Cody

Game plan:

From a neutral position, Cody can have a surprising amount of control over Ryu during footsies. The tools that usually give Ryu an edge on the ground become not only neutralized by Cody, but extremely punishable. By showing Ryu that he cannot use these tools anymore, Cody is able to even out the poking fight, and almost completely control the pacing of the match.

Ryu has two main pokes that outclass anything Cody has on the ground: Fireball and Sweep. Luckily, Cody has perfect punishes for both these pokes that make them unusable for Ryu. Holding a normal Zonk at all times can completely remove the threat of Fireballs, as they can be punished on reaction with it. Additionally, if Ryu cancels into a Fireball from a max range c.MK, Cody can Zonk during the gap in blockstun to punish that as well. For Ryu's Sweep, Cody can punish it with MK Ruffian Kick from any range (as well as U2 if Cody has it stocked). Punishing both the Fireballs and Sweeps are not only good damage and stun, but they also both knockdown and push Ryu towards the corner, which is excellent for Cody.

Once Ryu has been forced to stop using these tools, the resulting ground game can be easily managed by Cody. Ryu's will be basically dissolved down to c.MK, c.MP and t.HP. Against this set of pokes, Cody's c.MP, s.MK and t.MP are very solid. s.MK can stuff any of Ryu's options, and is useful against Ryu's c.MK specifically. On the other hand, t.MP can be used to whiff punish Ryu's c.MK and then hit confirmed into nice damage and a knockdown. If Ryu is using a lot of c.MP, using Cody's c.MP out of range, and option selecting it into MK or EX Ruffian Kick is a great way to beat it, and again score a knockdown.

Also, it is worth noting that once the overall pace of the match has been slowed by Cody, LP and MP Bad Stone become very valuable pokes. Although the startup can be reacted to with a Sweep for example, if used just out of range of this it becomes a nearly risk-free poke as long as it is not abused.

If Cody gets knocked down, Ryu's pressure is not especially scary. Since Cody will have a decent amount of control during the neutral game, if he does get knocked down, it should be mid screen, rather then in the corner. As long as Cody is not cornered, the overall damage potential of Ryu is not that scary, and Cody should simply play patient and wait out the pressure. Additionally, Bad Spray is a big risk against Ryu, even if he has zero meter. He can always punish with t.HP into whatever for huge damage which makes Bad Spray a very weak option.

Notes:

• Most of Cody's meaties trade with Ryu's Dragon Punch for a decent trade in damage, though Cody gets knocked down

Punishes:

• Zonk punishes Fireballs on reaction easily because of Ryu's outstretched hands
• MK Ruffian Kick and U2 punishes Ryu's Sweep from any range
• Whiffed MK or HK Hurricane Kick (Cody crouches under): Sweep

Video References

The videos below were hand picked as some of the best videos showcasing the Cody vs Ryu matchup. However, there are currently 9 other videos in our database of this matchup.