WWE Champ Cody Rhodes Explains Why It Meant So Much To Face The Rock At WrestleMania

At WrestleMania 40 Night 1, Cody Rhodes, alongside Seth Rollins, found himself across the ring from two legitimate legends of the business –- Roman Reigns and The Rock. While Reigns and Rhodes are considered peers, The Rock was a whole new level of superstar for Rhodes to deal with. A month after that match (which ended in Cody being pinned by The Rock, though he defeated Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Championship on NIght 2) Rhodes sat down with Peter Rosenberg on the "Cheap Heat" podcast to discuss wrestling The Rock and his mindset going into the historic tag match. 

"The reason I was so excited to be in there with [The Rock] and for him to feel like, 'Oh, they like this guy' ... I want him to know, hey, your industry is gonna be alright," Rhodes said. "This guy next to me, Seth, he's taking it to new heights. That guy next to you, Roman, he's gonna keep moving it to new heights. And me? Whether you believe it or not, I'm gonna try to do the same."

Rhodes noted that the future of the business is in good hands and WWE won't feel the pressure to rely on Attitude Era stars as much as they did during the PG Era. Rosenberg then posed a question to "The American Nightmare" about whether he felt like "the guy" while standing in the ring with The Rock, Roman Reigns, and Seth Rollins. 

"I always feel like I could be doing more," Rhodes explained. "When it's in your makeup to just keep going ... [the feeling of being 'the guy'] doesn't cross your mind."

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit the "Cheap Heat" podcast and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for transcription.