Cody Rhodes Explains Why He Doesn’t Mind That WWE Took Away His Last Name

There’s only one Cody Rhodes, and regardless of the legal matters that prevent him from using his last name at the moment, Cody is honoring the Rhodes legacy by blazing his own trail in the wrestling industry right now.

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Ever since he parted ways with WWE in 2016, he’s had to bill himself as simply Cody, due to legal reasons stemming from WWE’s intellectual property rights to the Rhodes name. However, although Cody admitted he plans to get the name back eventually, he told Sports Illustrated that he doesn’t mind that WWE took it away.

“I’ll tell you this, and I’ve not told anyone this, but I don’t mind that WWE took away my last name. Deep down, in my bones, I definitely want it back – and I have plans to get it back – but there is something to being Cody. The longer I don’t have a last name, the more I’m OK with it. That’s not to say WWE is holding it ransom. It’s literally an intellectual property law that easily can be remedied, but there is something about being Cody that I don’t mind.”

Over the past year Cody has worked hard to reestablish himself, and he’s even adopted the moniker of “The American Nightmare.” Regardless of what happens with his name, or what gimmick he might take on in the future, Cody made it clear that he plans to always push himself to be different.

“There is something to not always reminding people of a show they’ve already seen, but instead embracing the one right in front of him. I am Cody, and I can promise you that the future is going to be even better than the past.”