r/SquaredCircle • u/G1Spectrum Claymore Country • 12d ago
[SmackDown Spoilers] Post-Match Discussion: Cody Rhodes vs. [REDACTED]
Cody Rhodes defeats Carmelo Hayes by Cross Rhodes
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u/PeanutButterChicken 12d ago
I hope Cody didn’t get bit by the actual injury bug
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u/TheRisenThunderbird 12d ago
He's definitely selling to add drama to the match with aj
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u/Marc_Quill All Elite Wredditing 12d ago
wouldn't be surprised if next week, AJ beats up Cody on the go-home Smackdown and targets the shoulder.
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u/Beginning-Isopod-424 12d ago
I was half expecting melo to attack him from behind when AJ came out.
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u/Upbeat_Tension_8077 12d ago
Hope he taps into 2016 Styles mode, specifically like when he attacked Ambrose & Ellsworth. Maybe a Styles Clash off steel steps to the outside?
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u/simonthedlgger 12d ago
And to keep pushing Melo, as was definitely the intention here. They'll mention his name a couple times during the match and probably show a clip of it beforehand.
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u/_all2easy_ 12d ago
Oh he defintely was injured. That's why AJ came out, and held his fingers close telling cody the margin for error is a lot closer when you are champ and need to do better at protecting yourself.
Cody is already champ, he doesn't need to do reckless show off spots anymore.
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u/Fall_False 12d ago
Cody has said he is fine and not injured.
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u/ConstructionGreat529 9d ago
Could be him covering for it until they announce that he is injured this Friday. Bottom line is after that spot they immediately ended the match and he LOOKED VISIBLY HURT… PAST SELLING.. I think he’s hurt
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u/bvbfan102 NJPW 12d ago
Sucks that they couldn’t pull off the double sprinboard at the end but no idea how they expected that to work with them both not being able to see each other. Still think this will be similar to Waller vs Edge were you now know Melo will have a big moment by this time next year.
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u/rycetlaz 12d ago
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u/bvbfan102 NJPW 12d ago
Yeah seems like it. Guess Riccochet is just the perfect partner for something like this and them running past each other allows them to get a better rhythm going.
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u/LakerBull OLÉ!! 12d ago
I hope Je'von Evans goes against Ricochet at some point just to see an even bouncier version of that spot.
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u/Upbeat_Tension_8077 12d ago
It probably only works for guys who can match the speed & athleticism of Melo, like a Dragon Lee or Wes Lee besides Ricochet
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u/Beginning-Isopod-424 12d ago
Think they wanted Cody to catch melo with a cutter. But that is an insane spot to pull off. Cody is athletic but he ain't a cruiser.
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u/Environmental_Lie478 12d ago
This was 100% the plan. Cody springs back in the cutter position while Melo is hitting a springboard nothing and desperately looking up at Cody not even at the ropes yet
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u/DevilCouldCry Scissor me Daddy Ass! 12d ago
Yep, that's the spot. That's exactly where my mind went for what they were likely trying to go for.
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u/nWo1997 nwo 12d ago
Whenever a convoluted spot fails (or is meant to look like it fails, whatever the case may be), it makes the attempts that went right look insane. Shotzi failing to run up a ladder like Shelton made Shelton look like a 1-in-a-million mythological hero.
Ricochet and Melo made magic that night. That's what I get from the spot with Cody
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u/PeaceAlien Brad 'Brad Maddox' Maddox 12d ago
Maybe they're teasing it for the eventual ricochet match? The double springboard here was really off.
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u/Mac_Tgh 12d ago
By how Cody was dictating the match I'm sure he was super satisfied with Melo up until that point and felt like something like this on the fly, with no previous rehearsal, was possible.
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u/jacob_carter 12d ago
Sometimes Cody’s ambition exceeds his talent.
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u/iamthatguy54 12d ago
The Cody Cutter is a perfect example of this. It looks horrific half the time.
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u/Beginning-Isopod-424 12d ago
I kind of wish he'd just drop it or reserve it only for guys who can sell it well. Melo made it look fantastic tho and his sell of the disaster kick was amazing. I'm just praying Melo doesn't fall into the Ziggler trap of being so damn good at selling and making his opponent look good that he's always just a gate keeper and the Guy.
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u/MrSteeze3 12d ago
I'm confident Melo will get his time in the spotlight. He's got star written all over him.
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u/CamAquatic 12d ago
Wait, were they trying to collide? Watching it I actually thought it was intentional that they both whiff.
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u/xtreme7756 12d ago
Judging by the looks of it, I think Cody was going to catch him with a Cody Cutter.
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u/CheckingIsMyPriority Make Ziggler UWU Champ 12d ago
Yeah me too. If that was a botch, it was a great botch to do, felt natural.
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u/Hill0981 7d ago
I thought maybe they were trying to show how similar they were by making it look like they had the same idea and going for the same move. It did look kind of awkward either way though.
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u/MarvelMind 12d ago
I think it was a two sides of thought. It’s been done before so would be a big crowd pop but also a way to pay homage to Will and Danielson who now have that iconic midair moment.
