Cody Rhodes points out the best move AEW has made since his departure

Top WWE Superstar Cody Rhodes has given his opinion on the best things AEW has done since his departure. The former TNT Champion namedropped his former proteges and rivals, highlighting their current success in All Elite Wrestling.

Cody Rhodes was arguably the face of AEW from its inception until his departure in February 2022. His shocking return to WWE shook the foundations of the wrestling industry, but some of his work with the younger stars in the Jacksonville-based promotion has been paying dividends lately.

In a recent interview with Forbes, Rhodes was asked about his favorite thing AEW has done since he departed. The three-time TNT Champion thought about it for a moment before declaring that the success of rising star Ricky Starks and AEW World Champion MJF is at the top of his list.

"Ricky Starks. I love what Ricky's doing. He surprised me at the Royal Rumble and just showed up backstage. There's grainy security footage that you can still find of Ricky backstage, but that's just him. I love seeing guys like Ricky and [MJF] doing well in AEW. It's great seeing all the talent I trained with and worked with at the Nightmare Factory growing and really making a name for themselves."

Cody has plenty of history with both men. He cemented a strong mentorship with Starks behind the scenes, who was even spotted at WWE's Royal Rumble earlier this year in support of The American Nightmare. Meanwhile, MJF was brought into AEW as Cody's on-screen protege, and the two went on to have one of the company's most intense rivalries.

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Cody Rhodes reveals that a "personal issue" is what led to his departure from AEW

In the wake of The American Nightmare's departure from the company he helped found, speculation ran wild throughout the wrestling world. There were rumors that Cody Rhodes had issues with his former brethren in The Elite and even whispers of the recently-arrived CM Punk driving him from AEW.

Cody has refuted these rumors in the past but made a point to squash them in his new Peacock documentary, American Nightmare: Becoming Cody Rhodes. Rhodes stated that it was simply a personal issue that led to his departure and reiterated that he wanted to chase the first dream he could ever remember having: the WWE Championship.

"I can’t tell you why I left AEW. I can’t, and I won’t, but I’ll tell you the reasons that were said that didn’t actually matter. I didn’t leave AEW because of money and I didn’t leave AEW because of other talents. I left AEW because of a personal issue. That’s it. The byproduct of leaving AEW is the opportunity to go for the biggest dream I ever had and the first dream I had in my life," said Rhodes.

Cody Rhodes hasn't managed to snatch the gold in the Stamford-based promotion just yet, but many fans still believe that he's the one destined to dethrone Roman Reigns. He is currently scheduled to clash with Brock Lesnar at WWE SummerSlam.

Do you agree that Ricky Starks and MJF are currently the best acts going in AEW? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below!