10 Things You Didn't Know About WWE Survivor Series
6. Die, Rocky, Die!
Did you know? Survivor Series 1997 marked the final time the WWF referred to The Rock as Rocky Maivia. That name was taken out of the company lexicon immediately afterwards, and The Rock was firmly in from then on. Announcers did slip up and call him Maivia once or twice, but Rocky was more common as a nickname.
It's also worth noting that The Rock initially badmouthed commentators/interviewers who continued to call him Rocky on TV. That was short-lived though - Maivia definitely wasn't what creative wanted to call Rock following 9 November '97, and they didn't want people thinking about it.
If anything, Rocky became an affectionate (albeit occasional) nickname uttered by Jim Ross. That was about it. The WWE went full steam ahead on The Rock following his Nation Of Domination team's loss to Ken Shamrock, Ahmed Johnson and LOD in 1997.
Memories of fan rebellion and those nasty, "Die, Rocky, Die!" chants faded.