Steve Austin says he ‘loved’ the finish to Roman Reigns vs. Cody at WWE WrestleMania

Steve Austin thought the ending to Cody Rhodes vs. Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 39 was “magnificent.” 

Austin spoke with Sports Illustrated recently and discussed Reigns’ defeat of Rhodes on the show. 

He said:

“I’m going all-in. To me, they got it just right.

I was wondering how they were going to do this match. They built it perfectly. I told my wife, ‘I think they’re going 30 [minutes].’ They ended up going just over 34, and it was a classic. I loved it, and I wouldn’t have changed a thing. I texted a couple people who were involved, and I sent a one-word text: Magnificent.”

The finish of the match saw Solo Sikoa return to ringside after having been ejected earlier. He hit Rhodes with a Samoan Spike and Reigns followed it up with a spear for the win. 

Austin continued to say that he loved how the match came to a conclusion. 

“I loved the finish,” Austin said. “I loved all of it. Roman is so good right now. The story was there—Cody coming back from injury, coming back into the fold after he left from AEW, and putting himself in the position he’s in now, overcoming all this adversity as part of one of the most famous wrestling families that’s ever been in the business, and trying to finish the story against Roman.

“I watched both nights of WrestleMania 39 very intently. To me, you can’t take that belt off Roman right now. You want to get it to Cody somehow, someway, some time—but now’s not the time.”

Austin continued to speak about the outside interference at the end of the match, saying:

“Just thinking about that finish, I thought it was definitely the right call. I loved the outside interference. You didn’t know what was coming next. That spike to the throat, for me, it was money.”

The finish to Reigns vs. Rhodes has been a frequently debated topic since the conclusion of WM39 night two. Paul Heyman told Ariel Helwani earlier this month that he feels Rhodes is a bigger star as a result of the loss. Heyman noted that the reaction to Cody on the Raw after WrestleMania “was louder than the response last week to Cody Rhodes.”

Cody’s older brother Dustin told Busted Open Radio earlier this week that he also enjoyed the finish to the match, saying, “They are making him pay for it now, they are making him earn it and I like that, I do. I like that because once you put the title on him, where are you going?”