WINC Watchlist: Seth Rollins Vs. Cody Rhodes In WWE

Whenever there's a big show coming up, like WWE Crown Jewel this weekend, it can be instructive (not to mention fun) to go back and watch some older, related matches in the lead-up to the event. There are as many different ways to watch wrestling as there are individual wrestling fans, but here at Wrestling Inc., we love to cut up and rearrange wrestling history in interesting and unique ways, selecting a variety of matches with some sort of through-line connecting them and placing them side-by-side. This time around, we're celebrating the rivalry/relationship/situationship between WWE Champion Cody Rhodes and World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins.

Looking back at the Rhodes vs. Rollins feud, which has taken place exclusively in WWE, the only surprise is the extent to which a list like this one writes itself. The trilogy of PLE matches they performed in 2022 is about as instantly iconic as it gets, beginning with Rhodes' WWE return at WrestleMania 38 and ending with the image of his bruised and bloody chest at Hell in a Cell. Bracketing that are a pair of tag team matches — one from a decade before the trilogy, one from two years after. The identities of Rhodes' and Rollins' respective tag team partners in the first match are noteworthy in and of themselves, but not as noteworthy as the second match, which saw them team with one another. In fact, the proper ending to a list like this one (though our rules prevent us from formally including it) is a match that Rollins isn't technically even part of, but in which he plays a crucial role: the main event of WrestleMania 40. Here's everything you need to know about the biggest Rhodes vs. Rollins matches to get you ready for their next encounter this Saturday!

WWE Battleground 2013 isn't a great show. I'd even go as far to say that it's actually a terrible show, especially considering that in an age where the WWE Universe still had to pay $50 for every pay-per-view, the main event ends in a no contest because of The Big Show. It's a rough watch, but there is a diamond within that rough.

Cody Rhodes had been fired in storyline for failing to beat The Authority's golden goose Randy Orton, leading to Goldust getting the chance to reinstate his brother, only for Orton to beat him as well. This then led to Dusty Rhodes getting involved, who got a Big Show punch to the face for his troubles, but The Authority gave the Rhodes family one more chance to get Cody his job back, all they had to do was beat Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns at Battleground and Cody would be back in the company. However, if they lost, the entire family would be banned from WWE forever.

Because Rollins and Reigns weren't putting their WWE Tag Team Championships on the line, you could kind of tell which way this match was going to go, but that doesn't make it any less entertaining as this was one of the best matches WWE produced in 2013. Even though they aren't the subject of this watchlist, Goldust and Reigns have to get shoutouts as they played their parts excellently, with Goldust putting in what I would personally considering to be his best performance inside a WWE ring. Even Dusty and Dean Ambrose on the outside get their moments to shine, especially Dusty as he hits Ambrose with the Bionic Elbow to one of the biggest pops of the night.

As for Cody and Seth, it's strange to see them in this sort of spot given what they would go on to achieve, but you could tell their was chemistry from beginning. Cody finds his voice as the valiant babyface while Rollins links everything together with a slimy heel performance that he would go on to top time and time again in the years to come. Also, a special mention to Cody hitting Seth with a Muscle Buster of all things in the closing stretch. I didn't see that coming at all.

In the history of Cody Rhodes vs. Seth Rollins, it's historic for it being the first time the two men crossed paths at a televised event, but it stays with you because of how good it is. This is just a good old fashioned good versus evil tag team match that works its way to top gear for one of the best feel good moments you'll see anywhere. The finish has the fans in attendance jumping up and down, hugging, hooting, and hollering all at the same time as the Rhodes family finally got their flowers on a WWE pay-per-view. Go out of your way to find this match (but don't watch the rest of the show because it's awful).

