History of Cody Rhodes in Timeline

Cody Rhodes is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE on the SmackDown brand. He is the current Undisputed WWE Champion in his second reign and the incumbent King of the Ring. Rhodes is also notable for co-founding All Elite Wrestling (AEW) in 2019, where he served as an executive vice president and wrestler until his return to WWE in 2022.

Sections (3)

Full Timeline Early Life & Education Career & Achievements

June 30, 1985: Cody Rhodes Born

On June 30, 1985, Cody Garrett Runnels Rhodes was born.

Others born on this day/year

1992: Owns a Game Cabinet of X-Men

In 1992, Cody Rhodes owns a game cabinet of the 1992 arcade game X-Men.

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1993: All In Attendance Milestone

In 2018, All In marked the first event by a promoter outside of WWE or World Championship Wrestling (WCW) to sell 10,000 tickets in the United States since 1993.

1997: Stone Cold Steve Austin's Royal Rumble Win

In 1997, Stone Cold Steve Austin won the Royal Rumble match, marking the beginning of consecutive Rumble victories for him.

1998: Stone Cold Steve Austin's Second Royal Rumble Win

In 1998, Stone Cold Steve Austin won the Royal Rumble match for the second consecutive year.

2003: Georgia State High-School Championship Win

In 2003, Cody Rhodes won a Georgia state high-school championship as an amateur wrestler.

2003: Georgia State Tournament Win

In 2003, Cody Rhodes won the Georgia state tournament at 189 lb (86 kg) as a junior.

May 13, 2006: OVW Debut

On May 13, 2006, Cody Runnels debuted in Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW).

August 2006: Forms Tag Team and Wins Championship

In mid-August 2006, Cody Runnels formed a tag team with Shawn Spears and won the OVW Southern Tag Team Championship twice.

2006: Signs with WWE

In 2006, Cody Rhodes signed with WWE and began featuring for its developmental territory, Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW).

March 31, 2007: Induction of Father into WWE Hall of Fame

On March 31, 2007, Cody Rhodes and his half-brother inducted their father into the WWE Hall of Fame.

July 2, 2007: Television Debut on Raw

On July 2, 2007, Cody Runnels made his television debut as a face on Raw, using his family's wrestling last name, Rhodes.

July 16, 2007: In-Ring Debut on Raw

On July 16, 2007, Cody Rhodes made his main roster in-ring debut, losing to Randy Orton via pinfall on Raw.

2007: Debut and Tag Team Championships

Starting in 2007, Cody Rhodes won eight world tag team championships with five different partners and the Intercontinental Championship twice.

January 25, 2009: Enters Royal Rumble Match

On January 25, 2009, as part of The Legacy, Cody Rhodes entered the Royal Rumble match to help Randy Orton win, lasting until the final three before being eliminated by Triple H.

July 2009: Gillette "Be a Superstar" Campaign

In July 2009, Cody Rhodes became one of the faces of the Gillette "Be a Superstar" advertising campaign, along with Chris Jericho and John Cena, promoting Gillette Fusion products.

August 2009: Appearance on The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien

In August 2009, Cody Rhodes appeared on The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien.

2009: Video Game Debut in WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009

In 2009, Cody Rhodes made his video game debut in WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009.

January 31, 2010: Tension within The Legacy

On January 31, 2010, at the Royal Rumble, tension within The Legacy became apparent when Cody Rhodes attempted to interfere in Randy Orton's match for the WWE Championship.

2010: Appearance in WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2010

In 2010, Cody Rhodes appeared in WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2010.

January 21, 2011: Broken Nose Incident

On January 21, 2011, during a match against Rey Mysterio on SmackDown, Cody Rhodes legitimately broke his nose after Mysterio hit him in the face with his exposed knee brace.

2011: Appearance in WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2011

In 2011, Cody Rhodes appeared in WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2011.

January 6, 2012: Retains Intercontinental Championship

On January 6, 2012, Cody Rhodes successfully retained the Intercontinental Championship against Booker T on SmackDown.

January 27, 2013: Tag Team Match at Royal Rumble

On January 27, 2013, Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow faced Team Hell No at the Royal Rumble.

September 2013: Marriage to Brandi Reed

In September 2013, Cody Rhodes married ring announcer and former wrestler Brandi Reed.

January 26, 2014: Tag Team Titles Lost

On January 26, 2014, at the Royal Rumble, Cody Rhodes and Goldust lost the WWE Tag Team titles to The New Age Outlaws.

May 21, 2016: Rhodes requests release from WWE

On May 21, 2016, Cody Rhodes revealed on Twitter that he had requested his release from WWE, citing frustrations with WWE's creative department and his position within the company.

July 19, 2016: Rhodes announces appearance at ROH's Final Battle

On July 19, 2016, Cody Rhodes announced that he would appear at Ring of Honor's (ROH) Final Battle pay-per-view on December 2, marking his involvement with the promotion after his departure from WWE.

December 10, 2016: Rhodes joins Bullet Club

On December 10, 2016, Rhodes, billed as "The American Nightmare", appeared at New Japan Pro-Wrestling's (NJPW) World Tag League finals via video package, announcing himself as the newest member of Bullet Club.

2016: Wrestles on Independent Circuit

From 2016, Cody Rhodes wrestled on the independent circuit and for New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), and Ring of Honor (ROH) under the mononym Cody.

