The Rock's 12 Most Legendary Moments In WWE (#12-9)
Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is arguably the most successful wrestler who ever lived. After his successful stint in pro wrestling, in which he most recently won the WWE Championship in 2013, he shifted into the world of Hollywood where he is now known as one of the most top grossing actors in the entire industry.
The Rock stars in Hercules, which is set for a release on July 25th. The myth that surrounds the Greek demigod is that he had to overcome 12 labors, which is fitting for our feature on one of WWE's greatest
legends.
Wrestling Inc. is proud to give you The Rock's 12 Greatest Moments In WWE History, counting down the top moments of his wrestling career.
Without further ado, here is our first installment, where we begin with numbers 12 to 9:
12. The Rock debuts at Survivor Series 1996 as Rocky Maivia, wins as the Sole Survivor
Complete with a hysterical costume, The Rock debuted as Rocky Maivia, the clean-cut third generation superstar who ended up being the sole survivor at Survivor Series 1996, pinning both Crush and Goldust for the win.
The future WWE champion would win the WWE Intercontinental Championship a few months later over Triple H (then known as Hunter Hearst Helmsley), but fans quickly turned on the babyface, chanting "Die, Rocky, Die" during his tenure.
11. Rocky Maivia Ditches His Name For The Rock, Joins The Nation of Domination
Upset with the way fans had treated him, Johnson turned heel and ditched the name Rocky Maivia in favor of The Rock, which was the best thing that could have possibly happened to him.
He instantly received heat for joining The Nation of Domination, yet the fandom started to appreciate The Rock's new persona, since he was oozing with charisma and showed a lot of promise for the future. Little did they know he would become one of the greatest superstars to compete in WWE, and one of the main attractions in the 1990s.
10. The Rock Sings With Stone Cold Steve Austin
One of the most memorable feuds of all-time in pro wrestling history featured both The Rock and Steve Austin. They were WWE's two biggest stars, and fans would tune into weekly episodic programs Monday Night Raw (often referred to Raw Is War and SmackDown) just to get a glimpse of either comedic sequences or violent beatdowns courtesy of these two major players.
Ahead of their match up at Survivor Series 2001, where Team WWE would face The Alliance, The Rock and Austin stole the mic from each other in a promo that went far too long after the show's time slot, only to exchange sing-alongs for the enthusiastic crowd.
9. The Rock Returns To Headline WrestleMania 28 vs. John Cena
Nobody could make a return to WWE quite like The Rock. Surely, Austin and Chris Jericho come close, but they call Johnson the most electrifying superstar in sports entertainment for a reason. Thanks to the Internet, the Portland crowd knew what to expect.
The Oregon fans started chanting his name seconds before his theme song hit, erupting when the "Great One" made his presence felt. The Rock then took shots at John Cena, who eventually made his way down the ramp to confront his WrestleMania 28 adversary.
The two would have an average match in the main event, with The Rock coming out on top. Many felt the legend should have passed the torch to Cena, much like Hulk Hogan did to him years before, but The Rock and Cena would meet the following year, with an outcome different from their first meeting.