At one point there were plans to have Bron Breakker emerge as the last man standing in the 2026 WWE Royal Rumble.
As reported by Dave Meltzer in the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, it was first noted that there was a 3 step program involving Breakker and World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk. After Breakker lost to Punk on the first Raw of 2026, the second generation satr was set to win the Rumble and then have his rematch with Punk at WrestleMania:
“The injury to Rollins caused changes, as they went with Punk as champion with the idea of a three step program with Bron Breakker getting a title match on the Raw Netflix anniversary show and losing, coming back and winning the Rumble and then facing and beating Punk for the title at Mania.”
In regard to why this plan was scrapped, Meltzer notes that plans were changed when Drew McIntyre defeated Cody Rhodes in a 3 Stages of Hell match later in January to win the WWE Championship, a move that shocked many fans with the unexpected outcome:
“Enter McIntyre, who pushed the idea that since he had lost multiple times to Rhodes, that it would be better for him to win the title in the already announced Three Stages of Hell match,” Meltzer continued. “Rhodes was on board with that idea.”
“Reigns, Rhodes and Punk are viewed right now as the three biggest stars, so essentially McIntyre was getting Breakker’s spot in the title picture. When the decision was made, they had to scrap Breakker winning the Rumble and the choices were either Rhodes or Reigns.”
Meltzer also adds that the plan right now is for a McIntyre vs. Rhodes rematch to take place at WrestleMania 42 as the night 1 headliner, Meltzer adds that Jacob Fatu could also be added to the match to make it a triple threat for the top title in WWE.
Bron Breakker Had A Royal Rumble To Forget In 2026
Although Breakker was one of the favourites heading into the January 31 Premium Live Event in Saudi Arabia, things quickly went south for the former Intercontinental Champion. Following a war of words between Paul Heyman and Raw General Manager Adam Pearce on the pre-show, which saw Heyman protest Breakker’s entry number, Breakker entered the match in the number 2 spot. However, The Vision member was attacked by a masked man while making his entrance, and was then quickly eliminated by number 1 entrant Oba Femi.
Featured image: WWE
