In Pro Wrestling world there are many rules - sometimes unwritten - of fundamental importance: the connection with the fans, especially when you are babyface, is a primary thing... If you are the face of the company, even more. Cody Rhodes, for example, made this connection with fans one of the cornerstones of his run that led him to become Undisputed WWE Champion in April 2024 and still today this bond remains.
However, the American Nightmare is also known for some controversial statements even on topics where once you were more of a broad-brained but now you should have zero tolerance. Those who use social networks know well how this disgusting practice is widespread among the so-called haters, but it seems that it also finds illustrious supporters.
Ringside News reported the segment of an intervention by Cody to the podcast Flagrant in which he admitted not particularly disagreed with body shaming in Wrestling. For him it is a vanity business and he considers it essential to have a good physique to show off, since many wrestlers appear without a shirt... And for him it is legitimate that the fans judge wrestlers by their appearance.
"There’s this weird online phalanx that doesn’t realize how important that body is. We’re wrestling without shirts, people, and you hear people say 'You can’t make body shaming on wrestlers'... What are we talking about? We’re standing there half n*ked and people pay hundreds of dollars to see us, so criticize my body as much as you like".
Someone like Adam Cole, who recently expressed his annoyance towards some haters who had targeted him on social media, will surely not agree. Cody instead, well aware and convinced of his controversial position, prepares for the WWE’s Saudi away to Crown Jewel where he will face Gunther.
Cody is a global icon
Recently, the American Nightmare spoke about WrestleMania 41: "There are so many rumors circulating! And all different depending on the feed on social, each of which could also have matches. The hardest thing to do not only in WWE but in sports entertainment and Pro Wrestling in general, is not to become a champion but to get to participate in the main event of WrestleMania".
He then went into detail - so to speak - adding again: "I don’t care what the voice is, unless the voice says that I’m part of the main event of WrestleMania. What I can say to those who listen to the rumors is this: I bet that what they will see at WrestleMania 41 is unexpected for them too".
The road that will lead to Las Vegas for WrestleMania is still very long, officially will not start until February after WWE Royal Rumble, and before then Cody has many issues to deal with: the match at Crown Jewel against Gunther, and more immediately the anger of Kevin Owens.
An impressive rise
Cody Rhodes became Undisputed WWE Universal Champion at WrestleMania XL, and a significant part of the credit is his character’s writing, For the past two years he has always had the supervision of Triple H. Also for this reason, American Nightmare decided to praise the new boss of the company for his open mind regarding the ideas and in general the booking that he is proposing.
"You have to be open-minded - explained Cody Rhodes -. Many luminaries, legends, veterans, when approaching today’s wrestlers make the mistake of thinking that there is only one way to do things. These are the rules, they say. They’re rigid, they’re firm. But this doesn’t work. To say that they did everything and in their time were at the top does not mean to listen to them in everything and redo everything in the same way. Also because the guys who do wrestling today are the most independent that ever existed. If you are one of these guys who come, welcoming them with an open mind is the best thing you can do".
He also added: "Triple H is the perfect example of this way of doing things - stressed Cody Rhodes -. He could easily have taken the rules of Killer Kowalski, who said 'we do it this way and do it that way, period'. Vince McMahon’s rules were the same. Instead, Having an open mind is the best solution. The past should not be forgotten, it will always be there to teach us something. That’s why I like a veteran to guide me. But there are endless ways to do so, as long as the crowd enjoys and makes noise, There are many ways to do this. Being open-minded is the best thing that can happen".