10 WWE Success Stories Absolutely NOBODY Saw Coming
6. Rocky Maivia Becomes The Great One
Much like a John Cena he would find himself sharing a WrestleMania stage with on a few occasions in the future, Rocky Maivia very much had the look of a star who could become a major player in the WWE system upon making his in-ring debut at Survivor Series 1996.
Despite getting off to a decent enough start, however, it soon became clear that fans weren't entirely onboard with the smiling, generic, Blue Chipper babyface character they were having stuffed down their throats.
The infamous chants of "Die, Rocky, Die!" and "Rocky Sucks!" felt like the beginning of the end for Dwayne Johnson. Hell, Rocky himself would even reveal down the road that he assumed at the time that his wrestling career was set to following a similar path to his football one; ending before it properly even begins.
Seriously injuring his knee was the best thing that likely could've happened to The Great One, though.
Upon making his return from that injury in August 1997, a much-needed heel turn leaned into the boos and both WWE and Rocky were able to surprisingly turn a potentially career-ending amount of negativity into the fuel that ultimately fired The Rock into existence.