Confirmed: Roman Reigns to Face Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania 40 Main Event

The row over the highly anticipated Undisputed WWE Universal Championship match at WrestleMania 40 seems to have finally come to an end. The first major press conference ahead of the grandest event took place on Thursday in Las Vegas where Roman Reigns appeared to declare Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as his opponent for the title clash. That’s when the chorus of “We want Cody” and “Rocky sucks” chants erupted at the kick-off show.

Also Read: Messi Hong Kong No-show Sparks Wave of Outrage in China

After the event concluded, WWE Chief Content Officer Paul Levesque dropped a post on X (formerly Twitter) where he confirmed Rhodes as the opponent of Reigns at WrestleMania 40. “Decision made. Cody Rhodes gets the chance to finish his story when he challenges Roman Reigns in the main event of WrestleMania XL,” Triple H wrote.

Since Cody Rhodes triumphed at the 2024 Royal Rumble a few days ago, his fans have been waiting eagerly to see him face Reigns at the WrestleMania main event. In an unexpected twist, Rhodes announced on a recent episode of WWE SmackDown that he would not fight against Reigns at the premium pay-per-view event.

It did nothing but pave the way for The Rock to clinch the spot. The Hollywood actor was also present there and as soon as the American Nightmare stepped back, he came forward to confront Reigns.

WWE made the situation more confusing when it released a poster of WrestleMania 40. Rhodes found no place in the illustration, with The Rock featuring alongside Reigns and other superstars. Rhodes’ fans did not take it lightly as they flooded social media with comments like “We Want Cody” and “Rocky Sucks”.

The issue was expected to be settled at the kickoff event where all three wrestlers were present. After arriving on the stage, Reigns chose Johnson as his preferred opponent for the title defence. The duo engaged in a chat when Rhodes came up to challenge The Tribal Chief, referring to the right he earned by winning the second-consecutive Royal Rumble this year.

The Rock and Rhodes were trash talking each other when the former slapped the American Nightmare. World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins intervened as Rhodes was immediately escorted backstage.

Rhodes has been waiting for this opportunity since being defeated by Reigns at WrestleMania 39 last year. He hopes to fulfil the dream this time by securing the WWE Universal Championship at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.