Cody Rhodes Asks For WWE Release
Cody Rhodes, real name Cody Runnels announced on Twitter today that he has asked for his release from the WWE.
https://twitter.com/PrinceCGR/status/734074764042600448
https://twitter.com/PrinceCGR/status/734074814038704129
The son of WWE Hall of Famer Dusty Rhodes and brother of current superstar Goldust has wrestled with the company since 2006, when he began training with Ohio Valley Wrestling, then a tributary and proving ground for WWE talent which paved the way for NXT and the WWE training facility. After achieving success as a tag team wrestler, winning the promotion’s tag team championship, Cody joined the main roster in 2007, using his father’s nom de guerre. In a backstage segment with his father and Randy Orton, Cody defended his father’s honor against the “Legend Killer”.
Rhodes eventually began teaming with Hardcore Holly, after earning Holly’s respect following a series of matches between the two. The tandem became tag team champions and only lost when Rhodes turned on Holly and aligned himself with another famously named superstar, Ted DiBiase jr. Their success as a duo eventually drew the interest of Randy Orton and proving themselves to the more experienced superstar, the trio began calling themselves “The Legacy” a reference to all three of them being the sons of Hall of Fame wrestlers. The young members were used as supports for the “The Viper” and eventually split from their mentor, oddly being characterized as the heels and the babyface Orton won their clash at Wrestlemania 26.
Rhodes reinvented himself when he moved to the Smackdown brand, extolling his good looks, even sharing tips with the audience in backstage segments that always led back to his features being prime examples of perfection. Although Cody was effective in Legacy, this character was his first chance to shine alone as a heel. He was obnoxious, brash and arrogant-a typical heel. One of the highlights of his time as the Dashing One was his feud with Rey Mysterio. During one of their matches, Rey Mysterio broke Rhodes’s nose, leading the injured man down a dark path due to the devastation he felt at being disfigured.
With a small piece of facial hair, Cody Rhodes reinvented himself yet again and found success as part of a team with Damien Sandow called the Team Rhodes Scholars. They never won the tag team titles, but a recurring trend in Cody’s career began to crystalize. Rhodes was often tweaking his character and finding success with his changes, but would eventually lose a Money in the Bank match as his partner Sandow won and fall down the card, never seeming to keep a grasp on his place on the roster and the world championship ladder.
Cody Rhodes began teaming with Goldust and the two were vocal on social media about eventually wanting a match between the two brothers at Wrestlemania, but that never materialized. Cody turned on his brother after adopting the a new name and character, Stardust. Consistent losing drove him mad and he insisted that Cody was dead, with only Stardust left. After the feud fizzled out, Stardust was given two running mates in the form of Viktor and Konnor of the Ascension, but little television time left Stardust without direction and little main show appearance. Most recently, he was used by Kevin Owens as an example of a wrestler Owens felt was beneath him. Stardust took a bump through a ladder during the Intercontinental title ladder match at Wrestlemania. He reemerged after the event, only to prove to be fodder for a debuting Apollo Crews.
Now, with the announcement from his own Twitter account that he has asked for his release, his wife and WWE announcer Eden showed support for her husband,
Could not be any prouder or more supportive. 💛
— Brandi Rhodes (@TheBrandiRhodes) May 21, 2016
Still only 30 years old, Rhodes has a chance now to leave the only company he has ever known and ply his trade elsewhere. If his past is any indication, he will find a way to use this opportunity as an opportunity to reinvent himself and do what his father before him did: find success outside of the WWE.
