SmackDown emanated from London, England this week and Drew McIntyre kicked off the show. The new Undisputed WWE Champion got a special entrance complete with bagpipes and pyro and he addressed Cody Rhodes when he got down to the ring. Drew announced that he put a special clause in the contract for their title match that said Cody will not get a rematch, so he will have to work his way up from the bottom.
Later in the night Cody Rhodes made his way out into the arena and The American Nightmare looked emotional as he walked down to the ring without his title. Cody got a mixed reaction from the London fans, but said “it’s ok.” The fans started to chant for Drew McIntyre.
Cody asked fans what he has in common with Shawn Michaels and Steve Austin then pointed out how they all won back to back Royal Rumble matches. He told everyone that sometimes the best super power you can have is to believe in yourself, and he acknowledged that Drew made sure there was no rematch clause.
The American Nightmare followed up and said that he’s going to do this the old way as he announced that he is officially entering the 2026 men’s Royal Rumble match. Rhodes also addressed Jacob Fatu and got fired up as he told Fatu he has a receipt coming then threw the mic down and left the ring.