Check out this fun interview with former World Wrestling Entertainment superstar and A-list Hollywood actor, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson from Review Boss. The Rock is asked about his old SummerSlam nemesis, current UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar. The Rock gives some personal insight into Brock and talks about Lesnar’s recent health issues and his impending return to the UFC and active competition.

I decided to throw this interview up here because it is different on a few levels. For one, The Rock’s opinions on Lesnar are based on the fact that he is not only friends with him, but wrestled against him quite a bit in the WWE. Quite honestly, it was The Rock who was the first superstar to step up and help take Lesnar to the next level. Lesnar’s series and WWE title win against The Rock elevated Lesnar from WWE star to WWE superstar. Remember, Steve Austin refused to do what The Rock did and if not for The Rock, who knows if Lesnar ever would have achieved that level of credibility amongst WWE fans.

I also liked hearing Johnson’s viewpoints on Lesnar and his career in the UFC. Once again, Johnson is a guy that gets Lesnar and can accurately comment on him as an athlete and former competitor. As a former pro wrestler and collegiate football player, Johnson also can give a unique opinion as both an entertainer and athlete. I think his comments on Lesnar are worth bringing to the forefront.

Finally, The Rock curses on a Disney television show. Can you smell what The Rock is cooking? Check out this fun and entertaining interview with the Great One.

See the match – WWE SummerSlam 2002

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Thursday, August 26th, 1999-Kansas City, Missouri-WWE World Heavyweight Championship was defended when newly crowned champion Triple H took on challenger Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson with a special guest referee, the WWE Commissioner Shawn Michaels, on the debut episode of WWE Thursday Night SmackDown. A match that I am grateful that WWE did feature the full length match on their 10th Anniversary SmackDown DVD set.

Two matches that I am disappointed that they didn’t show the full length are the TLC III match with the Dudleys, the Hardys, Edge & Christian, and Chris Benoit and Chris Jericho, or the WWF World Heavyweight title match from the fifth episode where Mr. McMahon defeated Triple H for the title. But that’s a tangent for the first paragraph….

But I do remember watching this match when it was originally aired, and I wanted to watch it again and take notes on it and make a flashback article out of it. It was a typical television main event. It was fast paced, which I liked, and it had Triple H, Shawn Michaels, and the Rock in it, so I was happy to sit down and watch it again.

Weirdly enough, HBK came out first, which isn’t weird, but the champion, Triple H, came out next, then the challenger, the Rock, came out. I don’t know.

But Triple H was the second WWE Champion that we saw win the title this week (when this was originally aired). Mankind defeated “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and Triple H in a three-way dance at SummerSlam in Minneapolis on Sunday and Triple H defeated Mankind on Raw Monday night in Ames, Iowa. So, technically, in two days (because SmakDown is taped on Tuesday Nights), we had three WWE title matches. Only if that would happen these days. I guess that explains the 4.2 rating that this episode got.

Right out of the box, there was a fist fight, and both men tried their finishers, the Rock Bottom on Triple H and the Pedigree on the Rock, but both men countered out of them. That’s a good way to keep the fans in right away. But the battle soon went outside of the ring when Triple H was tossed out by the Rock outside of the ring.

These two men battled up the ramp, we saw the Oval Tron (which I love!), and Rock suplexed Triple H on the top of the stage. Those two men battled towards the oval tron (YES!). And the Rock hit the Side Russian Leg Sweep onto Triple H. Another move that I saw in the past couple of days that I wish was used more often these days, and this was only ten years ago!

But anyways, those two men battled towards the ring again and HHH sends the Rock into the steel steps. Chyna gave the Rock a low blow and ref Michaels ejected Chyna out of the arena with a pop from the crowd. Woooo!

The match continued in the ring and the Rock hit the DDT onto the Game and got a one count. Triple H got control of the match and hit a suplex and did a “Flair-like” knee drop from the corner of the ring. Seeing that gave me a flashback!

Another move that I took note, and I have no clue how it happened, but the Rock hit a swinging neck breaker. Yep.

The Rock hit the Rock Bottom and was setting up for the People’s Elbow, went to one rope, came back, went for the second rope, turned around, and got Sweet Chinned Music from the Commissioner!

Triple H got up, hit the Pedigree, and got the three count! Chyna came back down and celebrated with these two men, as well as Shane McMahon, who came down during the match and was “arguing” with HBK every once in a while during the match.

Jim Ross said: “We have a overbearing owner (Shane McMahon), a crooked commissioner (Shawn Michaels), and a some-of-a- (censored) for a WWE Champion (Triple H)!”

Good ole J.R. Get well soon.

But this match I really enjoyed, which made me happy! Thanks WWE for putting this whole match on the DVD, and no thank you for those two other matches I mentioned at the beginning of the article.

