Why Cody Rhodes' victory at WWE Saturday Night's Main Event was possibly illegal?
WWE Saturday Night's Main Event concluded with Cody Rhodes defeating Kevin Owens in an Undisputed WWE Title match. The match featured numerous near falls and unexpected twists, including the officials being taken down twice during the contest. However, many fans believe that The American Nightmare's victory may have been illegal due to the way the match ended.
Charles Robinson was the initial referee, but when he was taken down, another ref, Eddie Orengo, came out, only to be taken down as well. When Cody Rhodes hit a Cross Rhodes on The Prizefighter at the very last moment, Robinson managed to get back on his feet. He grabbed the ropes and counted the three from outside the ring. This has led to the assumption that Cody Rhodes’ victory might be illegal, as the referee was not in the squared circle during the pin.
While WWE has not issued any formal guidelines or a rulebook, it’s generally understood that the referee should make the pin while inside the squared circle in a standard WWE match. Therefore, Cody Rhodes' victory seems questionable and not entirely valid.
A potential storyline could see Kevin Owens addressing this situation, using it as leverage for a rematch against Cody Rhodes. Overall, the dynamics between Owens and Rhodes are expected to continue even after SNME, and the progression of their feud will certainly be exciting to witness.
What happened with Cody Rhodes during the off-air moments of WWE Saturday Night's Main Event?
Soon after the cameras went off air, Kevin Owens thrashed Cody Rhodes in a post-match assault. The Prizefighter bashed Rhodes with a package piledriver, the same move that took out Randy Orton on SmackDown a few weeks ago. Following the attack, The American Nightmare was stretchered into an ambulance by the medical team.
On the other side, Owens grabbed the Undisputed WWE Title and took it with him. As he reached the entrance ramp and mocked the crowd with the title, Triple H made his way to the ramp and angrily slapped the title out of Owens' hands.
This led to a heated confrontation between Kevin Owens and The Game, with the Chief Content Officer visibly frustrated by the former Universal Champion's actions. The Stamford-based promotion also recently revealed off-air footage on its social media platform showing Rhodes being stretchered into the ambulance.
As of now, there is no update regarding the status of the Undisputed Champion following this post-match assault.