The Rock - The Greatest of All Time?

**Marc the Smark** · 05-02-2004, 02:32 AM

Now just to let everyone know, I did not write this, but see what you think...
(It's long, but well written, and could create an interesting discussion.)

The Rock undoubtedly has IT. He has the body (6�5, 225lbs). He has the charisma. He brings an unparalleled energy into the squared circle. As a 3rd generation superstar, he was born into the business. He started out as Rocky Maivia and pushed as the supreme babyface. What did he get? �Die Rocky Die� chants. After becoming �The Rock�, he has accomplished what few can even fathom. He is a 7 time WWE champion, 2 time Intercontinental champion and a 4 time tag-team champion with 3 different partners (twice with Mankind in the Rock�n Sock Connection and one reign with Jericho and Undertaker. He won the 2000 Royal Rumble and has Main-Evented FIVE Wrestlemanias. (He was in the title match at WM15-16-17 and was in THE match with Hogan at 18. Austin/Rock was the biggest draw at WM19). There are few, if any, things he has yet to accomplish in the wrestling business.

Because of all that, we have to ask ourselves: Is the Rock the greatest ever? I think he must be considered in the Top 5, possibly in the Top 3. There are some things that no one wrestler in the history of this industry has accomplished that Rock has.

He is the only successful wrestler/actor. Hulk Hogan and Stone Cold Steve Austin, WWF�s top faces at the time, bombed. Rock is now a celebrity. This has upset a lot of people. They feel betrayed by the Rock, as if he turned his back on them. I say that is false on a lot of levels. Let�s not compare the Rock to Chyna who thought she could be a superstar without the publicity machine that is the WWE. Chyna, after leaving and burning any possible bridge back, was initially in a few magazines, but is now all but forgotten. Rock, on the other hand, has done everything right. After getting Vince McMahon�s approval, he went to Hollywood and conquered it. He has starred in his own movie, therefore getting mainstream appeal to the WWE which seems to be lost upon the IWC community. We have to remember that the Rock hasn�t ONLY filmed the Scorpion King, but hosted SNL as well. This may not seem as a big deal, but SNL is an extremely popular show and surely generated interest amongst the �hip� crowd. The Rock has come back every time the WWE has asked him to. He is loyal to the company that give him his shot and that has made him famous. Should he be attacked for doing what any man would have done? Absolutely not. The Rock wants to do both, so he does it. Power to him. No one understands what the Rock goes through as he�s the only one with enough talent to pull this off correctly. Considering that acting pays more, is safer and he gets to see his family more, it�s a wonder why he does any wrestling at all. Why does he still do it then? Because he loves the business. He will come back and re-inspire us. In 2003, when was wrestling at its best? When Rock was there. RAW from WM to Backlash was great. After the loss to Goldberg, there was a void missing�.no one was able to fill it. As wrestling fans, we all want Rock to appear on the shows. However, as human beings, we must respect the man�s choice. If given the same choice as him, I would take acting in an heartbeat.

Now, onto more wrasslin. I have seen the greatest matches of the greatest wrestlers in the Big 3, seen the Rock since he�s big push at Survivor Series 1998 and I have arrived at one conclusion about the Rock: No man has brought more energy to a WWE ring. Say what you want about his wrestling ability, but this man knows the in-works of a wrestling match. Of course, no one will confuse him with the Steamboats, Flairs and Harts of the world, but none of those men brought the same aura as he did to the ring. When he saw those men wrestle, we knew we�d see a good match, no matter the opponent. With Rocky, you know you�re getting a good match, but for not for the same reasons. You were in awe of Bret�s masterful psychology (excluding WM12), but you also love the Rock�s enthusiasm. Rock makes everyone look golden. He has the ability to make you look like a main-eventer despite being a mid-carder. He�s the Ric Flair of our generation without the excellent mat skills.

Quite a few people complain about his lack of mat prowess. I cringe every time he butchers the sharpshooter. In fact, I wonder if Vince asked him to use it on a regular basis after seeing Rock apply once to mock Bret. He doesn�t even sell very well. Example: Benoit is working on Rock�s ribs. Rocky, at least, holds his ribs as he and Benoit exchange blows. Benoit missed a closeline and Rocky hits a Belly to Belly. That�s not selling well as hitting a belly-to-belly depends on core (which is back-stomach) strength which Benoit has pounded the entire match. To make matters worse, Rock gets up doing his flip thing to show that he�s still in the match. Again, that completely disregards everything that Benoit has done in the match. Rocky may be a great bumper, but he can�t sell at all. However, this creates SUPER ROCK. Rocky loses to everyone, but it takes every finisher and the kitchen sink to put him down for the three count. This leads to one thing that he has done better than any Main-Eventer in history: put people over.

