Possible reason why Vince McMahon signed Cody Rhodes revealed
Cody Rhodes returned to WWE at WrestleMania 38 to finish his story after his initial departure back in 2016. Rhodes left AEW due to 'personal reasons' although a former WWE Superstar shared the possible reason why Vince McMahon signed him back, according to him.
After spending two years on the independent circuit after his WWE release, Rhodes helped build AEW in 2018. He became one of the top stars of the company until he left in 2022 after he couldn't come to terms with a new contract.
On the latest episode of The Ryback Show, the former Intercontinental Champion shared his opinion on why Vince McMahon personally went to Cody Rhodes and convinced him to return. Ryback thought that the then-WWE Chairman had a deeper reason why he pursued The American Nightmare.
"They probably didn't really care for Cody as much as a wrestling talent because they never really did before, even though he has proven his value. What they got, what they wanted from Cody, in my opinion, with how they do things, is for Cody being that EVP over there. They knew, and they have the ability to look long term, that having one of the powerful persons from AEW on their roster doing well with that. That they would be able to get future talents easier, so that was 1,000% that was not Cody, was not strictly just a talent signing," Ryback said.
He added that Rhodes would be instrumental in poaching talent from AEW to WWE:
"That was a 'Hey, we may eventually want a Wardlow or a Ricky Starks or a Jade Cargill. We need somebody that was essentially everybody's boss over there over here doing really well to tell them how good it is.' That was 1,000% part of the reason Vince flying with Pritchard. That's how they make moves." [21:54 - 22:51]
Cody Rhodes' return to WWE paid off
After returning at WrestleMania 38, Cody Rhodes won his first feud back with Seth Rollins before a torn pectoral muscle put him on the shelf for the rest of 2022. Rhodes returned at the Royal Rumble and earned an opportunity to dethrone Roman Reigns.
However, Rhodes fell short at WrestleMania 39 and went on a year-long journey to finish his story. He won the Royal Rumble match for the second year in a row while also overcoming the combined powerplay from The Tribal Chief and The Final Boss.
At WrestleMania 40 in Philadelphia, The American Nightmare realized his lifelong dream and became the Undisputed WWE Champion. Cody Rhodes is also considered the face of the company now, especially with Reigns and The Rock on hiatus.