On the March 6 edition of WWE SmackDown, Cody Rhodes challenged Drew McIntyre in the main event for the Undisputed WWE Championship. Rhodes picked up the win and is now set to face Randy Orton in the main event of WrestleMania 42. Jacob Fatu got involved late in the match, stopping McIntyre from using a chair, which ultimately helped Rhodes secure the title. A McIntyre vs. Fatu match at WrestleMania now feels like a strong possibility.
The live crowd in Portland, Oregon cheered Rhodes winning the Undisputed WWE Championship. Online, however, the reaction hasn’t been nearly as unified.
Cody Rhodes’ Title Victory Draws 100,000 Dislikes in Less Than 24 Hours
A few years ago, YouTube removed the public dislike counter. Users can still click the dislike button, but the total is no longer visible. However, third-party tools still provide estimates of those numbers.
On X, Wrestlelamia posted on Saturday that the full match between Cody Rhodes and Drew McIntyre had already surpassed 100,000 dislikes in less than 24 hours.
As of this writing, the video has been live for just 13 hours. If that estimate is accurate, it would average roughly 7,700 dislikes per hour. After checking through available online tools, the projected total showed 103,581 dislikes compared to 26,092 likes a noticeable gap between positive and negative reactions. That is a brutal reaction to what is now the solidified main event for WrestleMania 42, on whichever night it happens.
Are WWE Fans Tired of Cody Rhodes at the Top?
Cody Rhodes returned to WWE at WrestleMania 38 in 2022. As of March 7, 2026, he has been back with the company for 1,435 days. During that span, Rhodes has held the Undisputed WWE Championship three times for a combined 538 days, roughly 38% of his entire run since returning.
In singles matches on televised WWE programming during that stretch, Rhodes has competed 56 times and holds a 49-7 record. That level of protection is typically reserved for names like prime Undertaker or Brock Lesnar, and it reinforces just how strongly WWE has positioned him at the top of the card. If I’m being brutally honest, that’s an absurd record.
There have also been reports regarding why Drew McIntyre was given the title in January, only to drop it back to Rhodes a month and a half later. Fightful reported that “one of the reasons the WWE Title was taken off of Cody Rhodes was so that he would be featured in the Royal Rumble and Elimination Chamber matches, adding to the draw of those shows.”
To set up Friday’s SmackDown title match, McIntyre interfered in the Elimination Chamber match, costing Rhodes his opportunity. The storyline quickly shifted back to Rhodes chasing, and now reclaiming, the championship. Once again, he heads into WrestleMania in the main event picture.
“We’ve Seen This Before”: Fans React to Another Rhodes WrestleMania Push
The YouTube dislikes are one indicator, but the reaction on social media Friday night was just as loud. A number of fans voiced frustration over Rhodes once again being positioned in the WrestleMania main event.
One common comparison that surfaced was to Hulk Hogan, a reference often used when fans feel a top star is being protected or prioritized above the rest of the roster.
The overall tone of the criticism centers on overexposure and predictability, with some fans arguing that other stars briefly enter the title picture only for the spotlight to return to Rhodes. Whether that sentiment represents a growing shift or simply a vocal segment of the online audience remains to be seen.
WrestleMania Ticket Sales Show Slower Demand
Another potential indicator that fan enthusiasm isn’t as strong as WWE might like: WrestleMania ticket sales. Reports and fan tracking sites have shown that this year’s WrestleMania, now headlined by Cody Rhodes vs. Randy Orton, isn’t moving as quickly on the secondary market compared to recent years.
While WWE doesn’t release official day-by-day sales numbers, fan monitoring accounts and resale platforms give a snapshot of demand. Compared with WrestleMania shows with similarly high-profile matchups, including top stars like Roman Reigns, Brock Lesnar or earlier Rhodes Mania events, this year’s pricing and sell-through rate appear slower, with listings still widely available and not trending toward sellouts. It will be interesting to see how the tickets move with the main event solidified and how the reaction toward Rhodes will change as the weeks go on.
Maybe the internets only hope will be that Rhodes gets cursed by Danhausen before WrestleMania.
