"I definitely think it hurt them" - Wrestling veteran claims WWE Superstar Cody Rhodes' departure from AEW left a void in the company
Former WCW performers Disco Inferno and Konnan have had their say on whether Cody Rhodes leaving AEW has had a profound effect on the company, with both men giving very different answers.
Rhodes left AEW in February 2022 to return to WWE in one of the most shocking news stories of the year, given the fact that Cody was one of the founders of All Elite Wrestling and constantly poked fun at his current employers while he was there.
At the time of writing, it has been seven months since Cody left AEW, and a lot has changed in his absence, but the loss of one of the company's founders wasn't felt by everyone.
Chris Jericho speaks about Cody Rhodes' departure 🗣️
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Speaking on the latest edition of the "Keepin' It 100" podcast, both Disco Inferno and Konnan gave their thoughts on whether Cody Rhodes has left a void in AEW, which Disco believes to be true.
“Cody [Rhodes] was the adult in the room. You could just tell the way the guy—coming from the Dusty Rhodes and then the New York cultures, he wasn’t like indie guy or the New Japan guy. He was a guy there that kind of knew how things work, and losing him it’s like you kind of lost a voice in the room of how things work. I definitely think it hurt them," said Disco Inferno. [2:07-2:37]
To counter his point, Konnan stated that while Cody did a lot of good in his AEW career, he might not have been the most popular backstage.
“I think he pushed people he didn’t hold them back, but there were a lot of guys that commented to me that they felt he was very disingenuous," said Konnan. [2:38-2:47]
Cody Rhodes had a very successful career in AEW
Given that he was one of the reasons why the company existed to begin with, it's hardly a surprise that Cody Rhodes had a lot of success in AEW. However, some fans might have forgotten just how many big moments he was involved in.
His matches with Dustin Rhodes, Darby Allin and Sammy Guevara are still talked about as some of the greatest matches in AEW history, as well as his legendary feud with Brodie Lee which resulted in Cody being the final opponent of Lee's career before his tragic passing in December 2020.
He was also the first man in AEW history to win a championship more than once, becoming a multi-time TNT Champion, beating the aforementioned Brodie Lee to win his second title, and Sammy Guevara on Christmas Day in 2021 to win his third.
Do you miss seeing Cody Rhodes in AEW? Let us know in the comments section down below!
Please credit "Keepin' It 100" and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling when using quotes from this article.