WWE Hall Of Famer Booker T has two names on his mind when it comes to who he’d like to see dethrone Roman Reigns.

Booker T took to his podcast, “The Hall Of Fame,” to discuss the matter. Booker named both Cody Rhodes and Drew McIntyre as the stars he’d like to see take Reigns down when the time is right.

“I’ve got to go with Cody Rhodes. Drew McIntyre, like I said on the kickoff show, being a part of that six-man with RK-Bro, keeping himself real close to the body. Making sure he stays close to the championship.

“It’s good for Drew McIntyre. Letting everyone know, man, I am not far from this picture. But, the guy that’s got the hot hand, the guy that’s got the rocket on him is Cody Rhodes.

“I say you run with that, man until it cools off. I don’t think that’s going to be for quite some time.”

Roman Reigns became the Unified WWE Champion when he beat Brock Lesnar in the main event of WrestleMania 38 earlier this year. Reigns entered the match already holding the Universal Title, taking the WWE Championship from Lesnar when it was all said and done.

Now, “The Tribal Chief” rules over both RAW and SmackDown as a dual champion. As for Rhodes, he made his return to WWE at WrestleMania 38, taking on Seth Rollins as his surprise opponent selected by Vince McMahon.

Rhodes came from All Elite Wrestling (AEW) where he remade himself into “The American Nightmare,” leaving gimmicks such as Stardust in the past. Now, Rhodes is back with World Title aspirations on his mind, and a matchup against Reigns would certainly be a great one for fans to enjoy.

Finally, McIntyre is a former World Champion in his own right. He topped Lesnar in the main event of WrestleMania 36 to become the WWE Champion during the COVID-19 pandemic. Currently, McIntyre is also on a path back to the World Title, however, he might soon be making a pit stop for a feud with Tyson Fury first.

Quotes via Wrestling Inc.

Cody Rhodes will be getting his first championship opportunity since returning to WWE.

While Cody’s ultimate goal is capturing the WWE Championship, going after the U.S. gold along the way doesn’t sound so bad.

That’s exactly what’s happening as WWE has announced “The American Nightmare” will challenge Theory for the title on tonight’s (May 9) episode of Raw.

U.S. Title Also Has Meaning To Cody Rhodes

While Cody’s first title shot in his return to WWE isn’t for the world championship, it still holds significance to his family.

Dusty Rhodes is a former NWA United States Champion, which falls under the same lineage as the WWE United States Championship. Cody’s older brother, Dustin, is a two-time WCW United States Champion.

Cody Rhodes has never held the U.S. hardware in WWE. He’ll have a chance to add it to his mantle tonight and add another piece to the puzzle on the road to the WWE Championship.

Taking to his Twitter account, Cody reacted to the news:

“Time to win the #USTitle – in Hartford – on @USA_Network. TONIGHT! #DoTheWork #DidTheWork @WWE.”

Rhodes is fresh off a pinfall victory over Seth Rollins at WrestleMania Backlash. He grabbed a handful of tights to get the win only after Seth attempted the nefarious tactic himself.

WWE has released a promo video for this year’s Money in the Bank premium live event that sheds some light on how the next “cash-ins” may be handled.

Since the first Money in the Bank ladder match in 2005, the winner has been guaranteed a championship match against a champion of their choosing at any point up to a year.

During WrestleMania Backlash, a commercial aired for Money in the Bank 2022, which takes place July 2nd.

As seen below, Cody Rhodes says the winners of the Men’s and Women’s ladder matches will earn the chance to headline WrestleMania.

“One lucky male and female Superstar will win the chance to main event WrestleMania.”

Cody Rhodes.

Money in the Bank winners have one year to cash in their contracts, including in the main event of WrestleMania. However, WWE has rarely (if ever) invoked “main eventing WrestleMania” when discussing Money in the Bank contracts. Typically, it’s the Royal Rumble winners that earn a shot to main event WrestleMania.

While this should not be taken as a “change” to the Money in the Bank stipulation, it’s interesting that WWE is running with Cody’s comments. This might also provide a hint about how Cody would cash in, if he secures a Money in the Bank contract this year

You can see Cody Rhodes’ comments about cashing in Money in the Bank at WrestleMania in the video below:

Money in the Bank 2022

WWE Money in the Bank takes place on July 2, from Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada. The venue hosted Summerslam 2021.

Earlier this year, Brock Lesnar was rumored for the event as he featured prominently in the promotional material for Money in the Bank but has since been removed from the image.

This is the same as what WWE did with WrestleMania Backlash, as the promotion advertised Lesnar for the show but had no plans on him appearing.

The decision to promote Lesnar for both events before WrestleMania 38 was done to stop fans from realizing that Brock would lose to Roman Reigns at the event in April.

