The road to WrestleMania 40 was full of surprises, culminating in an unexpected and thrilling two-night event. While fans eagerly awaited the much-hyped match between The Rock and Roman Reigns, the showdown took an unforeseen turn, largely influenced by vocal fans known as the “Cody Crybabies”. In the end, Cody Rhodes got his moment of glory on the second night of WrestleMania XL.
Cody Rhodes recently opened up about his experiences heading into WrestleMania 40. Initially, The Rock and Roman Reigns teamed up against Rhodes and Seth Rollins in the main event of the first night, with Reigns and The Rock emerging victorious. The following night, Rhodes defeated Reigns to claim the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship, a match that saw The Rock, The Undertaker, John Cena & others get involved.
In an interview on The Pivot Podcast, Rhodes shared his thoughts on WrestleMania XL. He praised The Rock as a professional who knows how to captivate the audience from the moment he steps into the ring. However, he had a problem with The Final Boss trying to take his spot.
Rhodes said, “Where we would butt heads is in the idea that you could just come back in the midst of a story that was taking place, and just because you’re The Rock, you can step into the starting lineup and take WrestleMania for yourself. A lot of people said, ‘He’s The Rock. He can do whatever he wants.’ I even saw a podcast with two wrestling heads talking, and they said, ‘I’m sure Cody is fine stepping aside for WrestleMania and doing it later in the year.’ In my mind, I’m thinking, ‘That’s insane.’”
Emphasizing the significance of WrestleMania, Rhodes continued, “That’s the Super Bowl of what we do. To get to Sunday, the last day of WrestleMania, the last match, it’s our literal Super Bowl. The idea that somebody thought I would be cool with it. They don’t know me. That’s nonsense.
I worked my whole life for this. Rock should know I wouldn’t be cool with it. Maybe that’s an understanding that him and I have. He found out, I’m not cool with it. That’s a good thing.
You know who wasn’t cool with The Rock? Steve Austin. They made magic together. They rubbed together so much it created diamonds. I do have a lot of respect for him.”
Rock pinned Cody at WrestleMania 40 – Night 1 and then teased a singles match with him on the RAW after WrestleMania.