Dwayne Johnson drove the WWE fans mad with an electrifying return to the ring after a long 4 year hiatus. Soon after speaking about his plans for returning to WWE in 2024 with wrestling commentator Pat McAfee on his podcast, The Rock graced the SmackDown stage for the first time since 2019. Johnson, who is presently regarded as one of the biggest names in Hollywood, took no time to prove why he is the OG and the reason his fans love him so much.
Dwayne Johnson delivered an iconic moment to the fans when he went into a War of Words against the supposed “Future of WWE”. Things escalated fast but The Rock didn’t face any trouble in proving his excellence in the sport to Austin Theory, who was strongly pushed by the company as the next face of WWE.
What happened between Dwayne Johnson and Austin Theory?
Dwayne Johnson was filming his podcast with Austin Theory on the campus of the University of Colorado, near the Ball Arena where the SmackDown is aired. The star decided to grace the stage with his presence and the audience went mad with cheers and excitement as the ex-WWE fame returned to the stage after a long wait.
The Rock not only graced the stage with his presence but also proved to everyone why he is considered a legend of the sport. While McAfee was engaged in a back-and-forth with “The Future of WWE” Austin Theory soon after entering the ring, Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson entered the game and destroyed the young Champion.
“Shut your b*tch a** up” – Rock to Theory 😭😭😭 #SmackDown pic.twitter.com/jbo9DYblg5
— Wrestle Ops (@WrestleOps) September 16, 2023
Soon after Pat McAfee entered the ring, the two-time United States Champion, Theory marched into the ring and stated- “This isn’t SmackDown, this is Austin Theory Live.” This was followed by a tussle of words between the two before it finally touched the peak and none other than Dwayne Johnson made his appearance.
“Shut your b*tch-a** up! You clearly don’t know how all this works. Finally, The Rock has come back to Denver.”
The Rock went ballistic and Austin Theory was totally humiliated on stage- “In about three seconds, the Rock is gonna whoop your candy a** all over Denver.” What happened then sent waves of cheerful roars as the audience got to watch the iconic “People’s Elbow” and Austin Theory was down in no time. Even Pat McAfee performed the iconic move on the 26-year-old who has been subjected to much WWE discussion lately.
Is Austin Theory the future of WWE?
Austin Theory has been a part of a lot of discussion after he was called “The Future of WWE” by the company. The 26-year-old is a two-time United States Champion and had huge support from WWE founder Vince McMahon.
However, Austin Theory is subjected to intense backlash and criticism as his repeated victories have led him to be disrespectful to veterans and legends of the sport. WWE’s way of pushing him has also raised several eyebrows. Even one of the announcers Corey Graves in WWE’s After The Bell podcast, stated how Theory can be the next big thing in WWE.
“Austin Theory is a shining example and I’ve said it once. I might as well say it a million times and I’ll be screaming in the streets one of these days, Austin Theory is the future of WWE, period.”
For now, it can be undoubtedly said that Dwayne Johnson was the king of the ring in Colorado. Later he was also greeted by another WWE Legend and present Hollywood star John Cena who faced a defeat by Austin Theory in Wrestlemania earlier. It can’t be said for how long will Johnson stay back in WWE but with the ongoing Hollywood strikes, there might be a chance of getting him for longer this time.
Source: Wrestle Ops / WWE’s After The Bell
