The current Ring Of Honor World Champion Cody Rhodes, recently was a part of a media conference call to promote the New Japan Pro Wrestling G1 Special on July 1st. Rhodes stated that he will make history & whats going to happen Saturday, will shock the wrestling world.
Here are a few statements that Rhodes made during the call: (transcripts by Paste Magazine)
Rhodes On Proving People Wrong:
“The wrestling fan base was polarized, the idea that, ‘no no no, you can’t do the ex-WWE guy and the pure New Japan guy,’ or, ‘you know what, Cody has proved me wrong left and right and central and I’m all about this, I want to see what Cody brings in his first New Japan Pro Wrestling main event.’ Or ‘we’re not getting Kenny/Okada III? My gosh, I want my ticket refunded.’ It created just this absolute storm, just a buzz, a total maelstrom of discussion.”
Cody On Creating A Buzz:
“I don’t mean to get all promoter-y or carnie or anything like that but, people forget, Dusty was a great wrestler and all that, but I remember him more almost as a promoter. I’m a promoter’s son and if ever you have people talking about a main event, ‘what do you think about this,’ ‘I don’t get this,’ whenever anything starts with that, you just generated a ton of box office, I’m proud of that. That’s why I like really negative comments about myself on social because I don’t care. I’m in the main event and it caused this stir of emotion, I can’t focus on that. I have to stand across from this guy and see where I stand, where he stands compared to me and where I stand compared to him. I have to leave it all out there.”
Cody Talks NJPW & Possibly Becoming The IWGP Heavyweight Champion:
“I’m all about what this is and what we can make it. It needs to be more than just polarizing discussion, it needs to be the next day everybody weighing that opinion and essentially saying ‘you know what, I’m on board with New Japan Pro Wrestling. If I wasn’t, I’m on board; Tell me everything about it, sign me up, tell me where I can watch it.’”
“What’s going to happen on AXS TV and at the G1 special in the USA is going to have massive ramifications, not just for New Japan Pro Wrestling, for the entire industry. The entire industry is going through this period; everybody keeps waiting for Bash at the Beach and the Attitude Era to begin again and the boom to start, but that’s not how it’s happening. It’s happening elsewhere, it happened in these independents, it happened in Ring of Honor with what the Young Bucks have been able to do business wise. Pro wrestlers’ shirts who don’t work for WWE are on the shelves now right next to them and they’re moving faster. This is a boom and for wrestling fans this is what we’ve been waiting for. This is an opportunity to see where New Japan Pro Wrestling and see where myself fits in that boom.”
