Cody Rhodes praises Shaq for his performance on AEW Dynamite

All things considered, last Wednesday’s Cody Rhodes and Red Velvet vs. Shaquille O’Neal and Jade Cargill tag team match on All Elite Wrestling (AEW): Dynamite was a critical and commercial success.

The high-profile showdown made good use of Rhodes and especially O’Neal’s star-power to establish Cargill and Velvet — who respectively delivered great promos during the build to this match — as key pieces to an ascending women’s division while maximizing Shaq’s size and natural charisma.

As such, Rhodes, who helped a great deal in making O’Neal look like a monster once the bell rang, had plenty of positive things to say about the Naismith Hall of Famer’s efforts inside the squared circle.

Cody Rhodes spoke well of Shaq’s performance on AEW Dynamite

Speaking with Action Sports Jax on ESPN Jacksonville, Rhodes had this to say about Shaq (h/t to Fightful’s Jeremy Lambert for the transcription):

"After it was over, I can tell you, [Shaq] has the bug. The one thing I did tell him, and we didn’t talk much, but I told him, ‘I think you’re a wrestler now.’ I meant that. There are matches people want to see, he took training very seriously, he brings eyes to our product and perhaps those eyes stay and watch the pure wrestling.”"

O’Neal and Cargill picked up the win after Cargill delivered her version of the Glam Slam to Velvet and pinned her in the middle of the ring. While Shaq didn’t factor into the decision, he stood out thanks to him hitting a Brodie Lee tribute powerbomb on Rhodes and taking a crossbody from Rhodes through two ringside tables. This led to an O’Neal stretcher job, but shortly after, he had disappeared from the ambulance truck he was loaded into.

You can read or listen to what else Rhodes said during his appearance by clicking the links above.