Cody Rhodes did not just see John Cena handing him the WWE Championship as a nice post-match moment. To him, it meant a lot more than that.
During a conversation with ESPN, Rhodes opened up about his SummerSlam match with Cena and why the whole story carried so much personal weight. Cody said Cena was not just another legend across the ring from him. He was someone who helped shape him earlier in his career.
Cody said he spent about two years learning from Cena up close. He drove Cena around, listened to him talk business, watched how he carried himself, and got a firsthand look at what being WWE’s top guy actually takes.
“John had a been a mentor to me for about 2 years. I drove John around. I’d sit by him when he’d get the call from Joe Hickey about the merch he sold that night. I’d listen to him talk about partners. I’d listen to him when he’d talk to the boss. We’d talk about wrestling ourselves. He’d talk about my match. He was just a true, real mentor.”
That history made their SummerSlam program feel different for Cody. He said Cena had evolved far beyond just being a wrestler and had become a much sharper storyteller.
“He is such an evolved storyteller now and such a unique artisan from when he was just a wrestler. I really, really value the promos, the talking about them, the It was like being part of a TV series.”
Cody said Cena’s preparation was on another level, and that became one of the biggest lessons he took from him.
“Just the king of preparation and taught me that if you’re going to wear the crown, you also have to be very, very, very prepared.”
Cena did not come back just to hand Cody a symbolic moment either. Cody said Cena made him work for it, and the story only got to SummerSlam because Cena believed that was the right stage.
“Again, he didn’t just come back and say, ‘Hey, I used to drive this guy around. I trust that he’s the guy now.’ No, he put me through it. We didn’t have to get to SummerSlam. We got to SummerSlam because John Cena said it’s right to do this at SummerSlam and um that’s as real as it gets.”
When Cody was asked whether Cena handing him the title felt like a passing of the torch, he said yes, but he also said it felt more specific than that.
“It did, but it also felt like a passing of the belt moment cuz I mean he’s literally handing me the title.”
Cody explained that the torch can be passed in many ways in wrestling, but physically passing the WWE Championship carries a different kind of meaning. The belt represents the person responsible for carrying the company everywhere.
“Uh and that to us, you know, the torch is one thing. There’s a lot of ways the torch gets passed in pro wrestling, but the passing the belt is its own thing because that means, ‘Hey, that guy is literally going to be doing everything for our company throughout the duration that he has it. Every media stop, every live event that we still do to this day, he’s going to be doing everything.’”
Cody said that is why the moment hit so hard. It was not just about respect. It was about responsibility.
“And I I feel like there’s a lot of power in just passing that belt. Um certainly felt like something.”
Rhodes would not say what Cena told him in the ring, but he did reveal what he said back to Cena.
“I won’t tell you what he said to me uh cuz I always wanted to keep that he obviously John likes to respect the business and uh I won’t say it, but I will tell you what I said to him was I told him I’m sorry it took me so long.”
That line says everything. Cody Rhodes spent years trying to become the kind of star WWE could trust at the top, and Cena was there long before that moment happened. By the time Cena handed him the title, Cody was not just accepting praise from a mentor. He was accepting the responsibility that comes with being WWE Champion.
What do you think about Cody Rhodes calling it a “passing of the belt” moment with John Cena? Did that scene help cement Cody as WWE’s top star? Please share your thoughts and feedback in the comments section below.
