Roman Reigns is officially headed to Las Vegas.
“The Tribal Chief” captured the Men’s Royal Rumble match on Saturday, January 31, winning the 2026 Premium Live Event in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Reigns secured the victory by last eliminating GUNTHER, earning a guaranteed World Championship match at WrestleMania 42. The win marks Reigns’ second Royal Rumble victory.
According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the current creative plan calls for Reigns to challenge CM Punk for the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 42. If the match moves forward as planned, it would mark the first singles encounter between Reigns and Punk since January 2014.
While the two recently shared the ring in a Triple Threat match with Seth Rollins at WrestleMania 41 Night One, a one-on-one showdown between Reigns and Punk has been more than a decade in the making.
On the Undisputed WWE Championship side, Drew McIntyre is currently slated to defend the title against Cody Rhodes. However, Meltzer noted that there has been internal discussion about potentially adding Jacob Fatu to the match, which would turn the bout into a Triple Threat.
Meltzer also reported that WWE’s original plan for WrestleMania 42 was to once again headline the event with Rhodes vs. Reigns—marking their third WrestleMania meeting in four years. That direction was ultimately scrapped after the match was teased at Survivor Series, with WWE pivoting instead toward the high-profile Reigns vs. Punk program.
WrestleMania 42 will take place at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Saturday, April 18, and Sunday, April 19.