But this is Eric Darsie from Minnesota, jamming to Johnny Cash, goodbye!

Check out more of Eric’s blogs at http://jericholic2009.blogspot.com.

Check out the WWE: The Best of Smackdown – 10th Anniversary 1999-2009 DVD.

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Long before Dwayne Johnson was a movie star, he was a pie eating, eye brow raising, butt-kicking World Wrestling Entertainment superstar named The Rock. While The Rock hasn’t appeared inside a WWE ring for years, that may change. Dwayne Johnson has let the cat out of the bag and has revealed that he is working on a return to the WWE.

This is a story that I never expected to write about. Johnson left the WWE as a full-time wrestler several years ago to pursue his acting career. As his movie career developed, he began to distance himself from the WWE. It has been over five years since The Rock has actually donned the tights and wrestled a match. This may all change as Dwayne Johnson said in an interview this week that he and Vince McMahon are working on a WWE return that would include more than just a one-off WWE RAW Guest Host gig.

On a recent appearance on the Jack Diamond Morning Show, Dwayne Johnson said, “I love that world and being able to entertain, especially if I could go back and it’s on Smackdown and do a promo or guest host or we could create this cool show, whatever that may be,” Johnson said. “Especially now, I’m at the point where I can go back and give back to the fans and help out guys in any way I can…

“Right now, we’re trying to put together – there is always something cool and interesting for me to do. I would like to do something more than just host the show. I’m in the process of creating something really cool for the fans – something very special and unique. It will be something like one big entertaining show.”

Wow! That is absolutely huge. The timing does make a lot of sense. The Rock originally wanted to distance himself from the WWE so he could be taken more seriously in movies. Dwayne Johnson is now an A-List actor and can afford to have a little fun with the WWE and not worry about hurting his movie career. It is obvious to anyone that has watched or followed The Rock over the years that he truly does love the pro wrestling business. He grew up in it and was more successful in a shorter time span than anyone other than probably Andre the Giant or Bruno Sammartino in their primes.

The Rock made a recent appearance on the WWE 10th Anniversary SmackDown show. The guy still has it. The Rock’s promo on the show was better than any promo since the Ric Flair-HBK WrestleMania build last year. I can’t think of a better shot in the arm to turn WWE business around than someone like The Rock coming back on a semi-regular basis. I can only speculate what kind of project he has in mind but it sounds like something that would feature The Rock every few weeks which would be great to see. As someone that has tuned out more than he has tuned in lately, I would go out of my way to catch every second of The Rock if and when he returns to the WWE.

Classic Rock

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There is little doubt that the biggest mainstream star to ever come out of the WWE is The Rock. The Rock has been able to parlay his eyebrow raising wrestling career into mainstream movie stardom. The WWE has finally taken advantage of Dwayne Johnson’s grassroots with The Rock: The Most Electrifying Man in Sports Entertainment DVD.

This set of DVDs from the WWE pays tribute to The Rock’s eight year run with the company inside of the ring. The compilation is a story in itself about The Rock’s ability to take the bull by the horn and run with it. The Rock’s road to stardom in the WWE certainly wasn’t paved for him. The Rock had to earn every step he took on his way to greatness.

Unfortunately, the DVDs don’t include any new interviews with the People’s Champ. The DVD is voiced over between matches, similar to an old NFL Films piece. It is understandable that the WWE could not get The Rock to lend his voice to the DVD. However, they could have taken past interview clips as well as new interviews with WWE stars. I didn’t mind it, but they could have done a little better to appeal to wrestling fans.

The set is broken down into three discs. The discs predominately contain nothing but matches featuring The Rock. All of the matches are complete except for one. I will say this about The Rock and his matches and that is there aren’t any boring Rock matches. All of his matches are entertaining and different in some way from the other. The extras feature a ton of promos from The Rock which was far and away the best thing about the set.

The matches are interesting because I am sure a lot of The Rock’s fans aren’t familiar with “Rocky Maivia” Most fans are familiar with The Rock from the early part of the decade. However, The Rock first began his career in the WWE in 1996 with a few familiar faces. The DVD traces all of the Rock’s steps to the top beginning with the kid with the goofy haircut, Rocky Maivia.

The first disc is quite an eye-opener considering the state of the business today. The early days of The Rock-Triple H rivalry are revisited beginning with a 1997 Intercontinental title match. The rest of the DVD features The Rock’s rise from the Nation to the Corporation, to WrestleMania. In retrospect, I wonder sometimes if The Rock-Triple H doesn’t get its due as one of the great WWE rivalries of the 1990s. Most people think of Austin-Rock, but Triple H-Rock feuded often at various stages of their careers. The matches tell a story in itself about two guys battling each other for the top position, ultimately with The Rock taking that mantle.

