The Rock's 5 Biggest Career-Defining Matches with WWE

On April 3, The Rock will return to the WrestleMania stage for yet another electrifying performance. While it is unknown exactly what he will do that night, it is almost certain that he will not compete in an official capacity. But from 1996 to 2003, he was a full-time member of the WWE roster, an undeniably charismatic performer whose presence alone could generate a pop louder than the roaring thunderheads over Kansas. 

He was a flashy in-ring performer; his exaggerated punches and kicks were the stuff of a complete and utter egotist but one that fans loved to cheer. He was simply electrifying, with his aura alone causing people to sit up and take notice of the third-generation star.

For seven years, he captivated fans on a regular basis, wrestling some of the best matches of his generation.

There is a difference between great matches and defining ones, though. While a great match can unfold in front of any audience, in any corner of the world, a defining match is typically saved for the biggest shows of the years and helps to tell the story of a given Superstar's career.

With one of the most celebrated careers ever and a resume that speaks for itself, The Rock had plenty matches that one could label as "defining." Once one falls into that trap, though, the idea of "defining" and "special" are thrown out the window.

Now, in preparation of The Rock's return to the squared circle and his appearance at WrestleMania, relive these five matches that tell the story of wrestling's most electrifying man and helped make him the internationally recognized megastar he is today.

5. Discovering His Nasty Side (Royal Rumble 1999)

Credit: WWE.com

Just as he had done at SummerSlam 1998, The Rock unleashed a meanness and nastiness in his Royal Rumble 1999 match against Mankind for the WWE Championship that few saw coming and no one would ever forget.

Immortalized in the 1999 film Beyond The Mat, the beating dealt by The Rock to a handcuffed Mankind in the match is one of the most disturbing and haunting in WWE history. Fueled by his own adrenaline, Rock lost count of how many times he had blasted his opponent in the head with unprotected chair shots. When all was said and done, an unconscious Mankind lay in the middle of the entrance, his head split open and Rock leaning over him, holding a microphone to the fallen champion's mouth.

The words "I quit" echoed throughout the arena, and The Corporation's handpicked face was suddenly champion once more.

Of course, it was all revealed to be a screwjob perpetrated by The Great One and the McMahons, but that does not matter.

What does matter is the fact that fans witnessed a Rock no longer concerned with inciting laughs or rolling out new catchphrases. This was a Rock whose unflinching violence left another human being, a beloved character like Mankind, unconscious just feet from his young son and daughter. The image of Dewey and Noelle crying as the mean, nasty Rock pummeled their father is still etched in the minds of fans who saw it. At the same time, this match was important to the evolution of one of wrestling's greatest.

4. "That's a Blue-Chipper Right There!" (Survivor Series 1996)

Credit: WWE.com

Every journey has a beginning, and for The Rock, that came at the 1996 Survivor Series in New York's famed Madison Square Garden. That night, he would make an immediate impact on the world of professional wrestling, becoming the sole survivor of a traditional Survivor Series elimination tag bout by defeating Crush and Goldust in two straight falls.

Few could have imagined the ups and downs that would await him in the aftermath of the match, but his performance in the bout was surprising to no one.

From the moment he debuted in a series of interview vignettes with Jim Ross, the world knew young Rocky Maivia would become a major star in the industry, if for no other reason than the fact that promoter Vince McMahon would ensure it.

On that night, he backed up the support he had in management.

His offense was nothing special; neither was his entrance. His special move was a shoulder breaker that would not have hurt a fly, let alone a hardened criminal like Crush, but none of that mattered. He had flash to his punches and a charisma about him that could not be manufactured in a marketing meeting.

And fans reacted positively to him. At least on that night. In reality, it would be the swift downfall from grace (and a few chants of "die, Rocky, die") that would lead to the metamorphosis from young blue-chip athlete to wrestling's most electrifying Superstar.

3. A Ladder to Greatness (SummerSlam 1998)

Credit: WWE.com

The ladder match for the WWE Intercontinental Championship at the 1998 SummerSlam, in the very arena that a young Rocky Maivia had made his debut some two years earlier (Madison Square Garden), was a turning point of sorts for The Rock.

