Cody Rhodes has had enough of seeing his words chopped up and turned into something he says they were never meant to be. The WWE star took direct aim at wrestling dirt-sheet coverage during a recent interview, accusing Fightful of trying to “cancel” him on a weekly basis and saying the constant criticism has actually made him feel more bulletproof.
Speaking to WrestleTalk, Rhodes was asked about tribalism among wrestling fans after the conversation turned to previous comments he made about people using terms such as “the Fed” and “New York.” Before getting into the larger issue, Rhodes wanted to clear up what he actually meant and took a shot at how Fightful presented those comments.
“I remember I said it in just about wrestlers who say it, and the way Fightful tries to cancel me every week and the way they baited it was as if I said it to wrestling fans.”
Rhodes made it clear that he wasn’t trying to police how fans talk about WWE. As far as he is concerned, fans can call the company whatever they want, because there is no single correct way to follow professional wrestling.
“Wrestling fans, there’s no wrong way to be a fan. You can say ‘the Fed,’ you can say ‘New York.’”
His issue was with wrestlers using those terms, particularly independent talent who have never actually worked for WWE. Rhodes explained that hearing it from another wrestler gets a completely different reaction out of him.
“I blink out when I meet an indie wrestler who says it to me because that’s, uh, okay, cool. All right. You haven’t wrestled that either. Uh, but that was more the joke I was making.”
Rhodes wasn’t finished with the dirt-sheet issue. He then accused Fightful of repeatedly taking casual conversations and turning them into headlines that present his comments in a much harsher way.
“I feel bad for the producers because that happens every week. Fightful just, ‘Oh, we’ve got to make a headline about how Cody hates—has nine out of ten of his ideas are bad.’ This show is a fun show, a conversation, and their efforts to bring me down have only kind of made me, uh, I don’t know, I feel more bulletproof just ’cause, all right, I’ll ride through it, but go ahead.”
Rhodes eventually caught himself and admitted he had taken the conversation away from the original question. Still, there wasn’t much ambiguity about how he feels when it comes to the coverage surrounding some of his podcast and interview comments.
“I didn’t mean to derail with my rant. You were asking about tribalism.”
The conversation then moved back to wrestling tribalism and the way fans have reacted following PAC’s death. Rhodes said grief can cause people to get distracted by arguments over who did or didn’t publicly acknowledge someone rather than focusing on the person being remembered.
“I think something that I’d say is—and this is, I wish more people could understand this—is grief is difficult, and sometimes grief creates—you get mad about a thing that really distracts us and moves us away from the point. You start competing, ‘Well, he said something in tribute and she didn’t say something.’ None of that is as valuable as what you mentioned, the coming together over somebody.”
Rhodes has spoken extensively about PAC following his death, with Ringside News previously covering Rhodes’ emotional comments about PAC and the level of talent he possessed. Rhodes also revealed elsewhere in the WrestleTalk conversation that Kevin Owens arranged a camera backstage at WWE television so talent who wanted to could record personal messages about Benjamin Satterley.
When the discussion returned to criticism and tribalism, Rhodes said he is now more confident in himself than at any other stage of his career. He argued that he has reached the point where he can recognize his strengths while also laughing at the things he doesn’t do particularly well. Rhodes took it even further by saying he currently feels like he is at his absolute best.
“When it comes to tribalism, though, on the other side of it, and companies versus companies or wrestlers versus wrestlers, I have now entered a point in my life and career where I have never been more confident in what I can do.”
“I’ve never felt more in my prime. I’ve never been able to be proud of myself but also laugh at myself at the same time with the things I do well and the things I do not so well.”
That confidence also appears to have changed how Rhodes handles people going after him online. He said fans are free to chase him, mock him or criticize him if that is part of how they enjoy wrestling.
“So for me, if it helps you to chase me, if it helps you to make fun, if it helps you, I genuinely think there’s no wrong way to be a fan. Go for it. Go for it.”
Rhodes admitted that doesn’t mean the criticism always feels good. His position is simply that growing up in professional wrestling prepared him to deal with it.
“It doesn’t always feel right. It doesn’t always feel nice. Um, but if anyone can handle it, I was raised in the business to be able to handle it. I can handle it.”
Rhodes certainly isn’t disappearing from the spotlight anytime soon. He recently revealed his timeline for eventually stepping away from the ring, but for now, the American Nightmare is still right in the middle of WWE’s biggest stories—and that means everything he says is going to continue getting picked apart.
Rhodes knows the dirt sheets aren’t going anywhere, but it doesn’t sound like he plans on changing the way he talks just to avoid becoming a headline. If anything, he says years of taking those shots have only made him harder to rattle, and “more bulletproof” is a pretty clear way of putting it.
What do you make of Cody Rhodes accusing Fightful of trying to cancel him every week? Do you think wrestling sites sometimes strip too much context from interviews, or is that simply part of being one of WWE’s biggest stars? Let us know what you think in the comments.
This transcript was produced exclusively for Ringside News from the original recording. Republishing the transcription in full is prohibited. When using excerpts, provide prominent credit and a link to this article.
