Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson had a major impact on the wrestling industry in four different decades at various points. Acting made Rock become an even rarer presence in WWE than the older part-time wrestlers, but he did enough to create a legendary legacy. WWE even benefited from Rock returning to the company and having an official board of directors’ role with the new TKO ownership wanting him on board.
However, fans don’t get everything right about Rock when discussing the past, present, and future of his wrestling career. Rock can be misunderstood in certain contexts, despite being arguably the most famous name to ever come from pro wrestling. Each misconception will show things that fans get wrong about Rock.
Heel Rock Was His Most Successful Run
The Rock Had A More Successful Tenure As A Babyface Before Turn
Hollywood Rock Is Often the Favorite Gimmick Of Diehard Fans
Heel Characters Get More Respect Long-Term Than Face Runs
Babyface Run In 2000 Was More Important As The Top Superstar
The entertainment value of the “Hollywood Rock” chapter of The Rock made it become a legendary aspect of his career. Rock’s 2024 heel run heading into WrestleMania 40 channeled that character to create more conversations about it being his best version.
However, this takes away from Rock’s epic run from 1999 to 2001 as the top face. Rock was drawing massive money and helped WWE continue to grow during the beloved Attitude Era. The Hollywood Rock version was a more critically acclaimed act for how unique and unexpected it was at the time.
Wasn’t A Great In-Ring Bell To Bell Performer
The Rock’s Incredible Promo Skills Made His Matches Secondary To Some
Rock’s Larger Than Life Personality Made Fans Overlook Ring Work
Had Many Classic Matches Despite Having Shorter Run Than Most
Deserves More Respect For In-Ring Ability Vs Variety Of Opponents
The various qualities of a great wrestler often see the in-ring ability and character skills each discussed most to define wrestlers. An argument can be made The Rock was the greatest talker in wrestling history, but that caused some fans to overshadow his wrestling ability.
There is a narrative that Rock lacked in the ring compared to other top stars like Steve Austin and Triple H. However, Rock had many classics during a shorter top run than most. Great performances against the likes of Hulk Hogan, Kurt Angle, Brock Lesnar, and others showed Rock’s all-around greatness.
His Family Background Added Too Much Pressure For Debut
Bad Gimmick Was Bigger Reason For Flopping Early Than Family Ties
Rocky Maivia Chapter Of Rock’s Tenure Almost Ruined Career
Family Pressure Wasn’t Why His Early Run Wasn’t Working
Dead End Gimmick Being Removed Showed His Obvious Skills
WWE slowed down from referencing family too much with second generation wrestlers like Randy Orton after The Rock’s instant push flopped. Rocky Maivia was the name used for Rock’s early run as a generic babyface following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather.
The belief that the family pressure was why the babyface character get over was not accurate when looking back. Rocky had a fun debut match, but the stale gimmick was what caused fans to turn against him as a lame duck babyface.
Mankind Was His Only Noteworthy Tag Team Partner
Won WWE Tag Team Titles With Multiple Wrestlers Throughout His Career
Rock & Sock Tag Team Run Was Only Long Tag Team Stint Of The Rock’s
Fans Forget Rock’s Tag Team Title Reigns With Other Main Eventers
The Undertaker & Chris Jericho Teamed With Rock For Storylines
The Rock and Sock Connection found a lot of success, making fans view Mick Foley aka Mankind as The Rock’s only tag team partner since Rocky was known for his singles success and that one specific tag run.
However, it is worth mentioning that The Rock won WWE Tag Team Championship gold with two other partners in his career. The Undertaker and Chris Jericho partnered with Rock to win tag belts in layered storylines that focused on other things setting them up against mutual enemies.
The Infamous John Cena Feud Was A Disappointment
Box Office Results Overshadowed Critical Complaints About Feud
Rock & Cena Dominating Three Consecutive WM Seasons Upset Many Diehards
Buy Rate Records Proved Feud Was A Success With Casual Fans Buying Show
On A Very Short List For Most Financially Successful Feuds In WWE History
WWE put over two years of storytelling into The Rock and John Cena main eventing back-to-back WrestleMania events. WrestleMania 28 specifically set a record for the most PPV buys in company history due to general fan interest beyond the average weekly viewers.
Fans often complained about WWE booking the first match a year in advance and going back to it the following year. However, Rock’s name value as a major Hollywood movie star helped draw a lot of money against WWE’s top dog Cena.
He Was Rude To Shawn Michaels Backstage
Backstage Beef Was More Political Than Confrontational
Tension From Before Rock Was A Star Made Them Enemies
Rock Refused To Work Michaels In Dream Match During 2000s
Duo Never Had Any Reported Interactions Beyond Flexing Power
One of the few wrestlers to have personal issues with The Rock was Shawn Michaels. Rumors circulated that Rock made a demand to WWE that he’d refuse to ever wrestle a match against Michaels when pitched in the 2000s.
The drama went back to the early career of Rock when Michaels allegedly tried to hurt his career due to being in competition with Triple H as rising mid-carders. However, there were never any reported personal confrontations between the two, despite fans acting like they almost came to blows.
Accused Of Burying More Talents Than He Helped
Rock’s Promos Skewed How Much He Put Over Other Talents
Rock Temporarily Getting Cody’s WM Spot Caused Fans To Question Him
Hilarious Promos Running Down Others Could Be Defined As Burying Others
Rock Still Went Out Of His Way To Take Clean Losses To Elevate Other Wrestlers
The Rock almost taking Cody Rhodes’ spot as Roman Reigns’ challenger at WrestleMania 40 led to some reckless comments about him burying others throughout his career. Some fans truly believe this since Rock’s promo style ran down others and made the audience laugh at them.
Rock was actually more unselfish than previous top stars like Hulk Hogan, Steve Austin, and Shawn Michaels in that role. Chris Jericho, Kurt Angle, Brock Lesnar, Goldberg, and others scored huge wins in their careers thanks to Rock putting them over. Even a lower mid-card comedy act like The Hurricane defeated Rock due to Rock wanting to help his career.
He Never Passed Steve Austin As #1 Superstar
Rock Proved He Was “The Guy” In 2000 With Austin Injured
Rock Was A Strong #2 Behind Steve Austin In 1999
Austin’s Injury Required Rock Getting Even More Over
Rock Became The Top Face Even When Austin Returned
The Attitude Era remains a unique time in WWE history with two faces of the company at the same time. Steve Austin was the top dog in 1998 to 1999, while Rock was becoming a constant main eventer moving from the heel to face roles. Fan comments often claim Rock never reached the same level of Austin in their peak runs.
An injury to Austin saw Rock stepping up as the face of the company in 2000 and continuing the incredible momentum. WWE didn’t miss a beat with Austin out due to Rock’s excellent performances. The return of Austin saw him eventually turning heel after a few months due to Rock passing him as the top spot.