The Rock and Triple H backstage politics "pretty obvious," WWE legend says

The Rock and Triple H have been two of the most talked-about people in WWE since WrestleMania 41. In a recent podcast episode, Hall of Famer Eric Bischoff addressed speculation about the former in-ring rivals' relationship.

After surprisingly missing WrestleMania 41, The Rock said he did not appear because he wanted the focus to be on Cody Rhodes and John Cena. The Hollywood star's absence received backlash online, with many fans questioning why his Final Boss character skipped WWE's biggest event.

On his 83 Weeks podcast, Bischoff acknowledged that The Rock's alliance with Cena and rapper Travis Scott at Elimination Chamber now lacks logic. He also sympathized with WWE Chief Content Officer Triple H.

"I wouldn't wanna be Triple H," Bischoff said. "He took a lot of heat, and maybe he deserved it, maybe he didn't. I think that politics are pretty obvious here. Again, because of who Rock is and the gravitational pull and the success that comes with him, generally speaking, I think there was an accommodation made that they wish they wouldn't have made because it wasn't well thought out." [41:17 – 41:41]

Cena defeated Rhodes at WrestleMania 41 to win the Undisputed WWE Championship. Many expected The Rock to interfere, but Travis Scott appeared during the match instead and assisted The Franchise Player.

Eric Bischoff reacts to The Rock's Elimination Chamber remarks

After missing WrestleMania 41, The Rock said on The Pat McAfee Show that he only appeared at Elimination Chamber to boost ticket sales. He also revealed he agreed to the request after receiving a phone call from Ari Emanuel, the CEO of WWE's parent company, TKO.

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Asked if Triple H might have told Emanuel to make the call, Eric Bischoff said the idea was likely discussed between several higher-ups:

"I have no idea, maybe, I doubt it, but I do think a plausible scenario would be Ari, Nick [Khan], Triple H, probably Bruce [Prichard], any number of other people associated would have had a meeting and said something to the effect of, 'How are we doing at Elimination Chamber?' If the response came back as, 'Soft, we're not doing as well as we thought we would or we could,' then I think the next natural step would be, 'What can we do?' Somebody throws out a Rock card, and Ari picks up the phone and calls Rock." [39:53 – 40:36]

In the same episode, Bischoff said Steve Austin was right to reject a lucrative WrestleMania 41 offer.

Please credit 83 Weeks and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.

About the author

Danny Hart is a journalist who has been reporting on pro wrestling (WWE) at Sportskeeda since 2017. He grew up as a massive fan of football/soccer and wrestling, leading him to pursue a career in sports journalism.

Before assuming his current role, Hart worked as a football writer at Goal.com between 2009 and 2016. He prides himself on writing original content that is fact-based and highly accurate. Hart thoroughly proofreads his work before submitting it and relies only on credible sources for information.

Hart’s favorite pro wrestler is The Undertaker. He admires the 2022 WWE Hall of Famer’s ability to reinvent his character and remain relevant across his decades-long career. If given the keys to WWE’s creative department, he would bring back The Phenom for a farewell bout against AJ Styles in a stadium full of fans. Not only that, but he would love to have the multi-time world champion’s greatest rivals seated at ringside for the spectacle.

When not watching and covering sports, Hart enjoys long-distance running, playing video games, and listening to audiobooks and podcasts.

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Edited by Danny Hart