"Respect Drew," "He's better" - Fans erupt after Drew McIntyre suddenly uses AEW star's nickname on WWE SmackDown

Drew McIntyre recently gained attention by suddenly using a nickname used by a top AEW star. Fans have reacted to this and have given their take as to who was more deserving of this moniker.

The Scottish Warrior made his return last night on SmackDown for the first time in one and a half months, interrupting both Cody Rhodes and Randy Orton and having a few words for them. It wasn't exactly the best night for him, as later in the segment, he would eat an RKO from Orton.

On X/Twitter, Drew McIntyre broke his silence upon his return. He gave himself a new nickname, calling himself "The Alpha." This brought up several reactions from fans, as this is also the moniker used by AEW star Konosuke Takeshita.

Most fans believed that McIntyre was more deserving of this title based on his accomplishments. Some fans were on Takeshita's side as he had been using this nickname for a while now. Others took a neutral approach, saying that they were both deserving of this title. They wondered how an actual match between the two could turn out.

Check out some of the fan reactions in the screenshots below:

Fans react to Drew McIntyre using Takeshita's moniker [Image credits: fan comments on X]

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Veteran thinks Drew McIntyre will end up facing Cody Rhodes in the future

During a recent edition of Busted Open Radio, Tommy Dreamer reacted to The Scottish Warrior's return last night, and mentioned how this segment of his may have sown the seeds for a future feud with Cody Rhodes.

He mentioned how this could take place after Summerslam, should Rhodes end up defeating John Cena. Dreamer also mentioned how WWE had a ton of matches that could be put together for McIntyre following his return.

"I'm the biggest Drew McIntyre fan as well. What I look at is they're planting seeds. I love when he said with him and Cody, they have a similar path, and if you're gonna tell me I'm gonna get Cody and Drew for the World Title, that is a bigger picture. When I look at, okay, I have Gunther, I have this returning John Cena, I also have CM Punk. These are all people that have been plugged in the way of Drew McIntyre." [21:19 – 21:51]

For now, the former WWE Champion is set to clash with Randy Orton, and this will be an interesting feud moving forward. It remains to be seen how this will end up impacting the rest of the division.