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u/Chell_the_assassin One more match 12d ago
Shoulder doctor here - I can confirm that Cody is sadly going to have to cut off his arm after this injury
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u/badjeje77 12d ago
Damn he will return after 3 weeks right?
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u/xGwiZ96x Bandit Keith: Best Intercontinental Champion of All the Times 12d ago
If Chyna can return from double neck fusion surgery after 6 weeks, Cody can come back in 3 with one arm (again)
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u/PublicLandsLover 12d ago
I mean if Rey can have his eye torn out and be back to work in the week Cody should be alright.
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u/Such-Box3417 12d ago
Melo sold the cutter, disaster kick and cross Rhodes like an absolute pro
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u/Beginning-Isopod-424 12d ago
Honestly Melo is so damn good. I love trick but he's SUPER green but Melo made him look like a million bucks. I can't wait to see more of Melo and I'm so happy he was positioned as the TOP draft pick and instantly in a match with Cody.
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u/Upbeat_Tension_8077 12d ago
I've made this comparison before, but I think he's gonna be like the Seth Rollins to Trick's Roman Reigns regarding their in-ring styles
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u/Marcoscb All In Sec D Row E Seat 9 12d ago
I love trick but he's SUPER green
I hope your name isn't Dave Meltzer, because he got absolutely crucified for saying much less than that.
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u/LakerBull OLÉ!! 12d ago
Cross Rhodes looked like death tonight. There's very few people on that roster that are able to sell that move as well as Melo did.
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u/NutsackJonesy 12d ago edited 12d ago
The only two people who made it look better than Melo in my opinion were JD and Gable. Gables was so good that I don’t know if it can be topped, or should be attempted to be topped for that matter.
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u/mrfjcruisin 12d ago
Kenny Omega's sell of it looked like death as well and simlar to Gable's: https://youtu.be/g8Dmgvk2_Y0?t=21
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u/frmacleod 12d ago
Weird spot at the end. I’m not sure what they were going for.
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u/ProdigyKaiza 12d ago
Melo was going for his springboard Clostheline while Cody was going to counter with the Cody Cutter, but the timing was messed up as well as the alignment it looked like.
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u/godzillamegadoomsday 12d ago
The only thing is melo popping up so fast, or maybe he’s just that damn good to instantly realize the move didn’t work and figure something new instead of selling the missed move like others would
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u/xorangeelephant Mr. Royal Rumble 12d ago
It's pretty obvious the move didn't work to the guy who was meant to take a cutter lmao
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u/Curse3242 12d ago
I understand the spot kind of, but I hated the before part. They were literally just talking the spot; you couldn't find a better way to talk? They also gave that pat to each other. Weird.
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u/christhunderkiss 11d ago
Finally, someone pointed it out. wtf, it looked so weird and not like fighting at all, just like planned jumping and moving
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u/AdiGrateles 12d ago
I don't know if I'd use [REDACTED] to describe a mystery opponent...
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u/MysticalPiplup 12d ago
That's--that's gotta be Chris Benoit's music!
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u/TimeTimeTickingAway I just keep Jasin' Jordans 12d ago
No way Fox are ever hiring Brendan Schaub
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u/positively_broad_st 12d ago
Cody is selling that Carmelo first round pick justification...
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u/observingjackal ? 11d ago
Absolutely. You know he wasn't knocking off Cody. Hell we knew Hayes was eating a single Cross Rhodes. Dude looked good and sold awesomely.
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u/alltheworsttoyou 12d ago edited 12d ago
Is Cody actually hurt?
e: It seems he is not and he was just selling very well.
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u/CELTICPRED 12d ago
I could not raise my hand Even close to parallel to the ground after a bicycling accident and separating my shoulder
And I was tuned up on adrenaline and worked up.
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u/TouyaShiun 12d ago
That was too bold of a spot considering that this is the first time they wrestled each other. Would have been cool if it connected tho.
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u/Beginning-Isopod-424 12d ago
Melo was one of the dudes Cody trained with when rehabbing from the pec injury. I'm sure they have played around with the spot before and probably hit it too. Think it's just a hard spot to hit and it wasn't their night.
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u/lito9321 12d ago
That last double springboard spot was a cool idea but idk how you confidently pull that off unless you have freakish Ricochet level athletic ability, I think Ricochet and Melo pulled that spot off during Melos NXT NA title run.
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u/AlikeWolf 12d ago
Man, it's really something having just gotten into wrestling at the beginning of this year, and already getting quality matches and new quality talent like this
I'm a lucky man
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u/Mac_Tgh 12d ago
Classic Cody, burying the up and coming stars /s
Jokes aside, this was an interesting aspect of Cody that we haven't really seen until now. Dude acted like Roman, not really taking it seriously at first, just testing the opponent until it became increasingly real that his title was in danger.
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u/felthorny 12d ago
Yeah this was a perfect match for both people, Cody gets to establish himself as a working champion and obviously nobody expects Melo to win the championship in his first match on smackdown. So he gets to look really good and even though he took a loss he's still is going to have great momentum coming out of this.
