Cody Rhodes was revealed as Seth “Freakin” Rollins’ surprise opponent on the first night of WrestleMania 38, as The American Nightmare made his return to WWE after six years and defeated Rollins at the Showcase of Immortals.
Rhodes later suffered a legitimate pectoral muscle tear ahead of Hell in a Cell and the injury was exacerbated when the muscle tore entirely off the bone while Rhodes was weight training in the days preceding the pay-per-view event.
Despite the severe injury, Rhodes still managed to defeat Rollins for a third time at Hell in a Cell with a massive spot of discolored skin on his upper chest.
On the following episode of RAW, Rhodes was written off television as he underwent successful surgery to repair a torn right pectoral tendon. The former AEW TNT Champion was rendered unfit for competition for nine months.
This week’s final Monday Night RAW of 2022 featured Rhodes speaking in an interview where he declared his intentions to become WWE Champion upon his return. He said,
“Even though I wasn’t present for a good chunk of the year, what I was able to do, I think, really did register with a lot of the WWE Universe. And I want to pick up right back where I left off, right back in that little kid’s shoes who had the biggest dreams. Because in this time that we’re in, I have an opportunity at making that happen.”
“And I’m being incredibly vague here, I get it. But I think anyone who is a fan of what we do can read between the lines. There is one thing that I came back for specifically, one thing. And again, a torn pec couldn’t stop me. I couldn’t name anything that can stop me. It has to be done, it needs to be done, and I want to get it done.”
Rhodes also entertained the idea of clashing with Rollins for the fourth time, clarifying that although The Visionary may want the fourth match, he isn’t sure if that’s his focus at the moment.
You can check out some highlights from the segment below:
What does @CodyRhodes have in mind for 2023?#WWERaw pic.twitter.com/T2dKpKR76k
— WWE (@WWE) December 27, 2022
ROLLINS vs. RHODES IV? 🤔@CodyRhodes speaks on #WWERaw. pic.twitter.com/iOcnLGzzEk
— WWE (@WWE) December 27, 2022
There’s still no word on when Rhodes will be back but rumors suggest that The American Nightmare could make his surprise return at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view in January.
You can keep up with all your wrestling news right here on eWrestlingNews.com. Or, you can follow us on our Twitter and Facebook pages.
