Cody Rhodes has had various looks throughout his career, from working as Stardust to his current American Nightmare presentation. However, his most painful experience was when he wore his protective face mask and took on the Undashing character. While it was one of the best gimmicks of his career and helped showcase to fans what he was truly capable of, it did come at a price for him.
The mask became an iconic part of Rhodes’ career, with fans still recalling how Cody looked then. That proves the mask was iconic, but the story behind it is one that many WWE fans aren’t aware of. Most people think it was just the natural next step for Rhodes’ Dashing gimmick, but that isn’t the case.
Rey Mysterio Legitimately Injured Cody Rhodes
- A 619 to the face ended up changing the landscape of Cody Rhodes’ career.
- Rhodes had to have surgery on his broken nose.
- WWE then created a psychological heel character for Rhodes.
At the end of 2010, Rhodes was working his Dashing character based on his good looks. He used it to get heel heat as he pushed his arrogance upon everyone, but one match against Rey Mysterio changed everything. The two men competed on the January 21, 2011, episode of SmackDown when Mysterio’s 619 went wrong as his knee brace caught Rhodes in the face.
The move legitimately broke Rhodes’ nose and forced him to have facial reconstructive surgery, which obviously didn’t go along with the Dashing character. WWE had to change course, as having Rhodes claim he was the best-looking WWE Superstar didn’t make sense when he was dealing with a facial injury. However, WWE smartly pivoted away from just a normal mask by having it be clear, meaning fans could see that Rhodes’ face had healed and was fine.
It led to him creating a brilliant Undashing character that was more psychological than anything else. In a similar way to Kane’s scars all being in his own head, so were those that Rhodes had imagined, and that ended up working in his favor. It created a personality that was even more compelling, and gave Cody real range to work with, despite how painful the injury was to reach that point.
Cody Rhodes Turned An Unfortunate Incident Into A Positive
- Rhodes used his facial injury to create an excellent character.
- He would use that tool again with his pectoral injury.
- Rhodes is constantly thinking with a business sense.
Injuries are always unfortunate in the wrestling business, but the fact that Cody Rhodes was able to turn his facial injury into something that fans positively remember is a testament to his creativity. It’s something he’s gone on to be known for over the years, and is one of the reasons why he’s enjoyed so much success throughout his career.
However, to be able to do it at that early stage of his career was impressive. It was a clear sign that Rhodes was going to be a big star in the industry, and while it took him a while to achieve, he gained many fans at this time, even working as a heel. His ability to use the mask in matches, change his body language in promos, and turn it into something fans had a reason to care about is why it ended up being a painful success.
It isn’t the only time that Rhodes made the most of an injury, as his torn pectoral muscle also created a massive opportunity for him. Cody was set to compete in a Hell in a Cell match against Seth Rollins, but the injury put that match in doubt until the American Nightmare wrestled with an insanely bruised pectoral which created a visual few people will forget. The fact that Rhodes wrestled through that was ridiculous, but it ensured nobody forgot about him during his absence, making the most of the bad hand he was dealt. It’s something he’s done several times over his career, and is one of the reasons he’s in the position he is.
Cody Rhodes Believes Rey Mysterio Positively Changed His Wrestling Career
- Rhodes’ injury led to a lengthy storyline against Mysterio.
- Cody would put bags over the heads of fans he thought were ugly.
- Mysterio requested to work against Rhodes at WrestleMania 27.
Rhodes went on to have a brilliant storyline with Mysterio in 2011, which saw them go all the way to having a match at WrestleMania 27. Rhodes played on the fact that he was wearing a mask, just like Mysterio, and seeing him put bags over fans’ heads who were deemed too ugly at ringside was another great touch.
This storyline didn’t push Rhodes into the main event scene at the time, which came much later, but it did prove to everyone what he was capable of. During the Jelly Roll episode of What Do You Want To Talk About? Rhodes revealed new details about that storyline and how Mysterio ultimately changed his life in the moment.
“There was a moment at the BOK Center, I’m in Oklahoma, and I was walking by the chairman’s office, and Rey Mysterio pulled me aside and said, ‘Hey, I want to wrestle you at WrestleMania. We’re gonna go in [sic] the office and talk about it.’ And I was ready, and I had my idea, and it was even written down in my backpack. But when I went in that room, when I came out, my career was different. It genuinely was a break beyond it wasn’t just an opportunity, it was a break, it was something special.”
The fact that Mysterio wanted to work with Rhodes proved that he could foresee the second-generation wrestler’s talent, even though he wasn’t put in a position to show it. This storyline remains one of people’s favorites when discussing his career, which means it was worthwhile. Mysterio going out of his way to make it happen only makes the entire thing more critical, and the injury that occurred served to enhance it, rather than anything else.
