Cody Rhodes left WWE in 2016, before returning in 2022.
Cody Rhodes’ return to WWE in 2022 has already proven to be a massive success. The American Nightmare is arguably the company’s top babyface and has been heavily protected since his epic comeback at WrestleMania 38, only being pinned once.
That, too, ended with interference, as Solo Sikoa stopped Rhodes from dethroning Roman Reigns at this year’s Show of Shows. Cody’s last clean pinfall loss in WWE came when he was Stardust, putting over Zack Ryder (aka Matt Cardona) on an episode of Superstars in May 2016.
This was Cody Rhodes’ final match before asking for his release five days later. Cardona jokingly claimed that he made the second-generation star quit the company before deleting the tweet.
The former United States Champion quote-tweeted a stat mentioning the last four WWE Superstars to pin The American Nightmare:
Matt Cardona’s deleted tweet
Matt Cardona and Cody Rhodes are close friends in real life, which might be why he decided to delete the tweet in case it was taken the wrong way. The former WWE star has posted something else about beating Stardust in May 2016.
Cody Rhodes is set to lead his squad into war at WWE Survivor Series
The final premium live event of 2023 is a few days away, with Survivor Series promising to be a memorable night. The main event pits The Judgment Day against Cody Rhodes and four of his friends in WarGames.
The American Nightmare will team with Jey Uso, Sami Zayn, Seth Rollins, and an unnamed fifth member. Many expect it to be Randy Orton, who has quite the history with Rhodes. Meanwhile, LA Knight and Kevin Owens are also potential options following Cody’s visit to SmackDown on Friday.
Whoever the fifth member of the team is, expect the feud between Rhodes and The Judgment Day to end at Survivor Series. It has been going on since the RAW after SummerSlam. Perhaps the former AEW star could directly resume his pursuit of Roman Reigns and the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship.