Huge Backstage Update On WWE's Roman Reigns Plans Ahead Of WrestleMania 42 (WWE News)

The latest on Roman Reigns' WrestleMania 42 plans.

Roman Reigns
WWE.com

With recent rumblings that WWE's Roman Reigns and Cody Rhodes may be set for a third WrestleMania singles match when 'Mania 42 rolls around later this year, there's now somewhat of an update on plans for the Tribal Chief.

Per the latest edition of Self Made Sessions, Roman is set to make appearances on SmackDown "soon." While this doesn't necessarily mean that Rhodes vs. Reigns III is a lock for WrestleMania 42, if true, it's a further indicator that the match could well be on the horizon.

On top of this, Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer notes that it's been confirmed to him that a WWE Championship between Cody Rhodes and Roman Reigns is currently planned, but that the bout might not actually take place at this year's Showcase of the Immortals. Instead, the pair may be involved in other things at WrestleMania 42, with them instead locking horns for the WWE Title at another date at some point in 2026.

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First and foremost, the American Nightmare has Drew McIntyre to contend with on Friday, with Rhodes defending his WWE Championship against the Scottish Warrior in a Three Stages of Hell match on SmackDown that will see the pair have a straight-up wrestling match, a falls count anywhere bout, and, if needed, a steel cage contest.

As for WrestleMania 42, Randy Orton and CM Punk are just a couple of names who fans have suggested when it comes to who they'd like to see Cody Rhodes face, while there has likewise been online chatter for Roman Reigns to go up against Bron Breakker. However, regardless of such fan talk, the conversation seems to always come back around to Rhodes vs. Reigns once more, following the pair's matches at WrestleMania 39 and WrestleMania 40, not to mention Cody teaming with Seth Rollins to take on Roman and the Rock on Night 1 of 'Mania 40.

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Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks/Saints, Jamie Hayter, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.