As Cody Rhodes got another chance to win the WWE Universal Championship from Roman Reigns by winning the Men’s Royal Rumble 2024, his opportunity got stolen by none other than Dwayne Johnson. Johnson, who recently returned to WWE, and took away Rhodes’ title opportunity of headlining the main event of WrestleMania for the 2nd time in a row.
Though one would expect that The People’s Champion vs Roman Reigns would be a dream match, it was not the case, as people are immensely disappointed in him. His recent actions at the WrestleMania XL kickoff have made the headlines, as his massive ego clashed with Cody Rhodes, and he slapped him when the American Nightmare finally decided on his WrestleMania 40 opponent. It will be none other than The Head of the Table, Roman Reigns.
Dwayne Johnson Slaps Cody Rhodes at The WrestleMania Kickoff Event
As the year kicked off, the road to WWE WrestleMania 40 commenced, and many fans’ eyes were glued to their screen as they watched the Men’s Royal Rumble match. The question remained: Who would punch their ticket to the main event of WrestleMania 40, Cody Rhodes or CM Punk? However, Rhodes eliminated Punk, and many fans believed he would come after Reigns to finish his chapter.
However, that was not the case, as Dwayne Johnson returned to WWE, where he was served a title opportunity on a silver platter. This action created a massive uproar from the fans. The drama did not end there, as in the WrestleMania kickoff event in Las Vegas, Roman Reigns said that Cody Rhodes hesitated, and his moment was gone; the champion announced that it was now his decision to choose his opponent where he declared “I choose…The Rock.”
The 10-time WWE Champion entered the stage, where he stated that this would be the biggest main event in the history of professional wrestling “bound by blood.” However, Reigns and Johnson were rudely interrupted by Cody Rhodes calling their actions “bulls**t.” Earlier in the kickoff event, Roman Reigns called Rhodes “irrelevant, just like your dad,” the comment infuriated the challenger and prompted him to say that if the grandfathers of The Rock and Roman Reigns were alive “they’d be ashamed of you.”
OH IT'S GOING DOWN. 🫢@TheRock just slapped @CodyRhodes at the #WrestleMania XL Kickoff. pic.twitter.com/nN0MTYIoRk
— WWE (@WWE) February 9, 2024
Dwayne Johnson interrupted Cody Rhodes and reminded him, that when he talks about Reigns’ family, he is talking about his family as well “so, now we have a problem” and slapped The American Dream in the face, leading to an all-out brawl, and both men were separated. It appears that after all these years, Johnson has gone heel, and it would be intriguing to see this saga develop, as Rhodes has also announced Reigns to be his WrestleMania 40 opponent.
Fans Were Surprised By Dwayne Johnson Slapping Cody Rhodes
Dwayne Johnson’s slap to Rhodes sent shockwaves through the WWE Universe, and it was evident when he interrupted Triple H, who was giving an interview after the brawl. Johnson, infuriated with Rhodes’ comment on their family ordered the CCO to fix the problem and make sure Rhodes never “talk s**t about our family ever again,” threatening him to fix the problem because “if you don’t fix it, we will.”
As the gigantic egos of the wrestlers clashed at the press conference, fans were surprised by Johnson slapping Cody Rhodes, and they shared how they felt about the slap and his actions following the brawl.
Am i the only one who is 100% certain THAT WAS FUCKING REAL!!! That was NOT a work. Cody ambushed that and that was a real slap. U can tell by how the rocks voice was shaking on stage, how Cody was sliding back & Punks commentary iced it. That really just happened
— Tommy G (@Tommygreturns2) February 9, 2024
Yeah cody got to emotional and lost.. the rock was so pissed!! the slap was a big one! your see seth go insane lol! the rock has every right to protect his fam. cody really went to far. rock totally is red hot! what a heel move! tag team match rock + roman vs cody+ seth
— BenTheBossJackson (@BenTheBossJack2) February 9, 2024
Rock wouldn't throw his newly acquired board seat away like that. Remember he is on the board now and doing something like that to an employee for real would get him immediately removed.
— MonkeyCards (@monkey_cards) February 9, 2024
100% work. C’mon man. This is what it looks like when you have real professional stars. These guys are true pros. They make it look real just like Bret Hart did every single night.
— Rkowrestling on whatnot (@Rarefantasy) February 9, 2024
He’s the biggest actor on the planet 😂 of course it’s a work. But that’s when wrestling is at its best. When you question if it’s real
— Branden Hooper (@ukHOOPstar33) February 9, 2024
Fans should look forward to the Head of the Table saga, as the story is reaching its boiling point, and the slap from the Baywatch actor adds spice to the story, making everyone wonder, who will finally face Roman Reigns at the main event of WrestleMania 40 in Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
