Cody Rhodes has opened up about fan reactions to his WWE storyline involving Pat McAfee.
Appearing on SI Media with Jimmy Traina, the American Nightmare reflected on his WrestleMania program with Randy Orton and Pat McAfee, comparing it to some of the more controversial storylines in wrestling history.
“This is the most ill-received thing in the history of wrestling. Gobbledygooker was one. Shockmaster was up there, but that was kind of funny. This is the entire fandom. Your fandom, my fandom, independent wrestling fans, casual fans, cinema fans. Every single fan who’s ever seen wrestling has received this with, ‘Huh? What?’
“Okay, so worst received thing in the history of wrestling, but I want to say something on the bright side because I have to be an optimist in general. On the bright side of this, Pat McAfee is a huge star and Pat McAfee is part of, he’s one of the faces, if not the face of ESPN. His College GameDay stuff is legendary. He’s a great athlete and he loves wrestling. He’s just trying to help our party out. So I respect him and I respect that. On the other side of it, I am attuned to the online audience, but it’s not just the online audience, every bit of the audience.”
Rhodes also said he is not overly concerned heading into his Undisputed WWE Championship match at WrestleMania 42. However, he noted that his opponent, Randy Orton, is currently in the best form he has seen in a long time.
“Why I’m not worried about it at all is because Randy Orton is the guy I’m wrestling. Randy Orton is arguably the best he’s ever been.
“Pat, where that fits in, I am like you and I’m excited to stand at the plate and you know we’re talking about these guys, if you want that spot that’s it. There’s others who run from that and oh no, that John Cena dealt with this for years and years and years and I’m dealing with it, too.” [H/T F4Wonline.com]
For Cody Rhodes, the feud became personal when Pat McAfee stole the Undisputed WWE Championship on the April 10 episode of SmackDown. Rhodes later retrieved the title after destroying McAfee’s “ThunderDome” studio.
READ MORE: Cody Rhodes Calls Pat McAfee A Rat Surrounded By Yes Men
