The Rock returned to WWE earlier this year and joined The Bloodline on the Road to WrestleMania after facing backlash from fans for almost replacing Cody Rhodes at The Show of Shows. The Final Boss also inducted his grandmother into the Hall of Fame during 'Mania weekend and recently he wrote a heartwarming message to her.
Lia Maivia was The Great One's grandmother and wife of Peter Maivia. She was one of the first female wrestling promoters in the industry. Her exceptional way of handling her husband's promotion, Polynesian Pro Wrestling in Hawaii is still considered as one of the noteworthy achievements in the wrestling business.
Taking to social media, The Final Boss uploaded a clip from the 2024 WWE Hall of Fame event, as he wrote a heartwarming message for his grandmother. He mentioned how Maivia was one of the sweetest and strongest women he knew, and how fearlessly she managed to step foot into the male-dominated business.
"To me. my grandma, Lia Maivia was the sweetest and most loving woman I’d ever known. She helped raise me with kindness, pride and “fa’a Samoa” which means the Samoan way. She was also ruthless, because being one of the first female promoters ever in the male dominated world of pro wrestling in the early 80’s - she had to be tougher than a $2 dollar steak 🥩💪🏾 and she was. She was a trailblazer for women in pro wrestling and created as many opportunities as she could for all wrestlers to, in her words - "pay da bills"... I miss and love you Grandma. ps - I’m still paying da bills, " wrote The Rock.
Check out The Rock's Instagram post below:
The Rock's family member shared details about him before he joined pro wrestling
One of The Rock's close relatives recently opened up to share a peculiar detail about the superstar before he began his journey in the wrestling business.
While speaking in an interview with Sportskeeda Wrestling's Bill Apter, Lloyd Anoaʻi mentioned how good a football player The Brahma Bull was. He added that, despite being a good player, The Final Boss always faltered when his family went to watch his match.
"He [The Rock] was a great football player. But everytime we went to go see him, he didn't do a good job. He always messed up. Yeah yeah. So I mean I think it was the pressure 'cause my dad and all of us being there to watch him. But you know... We used to go to the gym together to work out. But that's the only thing I can say about him when we were younger," Lloyd Anoa'i said. [From 2:35 onwards]
The Rock alongside his cousin Roman Reigns faced Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins on Night One of WrestleMania 40. The Hollywood star pinned Rhodes to get the victory for his team and an advantage for Reigns on Night Two.
Despite the advantage of The Bloodline Rules, The Tribal Chief lost his Undisputed WWE Universal Championship to Rhodes. The Final Boss failed to stop Cody at WrestleMania. However, on RAW after 'Mania, Rock warned The American Nightmare about a possible match when he returns from Hollywood.
With Reigns currently on hiatus and Solo Sikoa taking over The Bloodline, it will be interesting to see when The Rock will return to the company and face Cody Rhodes.