Natalya Comments On How Fan Reaction To Cody Rhodes And The Rock Changed WrestleMania

After winning the 2024 Men's Royal Rumble, Cody Rhodes quickly pinpointed Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns as his desired opponent for WrestleMania 40. However, with CM Punk sustaining a torn tricep, WWE reportedly pivoted to an alternative course, setting up Rhodes to instead face Seth Rollins, while Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson challenged "The Tribal Chief" at WrestleMania. This decision, of course, would backfire, as the WWE Universe boasted a vehemently negative response online. As a result, WWE shifted their path once again, calling for The Rock to turn heel as Rhodes reclaimed his WrestleMania title match against Reigns.

In a recent interview with "Gorilla Position," former "WWE SmackDown" Women's Champion Natalya provided her take on WWE's decision to change the booking surrounding this particular WrestleMania angle. "Our WWE fans, they do have a voice," Natalya said. "Whether it's on social media, whether they tune in to watch our product, they have a voice. To me, the way that I look at it, and I could be wrong, but I feel like our fans spoke up and said 'We want Cody. Cody deserves this, and Cody's been fighting for this' ... He fought so hard to come back and to finish his story [after tearing his pec]. Cody has been working hard for it and he's deserved it. So I think there was this moment where, like I said, in WWE we only sometimes, as talent, we only have so much power. When it was decided okay it's going to be Rock versus Roman, when the fans spoke up and they showed such an outcry for Cody, I think it made it really exciting."

While he was previously set to be pitted against Roman Reigns, The Rock is now firmly aligned with him, along with the rest of The Bloodline. As Rhodes' feud with The Bloodline intensifies, The Rock has also challenged Rhodes and Rollins to face him and Reigns on night one of WrestleMania 40 — just 24 hours before "The American Nightmare" vies for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Gorilla Position" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.