On the latest episode of his podcast, What Do You Wanna Talk About?, Cody Rhodes shared the exciting news that his two nephews, Wyatt and Wayne Rhodes, are currently training to become professional wrestlers, officially launching the third generation of the legendary Rhodes family legacy. During his conversation with Nikki Bella, Rhodes also revealed a fascinating piece of wrestling history, stating that WWE producer TJ Wilson (Tyson Kidd) was his father Dusty Rhodes’ “number one” student in NXT.
The topic arose as Nikki Bella was praising the training she receives from Wilson and Natalya at their “Dungeon 2.0” facility. Rhodes wholeheartedly agreed and shared that he wants his own family to learn from them as they embark on their own careers.
The Next Rhodes Generation
“My nephews are getting in the business. They’ve been training for a few years with Dustin,” Rhodes revealed. “They’re right at the point where I’m like, ‘Oh, it’s getting serious.’ Both handsome, too. And they have a lot of Dusty… Dusty skipped me, but he got them.”
Wyatt and Wayne Rhodes are the sons of Cody’s sister, Kristin, and the grandsons of “The American Dream” Dusty Rhodes. They have been training under the guidance of their uncle, Dustin Rhodes, at his Rhodes Wrestling Academy (RWA) in Texas. The duo made their official professional debut as the tag team “The Texas Outlaws” at an RWA Showcase event on March 24, 2024, competing for the promotion’s tag team titles in their first match.
Early Career and AEW Appearances
Since their debut, Wyatt and Wayne have begun to make a name for themselves. Wrestling as “The New Texas Outlaws,” a homage to their grandfather’s famous tag team with Dick Murdoch, the brothers have competed in several matches for the RWA, which are available on the school’s YouTube channel.
The third-generation stars have also had a taste of the big time, making a couple of appearances for All Elite Wrestling. In August 2024, they competed in a dark match before an episode of AEW Collision, where they were victorious.
Cody’s Advice and “Dusty’s Number One Kid”
While he is proud of the training they are receiving from his brother, Dustin, Rhodes believes it is crucial for them to get experience outside of their family’s sphere of influence to truly grow as performers. “I told him, ‘You know, you should go to Nattie and TJ’s,'” he said. “That’s the best thing, like a Nepo baby can do, is get outside your zone, honestly, into another zone, and you’re just gonna be so much better for it.”
Rhodes then shared a story that highlights the immense respect his late father had for TJ Wilson’s talent and mind for the business. The story provides a fascinating glimpse into Dusty’s time as a coach and mentor in NXT. “A thing people don’t realize is in the ‘Dusty’s Kids’ conversation of all his NXT kids, no one has ever figured out his number one was TJ,” Rhodes stated. “He loved TJ… so we handed out all these pocket knives when he passed away, because that was my dad’s way of saying, ‘You’re a friend.’ He’d give you a knife. I feel like we gave TJ, like, 30 knives, like, just every other week, because he was his number one Dusty kid.”
Rhodes explained what his father saw in the technically gifted performer. “He just thought TJ had everything. He’s like, ‘Oh, it’s great. He can do this, he can do that,’ and he could trust him,” he recalled. “He was consistent… he puts on a main event performance, whether there’s 13 people or 1,300 people or 13,000 people. And I feel like people don’t know, like, TJ is the one.”
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article please credit What Do You Wanna Talk About? with a h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription.
