In the same interview with Sports Illustrated, Hall of Famer Steve Austin said that the main event match between Roman Reigns and Cody Rhodes was just magnificent, including the controversial ending.
“I’m going all-in. To me, they got it just right,” Austin said. “I was wondering how they were going to do this match. They built it perfectly.”
He said that he told his wife that they would go for 30 minutes and the match ended around the 35th minute, calling it a classic.
“I loved it, and I wouldn’t have changed a thing. I texted a couple people who were involved, and I sent a one-word text: Magnificent.”
The former WWE champion was also impressed with the finish, a finish which left a sour taste for many WWE fans in attendance who expected Cody Rhodes to “finish the story” and be finally crowned WWE champion.
He noted that the story was all there, from Cody leaving AEW, returning “home,” coming back from injury, and getting in the main event position, but, according to Austin, you can’t take the belt off of Roman Reigns right now.
“You want to get it to Cody somehow, someway, some time — but now’s not the time,” he continued.
“Just thinking about that finish, I thought it was definitely the right call. I loved the outside interference. You didn’t know what was coming next. That spike to the throat, for me, it was money,” he concluded, while also giving praise to Solo, The Usos, Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, and Paul Heyman for their involvement in the finish.