Written by Sam Palmer

Cody Rhodes' contract status was the subject of gossip in April 2022, and at WrestleMania 38, Rhodes confirmed the grapevine's rumors when he rose from the stage in a grand return to WWE. For seasoned wrestling fans, Rhodes' match against Seth Rollins was a technical masterpiece, befitting of Rhodes' homecoming after six, long years away from WWE. For newer fans, Rhodes and Rollins' performance in Arlington was a delightful first introduction to the man who would soon become the face of WWE. For Rhodes, it was the start of his climb from undesirable to undeniable. For Rollins, it was the start of a deeply personal feud that has followed his career since.

After weeks of trying to put his name on the WrestleMania 38 card, Rollins was offered to face a "mystery opponent" on Night 1's card. While he could not have predicted his opponent was the former Ring of Honor, AEW, and IWGP champion Rhodes, Rollins pivoted, and met Rhodes' adrenaline with his own tactical brilliance. After 20 minutes of risky top-ring moves, ringside brawls, and last-minute kick-outs, Rhodes' grit finally bested Rollins' brains when he stopped Rollins mid-Curbstomp attempt to deliver one final Cross Rhodes.

Rollins and Rhodes' WrestleMania 38 match was, and continues to be, well-received. WWE has touted the match as one of the greatest WrestleMania matches to date, and, as of writing, the bout sits at an 8.61/10 ranking on Cagematch. The impact of Rollins and Rhodes' match in Arlington has rippled throughout both men's careers, as the WrestleMania bout served as the first of their critically acclaimed trilogy.

Written by Angeline Phu

Although Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins' second encounter is often the least remembered from their trilogy of matches in 2022, it's still holds up as an important piece to their rivalry and features some of the best technical wrestling between both competitors. Unlike their first bout at WrestleMania 38, Rhodes and Rollins had the ability to build a story around their match at Backlash, with Rhodes now being a full-time member of the WWE roster after returning at the "Showcase Of The Immortals." Coming into the match, it was expected that Rollins had a better chance of winning being that he was prepared for Rhodes this time around, while fans also believed that the score would be evened between both men before heading into a potential third match. 

In addition to Rollins wanting to prove that he was better than Rhodes, the entire story was focused on "The Visionary" claiming that "The American Nightmare" would follow in his father Dusty Rhodes' footsteps and never capture the WWE Championship. Therefore, a simple but effective story was set up for Backlash with Rollins looking to rewrite history, and Rhodes needing to show the former Shield member that he belonged in WWE.

Before the contest started, the commentary team was adamant about the pressure being on Rollins to deliver, but also admitted that "The Architect" would have studied Rhodes this time, which heavily impacted the beginning of the matchup. Throughout the first ten minutes, Rollins had an answer for nearly every move that Rhodes could throw at him, as he controlled the pacing both inside and outside of the ring. However, Rollins and Rhodes once again immediately put their chemistry on display, proving that their masterpiece at the WrestleMania 38 wasn't a one-off. 

A massive Superplex by Rhodes eventually changed the momentum, allowing him to kickstart his comeback, while the commentary team smartly mentioned that when Rollins bails on his strategy and tries to brawl with his opponent, he starts to lose the match. Additionally, Rollins easily losing his temper was a consistent story beat throughout their feud in 2022, with Rhodes always managing to take advantage by remaining composed.

Rhodes finally evened the odds, as he countered the Pedigree, survived a Falcon Arrow, and rolled Rollins into a Cross Rhodes after enduring a Superplex from the top rope. This led Rollins to lose his composure again, as he shouted at Rhodes, "you can't lace my boots" and resorted to mocking Dusty by performing his iconic jabs and attempting to hit the Bionic Elbow. Rollins' frustration led him to eat another Cross Rhodes, but he quickly tried to escape defeat with a roll up — grabbing Cody's tights in an attempt to steal the victory. However, Rhodes reversed Rollins into a rollup of his own, and held onto Rollins' tights to secure the pinfall.

Rollins was shocked that he lost to Rhodes again and would take out his anger on the referee for the loss, which would heat up the rivalry heading into their historic Hell In A Cell Match the next month.