Rock became a Main-Eventer in November 1998. We�re in mid-2003. In 5 years, he�s put over virtually every new Main-Eventer. What�s the first big feud he was in? With Mankind. Foley finally won a championship. No one believed Foley was championship material after that point, yet Rocky gave him the belt. HBK and Austin never would have done that (HBK doesn�t lose the belt, he vacates it or Austin would have had the entire locker room hit him with chairs). Rocky/Mankind then had a feud that established him as a Main-Eventer after the brutal �I Quit� match at the RR, Halftime heat match and the Ladder Match on RAW. After losing to Austin at back-to-back PPVs, he was cut loose by the Corporation, then lost to Taker in his first title match since turning face at KOTR99. Another loss followed at the hands of HHH (who was getting an equally big push as a heel) in a strap match at Fully Loaded. Rocky kept on losing the big matches (which is a recurring theme in his career), yet he was the #2 face in the company behind Austin. That�s a testament to Rocky�s ability. He then drew the bad card. He was forced into a program with Billy Gunn in the effort to put the guy over. At Summerslam, as the #2 match on the card, Gunn dropped the ball and the match bombed. He then got a quick mini-feud with Chris Jericho who made his debut on RAW interrupting a Rock promo. Rocky beat Jericho on a RAW match later that month, but Jericho seemed important (however, he was stuck with feuds with Shamrock, X-Pac and Road Dogg). Then, the Rock�n Sock Connection came about. In my opinion, that made Rocky HUGE. �Rock, This is your life� is the highest rated segment in RAW history. After tag-team reigns, he finally broke away from it and was part of Survivor Series 99 in the surprise night where Austin got injured and would be out for 10 months and the Big Show won the WWF championship. Rock became the #1 Face in the company. He carried it very well. I�ll stop the history lesson right now since the majority of you, most likely, remember 2000 to present. Here�s a quick list of people he has put over
- Kurt Angle. No Mercy 2000
- Chris Jericho. No Mercy 2001 -Vengeance 2001- Royal Rumble 2002 �
- Brock Lesnar. Summerslam 2002

Those are three of the biggest names in the sport. What other new Main-Eventer is there? None. Why? Only Rock puts people over. Heck, even Hurricane(Shane Helms) has beaten Rock. It�s incredible when you consider the next point: He never wins the big matches.

What�s the biggest PPV? WrestleMania. He lost in the Main-Events of WM15-16-17. That�s downright horrible. He finally got rid of that stigma by beating Hogan and Austin at WM18-19 respectively, but, for awhile, he had that WM choker status. Since January 1999, he is 15-17 in Main-Events (and #1 contender matches). That�s low considering he�s the company�s biggest draw. That doesn�t even count all the RAW/SD! losses he has (Benoit-Hurricane-Booker T). You�re probably asking yourselves how Rock is as over as he does without getting the rub from the bookers. That brings us to our next point: he�s GOD on the microphone.

As Billy Gunn found out the hard way, you better be able to but killer promos or downright incredible in the ring to be able to feud with Rocky (which is why Benoit did ok in his mini-feud with Rock). Rock completely killed any heat Gunn had with the �Hi God, my name is Billy� promo. As fans, we all loved that promo as it was hilarious and it destroyed any momentum Gunn had after winning the now defunct King of the Ring therefore ending his push.

I think we all agree that Rock made a name for himself due to his earlier work in the NOD and then Corporate Rock cutting killer promos. Since I found Corporate Rock more entertaining, I�ll develop on that. Rocky, after that surprising win at Survivor Series, started, in my opinion, to really take off promo wise. He brought that cocky heel to a whole new level. His insults, at the time, were fresh and the fans loved every minute of it. The problem was that he was a heel and heels can�t be cheered. Rocky tried to make the fans stop cheering with �This ain�t sing-a-long with the Rock�, but that didn�t work. It�s also worthy to point that Rock was cutting better promos than fellow stable members Vince McMahon and Shane McMahon. I firmly believe that to get Rocky over as a heel they had to do something�enter Mick Foley. Mankind was what Rock needed. A face with a big following that could get Rock over as a heel. Although Nitro spoiled the ending for us (thank you Mr.Bischoff), Rocky lost the title to Mankind in one of the most emotional Raw is history. At the Royal Rumble in an �I Quit�, Rocky finally became a heel. He unleashed a fury of rage and anger that was sometimes hard to look at as Foley took chair shot after chair shot after chair shot. Fans loved Rocky for his promos, but they couldn�t respect him for what he did to their hero Foley. Rocky then cut some serious promos again which made him a true ME heel. Why is all this so important? Because for Austin/Rock to be a success, they needed Rock to be just that�a credible threat.

Now, there are two promos I want to talk about. To begin with, arguably the biggest debut in the history of wrestling, Jericho�s debut on RAW. Jericho was well-known in WCW for his ability to cut great promos and upon his entry to the WWF, he didn�t disappoint. What started off as cheers quickly turned to jeers as Jericho displayed his natural heel ability. The self-proclaimed millennium man then got interrupted by the People�s Champion�Then something strange happened: Rock had, for the first time, a legit opponent on the microphone. Every time Rocky hit something Jericho was right on cue. Of course, Rock looked better at the end, but Jericho might have been the first opponent that wasn�t made a complete fool out of (yes, I�m aware of his feud with Austin�believe it or not, I felt Austin looked good against McMahon, but bad against Rock). The second promo is the famous �I am not a joke� promo that Chris Jericho cut on the SD! before the Royal Rumble. Why is this an important part? For the first time in his entire career, Rock was speechless. Jericho had just cut the best promo of his life and the great Rocky couldn�t do anything. I feel it�s important because Rock finally showed some vulnerability in the area that he had been dominating for the past two years. Obviously, Rock did say something to recapture his composure. After that, I feel that Rock�s promos have slightly changed. They may still be very arrogant, but that invincibility factor isn�t there (see the Raw after No Way Out against Hogan)�

