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Why WWE Decided To Crown Drew McIntyre As The Undisputed WWE Champion

By Harikesh Shekhar • Published Jan 16, 2026 10:07 EST
Drew McIntyre WWE SmackDown

A social media post from WrestlePurists on X sheds some light on WWE’s decision to crown McIntyre Champion

Cody Rhodes has been the face of the company for a few years now. He won the WWE Title at WrestleMania 40 and had a lengthy one-year reign before losing it to John Cena amid his heel turn at WrestleMania 41.

Rhodes won the title back from Cena at SummerSlam 2025 and was champion until last week on SmackDown when the Scottish Warrior defeated him for it after winning a Three Stages of Hell match.

The WWE Universe has been rallying behind his latest challenger, Drew McIntyre, and wanted him to be crowned champion. The live crowd in Germany made their feelings clear during the match, cheering for McIntyre, who was the heel in this equation, and even going for some “let’s go Cody!” and “Cody sucks!” chants.

McIntyre’s victory marks his third run as WWE Champion, and the talented star lost many title bouts before this. He and Rhodes reportedly were on the same page about the title change this time around.

Real Reason Behind WWE Championship Change

According to a post on X by WrestlePurists citing the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, both stars involved actively agreed that it was time for a change.

Despite their heated, personal on-screen feud, the two knew what was best for business and made a combined effort to begin this new chapter.

Both Drew McIntyre and Cody Rhodes had been pushing that McIntyre should get the Undisputed WWE Championship. McIntyre was said to be pretty vocal that he felt it was the best thing for all concerned, and Rhodes agreed, feeling it would be fresher to go into this year’s WrestleMania chasing the title rather than defending it.

Also read: Why Drew McIntyre Winning WWE Title Surprised Hall Of Famer