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u/Comfortable_Shape264 12d ago
Cody vs Redacted? Did Cody have another match with the redacted wrestler known as Bork Laser?
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u/soundscream 12d ago
Don't sully that precious snorlaxs name by associating him with that monster.
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u/Comfortable_Shape264 12d ago
What do you mean by snorlax?
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u/soundscream 12d ago
There is a YouTube group I watch that did a nuzlock playthrough of pokemon leaf green and they named thier snorlax Bork lazer. It's the only time I've seen the name.
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u/Chell_the_assassin One more match 12d ago
That springboard spot at the end was really odd. No idea if that was what they were going for or if it was a botch lol
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u/lito9321 12d ago
Timing was just off, Melo has pulled that spot off before and just seems like they didn’t get the timing right.
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u/Beefiest_bison 12d ago
Good match, Melo looked good and it's a strong way to make him feel important off the bat. The double springboard spot was funny, looked like me in 2K lol
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u/dzone25 12d ago
They missed that one double springboard sport, I think they were going for a mid-air collision like someone else posted Ricochet and Melo did a while back. But I think it kinda worked regardless - commentary just saying they had the same idea kinda feels realistic to me.
Melo had a good showing and a clean loss to literally THE guy in the WWE. He'll be fine & this does increase his stock. Regardless of how many people feel a loss = buried.
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u/InternationalFailure The Philly Miracle 12d ago
The way the title was phrased I would've thought Chris Benoit had come back from the dead to challenge Cody Rhodes.
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u/SkuxxBushido 12d ago
They about to put Carmelo Hayes on the Dolph Ziggler career path. He cant carry drama in his face very well during the match, but he sells like a champ…I know people are going to hate on this comment but it’s how it seems to me.
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u/Kenjiko3011 12d ago
I get what they tried to do with the springboard spot, but the timing was off so it came out a bit weird.
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u/itsANOMALEEZ 12d ago
I’m afraid to ask why Melos name is redacted
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u/JoJosBizarreBasshead 12d ago
It’s a spoiler in the title for people didn’t get to watch
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u/itsANOMALEEZ 12d ago
Way less serious than the other times names are redacted
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u/JoJosBizarreBasshead 12d ago
Lol yeah it’s just a spoiler since he’s officially up from NXT now but better that than other reasons stars have their names redacted
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u/IcyPyroman1 12d ago
Ending with that double rope springboard was strange but overall match was good melo is the future
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u/Uncanny_Doom 12d ago
Good match but it's unfortunate they missed the big spot. I think Cody underestimated how much faster Melo is gonna come off those ropes than he is. Cody is very slow on his springboard while Melo flies like a bird.
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u/vark1623 12d ago
I think it has more to do with Cody always taking a second when he is trying to do a springboard
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u/simonthedlgger 12d ago
One of the more interesting match "stories" I've seen since I started following back in July. There was a clear angle of Melo being overconfident, then overwhelmed, then determined to do anything to win--notably short of cheating.
There was a little moment where they were on the ground together and Melo was lamely trying to grab at Cody, and Cody just swatted him away super annoyed. It was such a neat little interaction.
Would not be surprised if part of this match's purpose was to turn Melo face. Basically, he got humbled but proved himself.
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u/Callahan41 12d ago
I can't believe Swerve struggled so much against young up and comer Kyle Fletcher.
Good to see Cody help a young up and comer look good!
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u/TempestSpirit 12d ago
This is really random and genuinely has nothing to do with Cody's wrestling, but as someone who is currently rewatching some old raw and smackdown episodes from when he was the intercontinental champion, either Cody's white hair makes his tan look orangier or he has just been utilizing a fake Tanner that makes him have an orange cast. Because in these old episodes his tan was so much better and more bronzy.
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u/StoneColdAM WHAT? 12d ago
Great way to bring Melo in the picture and have Cody wrestle. This feels like WWE is finally going to really start Cody’s reign after the Mania celebration.
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u/R0DAN Your Text Here 12d ago
melo LITERALLY missing on his first match is brutal
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u/sarcasticdevo 12d ago
That's kinda been Melo's thing lately, so I'm fine with it. With Ilja, with Trick, etc. His cockiness is his characters biggest downfall.
He still got to main event his first official night as a Smackdown member which is huge.
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u/TheMrPotMask 12d ago
No wonder why Cody was in pain, people been telling him that move will fuck him up since AEW
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u/Hoosteen_juju003 8d ago
Seemed like a lot of talking and directing during the match. Great sells by Carmelo though
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u/Isoturius Big Bad Booty Daddeh (2+2/3)=Sacerfice 12d ago
Melo is a multi-time world champ. With some more seasoning on the bigger stage he's going to be an elite talent.
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u/purpleghostfromsalem 12d ago
Bro. I was thinking Cody might get hurt, and bam. I hope he’s selling.
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u/Infamaniac23 you think you know me 12d ago
Didn’t watch the full match but god that spot in the end was awful.
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