It’s WrestleMania 42 season, and things are once again shifting in massive ways weeks before the biggest event of the year for the WWE.
A few weeks ago, Drew McIntyre lost his WWE championship against Cody Rhodes to close an episode of “Friday Night SmackDown,” paving the road for the new champion Rhodes to defend his title against former mentor Randy Orton at ‘Mania 42.
But that seems unlikely to be the only title change on “SmackDown” before the monumental event, as multiple sources report that another title is expected to have a new holder by Friday night’s end.
More news: Every Rumored and Projected Match for WrestleMania 42
More news: Brock Lesnar Rips WWE Locker Room as ‘Soft’ in Candid Comments
First reported by “WrestleVotes” for the Fightful Network, U.S. champion Carmelo Hayes is scheduled to have an open challenge tonight that will be answered by Sami Zayn, the man who began the series of U.S. title open challenges last year.
Zayn is reportedly set to win the title from Hayes, making him the U.S. champion going into WrestleMania 42.
Hayes has been one of the more popular acts on “SmackDown” since winning the championship at the end of 2025, defending it diligently through the first three months of the year. Last week, he had one of the best WWE television matches in recent memory against rival Ilja Dragunov, defeating him in a marathon of a match.
For Zayn, it would be his second reign as U.S. champion, and would most likely set up a match at ‘Mania against Trick Williams, whom he has been feuding with for the past few months leading up to the marquee show.
Although the Zayn match with Williams could expand into a triple threat to include Hayes, or into an even larger multi-man match that has been the norm for mid-card titles at WrestleMania over the past decade, nothing has been reported at this time.
We will keep you updated if this story develops on tonight’s show.
Read the full article here
