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Cody Rhodes' second run with the WWE made him the face of the promotion and the biggest star in the world of professional wrestling. However, a former four-time champion gave his thoughts on the current storyline and wants The American Nightmare to wait another year or two, before finally 'finishing his story'.
Matt Riddle was with WWE for five years before The Original Bro was released from the company, after a successful merger with UFC. However, the former United States Champion continues to be familiar with the ongoing storylines in the Stamford-based promotion, despite working on the independent scene currently.
Speaking to Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, the former WWE NXT and RAW Tag Team Champion spoke about how he would book Cody Rhodes' story, as he would like to see the star wait another year or two before finally winning the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship:
"If I had the pencil, I would make Cody [Rhodes] wait for at least another year or two. Because if Cody wins the title, the story's over, and now what? It's over. This is what I would do this year, and hopefully they do it. What I would do this year is have The Rock and Roman [Reigns] and Cody vs. Seth [Rollins]."
Riddle wants to see Damian Priest cash in on Cody Rhodes after the latter wins the WWE World Heavyweight Championship from Seth Rollins:
"Then I would've Cody beat Seth, but then I would've Damian Priest cash in on Cody. So, in that sense, you keep the story going. Let's be honest, people want to see Cody vs. The Rock or Roman anyway. And then you still got Damian Priest and Cody to fight until you want to bring back Cody back to The Rock and Roman." (From 55:28 to 56:24)
Riddle also claimed that fans would move on to the next thing if the story was finished.
Matt Riddle wanted to retire Cody Rhodes' former WWE rival
Last year, Cody Rhodes had a long feud with Brock Lesnar, which concluded at WWE SummerSlam 2023. After the match, The Beast Incarnate endorsed The American Nightmare, before going on a hiatus. However, it's currently unlikely that the former UFC star will return to the company.
Meanwhile, Matt Riddle also has a history with the star as he publicly called The Beast Incarnate out on multiple occasions. Speaking to Ariel Helwani in the same interview, The Original Bro wanted to retire Brock Lesnar from in-ring competition:
"I remember like my 'goal' in my wrestling career was to retire Brock Lesnar. And, not that I ever really think that I was going to retire Brock Lesnar, probably not. But, at the end of the day, we try to get to the point to do that. I was going to accomplish a lot of things, and I've so far, and hopefully more." [From 01:28:11 to 01:29:11]
It will be interesting to see if Lesnar ever returns to WWE.
Do you want to see Cody Rhodes finish the story at WrestleMania XL? Sound off in the comments section below.
If you use quotes from this article, please credit The MMA Hour and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.