Now, let�s talk about the most important aspect of wrestling�the matches. There are three major matches, in my opinion, that define Rock�s career �I Quit� with Mankind, WM17 with Stone Cold Steve Austin and No Mercy 2001 with Chris Jericho. They all represent different �phases� of wrestling. I�ve already discussed Rock�s match with Foley, so there�s no point in reliving it. However, just keep in mind that it was, obviously, brutal, and was, in my opinion, his best gimmick match surpassing the Iron Man and Ladder matches with HHH. His match with Austin at WM17 is probably the best of the three wrestlemania matches. That match is sports entertainment wrestling at its finest: Lots of brawling and the always fun rest-spot-rest-spot. However, the psychology was top-notch. I always knew Austin was capable of this (thanks to his encounters with Bret Hart), but Rock had never really been at that level. Although I always appreciated Rock�s energy in the ring I never believed that he could kick it up another level and produce a MOTY candidate. I was wrong and I am thankful for that. Although I still don�t like the finish of that match, I can�t deny its greatness. Now I will discuss what I believe is Rock�s greatest match ever: No Mercy2001 with Chris Jericho. It had everything you could want: good psychology, quality wrestling, a storyline that played into the match (could Jericho pin the Rock and dispel the choker status). Jericho and Rock played off each other perfectly as each man showed off their strengths and tried their best to hide their weaknesses. The finish wasn�t clean and I thought it was acceptable as Rocky (since his Main-Event face turn) has always been the ultimate babyface as no one could pin him clean at the time. However, fans didn�t care as Jericho was a face at the time and they finally got a chance to see him win the belt that had eluded him so far in his career. I wish Jericho/Rock wrestled more often�

To finish this, we must remember that asking if someone is the greatest ever is extremely difficult as circumstances inhibit wrestlers from achieving things they so rightly deserved (Ted Dibiase comes to mind). However, Rock should be included in that list thanks to all he has done in such a short period of time. His natural talent and charisma carried him to heights that possibly no one has achieved. It�s a shame certain wrestling fans dislike him for choosing film to wrestling as they might be missing out on the biggest thing our sport has ever seen�

**Rock Bottom** · 05-02-2004, 02:37 AM

What? The Rock can't sell? YOU ARE THE DUMBEST PERSON ON THE FACE OF THE PLANET. THE ROCK CAN SELL. Nice effort though.

**Marc the Smark** · 05-02-2004, 02:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rock Bottom

What? The Rock can't sell? YOU ARE THE DUMBEST PERSON ON THE FACE OF THE PLANET. THE ROCK CAN SELL. Nice effort though.

I did not write this, as I stated in the original post.

**Rock Bottom** · 05-02-2004, 02:43 AM

Did I say Red Hot Scott!?

**Marc the Smark** · 05-02-2004, 02:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rock Bottom

Did I say Red Hot Scott!?

Oops. Sorry about that. But I was the only person who posted, and you said, "You," so I thought you were talking to me.

**The Icon of Elisim** · 05-02-2004, 02:45 AM

He's in my top three with HBK and Bret Hart. Its too tough to call for me cause those guys are all the total package in my mind

**What Would Kevin Do?** · 05-02-2004, 02:49 AM

A lot of people can't sell that great... Rocky is on that list.... Rock is great... In terms of sports entertainment, I'll say he's #1... As far as wrestling, he leaves something to be desired.

05-02-2004, 02:54 AM

BAHGAWDORTONWITHTHERKOONTHEROCKDAMMITDAMMITSONOFABITCHWHYVINCEWHYWHYDAMHIMCOWARDDONTDOITIBETSOMEONEI STRYINGTODECIPHERTHISRIGHTNOWBAHGAWD

**Rock Bottom** · 05-02-2004, 02:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Red Hot Scott

Oops. Sorry about that. But I was the only person who posted, and you said, "You," so I thought you were talking to me.

Well I was but I was trying to cover up my being an asshole and not seeing that you pointed that out

Anyway, I think the guy put in a good effort, but some of it is BS and it's really loopty-loop.

05-02-2004, 02:56 AM

sorry about that, that was my brother Coose Lannon.

**PureHatred** · 05-02-2004, 03:01 AM

He is the greatest "sports-entertainer" of all time.

The writer is correct in his assessment that Rocky has really exciting matches. He seems to elevate his game for big events. I think his psychology is underrated because he does a great job of telling a story and invoving the audience in the match. And this ability makes up for his lack of technical prowess.

And really, he is in a category by himself on the mic. heel, face..doesn't matter. The Rock is the goods. It's hard to call him the greatest 'pro wrestler' of all time though when he's spending a lot of his prime athletic years making movies.

Definitely top five though.

**Innovator** · 05-02-2004, 03:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rock Bottom

What? The Rock can't sell? YOU ARE THE DUMBEST PERSON ON THE FACE OF THE PLANET. THE ROCK CAN SELL. Nice effort though.

watching his selling of the stunner is enough to prove he sells like a champ

**John la Rock** · 05-02-2004, 04:02 AM

The Rock is the all time grestest wrestler in the history of the WWE. He's the only man in wrestling who can play both a great babyface and heel. He is by far the best promo man in the history of the business. He is also one of the best in ring wrestlers too.

