As we write this, tonight's episode of SmackDown is being filmed in London, England. The show opened with new Undisputed WWE Champion Drew McIntyre celebrating his win in last week's Three Stages of Hell match, which saw him defeat Cody Rhodes for the title.
The Scottish Warrior revealed that he talked SmackDown General Manager Nick Aldis into including a clause in the contract for the match that prohibits the American Nightmare from getting an automatic rematch.
Later in the show, Rhodes hit the ring to confirm that, while he's unable to challenge McIntyre for the title, he's now the first entrant into the 2026 Men's Royal Rumble match. He'll be looking to win the 30-man bout for the third time, so he can challenge the Scotsman at the Show of Shows.
As a reminder, this year's Royal Rumble PLE will take place on January 31 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Rhodes won the Men's Royal Rumble match back-to-back in 2023 and 2024. Both times, he challenged Roman Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship at WrestleMania and successfully dethroned the Tribal Chief in 2024.
Reflecting on those historic wins, the American Nightmare previously said, "Well, let me put this all kind of in perspective. And this is going to sound like a big old pat on the back. But it’s not for me. It’s for the people who have followed me. I had an unprecedented exit from WWE. I was able to do some really incredible things. Hopefully they were helpful to our industry, hopefully."
"I had an unprecedented return to WWE, where I got to compete with probably the best bell-to-bell wrestler of my generation, Seth Rollins, who’s a future Hall of Famer. And I beat him not once, not twice, but three times."
"I went on to win the Royal Rumble in 2023. Yeah, I had number 30, but I went to WrestleMania 39, which broke every record previously set by WrestleMania. After that, not just survived Brock Lesnar but beat him twice. The most decorated Combat Sports Athlete."
“And I moved forward to this point in time where I have gone back to back on the Royal Rumble. The first guy to do it since Stone Cold Steve Austin," Rhodes continued. "And I was able to eliminate probably the most popular wrestler of my entire era and a guy that I wouldn’t tell him to his face, or maybe I would, that I really admire and look up to. That being CM Punk."
Stay tuned for more updates from SmackDown as we have them.