Cody Rhodes, the American Nightmare, and Drew McIntyre squared off in the first match of Raw’s February 19th program. The conclusion of WrestleMania 39 seems too familiar to everyone who had been left heartbroken by the event. After being sidetracked by Jimmy Uso and Solo Sikoa’s Samoan Spike, Rhodes seemed to have the match won, but McIntyre emerged victorious.
Since Night of Champions 2023, this was Rhodes’ first singles defeat. This is also Rhodes’ first televised singles loss since May 2016, when he was defeated by Zack Ryder in an episode of Superstars while playing his Stardust identity, due to the loss occurring on weekly TV.
When Rhodes and Jey Uso lost a tag title rematch against Finn Balor and Damian Priest of The Judgment Day in November 2023, it was the last time Rhodes had lost a WWE bout overall.
Cody Rhodes gets ready for his last stops before WrestleMania
After much confusion over The Rock’s unexpected comeback to the organization, Rhodes finally revealed that he would challenge Roman Reigns at WrestleMania. The American Nightmare and Seth Rollins will both be guests on The Grayson Waller Effect at the Australian Premium Live Event, but they will not be competing at Elimination Chamber. In an attempt to make his segment unforgettable, the SmackDown star has made fun of Cody Rhodes in advance.
During the episode, McIntyre will be seen entering the Elimination Chamber once more. Should he prevail, Rollins will face The Scottish Warrior at WrestleMania for the World Heavyweight Championship.