During an interview with Popculture , Cody Rhodes opened up about the reception he has been receiving from fans since teasing his retirement this past August. Crowds have been giving Cody mixed reactions since he returned to AEW television, but “The American Nightmare” is adamant he will never turn heel.
“This will disappoint so many and maybe it won’t, maybe this will excite, but two things I can guarantee you – and I’m not saying this to wave one hand while you’re not looking at the other,” Cody explained. “I’m telling this from the most honest standpoint: I am not going to turn heel on this company. And I would retire before I did that. Now I’m the head of the community outreach group, I have a little girl now. I’m not going to be doing heel stuff on TV.”
Another thing Cody is adamant about when it comes to AEW’s storylines is that he will never go back on his word and challenge for the AEW World Title. He recognizes that the only way that may happen is if AEW President Tony Khan decides to reverse the stipulation that was set in place.
“I am not turning heel and I’m not going back on my word to challenge for the title. That stuff was real. It hurts. It is a large regret that that ever happened, but it did happen and I can live with it. And I got to do that dance with Chris Jericho, and I will not go back on that stipulation, me personally.
“If Tony wanted to change things, he could. And again, you can never say never in wrestling, but I do think there’s this idea that evil corporate need would turn the stipulation around and challenge for the world title. That, I can say never will happen,” Cody stated.
