'Was problematic, in full transparency': The Rock’s head writer claims that he found WWE’s decision to have Cody Rhodes win Royal Rumble confusing

The idea of Cody winning the Rumble, I thought, was problematic, in full transparency. I said, even in San Diego in that meeting, 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. Brian Gewirtz on Busted Open

Gewirtz went on to say that when Rhodes achieved the victory, it created problems. As a matter of fact, the original plan pitched was to have CM Punk win the Rumble. The Final Boss’ team wanted to sideline the American Nightmare so that he could make his own patch clear. However, Triple H had some other plans as he and Rhodes went on to trigger the ‘We Want Cody’ campaign all over social media.

Later on, the Royal Rumble winner went on to challenge the Tribal Chief the main event of WrestleMania XL. Days later, The People’s Champion made his in-ring return. It went on to become one of the greatest WrestleMania main event stories of all time. However, the Brahma Bull has hinted towards a showdown in the future against the Undisputed Champion to settle their differences once and for all.

Cody Rhodes reflected on The Undertaker’s appearance at WrestleMania XL

Cody Rhodes had his moment at WrestleMania XL when he finished his story. It was a glorious moment, as it featured stars like John Cena and The Undertaker. Speaking of that, the American Nightmare reflected on the appearance of the Deadman in his bout.

As per Fightful, Rhodes said that he was impressed by the agility of the Phenom at this age. He went on to say it was a surreal moment for him, as he felt the WWE Hall of Famer wink at him after slamming The Rock. He referred to the moment as “magic,” as even the American Nightmare himself couldn’t get enough of that.

He winked at me, and then the lights went out. It was like legitimate magic had happened. All the times he struck people with lighting, he did it. Just as he gave me a nice [winks], the lights went out. To me, it’s one of the most special things ever.

Cody Rhodes

Moreover, the 38-year-old said that the passion the Phenom carries at this age for the business is unbelievable. Therefore, when he showed up to the ring, he felt like a lion had stepped out of his den to deliver justice.