Cody Rhodes’ relationship with Randy Orton has been fraught with tension since the “Legend Killer” returned to “Friday Night SmackDown” to reignite his feud with the “American Nightmare.”
The two had come to blows numerous times before SmackDown GM Nick Aldis said the two couldn’t lay a finger on each other before their match at Sunday Night’s Main Event in Atlanta and if they did, they would have been barred from competing for a WWE championship.
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Cody Rhodes and Randy Orton speak during SmackDown at Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa, Ontario, on Aug. 28, 2026. (WWE via Getty Images)
In their last face-to-face meeting, Orton tried to coax Rhodes into hitting him with strong words about how Rhodes was an “addict” and “sick” for his desire to be the champion. But when it comes to pro wrestling, why was that a bad thing?
Rhodes responded to Orton’s words in an interview with OutKick Dropkick.
“He had said, ‘addicted to winning the championship’ and ‘sick’ and putting it in front of everything. What’s the term kids use today? The rage bait, you know, or baiting me into … because if I had hit him, then I don’t get an opportunity for the WWE championship ever, and the same vice versa if he had hit me,” Rhodes said. “I hate to put it in such terms, but at King of the Ring, I beat Randy Orton. At WrestleMania, I beat Randy Orton. I feel the desperation and the addiction. Every pro wrestler, to your point, you’re in this to win. You’re not trying to get second on the podium. I’ve never trusted a wrestler ever — hell, I’ve never liked a wrestler ever — who said he didn’t want to be champion.
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Cody Rhodes looks on during SummerSlam at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minn., on Aug. 1, 2026. (WWE via Getty Images)
“But I think that addiction and sickness is actually more on Randy’s end because Randy’s close to the record. He’s close to 17. He’s close to John. I think Randy also feels that he’s not been given the credit as one of the, you know, the GOATs of modern WWE, someone who’s going to go down in history as one of the greatest to ever do it. He should know he is going to go down in history as one of the greatest to ever do it, but he’s also going to go down in history as the guy who lost for a third time at Sunday Night’s Main Event to his protege, which is me.”
Rhodes, who spoke to OutKick Dropkick as part of his partnership with Clash of Clans and its new “Search for Cena” event, is among those vying to get back into the Undisputed WWE Championship picture.
This match between Rhodes and Orton will certainly clear the picture up a little bit as Money in the Bank inches closer.
Randy Orton faces Cody Rhodes during WrestleMania 42: Night 1 at Allegiant Stadium on April 18, 2026, in Las Vegas, Nev. (WWE via Getty Images)
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Sunday Night’s Main Event will also feature a six-woman tag team match between the team of Charlotte Flair, Alexa Bliss and Tatum Paxley and the team of Jade Cargill, Michin and B-Fab, a match between Baron Corbin and Lil Yachty and a bout between Oba Femi and Bron Breakker.