• Edge Says He Needed To Be Talked Into First Money in the Bank Ladder Match (July 2021)

Cody Rhodes has said he is not interested in facing Seth Rollins again after defeating the former multiple-time world champion at WrestleMania Backlash.

In the opening match of last night’s Premium Live Event, Rhodes defeated Rollins with a roll-up pin and a handful of tights. It was a bit of tit-for-tat on Cody’s part as Seth had attempted to use the tights for leverage first.

This is Rhodes’ second televised victory over Rollins since returning to WWE, after beating “The Architect” at WrestleMania 38.

In a post-match interview shared by WWE, Rhodes said that he is moving forward and does not plan on having another match with Rollins.

“I think we can walk away on this one. Seth is an amazing, amazing Superstar wrestler, I can’t wait to see what he does next. Whatever he does now, good luck. I’m moving forward.”

Cody Rhodes

Rhodes concluded by wishing Happy Mother’s Day to his mother, his wife, and all the mothers in the world.

What’s next for Cody Rhodes?

Since coming back to WWE, Cody Rhodes has feuded primarily with Seth Rollins but has his eyes set on championship gold.

In a promo on the post-WrestleMania 38 episode of Raw, Rhodes said he plans on becoming a WWE World Champion, fulfilling a promise to his late father “The American Dream” Dusty Rhodes.

In the post-WrestleMania Backlash interview, Rhodes again made his goals clear.

“After the match, I did the generic symbol for wanting the belt – because it’s real. That’s what I want.”

Cody Rhodes

Rhodes is expected to challenge for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship at some point in the future, which is currently held by Roman Reigns.

• Cody Rhodes Explains What Held Him Back In AEW (April 2022)

When Cody Rhodes entered a WWE live event in Trenton, New Jersey, he probably didn’t expect to see one heck of a Dusty Rhodes impersonator.

Cody has made it clear that he wants to honor his late father by becoming the WWE Champion. It’s a title that Dusty never won. “The American Nightmare’s” first stop on the road to the title has been Seth Rollins.

Clone Of A Plumber

At the house show in Trenton, Cody defeated Rollins. The two will mix it up at WrestleMania Backlash on May 8. Cody already scored a pinfall over Seth on PPV, marking a successful return at WrestleMania 38.

After his match with Seth in Trenton, Cody Rhodes got on the mic and he put a Dusty Rhodes impersonator on the spot. The fan certainly looked the part but did he have the vocal chops?

The answer might surprise you (courtesy of Angel Rivera):

A young fan jumped the barricade this week in the hopes of getting a photo with Cody Rhodes after WWE SmackDown went off the air.

After last night’s episode, Rhodes defeated Seth Rollins in a dark main event ahead of their match this Sunday at WrestleMania Backlash.

In a clip shared online, Rhodes can be seen taking a selfie with fans at ringside when he is approached by a child.

Cody speaks to the fan, who points at where he was sitting, while security gently leads the kid back to his seat.

Responding to the video in a tweet, Cody said that he was “popped” to see the young fan ask for a photo, and said that he did take a picture with him later in the night.

Jumping The Barricade

Fans jumping the barricade is a staple of professional wrestling but almost never goes well for anyone involved.

Last November, a fan jumped the barricade to attack Seth Rollins, believing the former Universal Champion had conned him out of gift cards.

Instead, it was a scammer posing as Rollins on social media, who had tricked 24-year-old Elisah Spencer out of gift cards and his money.

In 2019, Zachary Madsen jumped the barricade during the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony to attack Bret Hart, saying that it “felt like it was the right moment,” during a court appearance. The man ended up being dropped by a punch courtesy of Cash Wheeler.

Fans caught jumping the barricade are usually kicked out of the venue and banned from future WWE events, but the company made an obvious exception this week.

Nearly one month into Cody Rhodes’ return to WWE, the former AEW Executive Vice President is still making big headlines.

It was announced on Friday that Rhodes will join Steve Austin on the Broken Skull Sessions next week. Everyone is expecting some serius discussion during that appearance on why he chose to return WWE.

That topic also came up when Rhodes appeared on Corey Graves’ After The Bell podcast this week. Rhodes revealed during the conversation that there was a surprising name who helped convince him that a return to WWE was the right move: Matt Cardona.

“A very small circle of people when this initially was brought to me knew, and I told him (Cardona) everything, every detail, everything. And I was really legitimately expecting him to go ‘don’t do it, don’t,’ and man, he went completely the opposite way. He was of your train of thought, Corey, of that’s the ultimate undeniable comeback and land in the fashion that you did. And he inadvertently set all of this in motion. I really thought he was going to say go the other way but man no, he was gung ho (about a WWE return),” Cody revealed.

