WWE Raw after WrestleMania results, recap, grades: The Rock promises a future match with Cody Rhodes

The story of Cody Rhodes as champion is just beginning, as made clear by 'The Final Boss'

One night after the conclusion of WrestleMania 40, WWE made it clear that Cody Rhodes "finishing the story" was not the end of the bigger picture for Rhodes. As Rhodes celebrated becoming the undisputed WWE universal champion, he was confronted by "The Final Boss" The Rock, who made it clear that his long-term goal was an eventual one-on-one match with Rhodes.

Rhodes was introduced by Triple H, who shared an emotional video package covering Rhodes' journey to become champion with his victory over Roman Reigns in the main event of Night 2 of WrestleMania 40. The Rock then made his way to the ring, telling Rhodes that, while he was stepping away for the time being, he would eventually return for a match with Rhodes, whether for the championship or not.

It was a major moment for the new champion that drove home that a win over Reigns was not the end of his journey, but only the start.

CBS Sports was with you all night with recaps and highlights of all the action from Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

The Rock promises a future match with Cody Rhodes

The show opened with Triple H in the ring, thanking the fans for the atmosphere and business created by WrestleMania 40. He then welcomed the man who was now at the center of the business, the new undisputed WWE universal champion, Cody Rhodes. Triple H then aired an emotional video package covering Rhodes' journey to his win over Roman Reigns at Night 2 of WrestleMania.

Rhodes began to cut a promo when he was cut off by The Rock's music. The Rock came to the ring where he confronted Rhodes. Rock said he was going to go away for a while but that he would be back for Rhodes. The two exchanged championship belts briefly, with Rhodes holding Rock's "People's Champion" belt while Rock placed the undisputed WWE universal championship over his shoulder, saying it felt right. Rhodes said that he knows The Rock is his boss, but that he's the champion, and he's the champion of the fans, and that means he's The Rock's champion as well. The Rock agreed before placing something in Rhodes' hand, telling Rhodes he knows what it is without even opening his hand and telling Rhodes to never break his heart again.

If there is one thing that truly marks the Triple H era of WWE, it is long-term booking. What did The Rock put in Rhodes' hand? We don't know, and we're not likely to know for quite some time. Everything about the 40+ minute open felt like it was further cementing Rhodes' place as "the man" now that he defeated Reigns. It seems impossible that Rhodes drops the title before he has a major match with The Rock now, and that is likely followed by a match between The Rock and Reigns. There's more than enough excitement in both of those matches to carry WWE forward for quite some time. Grade: A

What else happened on WWE Raw?

• Ilja Dragunov def. Shinsuke Nakamura via pinfall with a running headbutt. The NXT champion was also confirmed as being a part of the upcoming WWE draft, which takes place across the April 26 SmackDown and April 29 Raw.
• The Miz, R-Truth & John Cena def. The Judgment Day (Finn Balor, Dominik Mysterio & JD McDonagh) via pinfall after all three men hit Attitude Adjustments on the Judgment Day members. R-Truth challenged Judgment Day to a six-man tag including "the man you can't see" which eventually turned out to be Cena after the 16-time world champion ran in for the finish.
• Roxanne Perez def. Indi Hartwell via pinfall with the NXT women's champion making a big point as she came to Raw. Candice LeRae was less than pleased with the result at ringside.
• Sami Zayn & Chad Gable def. Imperium (Ludwig Kaiser & Giovani Vinci) via pinfall after Gable hit Vinci with Chaos Theory. Later in the show, Zayn told Gable that he knew he wanted a shot at the intercontinental championship and offered him a match next Monday in Montreal.
• Jade Cargill def. Chelsea Green via pinfall with Jaded. Green demanded a moment after not being given a "WrestleMania Moment" and was tossed into a match with Cargill, who defeated her in seconds.
• Jey Uso def. Drew McIntyre, Bronson Reed & Ricochet via pinfall when he pinned McIntyre with a splash to claim the No. 1 contender spot for the world heavyweight championship. McIntyre was ready to hit Uso with a Claymore when CM Punk arrived to grab McIntyre's leg, setting up Uso to get the win.