Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson made a shocking return to WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment) earlier this month as he interrupted Jinder Mahal on Day 1 Raw, the first show of 2024. During that appearance, he teased a possible feud with current world champion Roman Reigns. He addressed the people of San Diego, California, and said, "The Rock is going out. I'm gonna go get something to eat. Should The Rock sit in a booth? Or should The Rock sit at the bar? Or, should I sit at the Head of the Table?"
Last Tuesday, he was also appointed to the Board of Directors of TKO Group Holdings, the parent company overseeing the historic merger of WWE and UFC. The company is granting Mr Johnson full ownership of his trademarked in-ring name ''The Rock''.
''I am thrilled to partner with Dwayne and welcome his immense talent to TKO's Board. Dwayne brings an incredible track record of creating content and building globally recognized consumer brands, and he will play a key role in realizing our ambitions for TKO,'' said Ariel Emanuel, CEO of TKO.
All these recent developments come as it is widely speculated that Mr Johnson will return to WWE for a match against his cousin and current WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns. While both the wrestlers have teased the match on certain occasions, no concrete plans have been revealed by either them or the WWE.
As per ABC News, the match could happen at WrestleMania 40 in April. If it happens, it would be Mr Johnson's first proper wrestling match since 2013.
There were several discussions about Rock vs Roman Reigns in Saudi Arabia as the Middle Eastern kingdom may pay extra money to have the high-profile match. The Rock, however, is more interested in having the match at WrestleMania.
As per Dave Meltzer in the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, The Rock hasn't officially signed a deal to wrestle for WWE ''yet.''
Mr Meltzer wrote, ''As far as WrestleMania goes, he has not signed as of today; as far as I know. He was on First Take, and he certainly strongly hinted at it. It is absolutely in play. It is not a done deal. He wants to do WrestleMania this year. Some forces are interested in how much value he could bring to Saudi Arabia. But he would rather do WrestleMania as it stands now. So it depends. I think there are balls in play. Nothing is 100%.
And some people would like to convince him they can make tons of extra money from Saudi Arabia to do it. So we don't know the answers, this is all in the process of being worked out right now. But he is absolutely looking to do the match with Roman Reigns. He's absolutely looking at doing it at WrestleMania.''
If The Rock plans to face Roman at Wrestlemania 40, he will have to make his return at this year's Royal Rumble. The former WWE Champion will have to win the Rumble to earn the right to challenge Roman. If The Rock doesn't return at the Rumble, then he might make his WWE return in 2025.
Mr Johnson, one of the most popular actors and media personalities in the world, broke out as a star for WWE in the 1990s and early 2000s. He held multiple world championships in his time and is widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time.
