In 2022, Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins has a classic trilogy that ranks up there with any other in history. At the end of their career, it will be rated up there with the likes of Austin vs Rock in terms of their impact on the WWE.
They helped build Cody Rhodes from midcareer to WWE Champion, with a big credit going to Seth Rollins for his part to play.
In this article, we’ll go through every Cody Rhodes vs Seth Rollins match in the WWE and analyse what made them great and which one was the best.
Cody Rhodes vs Seth Rollins – Wrestlemania 38
Cody Rhodes made his long awaited return to WWE at Wrestlemania 38. He was revealed as Seth Rollins’ mystery opponent, and the pair put on a match of the night contender in the middle of the jam packed show.
In a match in which both men pulled out all the stops, Cody Rhodes picked up the victory after hitting Rollins with three Cross Rhodes and his father’s own Bionic Elbow to seal the win over the former Shield member.
His debut came as a shock to everybody. He had left the WWE 6 years earlier, sick of being riddled with the “Stardust” Gimmick. He left to find himself on the indies, finding friendship with The Elite. They, along with Tony Khan, helped form AEW and become the biggest threat to the WWE in 20 years.
However, by 2022 he had slid down the card and the returned to the WWE after a five star match against Sammy Guevara in AEW. Cody Rhodes debuted as Seth Rollins surprise opponent at Wrestlemania 39. He answered his open challenge as the crowd exploded when they heard the opening words of his entrance – “Wrestling has more than one royal family”.
The match went off without a hitch. Cody Rhodes came back to the WWE a new man with a new look and a new moveset. He hit the Cody Cutter, Disaster Kick and the rest of his canon of moves as he and Rollins put on a Wrestlemania classic. He won the bout after three Cross Rhodes and a Bionic Elbow but Rollins away for good.
Cody Rhodes vs Seth Rollins – Wrestlemania Backlash 2022
For the second pay per view in a row, Seth Rollins faced off against Cody Rhodes.
After an exciting contest, The American Nightmare claimed the win when he blocked a roll-up attempt by Rollins and grabbed a handful of tights to pin him. This angered The Visionary greatly, as it meant he was now 2-0 down against Cody Rhodes in their two matches.
The match took everything the first did and made it better. Without the shock of Cody Rhodes debut, his match vs Seth Rollins could instead be a slow, story driven match that showcased both men in a different light to the Wrestlemania match.
Cody Rhodes vs Seth Rollins – Hell In A Cell 2022
The final of their legendary trilogy was also the best, both in in-ring action and storytelling. The match capped off a perfect feud, although the winner was forced to sit out the rest of the year due to injury.
The story of the match going into it was that Rollins just wanted one more chance to beat Cody Rhodes. He had been bested twice but his pride would not let him admit that he could be beaten by the former AEW star. He wanted to prove it in an arena that forced a true outcome – the Hell in a Cell.
The match was highly anticipated at the time but the hype went into overload when Cody Rhodes suffered a horrific pectoral tear that put the match in jeopardy. He muscle was torn off the born and he had a disgusting bruise that covered half of his entire chest.
Despite the horrific injury, Cody continued. He noted that the muscle was already completely torn and he could not do any further injury. He soldiered on, showcasing an incredibly high pain threshold as he battled inside one of the most dangerous match types in WWE.
Cody Rhodes survived an enslaught with a Kendo Stick on his way to getting his third win in a row against Seth Rollins. The former Shield member worked around Rhodes useless arm perfectly, feigning attacking it whilst also keeping Cody incredibly safe.
This match was given a five star rating by Dave Meltzer. It was the third of Cody Rhodes’ five star matches so far and made him a legend in the WWE for his performance. He evoked Triple H’s gutsy showing where he tore his quad on Raw and continued to wrestle in one of the best tag team matches of all time.
After returning from injury, Cody Rhodes won the 2023 Royal Rumble match and wrestled Roman Reigns at Wrestlemania 39.