Cody Rhodes is officially gone from AEW, and according to numerous reports, he’s already in negotiations with the WWE about making a possible return to the promotion. Rhodes last wrestled under the WWE banner in 2016 while still enduring the Stardust gimmick, but thanks to his time in Ring of Honor, New Japan and AEW he has firmly established himself as a main event player. Whether or not Vince McMahon agrees with that idea remains to be seen, but Rhodes can potentially pop up on WWE programming as soon as this week’s Monday Night Raw if a deal gets made in time.
So who does Rhodes wrestle first? Who does he get paired up with at WrestleMania 38? What matches absolutely need to happen before he (allegedly) hangs his boots up in a few years after turning 40? Check out our seven picks in the list below and tell us your ideas down in the comments!
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Randy Orton
Yes, Orton is still very much locked into his RK-Bro partnership with Riddle and has been putting in some of his best work in years as a result. But his history with Rhodes runs deeper than just about any other man on the roster, so it only makes sense that they lock up at least one more time.
Seth Rollins
For numerous reasons, the most obvious choice for a Rhodes program right out of the gate would be against Triple H. Unfortunately, Hunter’s health has been unclear ever since he suffered that cardiac event last September, so the odds of him getting back in the ring soon seem incredibly slim. Rollins has been positioned in the past as the ultimate “Triple H guy,” and it wouldn’t take much for WWE to have him by Hunter’s proxy. Plus, the in-ring work would be excellent.
Roman Reigns
This one depends entirely on how Vince McMahon views Rhodes in 2022. If he sees him as a legitimate main eventer, a program between Rhodes and Reigns could carry WWE all the way to the SummerSlam main event in Nashville. If he doesn’t, the best Rhodes can hope for is a one-off match with the “Tribal Chief” a la Cesaro.
Finn Balor
WWE loves to infer Bullet Club history without ever actually addressing it, and here you’d have two major figures from the group’s two biggest eras. Plus it’d finally give Balor something to do.
Kevin Owens
If the Steve Austin thing doesn’t happen, Rhodes would be a great replacement to take down the Texas-bashing Owens at WrestleMania. Just ignore the fact that Rhodes is not actually from Texas.
The Miz & Maryse
Sooner or later, we’ll get another mixed tag team match with the Rhodes against the Mizanins.
Rey Mysterio
Rhodes has given glowing remarks about Mysterio in the past and their first program way back in 2011 was one of Rhodes’ biggest highlights of his first WWE run. This could be a lot of fun if Rhodes gets brought back as a heel.