ROCK IS THE MAN

**Fryza** · 05-02-2004, 04:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Loose Cannon

BAHGAWDORTONWITHTHERKOONTHEROCKDAMMITDAMMITSONOFABITCHWHYVINCEWHYWHYDAMHIMCOWARDDONTDOITIBETSOMEONEI STRYINGTODECIPHERTHISRIGHTNOWBAHGAWD

I was

**James Steele** · 05-02-2004, 04:16 AM

1.: Rock is by far the greatest SPORTS ENTERTAINER of all time, yes even greater than hogan, He is the total package for sports entertainment. He has charisma out of the ass, He has the ultimate "it" factor, and he is good enough of a wrestler to hold things together.

2.: He is one of the 5 greatest of all time but no where near #1!

IMO, HBK/Flair/Hart have the top 3 secured. He and Stone Cold are fighting for who goes where on #4 & #5.

**EazyMack** · 05-02-2004, 05:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Loose Cannon

BAH GAWD ORTON WITH THE RKO ON THE ROCK DAMMIT DAMMIT SON OF A BITCH WHY VINCE WHY WHY DAM HIM COWARD DONT DO IT I BET SOMEONE IS TRYING TO DECIPHER THIS RIGHT NOW BAH GAWD

I think most will consider him the greatest ever by the time he's completely finished. Flair will always be #1 in my book, followed by Hulk Hogan (remember I said MY book).

**Goldbird** · 05-02-2004, 06:25 AM

If The Rock cant sell wrestling moves, then we might have to conclude lesnar cant even sell a pack of tissue paper....

**Ferocious** · 05-02-2004, 06:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Goldbird

If The Rock cant sell wrestling moves, then we might have to conclude lesnar cant even sell a pack of tissue paper....

Please dammit not again

**The Ravishing One** · 05-02-2004, 08:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John la Rock

The Rock is the all time grestest wrestler in the history of the WWE. He's the only man in wrestling who can play both a great babyface and heel. He is by far the best promo man in the history of the business. He is also one of the best in ring wrestlers too.

ROCK IS THE MAN

You my friend get a rep

**Goldbird** · 05-02-2004, 08:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ferocious

Please dammit not again

OMG. i did it again.

**Ferocious** · 05-02-2004, 08:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Goldbird

OMG. i did it again.

lol, you need a new gimmick bud the speaking pure ass isnt working for you.

**Rock Bottom** · 05-02-2004, 09:36 AM

The "you speak pure ass" gimmick is rather annoying too

**MVP** · 05-02-2004, 10:35 AM

Great read.

Definitely praiseworthy of praiseworthy articles.

Rocky and Lesnar CAN sell BTW.

**Mr. Nerfect** · 05-02-2004, 05:52 PM

Nope, definately not the best. Austin, Hogan, Kurt Angle, Triple H, The Undertaker, Eddie Guerrero and Brock Lesnar all topped The Rock, IMO. Maybe even Bret Hart? Rock wasa great edition to the WWE (and still could be), but he is definately not the greatest.

**What Would Kevin Do?** · 05-02-2004, 06:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John la Rock

The Rock is the all time grestest wrestler in the history of the WWE. He's the only man in wrestling who can play both a great babyface and heel. He is by far the best promo man in the history of the business. He is also one of the best in ring wrestlers too.

ROCK IS THE MAN

Jericho, HBK, and Flair can all play great baby faces and heels. Furthermore, HBK and Flair can go from one to another with very little transistion ( unlike other wrestlers where they have to make drastic changes or attacks.)

**John la Rock** · 05-02-2004, 06:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by What Would Kevin Do?

Jericho, HBK, and Flair can all play great baby faces and heels. Furthermore, HBK and Flair can go from one to another with very little transistion ( unlike other wrestlers where they have to make drastic changes or attacks.)

I dunno I think Flair and HBK are horrible faces. They both act as whinny veterans that the fans are just suppose to care about? Please. Flair and HBK are only entertaining as heels, but hey that's my opinion.

I'll agree with you on Jericho and only Jericho

**Rock Bottom** · 05-02-2004, 07:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alienoid06

Nope, definately not the best. Austin, Hogan, Kurt Angle, Triple H, The Undertaker, Eddie Guerrero and Brock Lesnar all topped The Rock, IMO. Maybe even Bret Hart? Rock wasa great edition to the WWE (and still could be), but he is definately not the greatest.

What? Guerrero is just now a main-eventer. Hogan has already been outdone. Kurt Angle, Triple H, and Undertaker are pretty believable arguements, and maybe even Hogan strictly for the past. But Brock Lesnar and Eddie surpassing The Rock is a little silly, but that's your opinion.

**Rob** · 05-02-2004, 07:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alienoid06

Nope, definately not the best. Austin, Hogan, Kurt Angle, Triple H, The Undertaker, Eddie Guerrero and Brock Lesnar all topped The Rock, IMO. Maybe even Bret Hart? Rock wasa great edition to the WWE (and still could be), but he is definately not the greatest.

