20 Most Anticipated Wrestling Matches Of 2026
11. Cody Rhodes vs CM Punk
The handful of times that these two gentlemen have traded bars with a microphone have been fantastic. Before the 2024 Royal Rumble, Punk declared that his life's trajectory made him more "The American Dream" than Cody, and it was electric. Rhodes' retort that Punk's pipebomb was all talk and that Cody achieved everything that the 'Second City Saint' said he was going to made him "more CM Punk than you are", and that hit just as hard.
In 2025, they traded shots again before the Royal Rumble, with Rhodes pointing out to CM Punk that the Best In The World isn't The Best In The World anymore. Punk and Cody have pointed at the WrestleMania sign together twice, and yet they haven't had a singles match since 2008. That has to change in 2026.
An encounter that only WrestleMania is big enough to host, CM Punk vs Cody Rhodes is one of those matches where people will care who emerges victorious to an unhealthy degree. The promos, long-term history, and pomp and circumstance mean that this match doesn't even need a world title to headline the show of shows. May the best man win.