Top AEW star sends a message to Cody Rhodes ahead of WWE Royal Rumble return

Cody Rhodes has officially announced his inclusion in the upcoming WWE Royal Rumble, and fans have gone wild with speculation. In response to his return, AEW star Ricky Starks took to social media to send his former colleague a message.

Despite being an EVP in AEW since 2019, Cody Rhodes shocked the wrestling industry by returning to WWE last year. Unfortunately, a pectoral injury set him back for months, but now it seems like he's back to continue his journey.

In light of Rhodes' recent Twitter post following his announcement on WWE RAW, Rickie Starks chimed in to wish his former roster mate well.

"Hope you pull a good number #Rhodes2Rumble," Starks tweeted.

While Rhodes' return was met positively, many fans took to social media to question why his inclusion in the Royal Rumble was announced beforehand instead of being left as a surprise.

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Ricky Starks attributes his first AEW match against Cody Rhodes as the reason why the promotion signed him

Ricky Starks' AEW debut was quite positively received by fans at the time, mainly because of his presentation against Rhodes. The promotion would then quickly sign the star, eventually joining forces with Team Taz.

During his appearance on the Rewind with Besa podcast, Ricky Starks recalled his match against The American Nightmare.

“My first favorite match would be against Cody Rhodes. That was the match where I made my debut on Dynamite. That was the match that helped me get a contract with AEW," Starks said. (H/T Wrestletalk)

The American Nightmare has not hidden his aspirations to become the first Rhodes to capture the WWE Championship. But it remains to be seen if Rhodes ends up being the man to dethrone Roman Reigns, which would make him the first former AEW star to win gold in WWE.