The wrestling world received quite the shock when Cody Rhodes announced his departure from AEW, and the reports that followed saying he might return to WWE really sent it all over the top. With that said, it’s been weeks since he departed, and he’s still not in the WWE. So, what’s going on with Rhodes, and is he indeed heading back to Vince McMahon’s wrestling company? The latest rumors on the situation certainly give us some more (possible) insight.
A new rumor alleges that while Cody Rhodes appeared to be on a direct path to the WWE, the situation stalled recently. With his latest report, Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio (via f4wonline.com) noted that while it seemed like a sure-fire thing that Rhodes was on his way to the WWE, that eventuality is now up in the air.
His status has changed, in theory. He was on the books in WWE. They had creative laid out for him. They still thought on Friday that they had creative laid out for him. Now, it's very uncertain. They don't know what's going on with Cody Rhodes. They're not sure.
As Meltzer states things, the WWE allegedly felt confident enough about Cody Rhodes returning to the WWE that creative plans were already in place for his arrival. What’s particularly important is that this change reportedly occurred fairly recently, which may indicate something new and noteworthy came up that affected Rhodes’ decision. It’s really hard to speculate anything, considering there’s been no completely explicit confirmation Cody Rhodes ever actually intended to return to the WWE in the first place.
The Cody Rhodes situation, at first, seemed like a major win for the WWE. Once rumors initially surfaced claiming that Rhodes might return to the WWE after leaving his duties as an Executive Vice President and top talent at AEW, it seemed the organization finally landed a big signing win over its growing rival. To that end, Monday Night Raw even featured some subtle teases for Rhodes' return, so for him not to make his comeback after all might be slightly embarrassing for the company. It's hard to know how much truth is being filtered through those rumors, but the completely lack of forward momentum in recent days does speak to at least some possible legitimacy.
All we know for now is there are a lot of WWE fans who hoped to see Cody Rhodes before WrestleMania 38, and it’s possible that won’t end up happening. Of course, it’s possible this is just part of the negotiation process, and Rhodes might stroll onto Monday Night Raw soon after all the numbers get banged out agreeably. Again, it’s hard to really speculate anything when so much of this situation is steeped in rumors and speculation, but that’s just how pro wrestling is sometimes!
Cody Rhodes isn’t back in the WWE right now, but a lot of his iconic past matches are currently available to check out with a Peacock premium subscription. Hopefully, he’ll be back wrestling before too long, regardless of whether that’s with the WWE or another organization.
