SUMMARY
- Cody Rhodes finished his story at WrestleMania 40.
- However, many WWE stars had to step aside to let The American Nightmare beat Roman Reigns at Mania 40.
The American Nightmare Cody Rhodes has been one of the most protected WWE superstars in recent memory. He has been portrayed as the main avenger of WWE since his shocking return to the company. Upon his return, he had a long storied rivalry with Seth Rollins. Rollins would ultimately be one of the people who would help Cody defeat Roman Reigns and finish the story.
The story had several layers in the two-year build-up from WrestleMania 38 to WrestleMania 40. It started when Rhodes defeated his fierce rival Seth Rollins in 2022 and won the 2023 Royal Rumble to face Roman at WrestleMania 39. After losing to Reigns, Cody made it his mission to win the undisputed title and finish his story.
Rhodes’ story saw several legends and modern-era veterans sacrificing themselves. Fans were on the edge of their seats as Cody suffered a lot of ups and downs in the last two years and ultimately did the unthinkable. In what is called ‘Pure Cinema’ by fans worldwide, many superstars were buried by the company to produce the outcome.
Since his return, Rhodes has been the main babyface of the company. This ultimately led to several matches and rivalries ending on the side of Cody. Several matches and rivalries during his story demolished many superstars in terms of their character work and overall likeliness. Join us as we take a look at 5 superstars who lost their momentum and built to make Cody ‘The Chosen One’.
Brock Lesnar
The Beast Incarnate has been a monster when it comes to all of his rivalries. There is seemingly a very short list of rivalries where Brock Lesnar was on the losing end. After his dominant win over Omos at WrestleMania 39, Brock entered a rivalry with Cody Rhodes by attacking him on RAW. This saw a trilogy of matches between the two superstars.
Surprisingly, Rhodes came out on top at their final match which made fans a bit shocked. Seeing his history, Brock was used as a proper demolition material and had squash matches. However, he was seen as an enhancement talent against Rhodes which made The American Nightmare an even bigger star. Lesnar hasn’t been seen on WWE since losing to Cody and is currently directionless.
Shinsuke Nakamura
The King of Strong Style has been one of the main attractions on the show since his arrival on the main roster. Since winning the Royal Rumble in 2018, things haven’t been good for Shinsuke Nakamura as he has lost his momentum and is seen as a mere filler talent. Things took a turn when he battled Seth Rollins for the World Heavyweight Championship a couple of times.
It looked like WWE had huge things planned for Shinsuke, however he lost the rivalry. Fans still had hope that Nakamura would be a part of a huge conflict going forward. During the build-up for Royal Rumble 2024, Rhodes had a short rivalry with Nakamura which saw Shinsuke lose. Since then, Nakamura has been underused by the company and is looking for a major push.
Finn Balor
Finn Balor is one of the most innovative wrestlers of all time. He has had several instant classics under his name and is always ready to give his all in the ring whenever needed. Arriving on the scene as a certified main eventer, Finn has downgraded and shifted a lot of times on the card over the years. In 2023, he led Judgement Day with Damian Priest and was the Undisputed Tag Team Champion.
Things took a turn as Cody and Jey Uso challenged them for the titles at WWE Fastlane. Shockingly, Rhodes and Jey won the Tag Team titles leaving Finn with no titles at all. This was a major setback in the overall character work of Finn as he had a strong personality alongside Judgement Day and was liked by the fans for his heel work.
Balor and Priest did win the titles back in a couple of weeks, but many saw the title change as unnecessary and forced. It damaged the momentum Balor had with his stable and wasn’t able to recover from it. As of now, Priest is the World Champion and Balor is currently directionless heading to the WWE Draft.
Solo Sikoa
The Enforcer of the Bloodline Solo Sikoa is one unstoppable beast who has dominated the entire scene since his arrival. Throughout Roman’s historic reign, Sikoa always backed up his cousin during hard times and helped him retain his title on several occasions. During the build-up for WrestleMania 39, Solo was looked at as a severe threat to Rhodes and was undefeated since his WWE debut.
In a RAW during the hype for WrestleMania 39, things took a turn for Solo as he lost to Cody Rhodes facing his first loss in the company. This was seen as a weird decision and received mixed reactions from the crowd. Some supported the move as it made Cody look like the ultimate hero who took out his rival’s main man. Others thought someone else should have handed Solo his first loss.
Sikoa also decimated John Cena at Crown Jewel 2023 making him look like a monster. He destroyed everyone on his path but Cody, which has left a void to fill for the fans and the management. As Solo continues to dominate the Bloodline with Tama Tonga, his first loss to Cody will always remain a controversial decision.
Kevin Owens
The Prize Fighter Kevin Owens has been one of the most versatile wrestlers of all time. His calculative decision-making and innovative promos have kept him relevant for almost a decade in the WWE. Owens started 2023 with a strong feud with the Bloodline and faced Roman at Royal Rumble 2023. It also started the famous rivalry between Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens against The Usos.
Shortly after Rhodes won the Rumble, Owens and Zayn targeted the tag titles. Unfortunately, they lost the tag titles soon just so that Cody could win them. This saw Owens getting directionless and ending up being on SmackDown. He has been feuding with Austin Theory, Grayson Waller, and Logan Paul but has lost a lot of momentum down the road after being sidelined.
