The biggest questionWWEfans had coming out ofWrestleMania 41was, “Where the hell was The Rock?”, and it wasn’t a good question, in the sense of “I’m curious about what’s going to happen now.” The common sentiment was, and still is, that Dwayne Johnson initiated a storyline back atElimination Chamber, with Cody Rhodes refusing to “sell his soul” to the Final Boss and John Cena turning heel, that he wasn’t willing to see through,ruining the main event ofWrestleMania 41.
In a long appearanceon the Pat McAfee showon Tuesday, the Director of the Board of TKO addressed his conspicuous absence from WWE’s biggest PLE of the year. However, based on the comments and the reactions online, this didn’t do much to quench the fans' fiery feelings. Despite that, Rock still provided some insight into the process that led toElimination Chamberfirst and thenWrestleMania. Whether fans believe him or not is a whole other matter.
The Rock Thinks He Wasn’t Needed at WrestleMania
Apparently, “Selling Your Soul” Is a One-and-Done Thing
The Rock’s explanation is actually quite a sensible one. Starting from what motivated the presence of the Final Boss atElimination Chamber(more on that later), he points out that, basically, his job was done after that.John Cena’s heel runwas so compelling and entertaining thatthere was no need for The Rock to get involved in that. It’s true that Cena and Rhodes had their own story to tell atWrestleMania 41, and the cumbersome presence of Dwayne Johnson could have taken the spotlight away from a historical moment not just for Cena, but for pro wrestling in general. However, fans are complaining that if that was the reasoning, then there was no need for Travis Scott to interfere, too.
Earlier in the interview, Rock explained thathis presence atElimination Chamberwas motivated by low ticket sales. WWE and TKO wanted to raise interest in a PLE that was smothered between theRoyal RumbleandWrestleMania, and the announcement that Cody would have to answer the Final Boss’s request during the show surely created a big buzz. The backstory on the whole “sell your soul” deal, however, is where things get a little weird. According to Rock, he wanted to get a “temperature check” on Cody selling his soul to the Final Boss. The intention was not to turn him heel soon, but to establish this story and see how people reacted. Then, Triple H pitched to Johnson about Cena turning heel, and he was immediately hooked.
To many who watched this interview, this seemed likea replay of Rock’s statements during the infamousWrestleMania XLdocumentary, where he claimed ownership of the idea of Cody finishing the story and beating Roman Reigns for the title, despite all the evidence pointing to the fact he would have rather seen himself and Reigns in the main event. The rumors floating around afterElimination Chamberwere that Rock indeed wanted Rhodes to turn heel, but the latter refused, and Triple H was able to swerve things into the much-awaited Cena heel run. It seems, thus, that Johnson is trying to justify two very criticized decisions in one sweep, but with scarce success.
Cena’s “Evil” Persona Is Based on Truth
The Rock went on to address Cena’s current heel run, and he added that John is not “a bad guy”. While some fans have taken this statement as yet another attempt by Johnson to kill kayfabe,something that WWE seems very keen on these days, he was actually providing interesting commentary on Cena’s words and actions. Rock said that Cena is, essentially, speaking the truth about his “toxic” relationship with fans, which adds realism to his current performance.
At this point, Johnson repeated that, once it was set for Cena to become the “GOAT” atWrestleMania41by winning his record-breaking 17th World Title, there was no need for the Final Boss to appear.The idea of Cody selling his soul, however, seems strong in his mind, and he stated a couple of times that they can always come back to it (which means they probably will.) He didn’t go too much into the presence of Travis Scott, but made it clear that, as he could not commit to post-WrestleMania appearances, he thought it was better not to insert himself into the finish of the match. This, however, will only reinforce the opinion of fans who are criticizing him for starting a storyline he was not committed to finishing.
What Was Wrong With the Ending of WrestleMania 41?
The Rock Is Missing a Bigger Point
Considering it’s impossible to know if Johnson is telling the truth about how things went down, we should take his word at face value, but with some nuance. He is, however, missing a bigger point about the main event ofWrestleMania 41Night 2 and his own involvement with WWE, in general. The Rock’s presence atElimination Chambercan be fully justified with a desire to boost ticket sales (that’s his job, after all), but it seems clear he was attached to this idea of Cody selling his soul. When this didn’t happen, and the story went another way, the impression fans have is that Rock took his ball and went home, refusing to get involved inWrestleManiaeven if that would have made more sense storywise.
While it was correct to leave the spotlight to Cena, however, Johnson is missing the fact thathe could have still gotten involved without appearing in Las Vegas. He could have shown up on the Road to WrestleMania, perhaps on the finalMonday Night Raw, just to remind everyone that he was the one who started all this, and to give Cena his blessing. He could have appeared in a video if he couldn’t show up in person, and it would have been still better than nothing. Instead, with his conspicuous absence during the build, he created huge expectations for his appearance at ‘Mania, which reached an apex when Scott showed up, ending up disappointing fans.
When people start calling you “black Hulk Hogan,” it is perhaps time to reflect on the consequences of your decisions. The Rock is obviously untouchable in his status as a mainstream superstar and the Director of the Board of TKO, but that doesn’t mean he has to stay involved with the creative side of things. If his involvement with WWE keeps creating controversy, the better option could be retiring the Final Boss once and for all.
