Friday's episode of SmackDown delivered a major reveal as Pat McAfee was confirmed to be the mystery voice behind Randy Orton’s phone calls, making his presence felt by attacking WWE Champion Cody Rhodes.
Later in the night, Rhodes returned to the ring and didn’t hold back as he reacted to the reveal, taking aim at both McAfee and the situation as a whole.
“We got all dressed up in St. Louis tonight to find out who Randy Orton was talking to on the phone. And color me surprised, it was Pat McAfee. That’s like if Scott Hall and Kevin Nash talked about the third man in the nWo, and instead of Hulk Hogan, it was Disco Inferno.”
Rhodes then shifted his focus toward WWE management, delivering a sharp and defiant message as tensions continue to build heading into WrestleMania.
“Oh no, was that too far? What are you gonna do, fire me? It sure worked out for you the last time… I am hearing those voices inside my head, finally. But you don’t wanna hear what they have to say!”
The mention of Disco Inferno also appeared to reference Rhodes’ past online exchange with Glenn Gilbertti back in 2018, a moment that gained traction among fans at the time. Gilbertti had posted, “Nobody knows how to ‘work’ anymore. They would rather kill each other to get Dave Meltzer to put their match over.”
Rhodes fired back with a pointed response of his own, saying, “Stop. You know nothing. You have drawn O dollars. No fan has ever left a show thinking about you. You were lucky to be a juiced up double-lifer ‘over with the boys’ type in an era where you hid in plain sight coasting on others’ success. Couldn’t hang then, can’t get booked now.”