When the lights are the brightest, the brightest rise.
Cody Rhodes has demonstrated throughout his entire career that he is undeniably deserving of all he is currently achieving. His story is one so many can relate to in such a remarkably tangible way. When he walks down the ramp, through a thunderstorm of pyro and flashes that one-of-a-kind smile, you feel it deep inside. That ability alone – to touch people with passion – is such a gift.
I cannot imagine a more perfect climax to his journey than the one we are about to witness on Sunday evening. We all know the story, so there is no need to go into detail, but the path he has taken isn’t one any other wrestler has ever chosen to take. One on the fringes could have argued he had it all when he walked away from WWE. You wouldn’t necessarily be wrong.
It’s all a matter of perception. Cody knew his worth. He knew what he was capable of. The vision he had for not just his career, but the business as a whole, could not be achieved by simply running it back night after night. Like the greats before him, he understood that to ascend to the heights he knew in his heart he deserved, he had to evolve.
The gravity of that decision is still being felt across the wrestling business. Because of the courage and grit he pulled from within his soul, it always will be felt. I’m not sure we can even fully grasp what he did by walking away from a dream.
He altered the course of this thing of ours to such a degree that it is viscerally different than it was just a handful of years ago. He didn’t do it alone, but he provided the spark and so much more.
When I think a little deeper, I’m not sure he ever did walk away from the dream. Not completely. He made a decision, yes. But he never gave up the ultimate goal. Cody Rhodes took the only path he could to keep that dream alive. In doing so, he provided an avenue for new dreams to come true for others like him – in more ways than one.
I don’t know how prominent this vision was during the years he was away. Perhaps it was always at the forefront. Maybe he kept it close, safe and sound in his soul. It doesn’t matter though. What matters is he is here, and in a week’s time he could be standing triumphantly in the middle of the largest stage in professional wrestling holding the title he deserves. I cannot escape that image in my mind. A rabid audience, a rainbow of magical pyro, the shimmer of gold, and that trademark Cody Rhodes smile.
That is a true WrestleMania moment. One for the ages.
Even if he fails Sunday, he’ll have won. Perhaps the goal isn’t the gold itself. Maybe the story is meant to finish with the moment.
And moments are what we make them. Everyone wants to be a world champion, that much is simple. As much of an undisputable honor as it is to hold that gold, something in the business is even more rare. The Mania main event.
It’s one match. Once a year. The performers chosen carry the weight of not just the company but the entire professional wrestling business on their backs. The lights are brightest. The pressure is heaviest. The reward? Extraordinary.
By walking through those hallowed ropes on Sunday, Cody will be joining the most elite club in wrestling. It’s one all aspire to be members of but only few can claim. As wonderful an ending to his story gold would be, can we appreciate the preamble for a moment?
After the intro pyro, and the majesty on the long walk to the ring, do me a favor, would you? As he enters the ring, when the camera zooms in close, take a few seconds. Look into Cody’s eyes. Understand the journey, the impossible decisions, the history, and more. Feel the passion and emotion. I promise you; it will be something you remember for a lifetime.
It’s what the business is all about. Those moments, the ones that we carry with us, it’s why I watch. I’ve been a fan for almost 25 years. That’s why.
I’m going to cry on Sunday night. That in and of itself isn’t special because wrestling as an artform moves me to a degree I cannot rightfully explain to you. I cry often. Sunday will be a little different though. It’s not just any title bout. It’s not just any WrestleMania main event. What we get to bear witness to under the brightest of lights is the culmination of a journey. A career. A lifetime. A family.
Now, the story isn’t ending, right? In a way, it’s only just beginning.
The Cody Rhodes we see when Sunday turns to Monday will be the same Cody Rhodes we’ve known and grown to adore. Gold or not, nothing outwardly changes. But within? One cannot dispute what this moment will mean to him and the Rhodes family as a whole. His soul. His heart. I hope it’s everything he always hoped it would be and even more. For the work he’s put in, the environment in wrestling he’s helped to create, and for the human being he is; he deserves this.
You can’t deny the greatness of Cody Rhodes. People try and always will, I imagine. It goes with the territory. It’s not for me to say who is greater than someone else. I’m just a girl who loves this thing of ours with her whole heart. I cheer everyone because I see them all for what they are – people chasing their dreams.
There is no one like Cody Rhodes. I believe in my soul that he lives and breathes professional wrestling. There may those who love it just as much, but no one loves it more. It pulsates through his veins and lives within his mind day and night.
He had a dream and held onto it. On Sunday, he finishes the story.
Shoot for the sky, Cody. We’re all with you.
