The final two main events for this year’s WrestleMania have undergone major changes, shifting twice since the original plans were set.
According to a report by Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer, things were thrown into a blender when Seth Rollins suffered an injury.
Originally, Rollins was slated to defend the world title against Roman Reigns, while Cody Rhodes was set to face CM Punk in a babyface vs. babyface matchup. However, Rollins’ injury forced WWE to rethink its plans.
The promotion initially pivoted to have Punk hold the title, with Bron Breakker positioned to rise as the next top star. The plan called for Breakker to lose at the RAW Netflix anniversary show, win the Royal Rumble, and then defeat Punk at WrestleMania—essentially anointing him as WWE’s top full-time star and setting up a future singles match with Reigns.
Meanwhile, Rhodes was scheduled to defend his title against Punk, who would have won the Elimination Chamber. That plan changed when Drew McIntyre and Rhodes pushed for a larger role for The Scottish Psychopath, suggesting he should win the title in the already announced Three Stages of Hell match. Rhodes was in, and Paul Levesque reportedly supported the idea, citing that the original direction felt predictable. Not to mention, Reigns vs. Rhodes had already headlined two WrestleManias. There was no need to run it back again.
Things Pivoted For Bron Breakker
Once that decision was made, Breakker’s Royal Rumble victory was scrapped. That wasn’t the only change to his Royal Rumble participation: WWE had to create a last-minute storyline about his entry into the Rumble after a graphic was accidentally shown on SmackDown, spoiling his scheduled entry.
Once Breakker was removed from the main event, it was decided that Reigns would headline alongside Punk. One has to wonder whether Reigns’ comments about WWE creative’s failure to make new stars had anything to do with the changes. Ultimately, the goal became to make Rhodes earn his title shot in the Elimination Chamber while building momentum toward the big Punk vs. Reigns showdown at WrestleMania.
Per Meltzer, Breakker was the original choice to win the 2026 Royal Rumble and the plan would have seen Breakker defeat CM Punk for the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 42. As for when Breakker will get his title run, that remains unclear.
