WWE Cutbacks Affected WrestleMania 40 Pyro

WrestleMania 40 was a typically epic presentation by WWE, who tend to go all-out when it comes to The Showcase of the Immortals. There was, however, less pyro on display at this year's two-day extravaganza.

Responding to a reader's question, PWInsider Elite noted that the reason for this was due to 'cutbacks under Endeavor'. WWE's parent company seemingly wanted to keep the budget down in order to maximise profits. The site added that there was even talk of doing far less pyro than there was in the end.

WWE issued a press release touting WrestleMania 40 as the most successful event in company history. Among the statistics were that viewership was up 41 per cent across both nights, in relation to last year's record-setting audience, and that the combined Saturday and Sunday was WWE's highest-ever gate, beating WrestleMania 39 by 78 per cent. Those figures have yet to be independently verified.

WWE's next premium live event is Backlash France, which will emanate from Lyon on May 4. At the time of writing, two matches have been announced for the show. Cody Rhodes will defend his Undisputed WWE Championship against AJ Styles, while Jey Uso will challenge for Damian Priest's World Heavyweight Championship.