Cody Rhodes Thinks The Rock Recognized His Potential as a Performer on 3/8 WWE SmackDown

The American Nightmare Cody Rhodes had a turbulent road to WrestleMania 40 that culminated in his monumental victory over Roman Reigns and capturing the Undisputed WWE championship at The Show of Shows in the process.

Amongst all the moments created on the way to finish the story, Rhodes recently revealed his stand-out moment taking place on the March 8 episode of Friday Night SmackDown.

On that night, Cody Rhodes and his ally, Seth Rollins confronted the formidable duo of The Rock and Roman Reigns to accept a tag team match against The Rock and Reigns for WrestleMania 40 Saturday which they ultimately lost at the show and led to Rhodes facing The Tribal Chief in a Bloodline Rules match the following night.

In a recent interview with Jimmy Traina on the SI Media Podcast, Cody reflected on that episode of SmackDown as a standout moment. The confrontation between the two teams, alongside Rhodes slapping The Rock as a favor return for what The Final Boss did to him weeks prior, set the stage for what proved to be an electrifying showdown at WrestleMania 40.

“There was a moment, in the ring, live, happening in real time where Seth and I came down through the people to confront the Tribal Chief and Final Boss. I got a big kick out of seeing them see us. I’ve given a lot of respect to The Rock, and will certainly continue to do so, but I think he didn’t know who I was as a player. I think in the moment, he saw, ‘Geez, they’re all doing the WOAH. He’s signing autographs on the way down here.’ It’s a different type of individual than perhaps he maybe saw a picture online or one clip. We base so much off GIFs and social media. That moment, right before I slapped him, and I brought that slap, that moment was a nice moment amongst myself and Seth and our place in all this.” 

Following The Rock’s confrontation with Cody Rhodes on the RAW after WrestleMania 40, we will have to await the return of The Final Boss from his hiatus and see if WWE chooses to write the next chapter of this blockbuster storyline that captivated the audience on the road to WrestleMania.

What did you think of the moment labeled by Cody Rhodes as his stand-out moment on the road to WrestleMania 40? Sound off in the comments!