"You've gotta get out of that f***ing shadow" – WWE legend tells Cody Rhodes to focus on himself instead of Dusty

Cody Rhodes' WrestleMania 39 storyline with Roman Reigns should not revolve around Dusty Rhodes, according to WWE legend Bully Ray.

Upon returning to WWE in April 2022, Cody Rhodes made it his mission to win the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship. His late father unsuccessfully challenged for the company's former world title (then known as the WWWF Championship) in 1977.

On Busted Open, Bully Ray said Cody trying to become the first Rhodes family member to capture WWE's top prize is not necessarily a bad idea. However, he would like the storyline to focus more on Cody's past unhappiness in WWE and his three-year AEW stint:

"He had his dad's legacy back then," Bully Ray stated, referring to Cody leaving WWE in 2016. "They didn't do s**t with it. He didn't do s**t with it. Now all of a sudden we're going to. Why? Is it the only thing that we have? No."

Bully Ray added that Cody should concentrate on his own personal journey instead, including his Royal Rumble win and comeback from injury:

"Cody has more of a story now than he ever has. I wanna know about the Cody story. I know the Dusty story. We can always use the Dusty story as a little bit of enhancement to the Cody story. You've gotta get out of that f***ing shadow."

Bully Ray made the comments before Monday's episode of RAW. The show featured an emotional promo between Cody Rhodes and Paul Heyman about their relationship with Dusty Rhodes.

---

Bully Ray wants Stardust references in Cody Rhodes' promos

The 2023 Men's Royal Rumble winner performed as Stardust in WWE between 2014 and 2016. The eccentric character was a play on his brother Dustin's legendary Goldust gimmick.

Bully Ray believes Cody Rhodes should tell fans his brutally honest opinion on how he felt portraying the underwhelming persona:

"Cody could be up there talking about how, 'I was the son of The American Dream Dusty Rhodes. Do you have any idea how embarrassing it was for me to have to put that makeup on every single week and call myself Stardust? Not only did I not believe in myself, not only did I know fans didn't believe in me, but I felt like my father was disappointed in me. There's your f***ing promo."

As things stand, Cody Rhodes will challenge Roman Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship at WrestleMania 39 on April 1 or April 2. The match card could change if Sami Zayn dethrones Reigns at Elimination Chamber on February 18.

Do you agree with Bully Ray? Let us know in the comments section below.

---

Please credit Busted Open and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.