Vince Russo Claims He Never Received Credit for The Rock’s Superstardom

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is one of the most beloved professional wrestlers in history, having achieved great success in the ring. However, his journey to stardom wasn’t without its challenges. Recently, Vince Russo made a notable claim about The Rock as well.

The Rock had an unpleasant time as his Rocky Maivia character was largely criticized by fans and eventually led to the infamous ”Die Rocky die” chants. His fortune would change soon after that when he was allowed to tell fans how he really felt about them.

Vince Russo, who spent several years working in WWE, played a significant role in shaping the careers of many wrestlers, including The Rock. In a recent episode of The Coach and Bro Show on Sportskeeda’s Backstage Pass, Russo talked about The Rock’s debut, recalling how he was booed heavily during his first appearance.

“I was there when Rocky Maivia came out with his tassels and got booed out of the building.”

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Russo explained that he took The Rock aside after this initial backlash and offered him some crucial advice to help improve his character. He suggested that The Rock should start referring to himself in the third person during interviews to make a stronger impact.

Russo described the moment when he told The Rock before a Monday Night RAW segment to try this approach, especially since he was still finding his footing after joining The Nation of Domination. Despite the successful advice that contributed to The Rock’s rise, Russo mentioned that he received no acknowledgement or appreciation from The Rock for his guidance.

“Bro, so we are at Monday Night RAW, and he’s about to go out there. I think he just got in the Nation and all that still like going nowhere. And I said, Rock, come here, call them over. I said, Rock, go out there tonight. Refer to yourself in the third person,” Vince Russo revealed before noting that he didn’t get any appreciation for what he pulled off. “I got nothing, nothing from The Rock.”

The Rock returned at the Bad Blood Premium Live Event and is clearly more concerned about his plans with WWE than what Vince Russo had to say. Regardless, Vince Russo still wants his flowers so we’ll have to see if The Rock will eventually respond to his claim.