Cody Rhodes Says He 'Tries To Steal' As Much As Possible From This WWE Star

As John Cena continues his farewell tour, with his remaining dates dwindling down to only premium live event appearances very soon, many WWE stars are speaking out about how the "Never Seen 17" has continued to influence them throughout their ongoing careers. Cena's rival from the beginnings of his heel run at Elimination Chamber, through WrestleMania, to SummerSlam, Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes, talked about the respect Cena demands just by being an incredible athlete on an episode of his "What Do You Want To Talk About?" podcast. Rhodes told his guest, Natalya, that he tries to emulate "The Last Real Champion" in his own career.

"I always look at Cena's career and I try to steal as much as I can, and one of the things that he did really well that I am trying to improve on myself is feats of strength," Rhodes explained. "That's where that stuff actually comes in handy. Be able to do something that someone sitting in the seat [in the crowd] can't do and gets excited about, invigorated about."

Rhodes said that part of the "resume" to being a performer is to "be legit," like Cena, and Natalya's late father, Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart, who Rhodes also called an incredible athlete.

Following Cena turning heel on Rhodes after his Elimination Chamber win, and becoming the "Never Seen 17" after taking Rhodes' title at WrestleMania, the pair had their final match together at SummerSlam, where Rhodes won the gold back. Cena will have his retirement match against a yet-to-be-determined opponent at Saturday Night's Main Event on December 13.

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "What Do You Want to Talk About? With Cody Rhodes" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.