Cody Rhodes finished his story at WrestleMania XL by dethroning Roman Reigns to become the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion. The American Nightmare endured a long road to ‘Mania, filled with several twists and turns. It all started when he won the Men’s Royal Rumble match for the second consecutive year.
The 38-year-old has revealed that he learned on the day of the Royal Rumble that he would not be challenging Reigns for the title. Instead, The Rock was taking his main event spot at The Show of Shows. This led to him taking actions into his own hands, and he pointed at Roman Reigns when he was supposed to direct his attention at then-World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins.
On an episode of the Busted Open Radio, Cody Rhodes said:
“I found out the possibility of The Rock vs. Roman Reigns the day of the Royal Rumble. I had to leave that room, head up, and make sure no one knew what could possibly happen and probably one of the more difficult days I’ve had in the wrestling business, but how could I complain when you’re winning the Royal Rumble and you’re pointing at the sign. It was such a high, such a low.” [H/T Fightful].
Cody Rhodes appeared on SmackDown and looked prepared to surrender his world title shot. He’d seemingly agreed to step aside for The Rock to challenge his cousin at Lincoln Financial Field, although that didn’t end up happening.
The mass backlash from fans led to Rhodes reclaiming his world title shot and The People’s Champ turning heel. The Rock and Reigns teamed up to face Rollins and Rhodes in a tag team match on Night One of ‘Mania, and The Bloodline duo picked up the victory.
Rhodes bounced back and beat Reigns in the main event on Night Two to end The Tribal Chief’s 1,316-day reign as Universal Champion. The former AEW star’s actions played a key role in the change in plans.
Cody Rhodes is ‘proud’ to have beaten the best version of Roman Reigns
Roman Reigns’ historic WWE Universal Championship reign will live long in the memory. He won the title at Payback 2020 in a triple threat match against Bray Wyatt and Braun Strowman.
Fast-forward four years, and he’s defended it against the likes of Randy Orton, John Cena, Kevin Owens, and Seth Rollins. His run with the title led to some of the most entertaining storylines in WWE history, including Sami Zayn’s role in The Bloodline.
Cody Rhodes ended Roman Reigns’ dominant reign in one of the most iconic WrestleMania main events. He expressed pride in defeating The Head of the Table while speaking on The Pat McAfee Show:
“I don’t agree with how Roman was champion. We go about how we operate in the ring completely differently, but still – and I really mean it – I’m proud that I beat him at his best and I hope that I can be half the champion that Roman Reigns was.” [H/T WrestlingInc]
Since losing his title, Reigns has taken a leave of absence, and many are speculating about his future. Given that Solo Sikoa has self-appointed himself as the tribal chief, a potential babyface return is a possibility.
