This past Sunday at WrestleMania XL Cody Rhodes finally did it.
He has finished the story and is the new WWE Champion. For the first time, he is not the hunter anymore. He is now the hunted.
The American Nightmare can be sure that challengers are lining up already and it is only a matter of time to find out who it is.
More than one name in the WWE locker room has a solid case at stepping up to Rhodes as soon as tonight’s WWE SmackDown (April 12).
Without further ado let’s take a look at seven candidates to challenge Cody Rhodes for his newly won Undisputed WWE Universal Championship.
7. Drew McIntyre
While he is heavily embroiled with CM Punk right now, McIntyre is actually the final person to beat Cody Rhodes.
On the February 19th edition of MondayNight RAW Drew McIntyre did what many were unable to do in the last few months: Get the W over Cody Rhodes.
Therefore the Scottish Warrior has every right to challenge Cody Rhodes after he is done with CM Punk.
Maybe the WWE Draft sends him to SmackDown, right into Cody’s arms anyway.
He just needs to hope that another former champion from Raw is not going to plan on doing the same….
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6. Gunther
Beaten and destroyed, this is the current status of Gunther after 666 days as the Intercontinental Champion.
Sami Zayn was the man to finally dethrone record-champion Gunther at WrestleMania.
After a well-deserved rest and potential draft to SmackDown “Der Ringeneral” should be next in line for a shot at WWE’s biggest price.
Cody Rhodes doesn’t know what is about to hit him.
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5. LA Knight
Usually winning a big singles match at WrestleMania means big things for you.
With his huge victory over AJ Styles at the 40th edition of the show of shows, LA Knight has any right to claim another World Championship shot.
Knight was present at the WWE Championship celebration at the end of WrestleMania, maybe not just to congratulate Rhodes but also to get a closer look at his next task.
Knight capturing gold seems inevitable for 2024, so perhaps he could be among the first to challenge The American Nightmare.
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4. New Bloodline Challengers
As PWInsider and WON have reported, Jacob Fatu and Tama Tonga are both slated to debut very soon.
Potentially, either one of them could be the next challenger for Cody Rhodes’ title.
For sure, it would be an absolute shocker. Both have been named as members of The Bloodline before and are no strangers to championship gold.
While Fatu made his mark mainly in MLW, it is hard to imagine New Japan Pro Wrestling with Tama Tonga. Both of them could be a new force in town that The American Nightmare has to figure out.
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3. Sheamus
This past Monday on Raw the first of likely many return vignettes aired for the Celtic Warrior.
Before his injury he arguably was on the run of his life, something he might feel should be crowned with gold.
Of course, we all know that the Intercontinental Championship is Sheamus’ biggest desire.
However, he is also the perfect first opponent for Cody Rhodes as they can go the extra mile and make the first defence feel big time.
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2. Bobby Lashley
The former multi-time World Champion Bobby Lashley is a no-brainer at first.
On the other hand, though, this is a tricky one. Lashley is very over as a babyface and finding the right dynamic for a storyline does seem like a challenge.
Cody Rhodes would gain a lot by overcoming yet another big-time monster in the ring. It just is a little bit more tricky.
Another thing that speaks for Lashley though is that he has no opponent on his level left as he and the Street Profits quite easily dispatched The Final Testament, who are now on NXT.
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1. Braun Strowman
Much like Sheamus, Braun Strowman is currently still out with injury.
Last competing in May 2023, Strowman underwent neck fusion in June, ruling him out of action for the foreseeable future.
While a return in the summer may be more likely, perhaps if we’re luck there’s change we could see the Monster of all Monsters return to the WWE ring sooner.
An immediate heel turn for Strowman would give him an edge that he was missing in his most recent spell in the company, harkening back to his sheer dominance in the late 2010s.
Also, Cody Rhodes overcoming an evil and seemingly unstoppable force in Braun Strowman would be an incredible storyline for the new champion.
If anything Cody Rhodes hitting the Cross Rhodes on this mountain of a man would gain fantastic reactions all over the world.
So, whether it’s now or later on, a Cody and Strowman feud is one we hope to see in 2024.
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