Cody Rhodes Joins Very Exclusive Club At WWE Night Of Champions

Cody Rhodes won the 24th WWE King of the Ring tournament.

After losing the Undisputed WWE Championship to John Cena at WrestleMania 41, Cody Rhodes needed to find a way back to the top of the company.

The controversial nature of that defeat to Cena did nothing to soften the blow, instead, only serving to add to his motivation to set the record straight. And at Night of Champions, Rhodes to a huge step towards getting his wish.

At the show in Saudi Arabia, Cody Rhodes defeated Randy Orton to become the King of the Ring. But perhaps more importantly, Rhodes will now get his rematch with Cena at SummerSlam.

Cody Rhodes’ Name Added To Very Short List

As a result of his victory, Cody Rhodes became just the third man to have won the King of the Ring tournament and held the NWA World Heavyweight Championship. As noted by Sean Ross Sapp and others, Rhodes joined the legendary Harley Race and Ken Shamrock on that very short list.

Race won the second edition of the tournament in 1986 after seeing off Pedro Morales, while Shamrock became King in 1998 with a victory over The Rock.

Harley Race won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship for the first time in May 1973, before going on to win the title a further seven times. By contrast, Shamrock won the title for the first and only time in June 2002.