WWE Made Alteration to Cody Rhodes’ RAW Plans

The world of professional wrestling is always full of surprises, and the May 8th episode of WWE RAW was no exception. Fans tuning in to watch the show were in for a shock when plans for one of the night’s biggest stars, Cody Rhodes, were changed at the last minute.

Fightful Select had posted a rundown of the show’s planned format prior to the airing of the episode. However, it was reported that talent was handed a new format just before the show, implying that changes had been made. Upon reviewing the format posted by Fightful and comparing it to what happened on the show, it was discovered that the positioning of the World Heavyweight Championship tournament three-way matches had been switched around.

The original plan had been for Cody Rhodes to open the show with a promo, followed by his three-way match with The Miz and Finn Balor. The other three-way, featuring Seth Rollins, Damian Priest, and Shinsuke Nakamura, was set to take place after Otis vs. Mustafa Ali. However, during the show, the two three-ways were flipped, with Rollins’ taking place right after the Rhodes opening promo, and Rhodes’ three-way taking place after Otis vs. Ali.

The reasons for this change in plans are unclear, but it did allow for a confrontation between Rollins and Rhodes at the top of the stage when Rollins came out for his match. It also ensured that Rhodes appeared on TV at 9 pm, which is typical for the biggest star on RAW.

Despite the switch-up, the night’s events continued as planned. Rollins won his three-way, while Rhodes’ was won by Finn Balor after Rhodes was attacked by Brock Lesnar. This set up a rematch from Backlash for Night of Champions. Rollins beat Balor in the show’s main event, earning him a spot in the final of the World Heavyweight Championship tournament at Night of Champions against whoever wins from the SmackDown side on Friday.

What are your thoughts on the last-minute changes to the WWE RAW format on May 8th? Leave a comment.