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AJ Styles will be Cody Rhodes' first challenger for the Undisputed WWE Championship at Backlash France (May 4). Although this will be the first encounter between the two superstars, AJ has experience colliding with a member of the Rhodes family.
The Phenomenal One faced the American Nightmare's late father, Dusty Rhodes, in TNA Wrestling in October 2003. The WWE Hall of Famer had 35 years of experience under his belt, while AJ was just there years into his career.
AJ Styles beat The American Dream and successfully defended the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. Their scrap spilled into the crowd, and the young upstart's pace was a problem for the veteran to deal with.
Dusty nearly beat AJ when he put him in a figure-four leglock. The Prince of Phenomenal was close to tapping out, but Mr TNA used the move himself to win on a bloodied American Dream.
This was at the beginning of The Georgia Pitbull's iconic TNA run, during which he won the world title twice and became arguably a cornerstone of the company.
The match between AJ and Dusty is an intriguing layer to the story between Cody Rhodes and his first challenger. The two-time WWE Champion beat LA Knight on SmackDown last Friday to seal his place in the main event of Backlash in LDLC Arena in Lyon, France. The 46-year-old previously qualified for the No.1 contenders match against LA Knight by winning a triple threat match against Kevin Owens and Rey Mysterio.
Cody Rhodes and AJ Styles will sign the contract for their title match on SmackDown
Cody Rhodes and AJ Styles will appear on this week's SmackDown and put pen to paper to seal their main event at Backlash France. This will come amid night one of the 2024 WWE Draft, which could have massive implications for them both.
A contract signing usually ends in violence and it wouldn't be surprising if this occurs between the pair on Friday night. It will be interesting to see whether AJ Styles recalls his win against Dusty Rhodes to try and get under Cody's skin.
Cody Rhodes won the Undisputed WWE Championship by finishing his story at WrestleMania XL. He beat Roman Reigns to win the gold at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.
The 2023 and 2024 Royal Rumble winner has appeared on RAW and SmackDown since Mania. Due to the title belonging to Friday nights, it appears he's now fully established as a member of the blue brand.
