10 Ways WWE Has Shot Itself In The Foot In 2026
5. Drew McIntyre’s WWE Championship Reign
It's safe to say that nobody expected Drew McIntyre to beat Cody Rhodes for the WWE Championship in January 2026. The American Nightmare was the bigger star, so surely he would be the one to carry the belt into WrestleMania season.
McIntyre had lost his last three title matches against Rhodes, so he really needed to win this one. However, when he get his hands on the prize, it was bittersweet. Fans had worked out that he was going to lose the gold back to Cody before Mania, so his reign became one big waiting game.
It's not like WWE did much with the Scotsman as champion. He had one televised title defence in which he beat Sami Zayn at the Royal Rumble, but spent most of the rest of his time interfering in Rhodes' business. This led to a rematch on SmackDown in which, you guessed it, McIntyre lost the belt.
Drew deserved significantly better than this placeholder title reign. The company clearly doesn't see him as a tippy-top player.