Cody Rhodes and Solo Sikoa have never been close, stemming from their distinct wrestling legacies and personal animosities. Their rivalry intensified in the summer of 2024, after Rhodes ended Roman Reigns’ historic 1,316-day World Championship reign. Not long after, Rhodes’ feud with Reigns shifted focus onto Solo Sikoa, erasing the old alliances and building personal tension inside and outside the ring.
Solo Sikoa aimed to claim the position of “The Head of the Table,” a title reserved for Roman Reigns as The Tribal Chief. However, Reigns made a strong comeback at SummerSlam, halting Sikoa’s rise and allowing Rhodes to outlast Solo’s challenge at that time.
Unveiling the Backstage Tension Between Rhodes and Sikoa
During an episode of What Do You Wanna Talk About? with Cody Rhodes, Rhodes opened up about a previously undisclosed backstage confrontation with Solo Sikoa. The incident occurred amidst their growing rivalry, revealing the emotional strain beyond their televised segments.
Rhodes described a moment during a tag match when Solo was aggressively dominating his partner. Trying to rally the crowd, Rhodes jumped out on the floor, pounding the mat to energize the audience. It was then that Sikoa shot him a hostile look unlike anything Rhodes had seen before, making Rhodes curious about the intensity behind it.
“There’s a tag match where he’s in there beating up my partner, and I jumped out on the floor and I start banging the mat, like, getting the people into it, you know? And he looked at me, and it was like he wanted to rip my head off! He never looks at me that way. I thought, I’m curious what that was,”
– Cody Rhodes, Wrestler
Solo’s Confession and Cody’s Perspective on Wrestling Generations
After the match, Solo approached Rhodes formally and asked to speak about his concerns. He expressed discomfort with “begging for the cheers,” insisting that the audience’s support should come naturally. Rhodes reflected on Solo’s perspective, acknowledging that Solo’s experience had been shaped entirely alongside well-established stars like Jimmy, Jey, and Roman Reigns. Rhodes warned that there would be nights where Solo had to perform with less popular wrestlers, requiring a stronger effort to engage fans.
“We come to the back and [Solo] goes, ‘Hey, can I chat you up on something?’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah.’ I mean, everything is formal about this, but, ‘absolutely.’ He goes, ‘I don’t really like begging for the cheers. They’ll come.’ And I thought, ‘Yeah, you’re right, because you’ve only ever been with Jimmy, Jey, and Roman. Yeah, you’re right. But buddy, there’s going to be a night when you’re in there with–you’re generic guy A, and I’m generic guy 4, and now, let’s shake ’em up, guys. Let’s give it a 100. There’s going to be a night.’”
– Cody Rhodes, Wrestler
Reflection on Respect and Reality in the Wrestling World
Rhodes shared that Solo’s fast-tracked inclusion in The Bloodline storyline meant he never experienced working with talent who lacked strong crowd reactions. This created a differing mindset about earning fan support during matches. After their encounter, Rhodes questioned whether Solo respected him, as Solo openly challenged his approach. Despite the initial doubt, Rhodes concluded Solo’s point was valid and credited advice from a colleague named Hunter to better understand the situation.
“I went home, texting my inner circle, ‘Man, does Solo not respect me?’ I thought about it. I’m supposed to lead him, and he’s telling me? And then I thought, ‘No, he’s right.’ It was Hunter who finally said, ‘He’s not wrong. Every tag match he’s been in, it was with somebody who was over.’”
– Cody Rhodes, Wrestler
Aftermath of The Rivalry and Solo Sikoa’s New Path
Following the end of his rivalry with Cody Rhodes, Solo Sikoa engaged in a new conflict with his cousin Roman Reigns. Despite this effort, Solo again fell short in the competition. In the subsequent phase of his career, Solo departed from The Bloodline and formed a new faction called The MFT, consisting mainly of Tongan wrestlers and JC Matteo. This group currently holds the WWE Tag Team Championship, marking a fresh chapter in Solo’s wrestling journey.
The backstage tensions between Cody Rhodes and Solo Sikoa expose the pressures and challenges that wrestlers face behind the scenes, especially when bridging different eras and wrestling philosophies. This candid revelation by Rhodes provides fans deeper insight into the complicated relationships and respect dynamics within WWE’s top talent.