Cody Rhodes On Concerns Over His WWE Return

Additionally, Rhodes revealed that it was Diamond Dallas Page who was more skeptical of his decision to return to WWE. Rhodes recalled a deep conversation he had with the WWE Hall of Famer prior to this decision.

“I think there was one person that was concerned and that was DDP. He came over to my house, and downstairs we have the Nightmare Bar. He came down there, and I just got one of these Bartesians where you get the instant cocktails and I was really excited to show him the light margaritas. And he drank all the ones that I had in stock, and over the course of the six or seven margaritas he kept slamming down, he was just really tensive.

“He brought up a good point: The last time I did something major leaving the WWE, he was of the same thought process. ‘Well if you believe, if you’re confident, then I’ll be confident with you and confident for you.’ And he gave me some tips on people to speak to and people to let things know before it all went down.

“He was the only one who was a little bit more fatherly and like, ‘Okay, let’s make sure this is really what you want and not just a knee-jerk thing.’ For the most part, everyone who knew in that very small circle was like absolutely go do it, absolutely, which surprised me.”

Rhodes will face Seth Rollins next weekend at WWE WrestleMania Backlash, a rematch from WrestleMania 38 where Rhodes returned to the company and defeated Rollins. The two friends have been working this story on television, while Rhodes has also recently mixed it up with another long time good friend: The Miz.

Should Rhodes emerge victorious at WrestleMania Backlash, it will be interesting to see which direction they take his character next. He seems like a logical contender for the WWE Undisputed Universal Championship in the not-so-distant future.

Make sure to check out the Top Rope Nation wrestling podcast for your weekly dose of pro wrestling talk featuring interviews, analysis and exclusive news: Apple – Spotify – YouTube. 

Cody Rhodes has not only agreed to come back to WWE, but he has also agreed to the full WWE schedule. This means working not only TV tapings but multiple Live Events throughout the week. Back in the day, it would mean that he hardly got to see his family except on a couple of off days. Thankfully things have changed for the better.

The former AEW star recently appeared on the After The Bell podcast. Corey Graves asked Cody what has been keeping him sane among all the press, travel, and multiple nights of wrestling every week since WrestleMania. Rhodes mentioned how the rise of bus culture means that he can now have his family around him all the time. What’s especially kept Cody Rhodes calm is having his dog Pharaoh with him:

“I’ll give you an example what kept me sane this past weekend. I did the loop and just kept me calm and level-headed. You know, you do your Saturday Night’s Main Event, your Sunday Stunner and then you get to Raw. I brought Pharaoh, my husky. He’s 11 years old now. He’s acting like he’s 300 years old. But he came on the bus.

Cody Rhodes continued: “That’s another thing that really has [helped me], the Bus culture. I’m getting used to this. Again, I am not gonna try and take it for granted but what a way to expand your career, physically. In terms of, ‘oh my gosh it’s all here. I can bring my family on the road with me.’ It’s all right in front of me. Not have to do the rental cars and flight every single day. So the bus culture, I am really getting in.”

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If you use any quotes from the article please credit SEScoops with an H/t for transcription

Becoming the father of a daughter has brought many positive changes in the life of Cody Rhodes. One such change is that he is much calmer now and he has more control over his temper. The American Nightmare recently appeared on After The Bell podcast.

He discussed how the birth of his daughter Liberty has changed his perspective on things. Cody Rhodes also revealed how it has affected his temper:

“It calmed me way down. I have a terrible temper, and it got worse when I left WWE because no one stopped me. I was a lunatic. Because I had that fear that I didn’t speak up when I was at WWE. So now I’ve got to overly speak up.” said Cody Rhodes, “So I’m snapping on people left and right, just a nuisance to work with the first few years until I kind of calmed myself down.

But with her I’ve calmed way down. As long as she’s safe, happy, healthy [it’s all fine]. [If they say] ‘Hey, we’re doing this on TV’ [I am like] ‘That sounds cool. Okay, maybe [it’s] not my cup of tea [but] we’ll make it work, whatever’. But I’ve calmed myself down. So it’s calmed me down, calmed the house down. And it’s gave us a specific thing, I think a goal and future. [Now] our outlook is all about her.”

• Cody Rhodes Set for Broken Skull Sessions Interview Next Week

If you use the quotes from the article please credit SEScoops with an H/t for transcription

Cody Rhodes is set to join Steve Austin on the newest episode of Broken Skull Sessions.

WWE has announced that “The American Nightmare” will be WWE Hall Of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin’s latest guest on Broken Skull Sessions next week, Friday May 6, 2022, on Peacock. Rhodes certainly has no shortage of stories to tell, and his road back to WWE will give Austin a plethora in regards to questions to ask about.

