Subhojeet Mukherjee on March 20, 2026
WWE’s WrestleMania 42 card didn’t just fall into place — it changed because of Bronson Reed’s unfortunate injury, affecting even Cody Rhodes’ plans.
According to Dave Meltzer in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, it was revealed that Bronson Reed’s recent injury played a key role in reshaping major WrestleMania plans. What was originally set for later in the year has now been fast-tracked to the biggest show of the year.
“The Bronson Reed injury for whatever reason was the clincher of the idea to go with Rhodes vs. Orton and McIntyre vs. Fatu in singles matches.”
That’s the turning point. Cody Rhodes is now set to defend the Undisputed WWE Title against Randy Orton at WrestleMania 42 after defeating Drew McIntyre earlier this month — a result that led to Orton’s heel turn and brutal attack on Rhodes during the March 13, 2026 episode of SmackDown. But according to this update, that match wasn’t supposed to happen yet.
“Rhodes vs. Orton was always the direction, but originally that was planned as Rhodes’ major program after WrestleMania 42.”
That’s the key detail. The Rhodes vs. Orton feud was already locked in creatively — just not for WrestleMania. Reed’s bicep injury, which he suffered back in February on RAW, forced WWE to shift directions and move that program up sooner than expected. And it didn’t just affect one match.
The change also set up Drew McIntyre vs. Jacob Fatu as a separate singles bout, reshaping multiple top-level storylines heading into WrestleMania weekend in Las Vegas. So what fans are getting now wasn’t the original plan — it’s the adjusted version after WWE had to pivot. And sometimes, those pivots end up defining the show.
Do you think WWE made the right call moving Cody Rhodes vs Randy Orton to WrestleMania, or should they have saved it for later? Let us know your thoughts and leave your feedback below.
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