10 Fascinating WWE Backstage Facts About Cody Rhodes
From smashing the throne to taking his place at WWE's top table, Cody Rhodes has done it all.
He left WWE, became one of the biggest stars in All Elite Wrestling, then against all odds made a triumphant return to Paul Levesque's new WWE. No, it's not the Chick Magnet, it's the one who did it first!
Fans of the Son of the Son of a Plumber have seen him go from being a plucky upstart who learned from the best (not his father, but Hardcore Holly) before joining another third generation superstar to try and make a new for himself in the business. He was dashing, then he wasn't, before they threw some black and gold spandex on him and hoped for the best.
He left and the rest is history, but there's so much more to Cody Rhodes than simply being the first person to go back to WWE from AEW. He's a man who took the alternate path; in the days when it was Vince McMahon's playground or bust, Cody blazed a trail that helped bring in a brand new competitor for the 'E for the first time since World Championship Wrestling closed its doors.
Dusty Rhodes is a legend and so is Dustin Runnels, but Cody didn't get anything for free just because he had a father and brother in the business. That's why his story is so interesting; that's why fans continue to be enamoured with the undisputed star of WWE.
He's got adrenaline in his soul, but this list is so much more than simply something, something, Cody Rhodes.
10. He Never Teamed With Dusty Rhodes In WWE
The American Dream and the American Nightmare. Does that average out to the America normal? Perhaps, but it doesn’t make a team that most wrestling fans ever got to see.
Surprising, isn’t it? The only time Cody and Dusty teamed up was in front of a tiny crowd of 1,500 people for Ohio Valley Wrestling in Louisville, Kentucky. The lucky opponents were Idol Stevens and KC James, soon to become Damien Sandow.
The father and son team was victorious, but it’s hard to believe this was their one and only match together. Sure, Dusty’s best days were behind him, but he still managed to have another three matches after this one. He’d defeat Nicky of the Spirit Squad long before he was Dolph Ziggler and last 8:25 in a 5-on-5 Survivor Series elimination match before his last ever bout.
That was a Texas Bullrope match which included a run-in from the Son of the Son of a Plumber. Perhaps the small gap between Dusty’s return and Cody’s main roster debut prevented them teaming up, but it’ll always feel like a missed opportunity.