3 WWE stars who can help Cody Rhodes against Seth Rollins & The Vision

With a rich and layered past and a vibrant and riveting present, Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes and World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins are set to do battle in an epic champion vs champion match with drastic and enduring implications for the future of the industry.

The match at Crown Jewel: Perth won't just determine the 2025 WWE Crown Jewel Champion (with Cody having one the inaugural ring last year against Gunther), but in the most profound sense, who the better man is, and who the premier men's champion in WWE is.

But here lies the problem: with Cody Rhodes, perhaps the only man who can get to Seth Rollins from an ethical standpoint, to do the right thing, 3-0 against Rollins, the World Heavyweight Champion may just be too desperate; he may be too far gone to be saved. Unlike last year, this year, the build is all too personal, and Rollins is all the more motivated to not just get back at Cody, not just prove himself the better man, but to establish himself as THE TOP DOG in WWE.

That may very well lead to a now-conflicted Seth Rollins once again going after Cody with no remorse or reservations, and with Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed now in his corner, The Architect is more dangerous than ever. Rhodes will obviously need backup, and given how seamlessly this could lead to WarGames, there may be a lot of people who eventually get involved in this story.

The focus of this piece, however, shall remain on the three men who could be Cody Rhodes' Shield against Seth Rollins' Vision over the next few weeks, leading up to WarGames.

#3 CM Punk

The feud between CM Punk and Seth Rollins is far from done. Rhodes and Punk are obviously great friends. Punk still wants the World Heavyweight Championship, too. 2+2+2 equals 6, dear readers, and while a lot is to be pondered and posited here, it doesn't necessarily need overly verbose descriptions. It can all be left to any interested and intelligent viewer's imagination.

CM Punk should logically be the first man who comes to Cody Rhodes' aid against The Vision, should Rollins employ the numbers game, which he most certainly will. Cody and Punk's interactions so far have consistently translated into gold on WWE TV, allowing for nuanced communication that few people are capable of achieving through the medium of professional wrestling.

However, with the dynamic still three-on-two if CM Punk does indeed aid the WWE Champion, Cody Rhodes will need one more man to truly even the odds, and that person could be one of the two entries that follow, with both being enticing for different reasons.

#2 Randy Orton

There was reported insistence on both Cody Rhodes' and Drew McIntyre's parts regarding Randy Orton accidentally costing the former the WWE Championship at Wrestlepalooza. It did not materialise, and that obviously leaves the timeline of a prospective Cody Rhodes-Drew McIntyre rematch and inevitable Cody Rhodes-Randy Orton feud up in the air.

Nevertheless, if Orton is not turning on Cody imminently, having both of them still interacting with subtle seeds of dissension continuing to sow makes sense. In the lead-up to Crown Jewel and then WarGames, Orton and Rhodes could stay allied, but their unity could continue to fracture.

How it manifests itself into an all-out blood feud is something WWE could continue to tease us with going forward. As for The Viper being a SmackDown guy, Crown Jewel will naturally loosen the brand split WWE enforces, mostly according to their convenience anyway, and Randy Orton has a ton of history with Seth Rollins as well. Whether Orton is involved in WarGames remains quite unclear, but an enticing possibility nonetheless.

#1 Roman Reigns

The latest we know of Cody Rhodes and Roman Reigns' dynamic is that it is one of mutual respect, and a professional rivalry in terms of being the alpha dog; a contentious relationship that can still be overcome when there are mutual enemies that need taking care of. That, at least, is what we saw leading up to Bad Blood last year. They are now, of course, also fellow cast members in the upcoming Street Fighter movie.

This was very much Rollins and Rhodes' dynamic leading up to WarGames in 2023 as well, or Roman Reigns' dynamic with CM Punk, though there is a bit of a more dangerous and distinctive clash of strong personalities in the latter case. Rhodes and Rollins' dynamic proceeded in a more positive direction thereafter, and the two became firm allies and eventually, great friends, with Rollins helping Rhodes take down Reigns and winning the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 40.

Back to Reigns and Rhodes, that is what makes it all come full circle. Rhodes doesn't really have a longstanding conflict with Rollins, but it is sure to head in that direction over the next few weeks. Meanwhile, as mentioned, CM Punk could very well be a logical ally given not just mutual interests, but an actual great relationship. Roman Reigns, meanwhile, is in fact being advertised for Crown Jewel, and he has his pound of flesh to pick.

After an underwhelming Wrestlepalooza, Triple H may choose to accelerate the pace at which WWE tells stories and give us Roman Reigns vs. Bron Breakker, following the events of Clash in Paris. LA Knight, meanwhile, could go against home country boy Bronson Reed. A tag team match wouldn't make sense considering Jey Uso's dynamic with LA Knight and the latter's earlier dynamic with Roman Reigns.

Nevertheless, that would mean a naturally brewing alliance between Roman Reigns, CM Punk, and Cody Rhodes, which could pick up steam as we get closer to Crown Jewel, before the Avengers begin to unite for WarGames. LA Knight is also involved in the equation, as are Jimmy and Jey Uso, but there is a story being told there that can be kept slightly separate for a while, because the possibilities with the new direction Jey Uso is headed in are endless.

Edited by Tathya Sachdev