Cody Rhodes vs. Kevin Owens World title ladder match set for WWE Royal Rumble

Kevin Owens will get his Undisputed WWE Championship rematch at the Royal Rumble.

In the closing segment of Friday’s SmackDown, Owens and WWE Champion Cody Rhodes successfully lobbied Nick Aldis for a ladder match at Royal Rumble with the title belts of both competitors suspended above the ring.

Owens scored a visual pinfall over Rhodes at Saturday Night’s Main Event earlier this month after a referee bump took the primary official out of the match. On SmackDown, Owens was adamant that he wanted his title rematch in a scenario where the referee was not involved in counting the finish, with Rhodes suggesting the ladder match stipulation. Owens has been carrying around the “Winged Eagle” title belt used at Saturday Night’s Main Event since the show, claiming to be the real WWE Champion.

A men’s Royal Rumble match and women’s Rumble are the only other bouts certain for the 2025 Royal Rumble set for Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana on Saturday, February 1.

WWE Royal Rumble, Saturday, February 1 —

  • Men’s Royal Rumble match
  • Women’s Royal Rumble match
  • Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes defends against Kevin Owens in a ladder match

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Ethan Renner
Ethan Renner

An F4WOnline Editor since 2019, Ethan has been covering wrestling and MMA since 2011. He has hosted The Wrestling Life Podcast since 2014, and is a former Baltimore Sun TV/Tribune Media contributor. He is also a Baltimore Ravens and Baltimore Orioles fan.