Cody Rhodes Doubted Him Being Replaced By The Rock For WrestleMania 40 Would Get WWE's Desired Reaction

WWE expected a different response to Cody Rhodes being replaced in the main event of WrestleMania 40.

Rhodes looked nailed on to headline WrestleMania after he won the Royal Rumble and made his intentions clear that he would be challenging Roman Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship at WWE's biggest show of the year. Either in early January or as the Royal Rumble approached, though, WWE decided to change those plans and the company ultimately chose to go with The Rock vs. Roman Reigns as the biggest match at this year's WrestleMania.

This prompted a bizarre segment on SmackDown in which Cody Rhodes effectively stepped aside for The Rock after the American Nightmare said he wanted to take everything from Roman Reigns and not just the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship. The segment fuelled a groundswell of support for Cody Rhodes and a massive amount of negativity towards The Rock, including "Rocky Sucks" chants on Monday Night Raw. #WeWantCody also trended on social media and the staredown between Roman Reigns and The Rock became the most-disliked WWE YouTube video ever.

According to Fightful Select, Cody Rhodes informed WWE ahead of SmackDown he didn't think the segment would receive the desired reaction that the company wanted but he still did the segment. The segment featured Rhodes and The Rock shaking hands and embracing. What exactly The Rock said to Cody is unknown but Fightful noted it was in reference to their fathers, Dusty Rhodes and Rocky Johnson. The two men are said to have maintained a great relationship for years.

Rhodes looked noticeably upset during the segment and he was said to be sombre behind the scenes. Cody has since urged fans to trust him. WWE will hold a WrestleMania press conference on Thursday.