May of 2016 brought a moment no fan could have expected would change wrestling. Halfway through the month, Cody Rhodes — performing as Stardust — wrestled his final match for WWE for nearly six years, losing to Zack Ryder before his release. A few years later, Rhodes would go on to co-found All Elite Wrestling, the first major alternative to WWE since Impact started up in 2002.
RELATED: Why Cody Rhodes Left WWE In 2016, Explained
Before AEW, however, The American Nightmare was unleashed upon the indie scene, where he wrestled pretty much everywhere a wrestler would aspire to perform, from buzzworthy indies to international institutions. Let’s take a look at Cody Rhodes’ post-WWE and pre-AEW career.
10 The List
When Cody Rhodes embarked on this new phase of his career, he laid out his intentions with a manifesto of sorts in the form of a simple photo on social media. That photo depicted a hand-written list of things Cody wanted to accomplish on the indie and international scenes. As part of the list, Rhodes named several dream opponents including Katsuyori Shibata and Kurt Angle, as well as developments he wanted to make with his gimmick like having a personal ring announcer.
9 Wrestled His First Indie Matches In EVOLVE
Before taking the major non-WWE promotions by storm, Cody Rhodes had his first indie bouts in Gabe Sapolski’s Philadelphia-based EVOLVE — four years before it was purchased by WWE. Rhodes’ indie run started off strong, as his first EVOLVE opponent was UK technician and future New Japan Pro-Wrestling mainstay Zack Sabre Jr. While Rhodes only wrestled four matches for EVOLVE, he had an impressive array of opponents including Chris Hero, Drew Galloway (a.k.a. Drew McIntyre), and Ethan Page.
8 Took Part In The Battle Of Los Angeles
One of the high priorities on Cody Rhodes’ aforementioned list was “BOLA,” short for the annual Battle of Los Angeles tournament hosted by LA’s Pro Wrestling Guerrilla. With a lineup that included such stars as Pentagon Jr., Matt Riddle, Will Ospreay, and Jushin Thunder Liger, Rhodes defeated Sami Callihan in the first round of BOLA 2016 before falling to Marty Scurll in the second round.
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BOLA wasn’t the only notable tournament Rhodes took part in during his indie run. The following year, Cody traveled to Germany for Westside Xtreme Wrestling’s 16 Carat Gold Tournament, once again getting eliminated in the second round.
7 Member Of The Bullet Club
The end of 2016 brought Cody Rhodes to Japan, where he debuted in New Japan as the latest addition to NJPW’s massively popular Bullet Club faction. It was during this period that the BC’s popularity reached new heights thanks to The Young Bucks, Kenny Omega, Cody Rhodes, and others producing the comedic YouTube series Being The Elite. Eventually, their popularity drew the ire of other members of the Bullet Club, causing a schism and subsequent civil war amongst the Club.
6 IWGP United States Champion
Cody Rhodes’ NJPW run didn’t just involve Bullet Club shenanigans. He also pursued championship gold in the promotion, challenging Kazuchika Okada and Kenny Omega at different points for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship as well as the IWGP Tag Team Championship. While he was unsuccessful in these pursuits, Rhodes was able to capture some gold in NJPW when he defeated Juice Robinson for the IWGP United States Championship. His run with the belt lasted 96 days before Robinson won it back at Wrestle Kingdom 13 in early 2019.
5 Wrestled For Impact
Shortly after debuting on the indies, Cody Rhodes debuted on what at the time was arguably the second-biggest promotion in the United States, Impact Wrestling. First appearing at Bound for Glory 2016, Cody got into a feud with Mike Bennett and Maria Kanellis, leading to Cody and his wife Brandi Rhodes defeating the rival couple in a mixed tag team match. Of the four matches Cody Rhodes had during his brief, forgotten run in the Impact Zone, two were World Title bouts: first against Eddie Edward and later against Moose.
4 Formed The Elite
The aforementioned Bullet Club civil war resulted in The Elite — previously just Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks — becoming a full-on stable, with ex-BC members Marty Scurll, Cody Rhodes, and Hangman Page leaving the Club to join the group. Along with them was also Kota Ibushi, who was never part of the Bullet Club but was tag partners with Omega.
RELATED: 10 Best Moments From The AEW YouTube Show "Being The Elite"
As fans know, The Elite continued on past NJPW, with the group initially together (sans Scurll) in AEW, though Rhodes and Hangman ended up distancing themselves from the group as time went on.
3 Ring Of Honor World Champion
In December 2016, at Ring of Honor’s pay-per-view Final Battle, Cody Rhodes debuted in a winning effort — albeit via heelish cheating — against Jay Lethal. After feuding with Lethal, Rhodes focused on the ROH World Title, which he finally captured in June of 2017 when he defeated champion Christopher Daniels. This win marked Cody’s first-ever World Title in his career, which he held for 175 days before dropping it to Dalton Castle at Final Battle 2017. That wasn’t the only title Cody won in ROH, however — he and The Young Bucks also enjoyed a 106-day reign with the World Six-Man Tag Team Championship.
2 All In
It was also during Cody Rhodes’ indie run that the seeds for AEW were planted. After wrestling journalist Dave Meltzer said that indie wrestling couldn’t fill a 10,000-seat venue, Cody and the Elite sought to prove Meltzer wrong, and organized their own indie show in one such arena. Held in Chicago-adjacent Hoffman Estates, September 2018’s All In was a sell-out show and boasted The Elite as well as stars from NJPW, Mexico, and the independent wrestling scene. Many of the wrestlers involved ended up becoming part of All Elite Wrestling when it started up the following year.
1 NWA World Heavyweight Champion
While All In was a landmark show that arguably changed the direction of pro wrestling, it was also a big night for Cody Rhodes in particular. It was on that show that Rhodes defeated Nick Aldis for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, thus capturing the same belt that his father Dusty Rhodes held in the 1980s. It was an emotional win, with Rhodes’ title reign lasting 50 days before Nick Aldis won it back in a 2/3 falls match.