What drugs have you been taking pal? In all round terms, only Austin comes close to The Rock. The draw roughly the same numbers when they were on top and were just as good as each other in the ring. Lesnar, Hogan, HHH and Taker aren't better wrestlers than Rocky and Guerrero and Angle aren't close to being the draws he is/was.

**The CyNick** · 05-03-2004, 12:37 AM

Yeah I'd vote Rock as best of all time

**CBright7831** · 05-03-2004, 12:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Loose Cannon

sorry about that, that was my brother Coose Lannon.

*hits the RKO on Loose Cannon*

Anyway, The Rock has contributed alot, but the greatest ever? I don't know.

**thuganomicalcrippler** · 05-03-2004, 01:43 PM

Right. Well I'm a huge fan of Jericho, but there's no one that brings as much electricity to the ring as the Rock. If ONLY, if ONLY he would return full time. Imagine him taking on Orton or Cena one on one. Wow.

**bradscott6997** · 05-03-2004, 05:13 PM

If the Rock returns, I'd love to see him feud with Jericho again. Not gonna happen, though since he'll probably be losing to Stevie Richards, Trish, or the returning Zach Gowan. He should be above Christian right now. What's up with that, anyway? Who did Y2J piss off?

**Marc the Smark** · 05-03-2004, 06:58 PM

It's really a damn shame we don't see The Rock more often.

**The Naitch** · 05-03-2004, 07:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alienoid06

Nope, definately not the best. Austin, Hogan, Kurt Angle, Triple H, The Undertaker, Eddie Guerrero and Brock Lesnar all topped The Rock, IMO. Maybe even Bret Hart? Rock wasa great edition to the WWE (and still could be), but he is definately not the greatest.

IMO, you should be shot

**The Ravishing One** · 05-03-2004, 07:41 PM

Agrees with The Naitch

**The Naitch** · 05-03-2004, 07:45 PM

*Agrees with you on agreeing with The Naitch*

**The Ravishing One** · 05-03-2004, 07:47 PM

*Agrees with you agreeing........

Im gonna STFU

**The Naitch** · 05-03-2004, 07:54 PM

Red Hott Scott said that Rock was 6'5'' 225lbs.

I dont think he's 225 lbs.

Shoot Red Hott Scott as well

**Disturbed316** · 05-03-2004, 07:56 PM

No, he is not the greatest.

**Bill Casey** · 05-03-2004, 07:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Innovator

watching his selling of the stunner is enough to prove he sells like a champ

I always imagine Rock will sell falling down several flights of stairs in one of his movies by doing alot of unnecessary flipping...

05-03-2004, 05:13 PM	#32
bradscott6997 Posts: 41	RE If the Rock returns, I'd love to see him feud with Jericho again. Not gonna happen, though since he'll probably be losing to Stevie Richards, Trish, or the returning Zach Gowan. He should be above Christian right now. What's up with that, anyway? Who did Y2J piss off?