Rhodes departed from WWE in 2016, establishing himself as “The American Nightmare” while working for promotions such as Ring Of Honor (ROH), New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW), and All Elite Wrestling (AEW) – the latter of which Rhodes played an instrumental part in helping startup.

After his contract with AEW was up earlier this year, Rhodes decided to return to WWE, finally re-appearing as Seth Rollins’ mystery opponent at WrestleMania 38. Rhodes picked up the win in that contest, and followed that up with an excellent promo the following night on Monday Night RAW.

In the promo, Rhodes declared his intentions to challenge for a World Championship now that he’s with WWE. Currently, Rhodes is continuing his rivalry with Rollins as the pair are set to rematch at WrestleMania Backlash.

It will be interesting to see if Rhodes can eventually find his way into the World Title picture in the next few months with Roman Reigns, who reigns as both WWE Champion and WWE Universal Champion, seemingly working both RAW and SmackDown Live.

All of this, and more, is likely to be covered between Steve Austin and Cody Rhodes on Broken Skull Sessions. Will you be tuning in? Let us know in the comments!

Drew McIntyre sees a lot of similarities between he and Cody Rhodes’ journeys back to WWE.

Back in 2014 McIntyre was released from the WWE, forcing him to return to the independent scene; additionally working for promotions such as Evolve, IMPACT Wrestling, Pro Wrestling Guerilla (PWG), and so many more. In 2017 he was brought back to WWE after proving himself away from the company, eventually earning himself a WWE Title win over Brock Lesnar.

His former Tag Team Championship partner, Cody Rhodes, has had a very similar path. Rhodes left WWE in 2016 and went on to develop his “American Nightmare” gimmick after working for promotions such as IMPACT, New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) and the then-newly developed All Elite Wrestling (AEW).

Now, Rhodes has returned to WWE and has his eyes locked on a World Championship. Rhodes and Drew McIntyre have walked very similar paths in terms of leaving WWE, and returning proven commodities.

For Rhodes’ sake, hopefully he has the same results as McIntyre, earning a World Championship run. Speaking to Cultaholic, McIntyre discussed the similarities between he and Rhodes’ paths, praising his former tag team partner’s growth.

“Personally I’m happy to see him back, and there’s a few of us that have been around for a few years now that are excited to see Cody back just because we’re buddies with him and with his talent he adds to the show, 100%,” said McIntyre.

“And it’s cool to see how much he’s grown as a performer and as a person, much like myself. When I was gone from the company, I had to kinda go find who I was as a performer, kinda grow up as a man, and Cody’s done the exactly the same. And it’s cool. And I’d seen him before he came back and was aware of that. But it’s cool just to see him back in WWE.”

Currently, Rhodes is in the midst of a feud with Seth Rollins on Monday Night RAW. “The American Nightmare” made his WWE return against Rollins as his surprise opponent at WrestleMania 38.

Rhodes came out on top in the matchup, and now the pair will rematch at WrestleMania Backlash on May 8 from the Dunkin’ Donuts Center in Providence, Rhode Island.

Quotes via WrestleZone

WWE celebrated 20 years of Randy Orton’s debut on this week’s episode of Raw. The show also saw a reunion between him and Cody Rhodes.

The two former Legacy members reunited during the opening segment of the episode. Riddle introduced the American Nightmare before they were interrupted by Seth Rollins.

Rhodes later teamed up with RK Bro and Ezekiel in the main event of the red branded show. These four defeated Kevin Owens, Rollins & The Usos in an 8-men tag match.

The former AEW star took on his social media after Raw went off air to reflect on this Legacy reunion. Cody Rhodes shared a photo on Instagram and thanked Randy Orton for mentoring him in his early career:

“Randy Orton took me under his wing; perhaps begrudgingly or not, but he did it sincerely. Up in the stands earlier in the day, in the car, in the locker room, on the apron…constantly delivering wisdom and functional advice, and it came from a place of experience and wasn’t just rhetoric.

His passion for our sport is aggressive. Loud and proud. Did it his way and in the process entertained millions. Thank you.”

Apart from this Cody Rhodes – Randy Orton reunion, the Raw episode also featured 2 big returns and 6 matches. You can check out the complete Raw results here.

• Asuka Returns From Injury On WWE Raw, Starts New Program

Cody Rhodes’ WrestleMania return was preceded by many speculations. Fans had been discussing potential plans for his WWE return. There was even a rumor that he could make his comeback on the Raw episode from Jacksonville before the Show Of Shows. Though according to Rhodes himself, that was a big no for him because the story was not about him leaving AEW but about his return to WWE.

