"I was just truly embarrassed" – Cody Rhodes reflects on difficult WWE moment (Exclusive)

Cody Rhodes has opened up about the injury he suffered prior to his WWE Hell in a Cell 2022 match against Seth Rollins.

Rhodes sported a huge purple bruise across his right arm and chest area after tearing his pectoral muscle in the build-up to the show. Despite the injury, The American Nightmare fought through the pain to secure a third successive win over his long-term rival.

In an interview with Sportskeeda Wrestling's Kevin Kellam, Rhodes explained how he felt after sustaining the gruesome injury:

"I think when people look at the cell, the Hell in a Cell match, I always tell everybody I was just truly embarrassed. I was on such a great roll. Live event-wise, not just the big PLEs and the TVs, I was just having such a good connection with the fanbase. To have it end because of me being dumb in the gym was very, very embarrassing, very frustrating, but also sobering in the sense that it's now changed how I approach everything." [3:38 – 4:08]

In the video above, Cody Rhodes also revealed that he "wasn't really interested" in one particular moment from his recent promo with Roman Reigns on SmackDown.

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Cody Rhodes explains why the Hell in a Cell location was special to him

Hell in a Cell 2022 took place in Chicago, Illinois, the same city where Cody Rhodes and The Young Bucks' All In event was held in 2018. The independent show sold over 10,000 tickets and was viewed as an overwhelming success.

Rhodes was determined to compete against Seth Rollins due to his association with Chicago:

"Coming into the Royal Rumble like I did in the best shape of my career, and hopefully doing the same with WrestleMania, I know when I look at Chicago, it's a little bit of a second hometown because what I was able to do there with All In – me, Matt [Jackson], and Nick [Jackson] – and then ultimately how many times I visited before, the way to look at it is they would have had to handcuff me to a locker [to change the Hell in a Cell card]." [4:09 – 4:33]

In June 2022, the 37-year-old underwent surgery to repair his torn pec. Seven months later, he won the 30-man Royal Rumble match on his in-ring return to set up a WrestleMania 39 encounter with Roman Reigns.

Rhodes believes many other wrestlers would have performed with the same injury if they were in a similar position:

"I was going out there and we talk about finishing the story, that was a story in itself, and I needed to finish that story before I went away. I knew I had to get surgery no matter how much I was fighting it. I'm glad it resonates with people. I'm glad it was a match that people enjoyed. Every wrestler that text me, I told them the same thing, 'You would have done the same.' I hope I'm right, but it's just one of those moments I couldn't not compete." [4:34 – 5:02]

The Royal Rumble winner will challenge Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. The match is expected to headline the second night of WrestleMania 39 on April 2.

Have you enjoyed Cody Rhodes' WWE return so far? Let us know in the comments section below.

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See Cody Rhodes live in action with WWE Road to WrestleMania at the BOS Center in Springfield, IL, on Sunday, March 19.

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