Written By Julien D'Alessandro

The Southern wrestling tradition is built around Passion, and (with apologies to those uncomfortable with religion) not in any abstract sense. In this case, "passion play" refers, quite literally, to the depiction of the sufferings of Jesus Christ on the cross, and the torture — be it mental, spiritual, or physical — that preceded it. A traditional Southern babyface is supposed to be beaten to the point of near-death, until the spirit of the fans wills the babyface back to life, and transfigures a simple pinfall, submission, countout, or disqualification into something sublime. If you can make it as a hometown hero, triumphing over some rich carpetbagger like Ric Flair, then you've got the makings of a true-blue Southern Classic. 

If you look back at a majority of great American professional wrestling moments, you will quickly notice that the "greatness" of a match is directly linked to the amount of suffering by the babyface. You go deep enough, and you realize the suffering is the entire point. It's why Randy "The Ram" keeps talking about "The Passion of The Christ" in "The Wrestler."  And there might not be anyone who understands this better than Cody Rhodes. Full stop. At Hell In A Cell 2022, Cody Rhodes arrived in Rosemont with a completely torn pectoral muscle, painting half of his torso with a watercolor of bruising. After a doctor made it clear to him that the pectoral injury couldn't get any worse, Rhodes decided to do the most Cody Rhodes thing he could: wrestle looking like he'd been hit by a car.

Because after all, the suffering is the point.

The Hell In A Cell match with Seth Rollins might be a clusterf*** of booking, in that it suggests Rollins isn't even strong enough to defeat a grievously-injured Rhodes, while Rhodes inexplicably wins a huge match even though everyone can see he's about to be out for a long time, but damned if it isn't a fun watch. Cody's hobbled athleticism makes it his most Dusty-esque performance to date, winning over the crowd with nothing more than personality and an immense amount of suffering. I don't know how Rhodes felt in the moment, but every single hit looks incredibly painful.

Someday, Cody Rhodes will lose a step. He won't be able to rely on his crisp, clean springboard maneuvers. At Hell In A Cell, he proved that he is still his father's son, and delivered the kind of true passion play spectacle that has made American wrestling great for generations.

Written by Ross Berman

Two years on from Cody Rhodes' return to WWE to face Seth Rollins at WrestleMania 38, they were teaming up against the Undisputed WWE Champion of over 1,000 days, Roman Reigns, and "The Final Boss" wrestling his first match in over a decade, The Rock. 

The match came as the main event of the Saturday show, ensuring that each competitor aside from The Rock would be pulling double duty ahead of their championship bouts the next night; it also served as the precursor to the main event of Sunday, pitting Rhodes against Reigns for their fateful clash over the WWE Championship in a Bloodline Rules match. 

There were layers upon layers with this bout, with Rhodes having won the Royal Rumble, stepped aside for The Rock to challenge Reigns at WrestleMania, changed his mind and opted to challenge the champion per his right as winner of the Rumble; Rollins, meanwhile, had a scheduled defense on the Sunday show for his World Heavyweight Championship against Drew McIntyre, but still offered to be Rhodes' shield in their shared mission to see Reigns off the throne at last. 

On the other hand, Rock saw Rhodes as reneging on their agreement for him to have his dream match against Reigns, and alongside all the stigma of him having joined TKO's board and being seen as going into business for himself, adopted "The Final Boss" character and baptized it in the blood of Rhodes leading up to this match. Thus, when he paired with Reigns and effectively joined The Bloodline, there were questions over who the true leader of the faction was and, per the classic wrestling trope, whether they could coexist – considering they were supposed to be opponents. 

For his part, Reigns had been the Undisputed Champion for over 1,000 days, had put Rhodes down – with a little Bloodline help – at WrestleMania 39, and was looking to do what he could to keep that crown against the man everyone had predicted would – and eventually did – end his stranglehold. And this time he would have to contend with Rhodes and his own backing, namely Rollins, his former Shield-brother turned arch-rival. Not only, on its own, is the match a layered and significant moment in the careers of all the men involved, but it was the penultimate chapter to one of the most significant stories in WWE for the past decade.

Written by Max Everett