WWE Rumors: Cody Rhodes Was Among Pitches for John Cena's WrestleMania 39 Match

Before Austin Theory was chosen, there was reportedly a push within WWE for Cody Rhodes to be John Cena's opponent at WrestleMania 39.

According to Fightful Select (h/t Manik Aftab of Ringside News), some in WWE wanted Rhodes to be Cena's WrestleMania opponent due to the significance of the match.

Saturday's clash with Theory will mark Cena's first WrestleMania match since WrestleMania 36 and his first WrestleMania match in front of a crowd since WrestleMania 34.

In terms of singles matches that were advertised and cemented ahead of time, and took place in front of a crowd, Cena hasn't had one since beating Rusev way back at WrestleMania 31.

While Cena vs. Rhodes would have been huge, WWE had even bigger plans for The American Nightmare. As he won the 2023 men's Royal Rumble match, after returning from a torn pectoral muscle, he will challenge Roman Reigns for the undisputed WWE Universal Championship in the main event of Night 2.

Fightful noted that several WWE Superstars asked to be Cena's opponent, and some were considered. Logan Paul was among those in the mix to face Cena, and he was reportedly penciled in at one point, but WWE eventually pivoted to Theory.

Theory makes perfect sense for many reasons, including the fact that many have compared him to a young Cena. He is also one of WWE's fastest-rising stars, and should benefit greatly from being in the ring with the 16-time world champion on the Grandest Stage of Them All.

Also, Theory and Cena have had some interactions dating back to last summer when Theory cut a scathing promo on Cena backstage when the leader of the Cenation was on Raw to celebrate his 20-year anniversary in WWE.

While Theory is still working his way up, Cody's stated goal since returning to WWE one year ago has been to win the WWE Championship since that is the only major accomplishment his late father, Dusty Rhodes, never achieved.

Rhodes' story has always been about reaching the top of the mountain in WWE, and Cena would have represented a detour rather than the destination.

Both Rhodes and Cena are in ideal spots, as they will bookend WrestleMania with Cena and Theory going on first on Night 1, and Rhodes and Reigns going on last on Night 2.

If Cena continues to wrestle a match or two every year for the foreseeable future, there should be additional opportunities to make a match against Rhodes happen at some point.

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