The Rock made his big return to SmackDown a few weeks ago and he told Cody Rhodes not only that he wanted him to be his champion, but also that he wanted Cody’s soul. The Final Boss told Cody that he wanted an answer at Elimination Chamber, and ultimately Cody declined The Rock’s offer.
John Cena then shocked the world when he turned on Cody and aligned himself with The Rock. While John Cena’s heel turn was undoubtedly a huge moment, it’s being reported that The Rock may have originally pitched another idea.
According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, The Rock wanted to form an alliance with Cody Rhodes and have Cody turn heel when Rock decided he wanted to be a part of WrestleMania, but wasn’t going to wrestle.
There were people in the company who believed that at this time the only thing that could hurt the company would be a Cody Rhodes heel turn. The feeling is that the current crowd is Cody’s crowd, and you don’t mess with a successful formula.
According to the report Cody Rhodes turned the idea down, and they went to John Cena as the second choice. CM Punk was never considered for the slot as John Cena agreed to do it.