The former TNT champion spoke to Ryan Satin on Out Of Character. He was asked if there were any other plans considered for his return besides Mania. Cody said that as far as his understanding goes, the plan was always to do it at the Showcase Of Immortals:

“I mean, as far as my understanding the plan was always WrestleMania and nothing was ever considered. At one point, I saw people talking about Jacksonville, and that’s a no.” said Cody Rhodes, “Again, it’s not about leaving. It was about returning and the place to do it was at the Showcase of Immortals.”

He continued: “The biggest stage there is in what we do, undisputed is WrestleMania. There was a lot of synergy and love over the fact that it was Dallas, Texas. That is where I had my last WrestleMania with the ladder match for the Intercontinental Championship.”

Cody Rhodes also talked about his time in AEW. He expanded upon his comments about why the EVP role didn’t suit him at the time.

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If you use any quotes from the article please credit SEScoops with an H/t for transcription

Cody Rhodes is back in WWE, and he has one thing on his mind – a World Championship run.

Rhodes made his highly-anticipated return to the company at WrestleMania 38, introduced as Seth Rollins’ mystery opponent. In a stellar matchup that ended up being one of the best of the weekend, Rhodes came out on top when it was all said and done, making quite the statement in his return to the WWE.

Recently, Rhodes joined “Out of Character with Ryan Satin” to discuss everything surrounding his WWE return. During the interview, Rhodes explained a moment back in All Elite Wrestling (AEW) when manager Dan Lambert inadvertently helped him make the decision to return to WWE.

“Dan Lambert handed me the WWWF Championship, he handed me the title that my dad is holding in that picture from 1977, he handed it to me and in that moment, I felt like that decision was almost made for me,” Rhodes said (via Wrestling Inc.).

“I don’t know if he inadvertently caused this industry-changing moment but there were times when it was, this is what has to happen.

The night after WrestleMania, Cody Rhodes returned to Monday Night RAW to cut an emotional promo about his father, the late WWE Hall Of Famer Dusty Rhodes, and how he wants to win a WWE World Championship in his honor. It is a goal that clearly means a lot to Rhodes, and is certainly a possibility given the hype around his name at the moment.

In the meantime, Rhodes will have his hands full with Seth Rollins, who he’ll rematch at WrestleMania Backlash from the Dunkin Donuts Center in Providence, Rhodes Island on May 8.

Cody Rhodes’ decision to leave AEW surprised a lot of people. Not only because he was one of the company’s top on-screen talents but an Executive Vice President behind the scenes as well. Many would not be willing to give up the power that comes with such a position. Though after returning to WWE, Rhodes had claimed that he wasn’t mature enough for the role.

The American Nightmare explained his comments during his most recent appearance on Ryan Satin’s Out Of Character podcast. He said that while he did well with the role, it was probably not suited for him in the prime of his career:

“I think that role. I did well with it. I was very active. I did start a department. The community department and Brandi did bring KultureCity into the wrestling and sports entertainment space. So we were very active in terms of all the facets and assets of that gig. But I think that job was meant maybe for [someone older]. We wanted a wrestling company brought to you by wrestlers for sure.

That’s a huge part of the mission. But maybe it would have been better served for me at age 45 than it did at age, you know, 33 or whatever it was. I am just now entering the prime of my career. So to make political decisions, like boxing myself out of winning a world championship, those decisions in hindsight, were not the correct decisions and [not] what I should have been doing.”

‘I Am The Best Wrestler In The World’

Cody Rhodes repeated his comments about being the best wrestler in the world. However, the decisions he had to make as an EVP were stopping him from realizing this potential. Per Cody, the role would have probably served him better a little later in his life, when he did not have the desire to be on the top spot on the show anymore:

“I’m the best wrestler in the world. Ryan, I can tell you that without it sounding braggadocious and it’s simply because this is all I do. I train to do it. I live and breathe it. I have a school here with four rings. I treat this like an athlete in the NFL would treat a game and their team. But with that in mind, I needed to go and be that.

I wanted it to be both and it was just too difficult and that’s where I did not have the maturity to balance it. It wasn’t a matter of being one of the boys versus not because I’m no longer just one of the boys. I love it and wish I could be one.” said Cody Rhodes, “But I’ve been in this position before. I’ve been on the other side. I’ve been in these production meetings and things of that nature. I’ve been part of the technical production.

But I just think it would have served me better a little later in my in my life when I could look at a show and say I don’t want to be in the top spot. You need that good competition in your locker room, that positive real competition. If I can’t be the best wrestler in the world on television because I’m afraid I’m going to offend colleagues, because I am also their boss. That was the situation we were in and I just played it in the middle. There was only so much of playing in the middle I could do. Now you know I’m not in charge of nothing, other than me.”

