During an appearance on Corey Graves’ After The Bell podcast, Cody Rhodes talked about the divide between WWE and AEW fans:
“I feel like that fan base, that divide that exists amongst all the different bubbles, if there was any negativity, well I can put some of the blame on my shoulders.”
“The last shows I had done before making this WWE return, I’m taking little fun potshots and talking smack which is what wrestlers do. I think sometimes the fans that attach themselves to those statements forget that we are in the realm of entertainment, but I added to the tribalism myself, so I can’t necessarily get mad at it when I see it.”
Cody also talked about transitioning from WWE to the independent wrestling scene in 2016:
“When I left initially and did the big independent run, I’d never really been to the independents outside of a few here and there taking my dad and watching him. When I did the big independent run, which was a full two years before it was a commitment to Ring of Honor, and after that, obviously, it would segue into AEW. What really happened and what I learned was at WWE I just felt like I was spoiled. I started right in front of 1000s and 1000s of people. The lights are down, the spotlight is on the ring, it’s WWE, and the place is going nuts. I felt like I perhaps took it for granted. Going to the independents, you did get the opportunity to do these meet and greets. That’s a big part of independent wrestling. To me, the match was almost secondary. I wanted to meet every fan. That’s why I started wearing the suit and tie everywhere I went. It became second nature to me. I wanted to meet them. I never felt like I fully crossed the aisle. I never felt like I really met all these fans over the years.”
(quotes courtesy of WrestlingNews.co)
