wrestling / News
Cody Rhodes Discusses WWE Pay, Says High Level Superstars Are Paid Comparable to Pro Sports
Image Credit: WWE
WWE Superstar and former WWE Champion Cody Rhodes joined FLAGRANT this week, discussing his role as Guile in Street Fighter and more. During the conversation, Rhodes spoke at length about WWE pay, saying that the top level of WWE Superstars are now paid comparable to athletes in big league sports. Below are some highlights:
Cody Rhodes on the WWE Pay Structure
“Well, the wrestling economy is different now because there’s other places you can go wrestle. … No, it’s just the fact that the money — best way to put it, the money in wrestling and sports entertainment is very good. And I feel like if you were my dad or any of these wrestlers we talked about on that list, you’d be shocked. My mom didn’t get it when I said, ‘Hey, X amount.’ She legit like — [Andrew Schulz interjects, ‘Yeah. Well, your pops was grinding at a very different–.’] Grinding and grinding, and also but now the contracts are guaranteed, and all this very, very different time. All that means to me, and it’s like that’s a huge responsibility.”
On What Wrestlers Just Starting in WWE Get Paid
“Oh man, I don’t know what our developmental I mean, everything is six figures. You know what? I’m actually defer because Nick has a great — Nick Khan had a great quote about these guys are going to do well. These guys are going to do really well, and then these couple guys, he named a few guys, they’re going to do next level. And that next level pay is now comparable with sports. And that’s the part that I’m so proud of being a wrestler because when you’d hear baseball contracts and NBA contracts, and you know as a wrestler that you could go all over the world and be known and be seen, [clears throat] but you weren’t on that level. You were on the level of penetration but not that level of income. Now, Modern TKO and Nick have made it that you are.”
Cody Rhodes co-stars in the new Street Fighter movie as Guile. WWE World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns also appears in the movie as Akuma. It arrives in theaters on October 16.
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit FLAGRANT with a h/t to 411mania.com for the transcription.
