Cody Rhodes Just Explained The One Part Of WWE He Says He Has Never Been Able To Replicate Anywhere Else

Cody Rhodes has said he is addicted to performing in front of live audiences and that the specific feeling of a WWE crowd reacting to his entrance is something he has never been able to replicate outside the ring.

Speaking to Sports Illustrated, Rhodes was asked how he has remained so driven heading into his Clash in Italy championship defence against Gunther.

“You get hooked on it. The addiction is real. There’s a very specific feeling when that music hits and 70,000 people respond — or 10,000, it doesn’t matter — and that feeling is not available anywhere else. I’ve looked. I’ve tried to find something that matches it. Acting comes close because of the immediate response element, but it’s not the same. The live crowd is the drug.”

He also said that fear of losing that feeling is part of what keeps him going.

“The scariest part of thinking about retirement isn’t what I’d do next — I have ideas. The scariest part is knowing that the last time that music hits and I walk through that curtain, that’s it. That specific drug is gone. That’s what I’m not ready to give up.”

Rhodes defends the Undisputed WWE Championship against Gunther at Clash in Italy on Sunday in Turin.