A major championship moment on the January 9, 2026 edition of SmackDown almost looked very different behind the scenes, even though fans ultimately saw Drew McIntyre stand tall with WWE’s top prize.

New details have emerged revealing that McIntyre’s Undisputed WWE Title victory was not the original direction, with creative plans shifting due to circumstances outside of WWE’s control. While the end result delivered one of the most talked about finishes of the year, the road there involved last minute adjustments, long term planning, and input from the talent themselves.

Speaking on Wrestling Observer Live, Bryan Alvarez explained that the championship bout was initially designed to feature three men instead of two. According to Alvarez, the original idea was shelved when Jacob Fatu was forced off television due to injury.

“You know, the original plan was a Cody–Fatu–Drew three way. Fatu obviously vanished for a long time, but now he’s back and basically right where we were before all that happened.”

With Fatu unavailable, the focus shifted to McIntyre and Cody Rhodes, culminating in their violent 3 Stages of Hell clash in Berlin. The final fall inside the steel cage took a dramatic turn when Fatu made his surprise return, tearing through both competitors. Even with the chaos unfolding around him, McIntyre managed to escape the cage and secure his fourth world championship.

Sean Ross Sapp later added that the decision to crown McIntyre was not rushed, but instead viewed internally as a necessary step to re establish him as a true top level star.

“One of the things that I was hearing within the company about this Drew McIntyre title win was that a lot of people felt like he needed to win this title match,” Sapp said. “They felt that, in order to take him seriously as a top guy moving forward, he needed to win it.”

Further insight revealed that the shocking title change was not entirely driven by creative alone. According to Bodyslam.net, both McIntyre and Rhodes approached WWE officials earlier in the day with the idea of a dramatic finish, believing a title switch would add urgency and weight to the WrestleMania build.

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