On the January 28, 2026 episode of Six Feet Under, Cody Rhodes opened up about the chaotic and humiliating WrestleMania afterparty moment he now calls the worst night of his life.
It all started during a routine European tour where Cody and Santino Marella were playfully trash-talking each others physiques. Cody ribbed Santino for being out of shapebut what began as a locker-room joke spiraled into something much bigger once John Cena and JBL heard about it.
Cody made it clear that his comments werent serious and that Santino was no slouch. He genuinely admired his colleagues background and performance skills.
Once Cena and JBL got involved, the light teasing quickly evolved into a planned segment. They pitched a full-blown bodybuilding contest at the WrestleMania afterparty, which Cody assumed was still all in fununtil the t-shirts gave him a reality check.
As WrestleMania weekend arrived, Cody didnt expect the MuscleMania gimmick to actually go forward. But just to be safe, he wore a Speedo under his suit. Sure enough, he was summoned from his room to the ballroom stage by WWE referee John Conewhile Triple H was already on the mic hyping it up.
The audience? Everyone from WWE superstars to Codys own parents. And Santino wasnt taking it lightlyhe came fully prepared with professional posing trunks, amping the whole thing up tenfold.
What made it worse? The scheduled headliner for the party, Kid Rock, had to give up his stage time for this unscripted bodybuilding showdown. He didnt take it well. Apparently, the frustration from Kid Rock was not subtle.
Cody was blindsided by the negative reaction from all directionsespecially since he didnt come up with the segment to begin with. He was just going along with it. Still trying to be a good sport, Cody hit the stage and struck his best poses. He thought he looked decent, but the crowd wasnt buying it.
It turned into a full-on performance war. Santino broke out a flawless Russian dance routine, while Codytrying to one-up himbotched a backflip off the stage.
And then came the worst moment of all. Linda McMahon, who Cody deeply respected, was watching from the front row. She initially clappedthen saw how the crowd turned, and gave Cody a double thumbs down. Thats when the embarrassment truly sank in.
To cap it off, JBL had commissioned a ridiculous seven-foot-tall trophy, plastered with figures from random sports, to be presented to Santinowho won the contest. Back at his hotel room, Cody was fumingso much so that he accidentally damaged the furniture.
But amid the wreckage of his pride, one person offered Cody Rhodes a reason to feel good about the whole debacleRey Mysterio.
This insane MuscleMania story wasnt televised, but it lives on in WWE legend as one of the most chaotic and humbling moments of Cody Rhodes lifeand a reminder that sometimes the real drama happens when the cameras are off.
What do you think of Cody Rhodes MuscleMania nightmare? Did he get done dirtyor was it all part of paying dues? Drop your thoughts below and let us know if youve ever been booed for trying to be a team player
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