How the prospect of wrestling Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson led to return, WWE legend discloses

Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson made a one-off appearance in the closing moments of WWE Bad Blood this month, reminding fans that he will be back for a high-profile showdown with either Cody Rhodes or Roman Reigns. His appearance in Atlanta, Georgia, was noted by The American Nightmare as the early commencement of the Road To WrestleMania.

Being a legend of the industry, The Rock has faced several iconic wrestlers during his Hall of Fame-worthy career. One such name is Hulk Hogan. The two tore the roof down in Toronto, Canada, at WrestleMania 18 in 2002.

Speaking on the PBD Podcast, Hulk Hogan recounted the first phone call that led to this memorable showdown. The wrestling icon had departed WWE in 1993 (then WWF) and subsequently worked in Japan, followed by a successful run in WCW. It wasn't until 2002 that he re-signed with WWE after Vince McMahon had bought WCW.

The Hall of Famer revealed it was current WWE CCO Paul 'Triple H' Levesque who made the call to Hogan:

"I get a phone call, and it was Triple H, the son-in-law [of Vince McMahon]," Hogan said. "He goes, 'Hey Terry! We heard you didn't re-sign? Vince wants to talk to you,' and I said, 'Yeah man, put him on the phone,' or 'call me,' or whatever, I can't recall how exactly it happened. But he goes, 'I'd like to come back and you'd come back here and wrestle The Rock.' And I said, 'Yeah, that might work.' So we cut a deal and I went back," he recalled. [From 47:33 to 47:58]

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The Rock shuts down rumors that he will not be at WrestleMania 41

After Bad Blood, expectations are sky-high for Dwayne Johnson's return to WWE. The match he guaranteed prior to his exit in April was with Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. The American Nightmare stated later during an interview that he expects it to happen sometime within the next year. However, a report by Dave Meltzer left fans disappointed.

The journalist reported in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that The Rock will not compete at WrestleMania 41 on account of the latter's "busy" schedule, but The Great One rebuffed these claims, clearing all speculations.

Aside from The Rock, John Cena will also be wrestling on the grand stage next year in Paradise, Nevada. It will mark his last WrestleMania appearance as an in-ring performer. By December 2025, his Farewell Tour will have concluded, and Cena confirmed that he is done with wrestling after that.

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If you use the quote, please credit PBD Podcast and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.