05-02-2004, 02:32 AM	#1
Marc the Smark Posts: 2,064	The Rock - The Greatest of All Time? Now just to let everyone know, I did not write this, but see what you think... (It's long, but well written, and could create an interesting discussion.) The Rock undoubtedly has IT. He has the body (6�5, 225lbs). He has the charisma. He brings an unparalleled energy into the squared circle. As a 3rd generation superstar, he was born into the business. He started out as Rocky Maivia and pushed as the supreme babyface. What did he get? �Die Rocky Die� chants. After becoming �The Rock�, he has accomplished what few can even fathom. He is a 7 time WWE champion, 2 time Intercontinental champion and a 4 time tag-team champion with 3 different partners (twice with Mankind in the Rock�n Sock Connection and one reign with Jericho and Undertaker. He won the 2000 Royal Rumble and has Main-Evented FIVE Wrestlemanias. (He was in the title match at WM15-16-17 and was in THE match with Hogan at 18. Austin/Rock was the biggest draw at WM19). There are few, if any, things he has yet to accomplish in the wrestling business. Because of all that, we have to ask ourselves: Is the Rock the greatest ever? I think he must be considered in the Top 5, possibly in the Top 3. There are some things that no one wrestler in the history of this industry has accomplished that Rock has. He is the only successful wrestler/actor. Hulk Hogan and Stone Cold Steve Austin, WWF�s top faces at the time, bombed. Rock is now a celebrity. This has upset a lot of people. They feel betrayed by the Rock, as if he turned his back on them. I say that is false on a lot of levels. Let�s not compare the Rock to Chyna who thought she could be a superstar without the publicity machine that is the WWE. Chyna, after leaving and burning any possible bridge back, was initially in a few magazines, but is now all but forgotten. Rock, on the other hand, has done everything right. After getting Vince McMahon�s approval, he went to Hollywood and conquered it. He has starred in his own movie, therefore getting mainstream appeal to the WWE which seems to be lost upon the IWC community. We have to remember that the Rock hasn�t ONLY filmed the Scorpion King, but hosted SNL as well. This may not seem as a big deal, but SNL is an extremely popular show and surely generated interest amongst the �hip� crowd. The Rock has come back every time the WWE has asked him to. He is loyal to the company that give him his shot and that has made him famous. Should he be attacked for doing what any man would have done? Absolutely not. The Rock wants to do both, so he does it. Power to him. No one understands what the Rock goes through as he�s the only one with enough talent to pull this off correctly. Considering that acting pays more, is safer and he gets to see his family more, it�s a wonder why he does any wrestling at all. Why does he still do it then? Because he loves the business. He will come back and re-inspire us. In 2003, when was wrestling at its best? When Rock was there. RAW from WM to Backlash was great. After the loss to Goldberg, there was a void missing�.no one was able to fill it. As wrestling fans, we all want Rock to appear on the shows. However, as human beings, we must respect the man�s choice. If given the same choice as him, I would take acting in an heartbeat. Now, onto more wrasslin. I have seen the greatest matches of the greatest wrestlers in the Big 3, seen the Rock since he�s big push at Survivor Series 1998 and I have arrived at one conclusion about the Rock: No man has brought more energy to a WWE ring. Say what you want about his wrestling ability, but this man knows the in-works of a wrestling match. Of course, no one will confuse him with the Steamboats, Flairs and Harts of the world, but none of those men brought the same aura as he did to the ring. When he saw those men wrestle, we knew we�d see a good match, no matter the opponent. With Rocky, you know you�re getting a good match, but for not for the same reasons. You were in awe of Bret�s masterful psychology (excluding WM12), but you also love the Rock�s enthusiasm. Rock makes everyone look golden. He has the ability to make you look like a main-eventer despite being a mid-carder. He�s the Ric Flair of our generation without the excellent mat skills. Quite a few people complain about his lack of mat prowess. I cringe every time he butchers the sharpshooter. In fact, I wonder if Vince asked him to use it on a regular basis after seeing Rock apply once to mock Bret. He doesn�t even sell very well. Example: Benoit is working on Rock�s ribs. Rocky, at least, holds his ribs as he and Benoit exchange blows. Benoit missed a closeline and Rocky hits a Belly to Belly. That�s not selling well as hitting a belly-to-belly depends on core (which is back-stomach) strength which Benoit has pounded the entire match. To make matters worse, Rock gets up doing his flip thing to show that he�s still in the match. Again, that completely disregards everything that Benoit has done in the match. Rocky may be a great bumper, but he can�t sell at all. However, this creates SUPER ROCK. Rocky loses to everyone, but it takes every finisher and the kitchen sink to put him down for the three count. This leads to one thing that he has done better than any Main-Eventer in history: put people over. Rock became a Main-Eventer in November 1998. We�re in mid-2003. In 5 years, he�s put over virtually every new Main-Eventer. What�s the first big feud he was in? With Mankind. Foley finally won a championship. No one believed Foley was championship material after that point, yet Rocky gave him the belt. HBK and Austin never would have done that (HBK doesn�t lose the belt, he vacates it or Austin would have had the entire locker room hit him with chairs). Rocky/Mankind then had a feud that established him as a Main-Eventer after the brutal �I Quit� match at the RR, Halftime heat match and the Ladder Match on RAW. After losing to Austin at back-to-back PPVs, he was cut loose by the Corporation, then lost to Taker in his first title match since turning face at KOTR99. Another loss followed at the hands of HHH (who was getting an equally big push as a heel) in a strap match at Fully Loaded. Rocky kept on losing the big matches (which is a recurring theme in his career), yet he was the #2 face in the company behind Austin. That�s a testament to Rocky�s ability. He then drew the bad card. He was forced into a program with Billy Gunn in the effort to put the guy over. At Summerslam, as the #2 match on the card, Gunn dropped the ball and the match bombed. He then got a quick mini-feud with Chris Jericho who made his debut on RAW interrupting a Rock promo. Rocky beat Jericho on a RAW match later that month, but Jericho seemed important (however, he was stuck with feuds with Shamrock, X-Pac and Road Dogg). Then, the Rock�n Sock Connection came about. In my opinion, that made Rocky HUGE. �Rock, This is your life� is the highest rated segment in RAW history. After tag-team reigns, he finally broke away from it and was part of Survivor Series 99 in the surprise night where Austin got injured and would be out for 10 months and the Big Show won the WWF championship. Rock became