2016: Departs from WWE

In 2016, Cody Rhodes departed from WWE after performing as Stardust and other gimmicks.

January 4, 2017: Cody's debut match at Wrestle Kingdom 11

On January 4, 2017, Cody defeated Juice Robinson in his debut match at Wrestle Kingdom 11 in Tokyo Dome.

May 2017: Challenge to sell out a ten thousand seat arena

In May 2017, Dave Meltzer suggested that an independent wrestling show would be unable to sell out a ten thousand seat arena in the United States. Rhodes, along with The Young Bucks, challenged the idea by planning a show specifically for the purposes of drawing ten thousand fans.

January 4, 2018: Cody faces Kota Ibushi at Wrestle Kingdom 12

On January 4, 2018, Cody faced Kota Ibushi at Wrestle Kingdom 12, in a losing effort.

May 13, 2018: Tickets to All In Sell Out

On May 13, 2018, tickets to "All In" sold out in 30 minutes, demonstrating the high demand for the event Cody was planning with The Young Bucks.

July 2018: Return to Arrow Season 7

In July 2018, Cody Rhodes announced his character Derek Sampson would return for Season 7 of Arrow, appearing in five episodes.

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July 21, 2018: Cody wins ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Championship

On July 21, 2018, Cody and fellow Bullet Club members The Young Bucks defeated The Kingdom to win the ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Championship, marking his first reign.

November 2018: Trademarks filed for new wrestling promotion

In November 2018, several trademarks were filed in Jacksonville, Florida that indicated the launch of a new wrestling promotion.

2018: Promotes All In

In 2018, Cody Rhodes independently promoted All In, where he won the NWA World's Heavyweight Championship.

January 1, 2019: All Elite Wrestling (AEW) is unveiled

On January 1, 2019, All Elite Wrestling (AEW) was unveiled during a conference in Jacksonville, with Cody revealing that he, along with Matt and Nick Jackson of The Young Bucks and Kenny Omega, would serve as Executive Vice Presidents, as well as on-air talent.

January 4, 2019: Cody loses United States Heavyweight Championship

On January 4, 2019, at Wrestle Kingdom 13, Cody lost the United States Heavyweight Championship back to Robinson.

2019: Forms AEW

In early 2019, All In directly led to the formation of AEW.

February 19, 2020: Cody defeats Wardlow in steel cage match

On the February 19, 2020, episode of Dynamite, Cody defeated MJF's bodyguard Wardlow in a steel cage match to arrange the match for the Revolution pay-per-view.

2020: Rhodes Reflects on "Undashing" Character

In 2020, Cody Rhodes stated that his time as Undashing Cody Rhodes was his second most successful work as a pro wrestler.

March 3, 2021: Rhodes teams with Red Velvet in mixed tag team match

On the March 3, 2021, episode of Dynamite, Cody Rhodes teamed with Red Velvet in a loss to Shaquille O'Neal and his partner Jade Cargill in a mixed tag team match.

January 26, 2022: Rhodes loses TNT Championship

At the Beach Break event on January 26, 2022, Rhodes lost the title back to Sammy Guevara in a ladder match.

February 15, 2022: Rhodes leaves AEW

On February 15, 2022, several sources reported that Cody Rhodes and his wife Brandi had left AEW as they were unable to come to terms on a new contract.

March 18, 2022: Reports of Rhodes re-signing with WWE

On March 18, 2022, it was reported by multiple sources that Cody Rhodes had re-signed with WWE.

2022: Leaves AEW

Between 2019 and 2022, Cody Rhodes served as an executive vice president and also wrestled for AEW, becoming the inaugural and a three-time TNT Champion.

January 16, 2023: Rhodes announces return to competition

On the January 16, 2023, episode of Raw, Cody Rhodes announced in a pre-taped video that he would return to competition in the men's Royal Rumble match at Royal Rumble on January 28.

2023: Voice Acting in Captain Laserhawk: A Blood Dragon Remix

In 2023, Cody Rhodes voiced a fictionalized version of himself in the first episode of the animated series Captain Laserhawk: A Blood Dragon Remix.

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2023: Royal Rumble Match Win

In 2023, Cody Rhodes won the Royal Rumble match.

January 27, 2024: Cody Rhodes wins the Royal Rumble

On January 27, 2024, at the Royal Rumble, Cody Rhodes won the men's Royal Rumble match after lastly eliminating CM Punk, marking his second consecutive Royal Rumble win. After the win, Rhodes pointed at Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns.

July 17, 2024: Addition to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III

On July 17, 2024, Cody Rhodes was revealed as one of the WWE wrestlers to be added to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III as a playable multiplayer operator, alongside Rey Mysterio and Rhea Ripley.

2024: WWE Crown Jewel Championship Win

In 2024, Cody Rhodes won the inaugural WWE Crown Jewel Championship.

April 2025: Addition to Clash of Clans as a Barbarian King skin

In April 2025, Cody Rhodes was added to Clash of Clans as a skin for the Barbarian King character, in the ClashAMania event.

2025: King of the Ring Tournament and Undisputed WWE Championship Victory

In 2025, Cody Rhodes competed in the King of the Ring tournament, defeating Andrade, Damien Priest, Shinsuke Nakamura, Jey Uso and Orton, winning the tournament, and earning an Undisputed WWE Championship match against Cena at SummerSlam. He later defeated Cena to win the Undisputed WWE Championship for a second time.