Paul Heyman Addresses The Rock Not Wrestling at WrestleMania 39
Paul Heyman has provided some insight as to why Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is not competing in a WrestleMania match this year.
Ever since WWE announced that WrestleMania 39 would be in Los Angeles for another “WrestleMania Goes Hollywood” event just like in 2005, there has been speculation that one of the biggest wrestling stars ever, The Rock, would step back into the ring one more time especially he is one of the biggest movie stars in the world.
The logical “dream match” for The Rock would have been for him to face off against WWE’s undisputed top star, his cousin “The Tribal Chief” Roman Reigns, who has held the Universal Title for 900 days and has been the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion for nearly a full year.
Instead of wrestling in a match at WrestleMania 39, The Rock is expected to sit this one out and it’s apparently something WWE has known for a while. The XFL recently launched with The Rock as one of the owners and the face of the league while he constantly has movies and other productions constantly going on. WWE will move forward with Reigns defending the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship against the Royal Rumble winner Cody Rhodes in the main event of WrestleMania 39 at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles on April 1st and 2nd.
A man that knows The Rock, Reigns and their entire family very well is Paul Heyman, who has served as Roman’s “Special Counsel” during his 900+ days on top of WWE.
Paul Heyman was a guest on the SI Media with Jimmy Traina podcast to provide a lengthy answer regarding The Rock not appearing a match at WrestleMania 39.
“I never spoke to Dwayne about this year’s WrestleMania. I always heard his name being thrown around. I couldn’t imagine with his schedule, with his promotional schedule, with the launch of the XFL, with all the projects that he has on his plate, that he would be able to take the time to get back into what we would call ring shape.”
“Aesthetically, does anybody in Hollywood even compare it to him? No. Could he run a marathon? I don’t know. Maybe. I’m sure he has great cardio, but cardio itself and cardio in the ring and being in ring shape are two completely different things.”
“I’ve seen great mixed martial arts fighters who would have no problem doing 15 rounds of sparring or five rounds in an MMA cage, get into a wrestling ring and within two minutes of hitting the ropes, they can catch their breath. It’s just a different rhythm. It’s just a completely different physical toll that it takes. It’s not like riding a bicycle. It’s not something you can just get back into. It requires you to get back into a specific level of conditioning that is exclusive to the sports entertainment world.”
As Heyman continued, he spoke about how fans likely would have wanted a long storyline leading into a match between The Rock and Roman Reigns, but it would have been difficult for that to happen.
“Could Dwayne Johnson have come back and put together a really classic, very memorable 15-minute match with Roman Reigns for this year’s WrestleMania without going through that training? I bet you he could. I bet you just based on his knowledge of the ring, his supreme psychology which made him such a huge star, the people that we have around us to diagram such a confrontation, and just the fact that Dwayne will push himself beyond his own limits, we could have had a great 15-minute match.”
“But I don’t think anybody would have paid to see the main event of WrestleMania of a fantasy match-up, of a dream match, between the Tribal Chief Roman Reigns and The Rock himself, I don’t think anybody would want to pay to see a 15-minute match.”
“I think people would pay and expect to see, and rightfully expect to see, a far longer story be told in a most exciting, in an A-plus, plus, plus, plus level fashion. There was just no way that he would have been able to deliver, and I don’t think that he would ever want to disappoint what we end up calling the WWE Universe.”
With all of that said, even though The Rock is not an advertised match at WrestleMania 39, he could still be a part of the festivities at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles on April 1st and 2nd.