Royce Keys (fka Powerhouse Hobbs) has recalled WWE’s Cody Rhodes and CM Punk’s heartfelt gestures towards him when his mother passed away.
After making his WWE debut at the 2026 Royal Rumble on January 31, Royce Keys appeared as a guest on the Stephanie McMahon’s latest episode of her What’s Your Story? podcast.
After discussing the loss of his brother in a shooting earlier in his life, the former AEW star also addressed the loss of his mother in 2021 and how former AEW Executive Vice President Cody Rhodes helped him in the lead up to her death.
Keys recalled:
“I remember getting on the phone and I called Cody to tell him. I didn’t know what to do, I just got off the phone with my Sister, my Dad, my Mom’s sister my Auntie Joy and she went straight up to the hospital.
“I guess maybe Cody thought I was talking about wrestling because I always bug him with wrestling, and I’m like ‘No, my mom is sick.’ He immediately dropped everything and called me. He called me, he checked on me. I believe his daughter might have been a month old and he still called me.”
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Keys then detailed a heartfelt conversation with CM Punk prior to his match on the September 22, 2021 episode of AEW Rampage, with Punk dedicating the match to his late mother.
“I remember having a match with CM Punk a month after my mom died and he goes, ‘None of this s**t matters, your mom is sitting front row there tonight.’
“After the match he pins me and he taps me on the chest, my mom’s nickname was Nita and he goes this one’s for Nita and I just lost it.”
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Keys bought up how much Cody’s support meant to him during WWE’s Royal Rumble 2026 vlog filmed during his debut for the company.
The video (see below) also shows Keys embracing CM Punk backstage after making his WWE debut in the Men’s Rumble Match.
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