Mark Henry Says Cody Rhodes Won’t Win the Royal Rumble for a Third Straight Year

Cody Rhodes is officially in the 2026 Royal Rumble match—but not everyone’s convinced he’s about to go three-for-three.

During the January 16 episode of WWE SmackDown from the OVO Arena Wembley in London, England, Cody Rhodes came out and declared himself for the upcoming Men’s Royal Rumble match. This marks his third consecutive year entering the Rumble with the goal of main eventing WrestleMania. But while fans may be hyped for another run, WWE Hall of Famer Mark Henry doesn’t think it’s happening.

Speaking on Busted Open Radio after the episode aired, Henry made it clear he doesn’t see a third Rumble win in Cody’s future—especially not with how the current storylines are shaping up.

“I don’t think that Cody Rhodes goes into the Rumble for the third time and wins. It’s just not going to happen,” Henry said bluntly.

According to Henry, the road ahead for Rhodes is going to be a lot rougher than before. He believes Cody has to work harder this time to reconnect with fans, especially after the character path he’s taken since WrestleMania 40.

“Cody gets to travel the less popular road now,” Henry explained. “One of the things that I said with Cody is Cody has established himself as a tweener. Like he's... he's kind of been very heelish. And this is a road that he has to travel, where he has to re-earn the respect and admiration of the fan because of the journey he's taken.”

Henry added that the Royal Rumble isn’t Cody’s only path to WrestleMania, suggesting the Elimination Chamber could be another route if things don’t go his way at the end of January.

“If he has to go and win the Rumble, there's a lot that's gonna happen and has to happen for that to happen,” he said. “He's also got the Elimination Chamber to be able [to do it]. Like now that he's not a guarantee. His ass is gonna have to be in the Elimination Chamber if the Rumble don't work out.”

The 2026 Royal Rumble is set to take place on Saturday, January 31, live from the King Abdullah Financial District in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia—marking the first time the Rumble is held outside of North America. While the stakes are already massive, Henry’s comments add a layer of doubt to Cody’s chances that fans will be watching closely.

Cody may be “doing it the hard way,” but the road to WrestleMania just got a little steeper.