Blood In Cody Rhodes/Brock Lesnar Match At WWE Backlash Was Reportedly Planned

Bloody brawls have gone hand in hand with professional wrestling in Puerto Rico over the years, and that was no different at WWE Backlash last Saturday when Brock Lesnar was busted open during his main event match with Cody Rhodes. Given how blood is a rarity in WWE these days, however, some wondered whether the cut was intentional or an accident.

As it turns out, it was the former. Per both Fightful Select and the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the blood in the Lesnar/Rhodes match was planned. And while blading or blood is generally frowned upon in WWE — and is generally dealt with quickly when it occurs — in this instance, it was given the green light with Lesnar displaying the proverbial crimson mask after being sent face first into an exposed turnbuckle by Rhodes. Undaunted, Lesnar continued coming and appeared to have "The American Nightmare" dead to rights with the Kimura lock hooked in. However, Rhodes managed to turn the tides and scored the surprise pinfall, leaving "The Beast" shocked.

While the win wasn't as definitive as Rhodes might have hoped, Rhodes' attention now turns to the tournament to crown the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion, which begins tonight on "WWE Raw." Rhodes will be one of six "Raw" stars participating in tonight's tournament matches, including Seth Rollins, The Miz, Sheamus, Shinsuke Nakamura, and Damian Priest. If Lesnar will be at "Raw" remains a mystery as the longtime WWE star is currently a free agent following the WWE Draft and can appear whenever and wherever he pleases.