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If you use any quotes from the article please credit SEScoops with an H/t for transcription

Jim Ross believes Dusty Rhodes would’ve been over the moon when Cody Rhodes appeared at WrestleMania 38.

Cody made it clear after his January TNT Title loss to Sammy Guevara that the reports of him working without an AEW contract were true. At the time, Cody said he didn’t know what the future would hold.

Just weeks later, Tony Khan announced that Cody and Brandi Rhodes were gone from AEW. This led many to speculate that Cody would be on his way to WWE. That hunch was correct as Cody was the mystery opponent for Seth Rollins at WrestleMania 38.

Jim Ross On Cody Rhodes Returning to WWE

There’s been rumblings that if WWE continues to treat Cody Rhodes like a top star, then it may entice AEW talent to jump ship. On the Grilling JR podcast, Jim Ross said it doesn’t really matter who could be next (h/t Wrestling Inc).

“I don’t know who’s next and I don’t give a sh** who’s next. What difference does it make? The show will go on, the games will be played, and you’ll just have people playing with different jerseys. I don’t know, I don’t have any idea. I’m sure at some point in time, there will be others. At some point in time, you run your course.”

JR went on to say that Cody’s WrestleMania moment would’ve made Dusty Rhodes very proud.

“I know Dusty would’ve been very proud to see how Cody did at WrestleMania. He wasn’t wearing polka dots and all that other stuff. He had his AEW act with him, music, and attire. That’s good, I don’t see anything wrong with that.”

Cody ended up defeating Seth Rollins at the “stupendous” WrestleMania event. The two will have a rematch at WrestleMania Backlash on May 8.

Cody Rhodes might be gearing up to make his first appearance on SmackDown Live since making his WWE return after all.

As of this writing, WWE’s website is listing Rhodes as one of its featured Superstars for the upcoming SmackDown Live episode on Friday, May 6. This is the go-home edition of SmackDown Live before WrestleMania Backlash, where Rhodes is to rematch Seth Rollins.The May 6 SmackDown will go down from Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, New York, WWE’s first event at the venue in nine years.

Also advertised for the show are SmackDown Live Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair, Drew McIntyre, Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns, and Ronda Rousey. Of course, this is all subject to change. Rhodes made his return to WWE after a great run with All Elite Wrestling (AEW) earlier this month at WrestleMania 38.

He was introduced as Seth Rollins’ mystery opponent, subsequently winning the match. The bout turned out to be one of the best of the weekend. The following night on RAW, Rhodes proclaimed his intentions to chase a World Title now that he’s back in WWE, but first, he has granted Rollins a rematch at Backlash.

As for his SmackDown Live status, Rhodes has only been appearing on Monday Night RAW since WrestleMania. He was initially reported to be scheduled for the SmackDown after WrestleMania as well, however, that was later scrapped. It should be noted that Cody Rhodes isn’t officially listed as a RAW or SmackDown brand member on WWE’s website.

WWE Hall Of Famer Booker T knows exactly who he wants to be the one to finally dethrone Roman Reigns.

The two-time Hall Of Famer took to his podcast, “The Hall Of Fame,” to offer his thoughts on the current World Title picture. Booker explained that he’d like to see Rhodes get a World Title reign by defeating Reigns, even if it means getting the title back around “The Tribal Chief’s” waist before the next WrestleMania.

“I don’t see why Cody can’t take the title off Roman in the meantime,” Booker said (via WrestlingInc.). “Roman could easily get it back by the time WrestleMania comes back around, we’ve got plenty of time to be able to switch that back, if that’s the route we are going to go in. If that’s the route they’re thinking, I suggest yes, we go that route of Rock and Roman, because it’s money.”

Reigns comes off of a big WrestleMania 38 win over Brock Lesnar, capturing the WWE Championship to unify with the Universal Title he already held. Now, having topped “The Beast” in Dallas, it remains to be seen who will be Reigns’ next big opponent. In the meantime, he’s focused on collecting more gold for The Bloodline in the form of getting The Usos to capture the RAW Tag Team Titles.

Rhodes finally made his return to WWE at WrestleMania 38, being introduced as Seth Rollins’ mystery opponent. “The American Nightmare” came out on top in the matchup, which was undoubtedly one of the best of the entire weekend. Now, Rhodes has made it clear he came back to WWE with his sights set firmly on a World Title. And right now, that road goes through Roman Reigns.

Reigns may sense Rhodes is creeping up on his run as Unified Champion, as he recently destroyed a fan’s Cody Rhodes sign after Monday Night RAW went off-air this week.

