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Dutch Mantell believes WWE made the right decision by having Roman Reigns retain his Undisputed WWE Universal Title against Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania 39.
It's no secret that The American Nightmare was the favorite to dethrone The Head of the Table. Though Cody came inches to finishing his story at The Grandest Stages of Them All, it wasn't meant to be, as Solo Sikoa interfered just in time to ensure Roman Reigns retained his title and continued his historic run. While Cody Rhodes has found his footing as one of the top babyfaces on RAW, recent rumors suggest WWE still plans to pit him against Reigns at Mania 40.
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On the latest episode of Sportskeeda's Smack Talk, hosted by Mac Davis, Dutch Mantell explained how fans were clamoring to have Cody win at WrestleMania 39.
However, Mantell argues that though viewers wanted The American Nightmare to take the title from Roman Reigns, the former may not have been ready yet. The former WWE manager even mentioned how Cody's father, Dusty Rhodes, made repeated attempts before winning the top title in NWA back in the day.
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"So many are saying he [Roman Reigns] should have [lost] last time against Cody, and I'm saying, should he? Or just because you wanted him to because you wanted that feel-good moment. Dusty didn't win that the first year. He won in the second year. He went through all these trials and tribulations to get there," said Dutch Mantell. [8:03 - 8:26]
Check out the full video below:
Dutch Mantell prefers Roman Reigns vs The Rock at WrestleMania 40
On a previous episode of Smack Talk, Mantell spoke about The Rock's WWE return and how it could put Cody's spot as Reigns' challenger in jeopardy.
Mantell explained that if WWE were to pit Cody Rhodes and Roman Reigns again, the former would have to win since if he fell short, it would be a massive hit to his credibility. The wrestling legend also feels that viewers would be more excited to see a fresher feud like The Rock challenging The Tribal Chief for his title.
"Well, if you put Cody Rhodes in against Roman, he's already lost one time. You'd have to switch the title then, you'd have to. By that time, Cody, he'd be deader than 6 o'clock. If you put The Rock in there, a single match is easier to book than a return because you're not basing it on anything. If I was booking, I would book Rock and the man, the Head of The Bloodline together. So you're not doing the same thing as before. It's brand new to the people and I don't think they'd be able to call it," said Mantell.
Considering just how packed The Rock's schedule is, it remains to be seen if he manages to find time for a match against Reigns, possibly at WrestleMania 40.
Do you agree with Dutch Mantell's opinion on why WWE made the right choice by having Cody lose at WrestleMania 39? Sound off in the comments section below.
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