Monday’s episode of WWE Raw began with a bang, with Cody Rhodes and Drew McIntyre squaring off.
It ended when The Bloodline intervened to assist McIntyre. Jimmy Uso knocked Rhodes off the apron, and the referee kicked him out from ringside. Solo Sikoa showed up and hit Rhodes with a samoan spike.
McIntyre capitalized by hitting the claymore kick to secure the pinfall victory, resulting in a rare Rhodes loss. This comes before Rhodes challenges Roman Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship at WrestleMania 40.
Rhodes and World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins will appear on the Grayson Waller Effect this Saturday at Elimination Chamber, where WWE is expected to announce Rhodes & Rollins vs. The Rock & Reigns on the first night of Mania.
According to CageMatch.net, McIntyre defeated Rhodes in his first WWE television singles match since May 2016, when Rhodes, then known as Stardust, lost to Zack Ryder on an episode of Superstars.
Rhodes has only lost to Reigns and Brock Lesnar in TV or PLE singles matches since his return to WWE at WrestleMania 38 in 2022. Rhodes’ previous loss came on Raw in November, when he and Jey Uso lost the Undisputed Tag Team Championships to The Judgment Day (Damian Priest and Finn Balor).