There has been a lot of speculation about the relationships between Cody Rhodes and The Young Bucks, but according to a new interview, that has been a lot of speculation over nothing.

Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson sat down with Sports Illustrated and discussed Rhodes moving on from AEW, as well as the idea that they took a shot at Rhodes recently on Twitter.

After Rhodes returned to WWE at WrestleMania 38, he took to his Twitter account and wrote, “Wrestling is a love story.”

Around the same time, The Young Bucks updated their Twitter bio. That bio read, “The story of a couple of self-made SoCal kids who came from nothing & built a gigantic movement was never going to be romantic enough for you.”

Speaking to SI, Matt Jackson denied this was a cryptic message to Rhodes. He noted that both he and his brother keep in touch with Cody and they wish him the best with WWE. Instead, he claimed the update was a reference to wrestling fans.

“That Twitter bio was actually dedicated to cynical wrestling fans who’ve always discredited us and shaped a narrative early on that we weren’t important to the launch of AEW. So they ran with a story that made more sense to them. We talk to Cody regularly, and hope nothing but the best for him,” Matt Jackson said.

• Original Plans For Cody Rhodes’ Post-Mania Raw Promo

Prior to the aforementioned Twitter bio update, The Bucks had updated it around the time of Cody’s return at WrestleMania to wrestle Seth Rollins. That time, the bio read, “Wtf I thought we were doing All In 2.” Neither brother was asked about that one by SI, but it clearly was a reference to Cody.

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Roman Reigns has already had enough of Cody Rhodes.

Cody made his “stupendous” return to WWE on night one of WrestleMania 38. He was Seth Rollins’ surprise opponent. Cody won the match and followed that up with a victory over The Miz on the April 11 episode of Raw.

Roman Reigns Rips Up Cody Rhodes Sign

Roman Reigns was in action once Raw went off the air. He teamed with The Usos to take on Drew McIntyre and New Day. At one point, Reigns took a Cody Rhodes sign from a fan and ripped it to shreds.

This will certainly stoke the flames of a potential showdown between Reigns and Cody. Rhodes recently appeared on WWE’s The Bump and said that a match with Reigns is there for the future.

Peep the video courtesy of Twitter user “ItsWildBoy.”

Cody Rhodes made his triumphant WWE return at WrestleMania 38. He then cut an amazing promo to open the post-Mania episode of Monday Night Raw.

Though latest reports suggest that the plans for the promo were different and they were changed by the officials at the last minute.

According to Fightful Select, the promo where Rhodes explained that he came back to win the world championship for his father was originally going to main event the show:

“On Monday, the Cody Rhodes segment was scripted to go on last, even appearing internally as such until about a little after 7 PM EST. We weren’t told a reason the Cody and [Roman] Reigns segments were flipped.”

This week’s episode of Monday Night Raw saw the American Nightmare appearing as a guest on The Miz TV. This led to a match between the two stars.

• Chris Jericho: Cody Rhodes Bigger Than Ever After WWE Jump

Cody won this bout against the A-Lister using the Cross Rhodes. Seth Rollins came down to the ring after the fight and confronted his WrestleMania opponent.

Rollins mentioned how Rhodes had the advantage of being the surprise opponent at Mania. He then challenged the former AEW star to a rematch, which Rhodes accepted. This match will take place on WrestleMania: Backlash.

Chris Jericho is disappointed Cody Rhodes jumped to WWE. However, he understands the decision and says Cody is now “bigger than he’s ever been.”

The wrestling world is still reeling from Cody Rhodes jumping ship from AEW to WWE. All Elite Wrestling has signed a ton of former WWE Superstars, but Rhodes is the first high-profile name to move the other way.

Jericho spoke about the situation on the latest episode of his Talk is Jericho podcast. His own career has taken many twists and turns. He’s wrestled for ECW, WCW, WWE, New Japan and now AEW.

“I was honestly disappointed he left, but I get it. I’ve done it many times myself.”

– Chris Jericho on Cody Rhodes jumping to WWE

Chris Jericho on Cody’s Rhodes’ Decision

Chris Jericho is known for many things, but reinventing himself has to be at the top of the list. Jericho believes Cody felt the time was right to make a big move and advance his career. According to Jericho, it’s paying off for the American Nightmare.

“I mean, I left WWE in 2017 for basically the same reason why Cody left AEW, from what I understand, is he just didn’t think he was getting the, I don’t know if it’s the spotlight, or respect or whatever the word being, but you can kind of see the writing on the wall,” said Jericho.

He continued, “So obviously, now Cody is bigger than he’s ever been just by changing companies, and obviously they did a great job in putting him over at WrestleMania and bringing him in at the highest of levels.”

