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Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe.
Conflicting Reports on Cody Rhodes’ Contract
There appears to be some confusion about whether or not Cody Rhodes has signed a new contract with WWE.
Dave Meltzer of WrestlingObserver.com recently reported that Rhodes signed a new deal with the company in October.
However, Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (h/t Felix Upton of Ringside News) reported WWE offered Rhodes a new contract in October, but the American Nightmare has not yet signed it.
Sapp did note there is an agreement in place between the two parties” and it’s “expected to be signed” at some point.
It’s unclear when Rhodes’ current deal expires. He returned to WWE in 2022 at WrestleMania 38. In the past, WWE contracts have been for three years and the promotion has the ability to add time onto the end of a contract if a superstar misses time due to injuries.
Rhodes missed seven months after suffering a torn pectoral muscle before returning at the 2023 Royal Rumble. A three-year deal wouldn’t expire until at least 2025, but WWE has been proactive recently about getting top stars signed.
Charlotte Flair, Rey Mysterio Jr., Dominik Mysterio and Bayley are among the superstars who have reportedly inked new contracts with WWE recently.
Even if Rhodes’ deal isn’t done, there doesn’t seem to be any concern about him leaving. He’s been a top star in WWE since returning to the promotion, main-evented the second night of WrestleMania 39 against Roman Reigns and is arguably the favorite to challenge Reigns for the undisputed WWE universal title at WrestleMania 40.
WWE Nixes Randy Orton Theme Song Change
Randy Orton’s return to WWE has been met with great fanfare, but the company nearly made a significant change to his entrance that would have had a profound impact on his character.
Per Corey Brennan of Fightful Select (h/t Upton), WWE tested the idea of changing Orton’s entrance theme by doing one play through live in an arena they were at before deciding to scrap it.
It was previously reported the change was considered ahead of the Dec. 8 episode of Friday Night SmackDown.
WWE wasn’t going to have Orton return at Survivor Series with a different theme song, but rather use his current music for a few appearances before debuting the new one.
There are some changes to a superstar’s entrance theme that make sense. Reigns continued to use the Shield music for years after the group broke up, but it didn’t make sense to keep the theme for a faction beloved by the WWE audience after he turned heel.
When CM Punk became a top star back in 2011, he was able to leverage that to get WWE to pay for the rights to “Cult of Personality” by Living Colour.
But there are some superstars who don’t need to mess with the formula. Steve Austin tried out a couple of different themes when he turned heel in 2001 before eventually going back to the one that starts with the glass breaking because it became so synonymous with his character.
Orton has been using “Voices” as his entrance theme since 2008. It perfectly fits his character and has become one of the most beloved songs for any WWE superstar in history.
Update on Xavier Woods’ Injury and Return
Based on WWE’s plan for Xavier Woods’ return, it doesn’t appear like there is great concern about a significant injury.
Mike Johnson of PW Insider reported on Dec. 19 that Woods was pulled off the road “to heal up” as he deals with undisclosed injuries, and he was in Birmingham, Alabama for a medical evaluation.
In a follow-up report, Johnson noted the “tentative” plan within WWE is for Woods to be back within the first two weeks of January.
Woods hasn’t wrestled a match since the Nov. 27 episode of Raw when he was in a tag-team turmoil match with Kofi Kingston that was won by the Creed Brothers. He’s only wrestled twice on television since the start of November.
Kingston, who has been Woods’ partner in the New Day since 2014, has been wrestling singles matches against Ivar on house shows over the past two months.
As long as Woods isn’t out of action for an extended period of time, this hiatus shouldn’t be a problem for WWE. The men’s tag team division is in a good state right now, and with WrestleMania season coming up, making sure everyone is healthy for the biggest event of the year should be a top priority.
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