Cody Rhodes owes his WWE success to one person, Jerry Lawler says (Exclusive)
Cody Rhodes defeated Roman Reigns at WrestleMania XL to win the Undisputed WWE Championship for the first time. In an exclusive interview, legendary commentator and wrestler Jerry Lawler gave his honest thoughts on The American Nightmare's success.
Six years after leaving WWE, Rhodes returned in 2022 and immediately became one of the company's top stars. The 39-year-old's WrestleMania XL storyline largely revolved around his attempt to become the first Rhodes family member to capture a WWE world title.
Speaking to Sportskeeda Wrestling Senior Editor Bill Apter, Lawler admitted he never expected Rhodes to emerge as WWE's top guy. He also mentioned how the SmackDown star can thank his father Dusty for his career achievements:
"He owes all of it, where he is today, to his dad," Lawler said. "They used that big time in the marketing and it worked out perfect. Who can say that Dusty wasn't one of the greatest? Especially what he did in marketing. He was the best at that. Oh gosh, I don't even know how to put it, but it put him [Cody Rhodes] in a place where I did not think he would be as the world champion." [8:12 – 9:03]
Watch the video above to hear Lawler's take on John Cena's retirement plan and Roman Reigns' return as a babyface.
Jerry Lawler praises WWE's marketing of Cody Rhodes
Roman Reigns performed as a heel throughout his 1,316-day world title reign. Cody Rhodes, by contrast, has been presented as WWE's main good guy over the last two years.
While Jerry Lawler appreciates how hard Rhodes has worked to get to the top, he thinks WWE's marketing team also deserves credit:
"I didn't think he would be that [world champion], but he has done it and he has done it to perfection. It's not only just him. It's just the marketing people in the WWE that put him where he is and it's worked out perfect." [9:03 – 9:23]
Rhodes is currently feuding with long-time friend Kevin Owens on SmackDown. He is also set to face World Heavyweight Champion Gunther on November 2 to determine the first Crown Jewel Champion.
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