the #1 Face in the company. He carried it very well. I�ll stop the history lesson right now since the majority of you, most likely, remember 2000 to present. Here�s a quick list of people he has put over - Kurt Angle. No Mercy 2000 - Chris Jericho. No Mercy 2001 -Vengeance 2001- Royal Rumble 2002 � - Brock Lesnar. Summerslam 2002 Those are three of the biggest names in the sport. What other new Main-Eventer is there? None. Why? Only Rock puts people over. Heck, even Hurricane(Shane Helms) has beaten Rock. It�s incredible when you consider the next point: He never wins the big matches. What�s the biggest PPV? WrestleMania. He lost in the Main-Events of WM15-16-17. That�s downright horrible. He finally got rid of that stigma by beating Hogan and Austin at WM18-19 respectively, but, for awhile, he had that WM choker status. Since January 1999, he is 15-17 in Main-Events (and #1 contender matches). That�s low considering he�s the company�s biggest draw. That doesn�t even count all the RAW/SD! losses he has (Benoit-Hurricane-Booker T). You�re probably asking yourselves how Rock is as over as he does without getting the rub from the bookers. That brings us to our next point: he�s GOD on the microphone. As Billy Gunn found out the hard way, you better be able to but killer promos or downright incredible in the ring to be able to feud with Rocky (which is why Benoit did ok in his mini-feud with Rock). Rock completely killed any heat Gunn had with the �Hi God, my name is Billy� promo. As fans, we all loved that promo as it was hilarious and it destroyed any momentum Gunn had after winning the now defunct King of the Ring therefore ending his push. I think we all agree that Rock made a name for himself due to his earlier work in the NOD and then Corporate Rock cutting killer promos. Since I found Corporate Rock more entertaining, I�ll develop on that. Rocky, after that surprising win at Survivor Series, started, in my opinion, to really take off promo wise. He brought that cocky heel to a whole new level. His insults, at the time, were fresh and the fans loved every minute of it. The problem was that he was a heel and heels can�t be cheered. Rocky tried to make the fans stop cheering with �This ain�t sing-a-long with the Rock�, but that didn�t work. It�s also worthy to point that Rock was cutting better promos than fellow stable members Vince McMahon and Shane McMahon. I firmly believe that to get Rocky over as a heel they had to do something�enter Mick Foley. Mankind was what Rock needed. A face with a big following that could get Rock over as a heel. Although Nitro spoiled the ending for us (thank you Mr.Bischoff), Rocky lost the title to Mankind in one of the most emotional Raw is history. At the Royal Rumble in an �I Quit�, Rocky finally became a heel. He unleashed a fury of rage and anger that was sometimes hard to look at as Foley took chair shot after chair shot after chair shot. Fans loved Rocky for his promos, but they couldn�t respect him for what he did to their hero Foley. Rocky then cut some serious promos again which made him a true ME heel. Why is all this so important? Because for Austin/Rock to be a success, they needed Rock to be just that�a credible threat. Now, there are two promos I want to talk about. To begin with, arguably the biggest debut in the history of wrestling, Jericho�s debut on RAW. Jericho was well-known in WCW for his ability to cut great promos and upon his entry to the WWF, he didn�t disappoint. What started off as cheers quickly turned to jeers as Jericho displayed his natural heel ability. The self-proclaimed millennium man then got interrupted by the People�s Champion�Then something strange happened: Rock had, for the first time, a legit opponent on the microphone. Every time Rocky hit something Jericho was right on cue. Of course, Rock looked better at the end, but Jericho might have been the first opponent that wasn�t made a complete fool out of (yes, I�m aware of his feud with Austin�believe it or not, I felt Austin looked good against McMahon, but bad against Rock). The second promo is the famous �I am not a joke� promo that Chris Jericho cut on the SD! before the Royal Rumble. Why is this an important part? For the first time in his entire career, Rock was speechless. Jericho had just cut the best promo of his life and the great Rocky couldn�t do anything. I feel it�s important because Rock finally showed some vulnerability in the area that he had been dominating for the past two years. Obviously, Rock did say something to recapture his composure. After that, I feel that Rock�s promos have slightly changed. They may still be very arrogant, but that invincibility factor isn�t there (see the Raw after No Way Out against Hogan)� Now, let�s talk about the most important aspect of wrestling�the matches. There are three major matches, in my opinion, that define Rock�s career �I Quit� with Mankind, WM17 with Stone Cold Steve Austin and No Mercy 2001 with Chris Jericho. They all represent different �phases� of wrestling. I�ve already discussed Rock�s match with Foley, so there�s no point in reliving it. However, just keep in mind that it was, obviously, brutal, and was, in my opinion, his best gimmick match surpassing the Iron Man and Ladder matches with HHH. His match with Austin at WM17 is probably the best of the three wrestlemania matches. That match is sports entertainment wrestling at its finest: Lots of brawling and the always fun rest-spot-rest-spot. However, the psychology was top-notch. I always knew Austin was capable of this (thanks to his encounters with Bret Hart), but Rock had never really been at that level. Although I always appreciated Rock�s energy in the ring I never believed that he could kick it up another level and produce a MOTY candidate. I was wrong and I am thankful for that. Although I still don�t like the finish of that match, I can�t deny its greatness. Now I will discuss what I believe is Rock�s greatest match ever: No Mercy2001 with Chris Jericho. It had everything you could want: good psychology, quality wrestling, a storyline that played into the match (could Jericho pin the Rock and dispel the choker status). Jericho and Rock played off each other perfectly as each man showed off their strengths and tried their best to hide their weaknesses. The finish wasn�t clean and I thought it was acceptable as Rocky (since his Main-Event face turn) has always been the ultimate babyface as no one could pin him clean at the time. However, fans didn�t care as Jericho was a face at the time and they finally got a chance to see him win the belt that had eluded him so far in his career. I wish Jericho/Rock wrestled more often� To finish this, we must remember that asking if someone is the greatest ever is extremely difficult as circumstances inhibit wrestlers from achieving things they so rightly deserved (Ted Dibiase comes to mind). However, Rock should be included in that list thanks to all he has done in such a short period of time. His natural talent and charisma carried him to heights that possibly no one has achieved. It�s a shame certain wrestling fans dislike him for choosing film to wrestling as they might be missing out on the biggest thing our sport has ever seen�

