WWE HOFer Rikishi Believes Cody Rhodes' Babyface Arc Has 'Probably Run Its Course'

Cody Rhodes has been a babyface since his WWE return, for better or worse. Similar to his AEW run, many fans have been calling for him to turn heel. While Rhodes has discussed the topic at length in the past, stating he didn't intend to make the move, Rikishi Fatu believes it's only a matter of time.

"I think Cody's [time as a] babyface has probably ran it's course," the veteran said during an episode of his "Off The Top" podcast. "I feel like it's probably a good time for – business-wise and for the brand of Cody Rhodes – to kind of maybe take a ride on the wild side, right? And then we'll see where we go from there."

Rikishi then praised Rhodes' in-ring abilities while adding that he hopes WWE creative plans his heel turn cohesively, in a way that would interest fans. "They brought Jacob [Fatu] in to obviously be a heel, like a monster heel, and the fans just slowly kind of switched Jacob to this mega-top babyface," he pointed out, suggesting that it might be a better story for the two men to switch roles instead. 

"It's the beginning of 2026, it's January, the Royal Rumble is around the corner, we have no idea what's going to play out in the Royal Rumble, so I mean, once we see that? It can almost let you know what the plans are going to be for a certain talent moving into WrestleMania."

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