Cody Rhodes Says The Next Contract He Signs With WWE Will Be His Last

Cody Rhodes has opened up about the time he has remaining in his career, disclosing that his next WWE deal will be his last one.

Rhodes is just 40 years of age, which is relatively young in modern wrestling, as several wrestlers have wrestled well into their 50s, like his brother, Dustin Rhodes. But, the former WWE Champion is already planning his retirement and has said that his next contract will be his final in-ring deal.

“I don’t have an end date like I used to. I do know that whatever the next deal that I sign with WWE — I ain’t going nowhere — that next deal will be the last,” he said on “ESPN Radio’s UnSportsmanLike.” “I used to think like, I used to not love the wrestling kind of past your time. But wrestling is so unique in terms of it’s hard to determine your time, especially in 2026 with the level of athlete that you can grow to be. Look at what Brock is doing currently at this level. He’s in peak form. Roman, older, peak form. Punk is the best he’s ever been. So age is really not what it used to be in the industry.”

Rhodes gave the example of Hulk Hogan, who reinvented himself after his run with the red and gold. He feels that the knowledge that a wrestler accumulates over the years helps them as they get older. 

“And then you had a great, way back in the day, red and yellow run with Hulkamania. Turnaround, black and white, NWO Hollywood. Those things don’t happen without the equity and the knowledge and being in front of those crowds for years and years and years and years. It all works towards each other. Sometimes your age can be helpful in terms of experience,” Rhodes added.

“The American Nightmare” presciently said that he would know when it’s time to hang up his wrestling boots. Rhodes had signed a multi-year deal with WWE in 2024, although there are no details as to how long it is.