Drew McIntyre after winning the WWE Championship

WWE's WrestleMania 42 Plans for Drew McIntyre Are Disappointing

Originally posted on The Sportster | By Matthew Guyett | Last updated Jan 17, 2026 12:00 PM ET

WWE fans finally got their wish to see Drew McIntyre become Undisputed WWE Champion when he defeated Cody Rhodes on SmackDown last week. The Scottish Warrior finally got the chance to parade the world title in front of fans after putting the company on his back during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The decision to put the title on McIntyre reportedly came just 48 hours before his Three Stages of Hell match against Rhodes. It has changed the direction WWE was heading for WrestleMania 42.

WWE Consider Two Drew McIntyre WrestleMania Matches

Rhodes was expected to face Roman Reigns at Mania, but Triple H is said to have been aware of fans becoming fatigued by the build to a third match in their longstanding rivalry. This led to McIntyre becoming world champion and all eyes are on whether he remains with the title come April.

According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, WWE are considering two potential matches for McIntyre at WrestleMania 42. One of those is yet another match against Rhodes but with the roles reversed and the Scotsman defending the gold.

The other potential match is a triple threat pitting McIntyre, Rhodes, and Jacob Fatu against each other for SmackDown's world championship. Fatu was partly to blame for the title change when he inteferred in the steel cage match, getting in an altercation with Rhodes which allowed McIntyre to escape.

Fatu and Rhodes went to blows on the blue brand last night in London, and it seems they are going to be feuding for the foreseeable future. But the American Nightmare vowed to win a third Royal Rumble before their brawl on last night's episode.

WWE Must Rethink McIntye's WrestleMania Plans

WWE

While WWE have listened to fans by making McIntyre a four-time world champion, they clearly haven't heard the negativity about Rhodes remaining in the title picture. There's no doubt he is one of the company's biggest stars and worthy of main eventing WrestleMania.

Rhodes has spent the past three years right in the middle of the world title scene, and there is a risk of just as much fatigue over him continuing to do so as there would be in booking another Mania feud with Reigns. He is expected to undergo a character transformation, which could be vital to help freshen things up.

McIntyre should move on from Rhodes and be given a new challenger at Mania, such as Fatu or even Sami Zayn. Many fans are of the opinion that Zayn deserves to be handed a world title match at the Show of Shows and potentially win the Rumble on January 31st.

This article first appeared on The Sportster and was syndicated with permission.

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