Cody Rhodes defeated Drew McIntyre to retain the Undisputed WWE Championship at Saturday Night’s Main Event.
The show’s opening match, held at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, carried a stipulation where Rhodes would lose his title if he were disqualified or counted out.
Drew McIntyre repeatedly attempted to use the stipulation to win the championship. Early in the match, McIntyre rolled to the floor, trying to bait Rhodes into a count-out loss. Later, he brought the title belt into the ring and encouraged Rhodes to hit him with it, which would have cost Rhodes the match.
The challenger nearly secured the title via count-out when he shoulder-blocked Rhodes from the ring apron, sending the champion crashing through the broadcast table. Rhodes barely beat the referee’s 10-count to keep the match alive.
McIntyre also scored a near fall after Rhodes refused to use the belt as a weapon. Rhodes tossed the belt to the referee, and McIntyre capitalized on the distraction by hitting a Claymore Kick for a two-count.
The turning point occurred when McIntyre pushed Rhodes into referee Dan Engler, knocking the official down. McIntyre then grabbed the title belt, but both men hit simultaneous running crossbody blocks.
Rhodes recovered first and executed a DDT, driving McIntyre’s head onto the championship belt. As the referee began to stir, Rhodes hit the CrossRhodes and pinned McIntyre to retain the title.
The match lasted almost 19 minutes and aired without commercial interruptions on Peacock in the US and on YouTube internationally.
