During a recent appearance on SiriusXM’s Busted Open Radio, Cody Rhodes revealed it was in Loews Hotel in Rosemont, IL by the Allstate Arena that he knew it was the time to leave All Elite Wrestling and return to WWE.

On knowing it was time to depart AEW: 

“The Loews Hotel in Rosemont by the Allstate Arena. I looked at Brandi and I told her. The last time I told her something like that is when I told her I was leaving WWE. I had kind of done it all in my mind. I was sitting there at the bar in the corner booth and I knew. I mentioned it on the Raw interview that I did, and I was so excited to do that type of interview, it was an easy decision. It was. After the heaviness and hardness of what that departure meant, the decision was easy in terms of what I needed to do next. I’m so proud of everything. From every Independent I went to, which is every single one on Earth, it felt like. To New Japan, to Ring of Honor, to All In, to All Elite Wrestling. That block being filled provided that clarity to me. I have to take a shot at this. Everyone is different. Everyone wants to be the best pro wrestler or best superstar. I had a real goal at eight-years-old and I didn’t get the chance…I got the chance, but I wasn’t ready. I failed at the chance. Life is so much more about losing than it is about winning. I absolutely felt I could make the run at it hear. Whether it is unobtained is one thing, but I didn’t want it to go unsaid or untried.”

On his last AEW match with Sammy Guevara:

 “My future was in doubt, for sure, my mind was all over the place, but there are still fans in the seats. This is still one of my kids. I can’t get in my own head and sabotage this or turn out anything less than what I would have liked to turn out, which is the very best that you can possibly do. I don’t play around with eight-foot ladders. From a television perspective, they have to be 10 or 12. The eight just looks risky dinky. If there was one to go out on, I’m so glad we got to do that for Sammy. He’s one of my kiddos. To do that for him and be part of that was great.”