Cody Rhodes Reflects on His “Huge Creative Mistake” in AEW: Why the Undisputed WWE Champion Now Regrets Limiting His Career Potential
Cody Rhodes, the cutting-edge Undisputed WWE Champion and current winner of the Crown Jewel Championship, has reached an exceptional peak in his expert wrestling career. However, as he continues his a hit run in WWE, he’s now establishing up approximately a “innovative mistake” he made whilst running as a wrestler and Executive Vice President for All Elite Wrestling (AEW) — a flow which can have value him a huge bankruptcy in his wrestling journey.
Having spent almost 3 years supporting to build AEW, Rhodes became an influential determine, capturing lovers’ imaginations and pushing creative barriers inside the enterprise. Yet, regardless of attaining more than one TNT Championships and playing a crucial role in AEW’s rise, one pivotal choice left a long-lasting impact on Rhodes’ legacy in the agency: his self-imposed restriction from ever triumphing the AEW World Title.
Reflecting on this choice at some stage in a candid interview with The Flagrant podcast, Cody defined his mind-set at the time. “I had done two full storylines that I would say I completely oversaw,” he recalled, regarding his storyline with Chris Jericho for the AEW World Championship. Though the storyline became a collaborative effort, Cody clarified it changed into his personal blueprint that he followed meticulously. He defined that whilst he had the support of key figures like Jericho and AEW’s founder, Tony Khan, he feared that triumphing the AEW World Title might supply the belief that he changed into abusing his position as an Executive Vice President.
“There is this revisionist history; the last year, I was a bad guy, and they were booing me left and right,” Cody shared, pointing out the dynamic change in his relationship with fans. “Those first two years, and especially those first two months, I was the hottest thing they had, and that was a great spot to be in,” He stated, noting that he felt stress to avoid the use of his power to promote himself. He feared enthusiasts might misread him triumphing the AEW World Title as favoritism, which weighed closely on his decision to put in force the specific stipulation that would prevent him from ever competing for the top title.
The stipulation originated from a loss to Chris Jericho, which, with interference from MJF, value Cody his shot at the AEW World Title. The choice, even though designed to protect AEW’s innovative integrity, inadvertently located a ceiling on Cody’s individual improvement, impacting how fans perceived his function in the agency. Now, years later, he admits it changed into a misstep. “I would say it was a huge mistake that I went that route. I was hot and the fans were happy,” Cody admitted, spotting that his insistence on not difficult for the identify possibly hampered his storyline ability.
With the clarity of hindsight, Rhodes mentioned that he had desired his storylines to hold the identical weight as a global title healthy. However, he now acknowledges that the AEW World Title itself should have accelerated his presence in the company, as wrestling, at its core, “might just be about the title.” He reflected, “I wanted to make my stories as big as the world title, which is a problem in itself. You might as well be World Champion.” Though his motives were rooted in integrity, he now believes that creatively, his choice may additionally have deprived AEW’s fanatics of memorable moments he may want to have crafted with a title reign.
For Cody Rhodes, this revelation underscores a critical lesson in professional wrestling: the importance of embracing one’s rightful place at the top when the possibility arises. While he could have subsequently retracted the stipulation, Rhodes remained adamant about maintaining it in location, viewing it as a personal code of honor. “I’ll do these really great stories that just don’t revolve around the title,” he explained, admitting he didn’t first of all draw close the innovative ceiling he had imposed on himself.
Since returning “domestic” to WWE, Rhodes has unlocked new tiers in his profession, attaining unheard of heights because the reigning WWE Champion. His cutting-edge success serves as a reminder of the missed opportunities he left in the back of in AEW, in which he may also have underestimated the capacity effect of a name reign on his legacy. And as he continues to carve out his legacy in WWE, his story serves as a lesson for others in the wrestling world: sometimes, seizing the spotlight is the best way to honor one’s place in the ring.
