Cody Rhodes has been sitting out from the WWE ever since he underwent surgery for a torn pectoral muscle but, lately, he's been dropping clues about his return. Many fans are wondering if the timing of these updates means he’ll be an entrant at the upcoming WWE event, the Royal Rumble, which takes place on Saturday, January 28th It's there that he could possibly even win and punch his ticket to compete in the main event of WrestleMania. With that said, there might be some questions about what’s going on, as a rumor and tweet have sparked uncertainty about what’s really happening.
While it initially seemed like Cody Rhodes' recovery made a Royal Rumble appearance likely and even ideal, it’s possible that the WWE may not feel the same way. Wrestling insider Dave Meltzer allege on the latest episode of Wrestling Observer Radio that he’s heard that the organization isn’t planning for Rhodes to appear and has apparently put another plan in motion (via TJRWrestling.net):
So I had always figured that Cody Rhodes’ return would be a surprise at the Royal Rumble, but it is absolutely not going to be. They’re going to they’re doing a multipart series, building up his return. So there you go. He’s evidently slotted in a high place at Wrestlemania.
According to this rumor, Cody Rhodes is not going to participate in the Men's Royal Rumble match. Instead, the WWE is building up his return and apparently, locking him in for a slot at WrestleMania that's high up on the card for one of those nights. However, what that means exactly isn't immediately clear. The hope for many, including the former AEW star himself, is that he’ll get a chance to compete for the Universal or WWE Championship.
It seems strange that the WWE would keep "The Prince of Pro Wrestling" out of its Royal Rumble, especially since the winner is granted a main-event match at WrestleMania. Additionally, the 37-year-old star has appeared in videos as of late on Monday Night Raw, all of which led to speculation that he'd return to the brand just weeks before the event later this month. He recently shared one of those videos, as well as a cryptic tweet that could be interpreted as a hint that he's in the men's match:
1 pic.twitter.com/EIwZjua6HrJanuary 3, 2023
Why did he tweet the number "one" with that hype video? It’s possible that if he’s appearing at the event, he’s signaling that he’ll be the first entrant in the massive match. That certainly wouldn't bode well for his chances of winning, given the sheer number of entrants participating. The "American Nightmare" has proven he’s not afraid to wrestle under adversity, however, and can rise to the occasion when faced with a challenge. After all, did anyone else beat a top talent like Seth Rollins with a torn muscle?
No one knows for sure who is or isn’t planned for the the Royal Rumble just yet, and it’s possible that plans are still very much up in the air at this point. We still don’t even know if Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson will show up yet despite a lot of rumors having teased it over the past. So we may just have to wait and see on what’s going on with Cody Rhodes and the plan for his return.
Cody Rhodes hasn’t returned to in-ring action in the WWE just yet, but anyone hankering for some of his most classic matches can stream them if they have a Peacock Premium subscription. Hopefully, we’ll see him back sooner than later, especially considering just how many major stars are out right now.
