WWE has confirmed the title match between Cody Rhodes and Drew McIntyre at Wrestlepalooza. The new event, which is particularly significant for the league, is brimming with star power.
The last duel between wrestling giants John Cena and Brock Lesnar, AJ Lee’s comeback match with husband CM Punk against Seth Rollins and CM Punk – and now a big title fight too.
On the latest episode of the TV show Monday Night RAW, WWE confirmed the third main match for the new major event Wrestlepalooza on Saturday. As expected, WWE Champion Cody Rhodes will face former title holder Drew McIntyre.
WWE: Cody Rhodes vs. Drew McIntyre official
McIntyre had targeted Rhodes after SummerSlam and brutally attacked him. Rhodes then took a break for several weeks – in fact, for his role in the new Street Fighter movie and the birth of his second child – and returned on Friday at SmackDown.
After the main event between Rhodes’ mentor Randy Orton and McIntyre, Rhodes saved Orton from a similar attack to the cheers of the crowd and challenged the “Scottish Warrior” to a duel at Wrestlepalooza. It was made official on RAW. Also on the program are a tag team match between The Usos and Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed from Rollins’ group The Vision, as well as the selection of a new Women’s World Champion: Iyo Sky and rising star Stephanie Vaquer are vying to succeed the pregnant Naomi.
WRESTLEPALOOZA is going to be
Stream ESPN’s inaugural Premium Live Event THIS SATURDAY at 7PM ET on the ESPN app! https://t.co/kzS0cxoAzD pic.twitter.com/mrcVwsfHAb
— WWE (@WWE) September 16, 2025
Wrestlepalooza picks up the ECW legacy – and takes on AEW
Wrestlepalooza takes place on Saturday night in Indianapolis. The name is a reference to an annual event held by the now defunct cult league ECW in the 1990s, to which WWE now owns the trademark rights.
The card is also so packed because the show is of great importance to WWE: it is the first to be broadcast in the US by its new streaming partner ESPN.
The show gains additional excitement from the fact that it is in direct competition with rival AEW’s All Out event – itself the first major AEW event on the HBO Max platform. AEW has moved the start time of the show – in which World Champion Hangman Page takes on up-and-comer Kyle Fletcher – forward to the afternoon.
