Cody Rhodes Reveals He Was Banged Up After Brutal SummerSlam Win Over John Cena

Cody Rhodes walked out of SummerSlam 2025 with the Undisputed WWE Championship after a brutal street fight with John Cena, but the American Nightmare admits he was feeling every bit of that war as soon as he stepped backstage.

While speaking to Sports Illustrated, Cody detailed the first moments after the match, giving fans a glimpse into what it’s really like to walk through the curtain after such a high-impact showdown. He said there’s even a photo that perfectly captured the toll it took on him.

“There’s a photo of me laying down, right afterwards. I had a little dressing room right over by Gorilla. There’s a photo of me laying down on the floor and it’s very telling. I’m just laying face forward and I’m holding on to my side.”

Cody made it clear that while he doesn’t consider himself injured, the match left him hurting in several spots.

“It’s very telling that I was certainly — I don’t want to say injured by any means — but I was hurt. I was banged up. One little rib on the left side really bothering me. Back of my calves… all kinds of… I could list you these little… they’re just little what I’d say like little knickknacks.”

He then explained his personal approach to competing while dealing with pain, stressing that it’s one thing to wrestle hurt, but another to push through a legitimate injury.

“I’m a big advocate in you’ll always wrestle hurt but don’t wrestle injured. So, I am lucky that no injuries. I left there no injuries. I don’t believe he has any injuries and that’s a good night at the office.”

For Cody, surviving a war with John Cena and leaving with both the WWE Championship and a clean bill of health was as much a victory as the pinfall itself.

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