Cody Rhodes defeated Drew McIntyre in the main event of WWE SmackDown on March 6, 2026, to regain the Undisputed WWE Championship with interference from Jacob Fatu. Held at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon, with 8,264 in attendance (per WrestleTix), the episode featured Randy Orton's WrestleMania 42 promo, title developments across divisions, a Rhea Ripley-Jade Cargill face-off, and setups for upcoming premium live event matches.
The March 6, 2026, episode of WWE SmackDown drew 8,264 fans at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon, per WrestleTix.
Elimination Chamber winner Randy Orton opened the show with a promo on his 20 WrestleMania appearances, having main-evented only twice. He vowed to claim his 15th world title with an RKO at WrestleMania 42 against either Drew McIntyre or Cody Rhodes, declaring, 'I earned this son of a bitch,' and citing praise from Ric Flair and The Undertaker. Trick Williams interrupted, claiming he deserved the spot and challenging Orton's height comment, but Orton silenced him with an RKO.
In the United States Championship match, Carmelo Hayes retained against El Hijo de Dr. Wagner Jr. in an 11-minute bout featuring a superplex, twisting sitout powerbomb, and awkward sequences. Hayes won with Nothing But Net and showed respect post-match by handing Wagner his AAA Latin American Championship belt.
New WWE Women's Tag Team Champions The Irresistible Forces (Nia Jax and Lash Legend) celebrated their recent victory. Interruptions from Charlotte Flair/Alexa Bliss and Giulia/Kiana James prompted GM Nick Aldis to book a No. 1 Contender's match, which Flair and Bliss won via Natural Selection on Giulia.
A Tag Team Turmoil match for No. 1 Contendership to the WWE Tag Team Championships (held by The MFTs) saw Fraxiom eliminate Motor City Machine Guns amid foot-on-ropes controversy; Los Garza defeat Fraxiom and The Wyatt Sicks (with MFT interference); and Damian Priest/R-Truth win the final with an Attitude Adjustment into South of Heaven.
WWE Women's Champion Jade Cargill and Rhea Ripley had a tense face-off. Cargill respected Ripley's accomplishments but asserted her power, saying, 'I'm that bitch.' Ripley retorted that her body is built for fighting and vowed to take the title 'with force' at WrestleMania 42.
Oba Femi answered Johnny Gargano's open challenge (motivated by Candice LeRae), defeating him quickly with Fall from Grace in under two minutes.
Other segments included Ilja Dragunov discussing his title shot refusal, Danhausen demanding a mentor and cursing The Miz, and Bo Dallas vowing to reclaim a lantern from The MFTs.
The main event featured Rhodes challenging McIntyre for the Undisputed WWE Championship, booked by Aldis due to prior interference. The 20-minute brawl included traded finishers, a powerbomb through a table, multiple referee bumps (McIntyre's Disaster Kick and Glasgow Kiss mishaps), and a chair spot. Jacob Fatu intervened by pulling away the chair, enabling Rhodes' Cody Cutter and Cross Rhodes for the win. Now a three-time champion, Rhodes will defend against Orton at WrestleMania 42 in Las Vegas.