Since returning to WWE, Cody Rhodes is being positioned as a top babyface on the Raw brand. After defeating Seth Rollins at WrestleMania, he faces The Miz tonight on Raw. Once he gets a few wins under his belt, it’s only a matter of time before Cody Rhodes crosses paths with the top dog in WWE, Roman Reigns.

• Cody Rhodes On Roman Reigns: “There’s A Match Out There”

Thanks to the Putting You Over podcast for sending in this tip. Please H/T SEScoops if you use any of these quotes.

Yesterday it was reported that Cody Rhodes was scheduled to be at tonight’s taping of SmackDown Live in Milwaukee. Rhodes recently made his return to WWE at WrestleMania 38, defeating Seth Rollins in Dallas, Texas this past weekend.

However, according to an updated report from PWInsider, Cody Rhodes is no longer scheduled to be in attendance for the taping. Instead, the report adds that WWE is planning on having a lot more crossover between brands. Three to four unnamed SmackDown stars are slated to be at Monday Night RAW next week. The reasoning is said to be so Superstars can work dark matches.

Also, now that Roman Reigns is both WWE Champion and WWE Universal Champion, he’s expected to be working both brands as well. This seemed to already be the case on this week’s episode of RAW. Reigns, who is officially a SmackDown star, appeared on RAW to close out the show with a promo. The Usos also were involved in a six-man tag team match.

Both Sasha Banks and Naomi, the new WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions, also appeared on the show, defeating Liv Morgan & Rhea Ripley in a Championship Contender’s match. Natalya and Shayna Baszler also made appearances.

In addition to that report, it should be noted that Lacey Evans will be in Milwaukee for tonight’s episode of SmackDown Live. However, there’s no word yet on what her involvement will be. Evans hasn’t been on WWE TV since going on maternity leave last year. We’ll keep you updated as more information becomes available.

Despite appearing on Monday Night RAW earlier this week, Cody Rhodes might not officially be a member of the red brand just yet.

According to a report from PWInsider, Rhodes is scheduled to be at SmackDown Live this Friday. There’s currently no word yet if he’s expected to be a part of the broadcast or work a dark match, however, he is set to at least be there backstage. It certainly wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibilities for Rhodes to compete on SmackDown Live, as he hasn’t been assigned to either brand officially as of this writing.

Cody Rhodes made his return to WWE at WrestleMania 38 this past weekend in Dallas Texas. “The American Nightmare” was introduced as the surprise mystery opponent for Seth Rollins. After an excellent bout, one of the best of the entire weekend, it was Rhodes who walked out of WrestleMania with the victory. The following Monday on RAW, Rhodes cut an emotional promo about his father, the late WWE Hall Of Famer Dusty Rhodes.

In the promo, Rhodes made it clear that he intends on chasing a World Championship upon his second run with the company. As for he and Rollins, that program seems to have been put to bed as Rollins came out after Rhodes’ promo on RAW to shake his WrestleMania opponent’s hand. Rhodes did, however, work a dark match against Kevin Owens later that night.

We’ll keep you updated as more information becomes available regarding Rhodes’ SmackDown Live involvement, and his brand situation.

Cody Rhodes made his surprise return to WWE at WrestleMania 38 this past weekend, as he was revealed as the mystery opponent for Seth Rollins. Rhodes emerged victorious after an excellent bout against Rollins, making quite the statement in his return to the company he left in 2016.

While many predicted Rhodes was going to be the one to face Rollins at WrestleMania, WWE still tried to keep his return a secret, keeping him in a bus until it was time for him to make his entrance for the match. However, speaking to The Ringer recently, “The American Nightmare” admitted that he actually ran into Triple H just before hitting the ring.

“There’s no secret Triple H is my favorite wrestler ever, even though I broke his throne, and badmouthed him to the earth,” Rhodes said (via Wrestling Inc.). “He’s the last person I saw before I went out there, and now I have to tell him. But the pedigree itself, everything in there, even the stuff I messed up, I wouldn’t change.

“That one jab felt good. This is my life’s education, I sat under the greatest learning tree for 20 years. It took me a while to figure this stuff out, but I’ve got it now. I just have to keep getting it now.”

After the match, Rhodes returned to Monday Night RAW earlier this week, cutting an emotional, unscripted promo about his father, the late WWE Hall Of Famer Dusty Rhodes. He also declared his intentions to win a WWE World Title, a feat that eluded him during his first run with the company. Also, to close out the segment, Rollins hit the ring to confront Rhodes, and the pair ended up shaking hands in a mutual sign of respect.

It will be interesting to see who Cody Rhodes feuds with first now that he’s back in WWE, and clearly has World Title aspirations to get started on.