Cody Rhodes Reflects On WrestleMania 38 WWE Return, Whether It Was Bigger Than CM Punk’s
Cody Rhodes touches on whether his WWE return was bigger than CM Punk’s.
On the first night of WrestleMania 38, Cody Rhodes stunned fans by answering Seth Rollins’ open challenge and making his WWE return. ‘The American Nightmare’ became the first star to make the jump from AEW to WWE, appearing in the company for the first time in around six years. Since then, Rhodes has arguably become the promotion’s top star, and he’s now looked back on the moment he came back on the biggest stage.
Speaking to ESPN, Cody Rhodes discussed his WWE return and whether it was better than CM Punk’s in 2023.
“I think it’s up there as a really great WrestleMania moment and I think it’s a wonderful match… see the thing is it might get any distinction simply because it is a very significant moment. You can talk about whose bigger return, if Punk’s return, Cody’s return. I always look at the return and say, ‘Well, what generated the most after?’ And I don’t mean just in dollars and cents. What changed the culture of one place? And I don’t know the answer, which is better. But I do know that that as far as a moment goes, there hasn’t been a return like that in WWE, again, so obvious yet so unlikely. Really to come back, I think many people thought that ship had sailed, and now we’re sitting here and we have the WWE Title. So, very great moment.”
-Cody Rhodes
In his four years back in the company, Cody Rhodes has won the Undisputed WWE Championship three times having first finished the story at WrestleMania 40. The 40-year-old is the current title holder, having retained against GUNTHER at Clash In Italy, and he’ll likely have a keen eye on who wins this year’s King Of The Ring.
While CM Punk also came to WWE off the back off an AEW run, his return was significant in itself as it ended an almost ten-year wait for viewers to see him on Monday Night RAW once again, something most never thought they’d see. Fans will have their own views on which return was more impactful, though it’s fair to say both men are among the companies most influential names of the modern era.
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As always, we’ll aim to provide any further updates on both Cody Rhodes and CM Punk as soon as we hear more.
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