Ranked 2024 Cody Rhodes WWE Championship Matches

Cody Rhodes He achieved his ultimate dream in 2024, defeating Rome’s reign at WrestleMania 40, becoming the indisputable WWE champion. Rhodes led the line as WWE’s number one babyface throughout 2024 and served as the face of the Smackdown brand.

For over 2024, Rhodes has participated in eight world title matches. This was the first against the rulers of WrestleMania, and then seven successful defenses throughout the year. The quality of these matches is ranged and TheSportster’s rating system determines the best, worst, and everything in between. These ratings are compared to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter cagematch.net and Dave Meltzer ratings.

10

Cody Rhodes vs John Cena (WWE WrestleMania Sunday 41)

Overall rating from TheSportster: 5.75/10

The worst defense of Cody Rhodes’ uncontroversial WWE title rule was a match he lost it. Newly heeled John Cena dominated Rhodes throughout the majority of the match. The audience was very interested in it, but in the nasty developments they booed Cody Rhodes and made the match structure very strange.

Things were cancelled at the finish, until Cena was all deceived and led to Travis Scott’s suspicious interference. Ultimately, Rhodes was unable to pull the trigger as he fell to Cena’s level, causing damage to the storytelling side of this WrestleMania main event, costing his match at the end of the terrible match.

9

Cody Rhodes vs. Solosicore (WWE Summer Slam 2024)

Overall rating from TheSportster: 6.25/10

• Dave Meltzer Rating: 4 stars
• cagematch.net Rating: 5.36

The worst title match for Kodi Rhodes in 2024 appeared in the main event of Summer Slam against Solosicore. The match was dragged in at a painfully slow pace, with the audience never shopping for Sicora as a threat throughout, barely responding to his attacks. The action wasn’t necessarily bad, but it felt like they were holding back. The excessive numbers of finishers and kickouts were pretty jarring. On the return of the Roman ruler, he ran out of the crowd, but was very predictable.

8

Cody Rhodes vs Kevin Owens (WWE Saturday Night Main Event 12/14/2024)

Overall rating from TheSportster: 7/10

• Dave Meltzer rating: n/a
• cagematch.net Rating: 6.48

Cody Rhodes’ final 2024 title match took place at the rebooted Saturday night’s main event show as Rhodes won violent rival Kevin Owens. The match had the atmosphere of a glorious house show match, and a lot of the action was kept very easy. Owens showed good aggression at the points of the match, but in a match where there was so much hostility, the intensity level wasn’t high enough. The overbooking towards the end of the match was a bit offensive, but it made sense in the context of the story. The crowd was quite invested and offered a great response to both men.

7

Cody Rhodes vs. Solo Sicore (WWE Smackdown 09/13/2024)

Overall rating from TheSportster: 7.5/10

• Dave Meltzer Rating: 4.25 stars
• cagematch.net Rating: 7.67

Following the disappointing match at Summer Slam, Cody Rhodes and Solosikore put on a much better show in the steel cage. He and Rhodes played wild matches in front of a hot crowd who responded to all the major spots, kickouts and more, which was Solosicore’s best singles match, looking sharp, agile and dominant. The use of the steel cage itself is very strong, and the structure has a greater presence than in recent years. Not everything in the technical work was perfect and the storytelling wasn’t special, but it was a great TV match.

6

Cody Rhodes vs Kevin Owens (2024 Berlin WWE Bash)

Overall rating from TheSportster: 7.75/10

• Dave Meltzer Rating: 4.25 stars
• cagematch.net Rating: 7.60

Cody Rhodes and Kevin Owens opened the Bash in Berlin and opened a serviceable match from both, featuring extremely strong technical work. The pace was slowed down at times, but the hot audience elevated everything these two men did in the ring. The struggle to pull Owens’ conflict and trigger, whether to go after Rhodes’ injury was well played and played in a wider story, but at the time, and in the vacuum, Owens looked weak. The final part of the match was a little unshiny and the finish came out of nowhere.

5

Cody Rhodes vs Kevin Owens (WWE Royal Rumble 2025)

Overall rating from TheSportster: 8/10

• Dave Meltzer Rating: 4.5 Stars
• cagematch.net Rating: 8.06

This got off to a rather steady start, but it faced a very intense rivalry with its build up to the 2025 Royal Rumble event. Owens and Rhodes brawled through the crowd, using ladders to impose many punishments, including a huge suppression spot on the ladder and a wild Alabama slum that also crashed the ladder.

Some of the matches were a bit late and the audience wasn’t super electric, despite Owens’s big heel work that looked like an absolute killer in defeat.

4

Cody Rods vs. AJ Style (WWE Clash at the Castle 2024)

Overall rating from TheSportster: 8.25/10

• Dave Meltzer Rating: 4.5 Stars
• cagematch.net Rating: 8.12

AJ Styles received his rematch with Cody Rhodes in Clash at the Castle: Scotland. Both character works were pretty strong and Rhodes’ mother’s involvement was a great element. They brought a lot of physical hostility to the match, with brutal spots, shocking moments, and lots of weapons, blood, and many more physical hostility. It must be said that Stiles’ long-term beatdown segment was so overly overexcessive that everything is completely perfect.

3

Cody Lords vs Logan Paul (WWE King & Queen of the Ring 2024)

Overall rating from TheSportster: 8.25/10

• Dave Meltzer Rating: 4.25 stars
• cagematch.net Rating: 8.03

Cody Rhodes and Logan Paul have very strong chemistry, put in high quality technical displays with great sequences, good babyfaces and heel work, and an incredible nearby waterfall that is shaking the crowd despite the predictability of the results. Rhodes sold the injured ribs incredible ways, and Paul did an incredible job targeting them. The finish of the match was rather poor and bland, but the rest of the matches up to that point were streamed.

2

Cody Rhodes vs AJ Style (WWE Backlash 2024)

Overall rating from TheSportster: 8.5/10

• Dave Meltzer Rating: 5 stars
• cagematch.net Rating: 8.65

The main event of Backlash 2024 was a frequent appearance, with Cody Rhodes and AJ Styles exhibiting world-class chemistry, with some big moves scattered throughout the match. But what made this match even better was the insane atmosphere thanks to all the backlash card matches, especially the intense French audience that promoted the match. The results were predictable and storytelling wasn’t necessarily special, but the crowd made it an instant classic.

1

Cody Rhodes vs. Rome (WWE WrestleMania 40 Sunday)

Overall rating from TheSportster: 9/10

• Dave Meltzer Rating: 4.75 Stars
• cagematch.net Rating: 9.22

Cody Rhodes’ best title match of 2024 came when he won gold against Rome’s rule in the main event on WrestleMania 40 Sunday. For the second year in a row, they clashed with great quality, slamming all the high notes, carrying the crowd with them, ensuring a great atmosphere. The final stages of this match were fantastic as interference from names like The Rock, The Undertaker, John Cena was created for a surreal ending that plunged the audience into frenzy. It was as good as the ending, so fans should not forget the masterclasses that Rhodes wore in the buildup.