05-02-2004, 02:37 AM	#2
Rock Bottom Ball So Hard University Posts: 8,450	What? The Rock can't sell? YOU ARE THE DUMBEST PERSON ON THE FACE OF THE PLANET. THE ROCK CAN SELL. Nice effort though.

05-02-2004, 02:43 AM	#4
Rock Bottom Ball So Hard University Posts: 8,450	Did I say Red Hot Scott!?

05-02-2004, 02:45 AM	#6
The Icon of Elisim Elitist Member Posts: 15,438	He's in my top three with HBK and Bret Hart. Its too tough to call for me cause those guys are all the total package in my mind

05-02-2004, 02:49 AM	#7
What Would Kevin Do? Ninja Mod, Esquire Posts: 12,676	A lot of people can't sell that great... Rocky is on that list.... Rock is great... In terms of sports entertainment, I'll say he's #1... As far as wrestling, he leaves something to be desired.

05-02-2004, 02:54 AM	#8
Loose Cannon Guest Posts: n/a	BAHGAWDORTONWITHTHERKOONTHEROCKDAMMITDAMMITSONOFABITCHWHYVINCEWHYWHYDAMHIMCOWARDDONTDOITIBETSOMEONEI STRYINGTODECIPHERTHISRIGHTNOWBAHGAWD

05-02-2004, 02:56 AM	#10
Loose Cannon Guest Posts: n/a	sorry about that, that was my brother Coose Lannon.

05-02-2004, 03:01 AM	#11
PureHatred Instant Credibility Posts: 2,979	He is the greatest "sports-entertainer" of all time. The writer is correct in his assessment that Rocky has really exciting matches. He seems to elevate his game for big events. I think his psychology is underrated because he does a great job of telling a story and invoving the audience in the match. And this ability makes up for his lack of technical prowess. And really, he is in a category by himself on the mic. heel, face..doesn't matter. The Rock is the goods. It's hard to call him the greatest 'pro wrestler' of all time though when he's spending a lot of his prime athletic years making movies. Definitely top five though.

05-02-2004, 04:02 AM	#13
John la Rock That's how I roll!!! Posts: 4,437	The Rock is the all time grestest wrestler in the history of the WWE. He's the only man in wrestling who can play both a great babyface and heel. He is by far the best promo man in the history of the business. He is also one of the best in ring wrestlers too. ROCK IS THE MAN

05-02-2004, 04:16 AM	#15
James Steele TPWW's HHH Mark Since '04 Posts: 29,886	1.: Rock is by far the greatest SPORTS ENTERTAINER of all time, yes even greater than hogan, He is the total package for sports entertainment. He has charisma out of the ass, He has the ultimate "it" factor, and he is good enough of a wrestler to hold things together. 2.: He is one of the 5 greatest of all time but no where near #1! IMO, HBK/Flair/Hart have the top 3 secured. He and Stone Cold are fighting for who goes where on #4 & #5.

05-02-2004, 06:25 AM	#17
Goldbird Takes my pain away Posts: 2,793	If The Rock cant sell wrestling moves, then we might have to conclude lesnar cant even sell a pack of tissue paper....

05-02-2004, 09:36 AM	#22
Rock Bottom Ball So Hard University Posts: 8,450	The "you speak pure ass" gimmick is rather annoying too

05-02-2004, 10:35 AM	#23
MVP Mas Vagina Porfavor Posts: 11,343	Great read. Definitely praiseworthy of praiseworthy articles. Rocky and Lesnar CAN sell BTW.

05-02-2004, 05:52 PM	#24
Mr. Nerfect Posts: 61,520	Nope, definately not the best. Austin, Hogan, Kurt Angle, Triple H, The Undertaker, Eddie Guerrero and Brock Lesnar all topped The Rock, IMO. Maybe even Bret Hart? Rock wasa great edition to the WWE (and still could be), but he is definately not the greatest.

05-03-2004, 12:37 AM	#29
The CyNick Make the IWC Great Again Posts: 8,922	Yeah I'd vote Rock as best of all time

05-03-2004, 01:43 PM	#31
thuganomicalcrippler Peeps Unite Posts: 259	Right. Well I'm a huge fan of Jericho, but there's no one that brings as much electricity to the ring as the Rock. If ONLY, if ONLY he would return full time. Imagine him taking on Orton or Cena one on one. Wow.

05-03-2004, 06:58 PM	#33
Marc the Smark Posts: 2,064	It's really a damn shame we don't see The Rock more often.

05-03-2004, 07:41 PM	#35
The Ravishing One Hello Posts: 7,696	Agrees with The Naitch

05-03-2004, 07:45 PM	#36
The Naitch RAPTURE READY. Posts: 31,936	Agrees with you on agreeing with The Naitch

05-03-2004, 07:47 PM	#37
The Ravishing One Hello Posts: 7,696	*Agrees with you agreeing........ Im gonna STFU

05-03-2004, 07:54 PM	#38
The Naitch RAPTURE READY. Posts: 31,936	Red Hott Scott said that Rock was 6'5'' 225lbs. I dont think he's 225 lbs. Shoot Red Hott Scott as well

05-03-2004, 07:56 PM	#39
Disturbed316 Posts: 22,695	No, he is not the greatest.