Kevin Owens On Cody Rhodes’ WWE Return, Cody Helping Change The Industry With AEW

In a recent interview on After the Bell with Corey Graves, Kevin Owens discussed Cody Rhodes’ return to WWE, Cody helping change the industry with AEW, and much more.

Kevin Owens on Cody Rhodes’ return to WWE: “I’ve told him this before, but I’m so proud of Cody. When he was here, he and I got close pretty quickly, then he left and that really sucked because I felt like I was losing – I have people in this business that are more like brothers to me than friends. That’s not everybody, but there are a few people out there I consider more like family. Cody is one of them. So when he left, it was a blow to me. I figured, ‘Look, we’re gonna be so busy we’re barely gonna see each other.’ We saw each other maybe twice the whole time he was gone.”

On Cody helping change the industry with AEW and why he thinks his ultimate goal was to return to WWE: “When he was going off on his own, he was doing it because he thought this was best for him. He didn’t feel like he was being given the chance to be what he wanted to be in WWE. He decided to bet on himself and leave. The only thing I did is he asked me for some sort of guidance because he had never been on the independent scene before, and I gave him The Young Bucks’ numbers and told them to take care of this guy. And look what happened. They really changed the industry. They did. There’s no denying it. Cody went out and did that, and he had a lot of help from a lot of people, but he was an integral part of that. Then he came back here which, I don’t know as much, but I think that was always his ultimate goal. His mindset might of changed at some point and he probably didn’t see himself coming back because he was doing so well. But whatever happened, I don’t really know and the opportunity presented itself for him to come back, and he was able to do it and come back. Look how he came back. Huge spot on WrestleMania, and he’s been featured on Raw as a top star.”

If using any of the above quotes, please credit After the Bell with Corey Graves with an h/t to 411mania.com for the transcription.