Now that we’re in October and 2019 is just a matter of months away, many members of the WWE Universe have already begun their preparations for the big WrestleMania 35 trip as the show of shows returns to the NY/NJ area. Some are basing their decision to go on which legends may be competing, whereas others just enjoy the ‘Mania week atmosphere and everything that comes with that.
If you’re in the first of those two categories, however, then the odds are pretty good that the rumoured return of The Rock is something that’d be pretty appealing. The Great One has been linked with a return to the squared circle for god knows how long now, but this year of all years, we’ve got reasons to believe that a legend such as himself could be tempted into strapping on his boots once again.
Alas, the biggest problem with that is this – there’s a good chance we’ve already seen The Rock‘s swansong match. No, we aren’t talking about the WM32 showdown with Rowan (as ballsy as that was), because we’re talking about his passing of the torch moment at WM29 against John Cena. The match may not quite have lived up to their initial bout in Miami one year prior, but they told a good story and it’s hard to not appreciate that. Still, given that Rocky wound up sustaining an injury and couldn’t take part in the following night’s Monday Night Raw, it still feels like his chapter as an in-ring performer is ‘unfinished’.
The other problem is that the guy can’t bring himself to confirm that one way or the other, because in some interviews he states that he’s okay with that being his final match, and then in others, he talks about big names that he’d like to face. It’s obvious to see that he’s still got that itch on some level because this business runs in his blood, but we’re struggling to figure out what his next move could be.
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Logically speaking it does feel like, at least from a financial perspective, the big money rests in him facing off against his cousin (did you hear that they’re related?) Roman Reigns in the main event at MetLife – the same stadium where he lost the WWE Championship to Cena.
The issue that the WWE would have stems from the alignments of both men, because it seems obvious at this stage that Roman would be a babyface. They clearly want to stick with the current incarnation of The Big Dog experiment, and given the reaction some legends have received in recent years, they’re probably hedging their bets that Rocky would get a boo or two.
At the age of 46 it’s not ridiculous to suggest that the Hollywood sensation could make his return, but we’d want some kind of assurance that it would come under the right circumstances. First of all, we wouldn’t want it to be wasted on one of the international shows, and second of all, we’d want to see some real character development from the veteran. It doesn’t matter whether or not he’s going to turn heel or stick as a babyface, because when The Rock is at his best, he’s able to create new anecdotes for a storyline that we previously didn’t even know existed.
If we had to predict whether or not he’ll actually return to in-ring competition we’d say yes, but we’re praying that it’s a legitimate contest or feud as opposed to something jokey. We’ve seen enough of that with Cena as of late, and we can’t say that we’re excited about the prospect of another squash match.
Do you think The Rock will ever wrestle again?
