Drew McIntyre vs Damian Priest announced for WrestleMania 41

WWE has officially announced a high-profile match for WrestleMania 41, pitting former World Heavyweight Champions Damian Priest and Drew McIntyre against each other in a continuation of their year-long rivalry.

On Thursday, WWE SmackDown General Manager Nick Aldis confirmed via the official WrestleMania social media accounts that Damian Priest will face Drew McIntyre at this year’s "Showcase of the Immortals."

The announcement formalises one of WWE’s most personal feuds heading into the marquee event.

Priest and McIntyre have had on-and-off tensions since WrestleMania 40, when Priest cashed in his Money in the Bank contract moments after McIntyre defeated Seth Rollins for the World Heavyweight Championship.

Since then, the rivalry has escalated, with Priest eliminating McIntyre from both the Royal Rumble and the Elimination Chamber earlier this year.

The animosity intensified on the 28 March episode of "SmackDown," when Priest attacked McIntyre backstage and sent him crashing through a car windshield. McIntyre later posted that shards of glass had entered his eye, and recent images showed him at what appeared to be an optometrist’s office.

Despite the injury and weeks spent wearing an eye patch, his participation in WrestleMania 41 has now been confirmed.

In the same announcement video, Aldis referenced the RKO he received from Randy Orton on last week’s "SmackDown" but declined to elaborate.

Orton’s actions followed the news that his scheduled WrestleMania opponent, Kevin Owens, would be sidelined with a serious neck injury, leaving Orton without a match for the time being.

WrestleMania 41 continues to take shape with major rivalries and storylines converging, and the McIntyre-Priest match adds another layer of personal stakes and unresolved history to the card.