ROH Champion Cody Rhodes recently spoke with FanBuzz.com on his WWE departure, as well as his successes with ROH, NJPW, and the indy scene. Below are some interview highlights:
On leaving WWE, it wasn’t simply a moment of frustration or an off-the-cuff decision to leave — it was something Rhodes had planned, created a list of goals and accomplishments he hoped to achieve on the independent scene and put into action. It also wasn’t something he shared with everyone, detailing that even his brother and fellow WWE star, Dustin Runnels (aka Goldust) found out about his departure on Twitter along with the rest of the world.
“He didn’t hear about it. I didn’t really share it with him, I don’t know why. He found out like everyone else did that day,” Rhodes said.
A year later, Rhodes is clear in describing his reasoning for leaving the company.
“That was a decision where I can’t stay with WWE because you guys are honoring my dad so much. I’m an individual myself. I love my dad, but if I stay here because you guys are honoring his legacy, yet you don’t honor me and honor my hard work, then I can tell you the number one person who would be pissed off would be my dad.”
On his short time in TNA:
“Brandi was watching Maria and Mike (Bennett) on Pop and she wanted to go. I didn’t have any plans to go, but I thought I could absolutely try to help make that happen. I didn’t have a bad outing at all or a single complaint. I do think it was a bit misleading to fans whereas I had only signed on to do 3-4 dates and I didn’t re-sign — I would have made everyone aware if I had re-signed. So it was a little misleading because I think they made it seem like I was part of the roster and I really wasn’t, I was just dropping in and saying hello on occasion,” Rhodes said.
“They let me do that, so I respect Impact for letting me do that. I really liked Dixie (Carter), really liked Billy (Corgan), really liked Jeff and Karen (Jarrett). No complaints.”
On joining ROH:
‘The moment I walked into Final Battle at Hammerstein Ballroom, and ran into Gary Jester, who worked for WCW and who’s been a friend of my family’s. The moment I saw how professional and how organized they were, I thought, this is the place that can do it for me,” Rhodes said.
“I left WWE not because the money, but I wanted my soul to fill up with wrestling. Ring of Honor does both for me.”
On his future, in 2018, Rhodes is swinging for the fences, hoping to turn the independent scene upside down with at least one massive show.
“If I could add anything to (my checklist), I would add a 10,000-seat arena. I’ve seen with what New Japan Pro Wrestling was able to do in Long Beach with the G1 specials, what Ring of Honor has been able to do with the VOD shows and with the PPVs, I know that both companies together or by themselves are capable of filling a 10,000-seat arena,” he said.
“I really want to explore that option in 2018. Not just for the novelty of it, not saying ‘hey they’re not WWE, but they did this.’ But that the product was as good if not better.”
Nick was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, and lived there until the age of 18, when he decided to pack his flack jacket and move to New York City.