The second disc features The Rock and pro wrestling during one of the hottest periods of business for the WWE. The Rock’s rivalries with Triple H and Mankind are followed over to this disc. There are some fantastic matches on this DVD featuring The Rock against Booker T, Chris Jericho, and a great match from No Way Out against Kurt Angle. In watching this disc back, it is amazing how different the WWE fan base is today as compared to then. Nobody in years has gotten the reaction that The Rock or any of his matches received during his prime. It is truly an indictment on the WWE’s inability to create superstars over the last decade. The WWE created many stars, but none were as super as The Rock.

Disc three is The Rock at his all-time high in the WWE. Disc 3 kicks off with arguably The Rock’s most famous WrestleMania encounter against Hulk Hogan. The Rock’s WrestleMania XIX showdown with Steve Austin not only holds up, but blows away anything from the last few years. A rare 2002 match from RAW against Eddie Guerrero is a nice gem to the set. This really showcases The Rock in his prime. The Rock is most confident during this era and it shows in the ring. Once again, never a dull moment in a Rock match.

It is obvious that the WWE didn’t put the kind of extra work into this that they did with Ric Flair, Hulk Hogan, or Triple H’s DVDs. I can’t blame the WWE for wanting toget something out there to capitalize on The Rock’s current fame. The DVD could have used a little more attention, yet I found it to be enjoyable. I have always liked The Rock and in this day and age, any time I can sit down and watch a few hours of The Rock is a pleasure. This is a great DVD and a perfect stocking stuffer for the wrestling fan on your holiday shopping list.

Disc 1

WWE Intercontinental Championship Match
Hunter Hearst Helmsley vs. Rocky Maivia
RAW (13/02/97)

WWE Intercontinental Championship Match
Owen Hart vs. The Rock
RAW (06/04/98)

King of the Ring Quarterfinal Match
Triple H vs. The Rock
RAW (22/06/98)

WWE Championship Match (Final Round)
Mankind vs. The Rock
Survivor Series (15/11/98)

Last Man Standing Match for the WWE Championship
Mankind vs. The Rock
St. Valentine’s Day Massacre (14/02/99)

Ladder Match for the WWE Championship
Mankind vs. The Rock
RAW (15/02/99)

WWE Championship Match
Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. The Rock
WrestleMania XV (28/03/99)

Disc 2

Steel Cage Match
The Rock vs. Triple H
RAW (05/07/99)

WWE Tag Team Championship
The Rock / Mankind vs. Undertaker / Big Show
RAW (30/08/99)

No Holds Barred Match
The Rock vs. Kane
SmackDown! (30/12/99)

WWE Championship Match
Triple H vs. The Rock
Backlash (30/04/00)

Steel Cage Match for the WWE Championship
The Rock vs. Shane McMahon
RAW (01/05/00)

WWE Championship Match
Kurt Angle vs. The Rock
No Way Out (25/02/01)

WCW Championship Match
Booker T vs. The Rock
SummerSlam (19/08/01)

WWE Undisputed Championship Match
Chris Jericho vs. The Rock
Royal Rumble (20/01/02)

Disc 3

The Rock vs. Hollywood Hulk Hogan
WrestleMania X8 (17/03/02)

Triple Threat Match for the WWE Undisputed Championship
Kurt Angle vs. Undertaker vs. The Rock Vengeance (21/07/02)

The Rock vs. Eddie Guerrero
RAW (22/07/02)

Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. The Rock
WrestleMania XIX (30/03/03)

Extras

Promos
- Heat July 11, 1999 – “Billy’s Prayer to God”
- RAW August 9, 1999 – “The Big Slow”
- RAW September 6, 1999 – “My Name is Kane”
- RAW November 15, 1999 – “Doughnuts”
- SmackDown! August 10, 2000 – “Hermie”
- RAW December 4, 2000 – “Armageddon Opponents”
- RAW August 13, 2001 – “Thomas Jefferson Sucka”
- RAW September 10, 2001 – “The People’s Strudel”
- SmackDown! September 20, 2001 – “Great Balls of Fire”
- SmackDown! January 3, 2002 – “Copacabana”
- SmackDown! January 17, 2002 – “Camera Man”
- SmackDown! January 24, 2002 – “The Charleston”
- No Way Out February 17, 2002 – “NWO”
- SmackDown! July 11, 2002 – “Busta Rhymes”
- RAW March 10, 2003 – “The Superhero”
- RAW June 21, 2004 – “Miami Dolphins”
- The One-Liners

Order the The Rock: The Most Electrifying Man in Sports Entertainment DVD set by clicking here.

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