Ex-WWE writer felt Cody Rhodes' historic win was problematic

Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes went against all odds before finishing his story. However, The American Nightmare's journey had its roadblocks, and veteran writer Brian Gewirtz believes that the win at the Royal Rumble 2024 was problematic.

Cody Rhodes made history when he added his name to the list of legends who won the gimmick match back-to-back in the promotion. The win led him to a path heading into WrestleMania in Philadelphia, where he captured the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship.

However, ex-WWE writer Brian Gewirtz wasn't in favor of the decision. During an appearance on the Busted Open Radio, Gewirtz stated that he felt Cody's victory in the 2024 Men's Royal Rumble was problematic, as it interfered with a potential Roman Reigns vs. The Rock at WrestleMania XL.

"The idea of Cody winning the Rumble, I thought, was problematic, in full transparency. I said, even in San Diego in that meeting, that I thought the cleanest thing to do, if we’re booking Rock and Roman, is to have [CM] Punk win the Rumble and challenge [Seth] Rollins, just because there is a difference, storyline-wise, in my opinion, between Cody wanting to finish the story, and having earned the right to finish the story by winning the Royal Rumble," said Gewirtz.

He stated that CM Punk winning the event would've helped the case for Rock vs. Roman.

"Once you win the Royal Rumble, that dynamic changes. It goes from something that, yeah, we all want things, but now he’s got it. And why would he do anything other than focus on Roman? And that’s what he naturally did when he pointed to him. Why wouldn’t he? That’s exactly what that character would do," said Gewirtz. [H/T - Cultaholic Wrestling]

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Cody Rhodes's second televised title defense will take place at WWE King & Queen of the Ring 2024

After ending Roman Reigns' reign, Cody Rhodes began to add new chapters to his ongoing story as the Undisputed WWE Champion on Friday Night SmackDown following WrestleMania XL in Philadelphia.

The American Nightmare went head-to-head against AJ Styles at Backlash in France, which was the star's first televised defense. After a win over The Phenomenal One, Nick Aldis introduced Cody Rhodes to his next challenger.

United States Champion Logan Paul was announced as The American Nightmare's second challenger, and the match is set to take place in Saudi Arabia at WWE King & Queen of the Ring 2024 this weekend.