New WWE Backstage Rumors on Triple H Criticism and WrestleMania 42 Plans Changing

Changes to the WrestleMania 42 card has reportedly led to some frustration with Triple H.

On the latest episode of Wrestling Observer Radio (h/t Steve Carrier of Ringside News), Dave Meltzer explained there has been "a lot of internal criticism" toward Triple H.

"There's been a lot of internal criticism of Paul Levesque… they have a plan, and then they change the plan. And right now everything is up in the air," Meltzer said.

Meltzer added that there was a "complete card" for WrestleMania in place prior to the Royal Rumble, but now "everything is up in the air."

One potential issue for WWE is ticket sales for WrestleMania don't appear to be moving as well as they have in past years. There are currently around 74,000 total tickets sold for the two nights combined, compared to around 89,000 for both nights at this same point last year.

It was previously reported that one of the original plans for 'Mania was a third match between Cody Rhodes and Roman Reigns. Another rumored plan that was scrapped was Bron Breakker winning the men's Royal Rumble, then defeat CM Punk for the world heavyweight title at WrestleMania.

The only thing that has been confirmed for WrestleMania thus far is Punk defending the world heavyweight championship against Reigns.

Even though WWE has been teasing a bout between Rhodes and Drew McIntyre for the undisputed title on the show, Meltzer noted that's "not a sure thing right now" because Jacob Fatu could be added to make it a triple-threat match.

One potential reason for the creative changes is ticket sales for WrestleMania don't appear to be moving as well as they have in past years. There are currently around 74,000 total tickets sold for the two nights combined, compared to around 89,000 for both nights at this same point last year.

Another potential issue is bad injury luck. Seth Rollins almost certainly would have been a huge part in the build to WrestleMania, but a shoulder injury suffered at Crown Jewel in October took him out of action and led to rushing the Vision turning on him.

Breakker's status is currently up in the air after he had surgery for a serious hernia. The WrestleMania card presumably has to be locked prior to Elimination Chamber on Feb. 28.

WrestleMania is still going to be wildly successful from a financial standpoint, especially with Las Vegas paying a reported $6 million for a week of shows, but this does appear to be the first real test for Triple H since he has been in charge of booking.

Triple H took over as head of creative in July 2022, right before the Bloodline angle really caught fire. The success of that carried WWE through 2024, highlighted by Rhodes finishing the story when he defeated Reigns at WrestleMania 40.

John Cena's retirement tour helped elevate WWE throughout 2025. Now, though, there isn't any one big angle or storyline that is really driving things like they have had over the past few years.