Can the Scottish Warrior Become the New WWE Champion at WrestlePalooza?
This Saturday at WrestlePalooza, Cody Rhodes will defend his Undisputed WWE Championship against Drew McIntyre. This matchup has had a slow build since the Scottish Warrior took out Rhodes on the SmackDown after SummerSlam when he sent the American Nightmare crashing through the front of the announcers' table. By putting Rhodes on the shelf for over a month, McIntyre took out the “quarterback” of the WWE roster and has used Rhodes’s time away to ridicule the champion every chance he gets. The Scottish native has been doing his best character work as a heel over the past year and a half, but he has yet to receive that championship moment, that crowning achievement, where he can take it all in. It is possible that the moment could happen on Saturday, and if it does, it would be one of the biggest championship changes that the WWE has pulled off in a long time.
It’s not new for McIntyre to take on the top babyfaces in the company. From Jey Uso and CM Punk, McIntyre has battled them all, and now he will take on the top babyface on the roster. Now, unlike his rivalry with Uso and Punk, the Chosen One does not hate Cody Rhodes; he pities him. He believes Rhodes is too desperate for fans and management’s approval that he needs the WWE Championship to validate that for him. The Scottish Warrior believes he is a more deserving champion, pointing out that he led the company through the pandemic and has since been denied multiple championship opportunities, whether those opportunities were unfair or not. The truth is, McIntyre is right because everything he said is true. He is more than deserving of becoming the WWE Champion due to the hard work he has put in since 2020. For the past five years, he has been a great representative for the WWE, while Rhodes was trying to prove to himself and others that he could be a top guy in the industry.
When Rhodes returned to the WWE in 2022, he was met with positive fanfare and an astonishing response that the company could not ignore. They gave the ball to Rhodes, and he delivered for them time and time again. The American Nightmare’s path to “finish his story” was one that fans rallied behind, and when he accomplished it, the story felt complete. His first reign as champion felt pretty stale when he was not involved with the Bloodline story, and even the buildup to his match with John Cena at WrestleMania XLI felt flat, a match that Cena went on to win. He went on to beat the Greatest of All-Time at SummerSlam in a Street Fight. Now, this will be his first defense if his second reign, so it may be a little early for Rhodes to drop the belt. However, I believe that Rhodes is better off chasing the title because watching the hero’s journey of getting the prize is something that has been done before successfully. So, why not do it again?
It may not be the popular choice, but the WWE is all about making moments that fans will remember for a long time. McIntyre pulling off the upset and beating Rhodes at WrestlePalooza would be historic because it is a moment that fans will not see coming. With this being the first Premium Live Event on ESPN, the WWE will be looking to make sure that this event delivers. Besides the rest of the card featuring Cena’s last match in Indy and a battle of WWEpower couples, a shocking championship change will surely deliver headlines. McIntyre has the story and the character work to back up why he deserves to be the new WWE Champion, and Rhodes is the ultimate babyface in the WWE right now. This has the makings to be a fun matchup, and it will be interesting to see if the Scottish Warrior can pull off the upset or if Rhodes retains his championship.
