandemic.
“The world’s in a reasonably loopy place. We had been hoping folks would go to the theaters as a result of they want amusing proper now, however we didn’t know,” he stated. “That they turned out and preferred what we did, it means the world to us.
“We might do one other one. However who is aware of?”
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