10 WWE Moments Only The Rock Could Get Away With

4. Losing Three Consecutive WrestleMania Main Events

THE ROCK CM P
WWE.com

The Rock has famously been one of the more generous headliners when it comes to taking losses in the WWE, understanding that his value lies way beyond any damage that can be done with an occasional pinfall loss.

Despite this, it takes immeasurable confidence in your character and a robust self-belief to allow yourself to take three sequential defeats in the main event of WrestleMania.

A testament to his philosophy in fact, the defeats never derailed 'The Great One', as his subsequent appearances in the 'Show of Shows' would espouse.

To fans, defeat in his WrestleMania 16 title quest was particularly galling, as his runners-up medal in the 'McMahon In Every Corner' Fatal Four-Way match afforded Triple H the honour of becoming the first heel to retain his title at 'The Showcase of The Immortals'.

However, The Rock was all business, looking at the lights safe in the knowledge that he'd get all the glory at the following month's 'Backlash' rematch, which also made exceptional money for all involved.

Furthermore, his losses to 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin at WrestleMania 15 and 17 created a self-contained arc for the pair in 2003, when the heel 'Hollywood' Rock put Austin down in his final clash at WrestleMania 19.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett