Vince McMahon Reportedly Turned His Back on Roman Reigns and Brock Lesnar to Bring Back Cody Rhodes Before WrestleMania 38: “I Told Vince..And He Didn’t Argue”

Cody Rhodes is undoubtedly one of the most gifted wrestlers in terms of technique. He has always been so, even when Vince McMahon booked him as Stardust, an ally to his half-brother’s androgynous Goldust gimmick. Therefore, it wasn’t surprising that Cody soon ran out of patience and left the WWE for more meaty roles.

Announcing his departure in 2016, the current Royal Rumble winner had said that despite trying to convince Vince McMahon and creative head Triple H of his star power, the promotion wouldn’t give him a higher push. He had said he didn’t want to undervalue himself anymore, thus severing his ties with the McMahons.

More than half a decade later, Cody made his WWE comeback and has been going steady since. While Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns squared off at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, for the mega prize, it was Rhodes’ comeback match in 2022 that drew the loudest cheers from the crowd.

According to a recent report, the junior Rhodes has made a startling revelation about his present contract that enabled the Cody Rhodes-Seth Rollins match at WrestleMania 38.

Cody Rhodes wanted to apologize to Vince McMahon, meeting ended unexpectedly

If promos are to go by, very few can doubt Cody Rhodes’ sincerity. Now it seems, the 37-year-old former tag team champion has no dearth of that quality. “I really wanted the meeting to be about saying I’m sorry,” he said about his meeting with the former WWE boss.

Cody was sorry about his abrupt departure in 2016 but wanted Vince McMahon and his team to be sorry about his poor booking. “Stardust had run its course,” the superstar observed. There was one more thing, however, that he wanted to convey to the billionaire promoter.

“I told Vince McMahon I was the best wrestler in the world. I think I have been for a while. And he didn’t argue with me about that,” Cody revealed.

At the time of Cody Rhodes comeback, the WWE wasn’t bereft of bona fide superstars. The company may have lost some of its grandeur, with a host of legends limiting their in-ring presence. But they still had the service of Roman Reigns, Brock Lesnar and Sami Zayn to show for. Yet the boss thought it was safe to get Cody in. That move proved that Vince believed in Roman Reigns’ challenger.

Read More: “Finally Perfect” – Cody Rhodes Reveals WWE’s Special Tribute to Him Which Roman Reigns Received 8 Years Ago

The other factor that the WWE benefited from was his desire to wrestle full time.

AEW failed to understand Cody Rhodes’ potential, facilitated switch

After leaving the WWE, Cody Rhodes toured the Indies and eventually helped set up the AEW- his brainchild. Unfortunately, he had to abandon his own creation. Unlike Vince McMahon, Tony Khan, the owner of AEW, isn’t a seasoned promoter.

McMahon knows the industry inside out, thus helping him foresee events and avert situations that would hamper his business. Tony Khan relied on Cody Rhodes, an able administrator, but one who’s reluctant at the same time.

During a conversation with Rich Eisen on his eponymous show recently, 2x WWE Intercontinental Champion said Khan was “getting comfortable with the idea” while the wrestler did the bulk of the work at AEW.

“I think it distanced me a little bit from being just a wrestler,” he remarked. “I think the job I had at AEW, I might have been a little too young for it, definitely a little too immature for,” he added. By his own admission, he likes it in WWE where he’s judged on the parameters of performance and in-ring activity alone.

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That said, it is often said that “Fortune favors the brave”. Cody was brave enough to tell Vince McMahon what he always believed in- the best wrestler in the world.