WWE Champion Cody Rhodes has shared his thoughts on live events, admitting they may feel outdated, but explaining why he still values them.
On recent episode of What Do You Wanna Talk About? With Cody Rhodes, Rhodes discussed the importance of WWE live events with John Cena. During the conversation, Cena mentioned that WWE no longer needs to run close to 200 live events a year.
Rhodes said, “I got a slight disagree with you. And as someone who considers himself under your tutelage for a long time, maybe the live events are archaic. But I like a little archaic. Maybe that’s counterproductive. But you remember some of these places?”
“I mean, for people who don’t know the full story, I was a little bit like a driver. I drove you around. Like you said, you can’t take the big swings when you’re first or you’re last. Often, the live events where you, as the main event, may be against Randy Orton.”
Rhodes said those shows allowed him to wrestle a wide range of opponents and constantly try something new.
“I remember wrestling Carlito, wrestling all kinds of different people throughout that first part of my career,” Rhodes said. He also recalled advice from Arn Anderson, saying, “Arn would say, ‘Try this tonight,’ or ‘Do this,’ or ‘We need short time, but what about this?’ And I loved taking those swings.”
Rhodes acknowledged Cena’s strong business mindset but said live events also help morale. He believes that fun and confidence gained at house shows can carry over to TV and ultimately help the business.
Cena said he didn’t completely disagree with Rhodes, explaining that heavy travel isn’t good or bad, just part of the job with pros and cons. He noted that while the business has changed, effort and passion still matter. Cena added that he treats every show the same, saying every event is a live event because there is always a live audience.
He also criticized wrestlers who take risks at house shows but play it safe on TV, crediting his mentors for teaching him that “Saturday is no different than Monday.” While he admitted today’s WWE model makes running 200+ live events difficult.
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