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“Little Tease”: Cody Rhodes Drops Major Backlash Update Ahead of AJ Styles Match

Published Apr 29, 2024 | 3:41 AM EDT

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Cody Rhodes completed his story at WrestleMania 40 by ending Roman Reigns‘ reign and becoming the WWE’s Undisputed Champion. Now that Rhodes has gotten what he wanted, it’s time to defend it. And he’ll do it on May 4 at the Backlash PLE, an event that will take place in Lyon, France.

And his first challenger for the title was determined a few days ago on Friday Night SmackDown. Thanks to a match between AJ Styles and LA Knight. AJ Styles won the match and will be going against the all-prepared Rhodes. Why do we say ‘All prepared’? Because The American Nightmare is all geared up, literally! In fact, he just shared a glimpse of his outfit for the PLE in France.

Cody Rhodes gives a sneak peek of his entrance gear for Backlash

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The WWE Universe is all geared up to witness the next chapter of Cody Rhodes’ story as he embarks on his first title defense. Despite criticism from some quarters, the former AEW star looks to prove his detractors wrong. The fact that it is against the Phenomenal One makes it even more special. As the two have never faced each other in their illustrious careers. However, it seems like even the American Nightmare is all hyped up for the match as well. Since he couldn’t wait to show a bit of his gear for the event on X. And it surely looks stunning.

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AJ Styles has the opportunity to become a world champion after several years in which he has languished without a glorious title run. This is the second match confirmed for WWE Backlash 2024. Damian Priest also puts the WWE World Heavyweight Championship on the line against Jey Uso. And not just fans, but The Undertaker too would be excited to see Styles face Rhodes. Why? Because according to the dead man, Styles reminds him of a certain legend of the business.

The Undertaker calls AJ Styles the Shawn Michaels of his generation

It’s no secret that AJ Styles is considered one of the great talents of this century. Especially when it comes to talent in the ring. ‘The Phenomenal’ has left memorable fights throughout his career. And, at 46 years old, he still displays a penchant for the phenomenal. His abilities and charm in the ring have earned him to be considered one of the best wrestlers of his generation. Earning him some comparisons to legends of the past. In this sense, Mark Callaway, better known as The Undertaker, compared Styles to Shawn Michaels in the most recent edition of his podcast Six Feet Under.

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He said, “(AJ Styles) checks all the boxes. Don’t know if there will ever be another Shawn Michaels. I put a disclaimer on it, but AJ Styles can work with anybody. He can make anybody look like a million bucks and still be able to you know — AJ is not a big guy, but has the ability to work with anybody and make it believable, make it solid.”

He further added, “That doesn’t make AJ Shawn Michaels, but those are the two guys that have the generation’s [highest] work level. That’s my opinion, I’m sure somebody else will have a different opinion. That’s kind of the reason why the whole Boneyard match happened is because I didn’t get a chance to work with AJ and that lured me. I really do [hold him in such high regard] as a human being and as a performer.” Precisely, Shawn Michaels too recently stated that his dream opponent at WrestleMania is AJ Styles, but he is now completely retired and his return to the ring is not something he is considering. But we can still get to see Styles perform. So are you excited to watch him at Backlash? Let us know in the comments.

Written by:

Abhishek Kumar Das

535Articles

One take at a time

Abhishek Kumar Das is a WWE writer at EssentiallySports. Having previously worked as a researcher, journalist, and combat sports editor, Abhishek is uniquely poised to deliver wrestling news that is both straightforward and backed by facts. A die-hard Jeff Hardy fan, and a defender of heels to hell and beyond, he enjoys delving into the different storylines that both WWE and other promotions have to offer.
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Edited by:

Amal Joyce