MJF: ‘Cody Rhodes is no better than Richard Nixon’

MJF is ready for a big 2020.

It starts tonight (Jan. 1) on Dynamite. MJF is scheduled to reveal his personal stipulations for having a match against Cody Rhodes.

Before MJF hits the ring in Jacksonville, he sat down with Austen Lane of ESPN690 to discuss his disdain for Cody.

Language warning.

MJF reiterated his reasons for turning on Cody Rhodes.

“I feel like people think I’m like this wicked, evil man, and that’s just not the case. The person who’s the bad guy here is Cody Rhodes. Cody Rhodes looked me dead in the face. He said he wanted to be my mentor. He said he wanted to groom me. He wanted to make me a star. And then I ended up being dressed up in Star Trek outfits. I was a glorified hype man. I was constantly being held under his thumb, not underneath his wing. He did not care about me. What he cared about was making sure that I could not surpass him. And I realized that. Thank god I realized that.

And if you watch the tape back after I kick that piece of sh*t in the nuts, I had the biggest smile on my face. Ear to ear. Do you know why? I’ll tell you why.

It’s because I got to take about a million pounds of weight off my shoulders. And now I get to be myself. I got to be the face of AEW, which I should have been in the first place the second this company started, which Tony Khan - I like to call him TK, we’re buds - has noticed very fast.”

MJF also shed light on his thought process for choosing the stipulations he has in mind.

“These stipulations, look, they are fair to me. These stipulations are nothing but fair, because what Cody Rhodes did to me was he took away something that is the most crucial thing you can take away from anybody. And do you know what that is, bud? That’s time. He took away my time. He took away time that I could have already been making thousands of more dollars. He took away time that I could have already been in the main event. He took away the possibility of me already being the AEW World Heavyweight Champion, because he didn’t allow me to be where I belong, and that is front and center.

So these stipulations to me are totally fair. Some people are going to think they’re cruel. Some people are going to think they’re shocking. But what you should realize is you need to stop being sheep, take a step out of your bubble, and just think, ‘Wow, if I was MJF, maybe this is just. Maybe this is fair.’ And it is.”

The host stated the he has met Cody, and Cody has been nothing but kind to his family. He wanted to know what he is missing that MJF sees.

MJF: “All of America voted in a president named Richard Nixon. Do you remember Richard Nixon?”

Lane: “I do.”

MJF: “Of course, you do. Richard Nixon was involved in something called Watergate. Do you remember Watergate?”

Lane: “I do.”

MJF: “Tremendous. Now, Richard Nixon was beloved by a whole entire nation. He had everybody fooled. Everyone. And then he was showed to be a farce. He was a fake superhero. He was a fraud. That is what Cody Rhodes is. Cody Rhodes is no better than Richard Nixon. Hell, Cody Rhodes is probably worse.

What’s he’s doing is, he’s playing a character 24/7. Not me. And yet I’m the one getting booed? No. There’s no gimmicks necessary for me. I’m Maxwell Jacob Friedman 24/7. I feel bad for Cody Rhodes. Cody Rhodes has to wake up every morning and put on a costume and pretend to be someone he’s not. And that is a good person.

I’ve seen the real Cody Rhodes. Nobody knows Cody Rhodes better than me. I’ve spent more time around Cody Rhodes probably than his bat sh*t crazy wife, Brandi. Cody Rhodes is not a good person, and I look forward to showing the world that.”

MJF went on to explain that Cody is the one who needs this match. MJF wrestles when it benefits him. Wrestling Cody doesn’t benefit MJF, thus the stipulations.

MJF makes a convincing case. Time is one of the most precious resources we have. I can’t fault MJF for being upset. I wonder if time will play a role in the proposed stipulations.

MJF may have a point about Cody being a bad person. I have noticed Cody teetering that line between good friend and selfish ego. That would be interesting if AEW swerved and exposed Cody to be a true jerk behind the scenes. I’m not sure how that would play with Cody’s real life press dealings and greeting children, but I’d be curious to see.

It is also nice to hear someone acknowledge that Brandi is acting crazy as of late. Most of the time, AEW’s announcers play it off like they didn’t see anything out of the ordinary. Could they be fearful of losing their jobs if they criticize Cody’s wife? Hmm, perhaps MJF is on to something.

Other topics from the interview include being a wrestling prodigy, comparisons as a diet Chris Jericho, finding Wardlow, and fans attacking him on Twitter.

Do you agree with MJF’s logic for turning on Cody Rhodes? What stipulations would you make if you were MJF?