Roman Reigns References AEW On WWE Raw

While not directly mentioned by name, All Elite Wrestling was referenced by Roman Reigns on the March 20 edition of Monday Night Raw.

Reigns came face-to-face with Cody Rhodes in the closing segment of Raw ahead of their Undisputed WWE Universal Title match at WrestleMania 39. Reigns began by telling Rhodes that he was what Paul Heyman and the Tribal Chief used to be - a professional wrestler. Reigns, meanwhile, described himself as a fighter and WWE's megastar before he turned his attention to Rhodes' track record. 

Reigns then said: "You didn't want to do the Stardust thing, so what happened? You ran away. You started a company and a promotion that you couldn't get over in, and then you ran away." 

Reigns continued, noting that Rhodes started to get over but his body gave out when he tore his pectoral muscle in 2022. The Undisputed WWE Universal Champion then stated that Rhodes will be faced with another choice after he loses at WrestleMania, will he run away again or will he stick around this time? 

Another reference to AEW then followed as Rhodes admitted that he did run away from WWE, but he helped every locker room by making sure everyone could make more money. Rhodes then stated that maybe he is a professional wrestler before claiming he was going to vomit if one more person mentioned Dusty Rhodes because The American Dream won't be at WrestleMania, nor will Dustin Rhodes because he "works elsewhere." 

Cody turned the tables on Reigns moments later, telling Roman that after he loses at WrestleMania, The Bloodline will leave him to make him a Tribal Chief without a tribe. To end the segment, Rhodes told Solo Sikoa he wasn't ready and a confrontation briefly took place as Cody blocked the Samoan Spike until Reigns stopped Sikoa from sparking a brawl to end Raw. 

Cody Rhodes was granted his release from WWE in 2016 and after establishing himself as a star in the likes of Ring of Honor and New Japan Pro-Wrestling, as well as on the independents, Rhodes founded All Elite Wrestling with The Young Bucks and Tony Khan in January 2019. Rhodes was one of the Executive Vice Presidents at AEW and he was initially a hugely popular babyface. His popularity waned from late 2020 to the point that Rhodes was receiving loud boos every week by the time he left AEW in February 2022.

Following his exit, Rhodes noted there was a personal issue he and Tony Khan couldn't move past and that it was time for him to return to WWE and win the WWE Championship. 

Rhodes has referenced his past since returning to WWE, including doing a Too Sweet after he won the 2023 men's Royal Rumble.