10 Wrestlers Who Couldn’t Come Up With A Comeback

4. The Rock

AJ Lee
WWE.com

What amounts to a passing of the torch these days is the ability to prove the incompetence of the opponent, not the superiority of oneself.

The Rock Vs. John Cena programme was nonetheless incredibly successful - its success will remain without precedent, in fact - and was incredibly compelling across RAW in 2012. It was a tremendously inspired, life-affirming dynamic elevated beyond even that by the fact that it was thought the Rock had left WWE forever - only for him to return and direct his immaculate patter at its most deserved target.

This materialised with a hyper-cathartic war of words as fascinating as it was entertaining as it was convincing. The legitimate ire obviously embellished, that it once existed, even if it was now fictionalised by two world-class verbal performers, added a gravitas and tension to every beat. The Rock, in one such duel, looked genuinely close to slapping the taste out of Cena's gurning mouth. In one of his lesser weeks - very possibly by sly design, since Rock has a secret history of bed-sh*tting creative capitalised on - he referred to Cena as a "Kung Pow b*tch," which was more nonsensical than delightfully absurd.

Cena in response wondered if he had anything better jotted down on his wrist, ruining childhoods in the six figures.

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Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!