He had spent a year as a hated heel, the leader of The Nation for a good chunk of that time, but he had also developed an onscreen persona that helped him stand out among the rest of the Attitude Era characters. He had his natural charisma, we knew that, but it took a few witty catchphrases, some in-ring nuances and the raising of an eyebrow to capture the attention of the rabid audience.

As much as he had grown as a performer, he still needed that one defining in-ring showing, and he got it at the summertime spectacular.

Showing an aggression that fans had not seen before, The Rock found himself on the receiving end of supportive "Rocky" chants, just months after enduring venomous "die, Rocky, die" chants that would necessitate his transformation from smiling babyface to arrogant heel.

The fans appreciated the new side of the third-generation star and liked that he was demonstrating a ruthlessness that they had never seen out of him. He targeted Triple H's injured knee like the cerebral assassin his opponent would become, utilizing the ladder to deal out punishment. He even bled, as his movie-star good looks were threatened by a laceration on his forehead.

And in the end, it took interference from Chyna to ensure that Triple H won the match, supporting the idea that maybe, just maybe, The Rock was the better man.

Not only was it a show-stealing match from two bright young stars, but the bout was also an announcement to the world that The Rock was not the future of the industry—he was the present.

2. Act 3 (WrestleMania XIX)

Credit: WWE.com

"If Hollywood has taught The Rock anything, it's that Act 1 and Act 2...they don't matter. The only thing that matters, everyone remembers...Act 3."

And with that The Rock summed up the importance of his third WrestleMania clash with "Stone Cold" Steve Austin during a backstage promo with Jonathan Coachman. The promo, in this writer's opinion the best that Rock has ever delivered, encompassed years of disappointing losses to The Texas Rattlesnake and the importance of this one last opportunity to beat his peer on the grandest stage, all in three intensely serious minutes.

Rock was almost reserved as he spoke to Coach and appeared more focused as he took to the squared circle for one last war with his greatest rival.

For 17 minutes, the greatest icons the Attitude Era ever produced guided their audience on an emotional roller-coaster ride. Utilizing last-second kick-outs and the trading of finishers to create drama, they approached every up and down, every twist and turn, with precision, and the result was a beautiful match that may not have hit the level of their previous encounter at WrestleMania X-7 but had an emotional edge to it that was undeniable.

After six years of brutal battles and two classics on the grandest stage, Rock finally put Austin away for a count of three, securing that much-desired victory and wrapping up the most storied rivalry that sports entertainment has ever, or will ever, see.

1. Icon vs. Icon (WrestleMania X-8)

Credit: WWE.com

No matter how big a star one may be prior to certain matches, those matches cement his status as one of the greats. Every Superstar has had them, be it Hulk Hogan's WrestleMania III match with Andre the Giant or "Stone Cold" Steve Austin's submission match with Bret Hart some 10 years later. They are essential to one's climb to immortality.

After four years on top of WWE and with movie offers beginning to pour in, Rock had done it all. He had won heavyweight titles, walked red carpets, represented the company in numerous endeavors and carried on his family's legacy in the business it helped build.

But he was still in search of that one win that would prove, without a shadow of a doubt, that he belonged in the pantheon of wrestling gods.

He got it in Toronto in 2002 at WrestleMania X-8 when he battled "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan in a match dubbed "Icon vs. Icon." The centerpiece of all of the event's promotional materials, the match was the real main event, no matter what may have gone on last.

And the Superstars backed that sentiment up, delivering performances every bit as epic as the staredown that jump-started the bout. Rock was a ring general, cutting the pace of the match and covering where he could for the limited Hogan. And the Hulkster, a master of crowd psychology, manipulated the audience to generate the desired reaction.

It was a piece of artwork, really, as two elite live-action performance artists sketched a masterpiece before the eyes of millions watching around the globe. From the near-falls to the thunderous ovations for The Hulkster's comeback, it was one of the hottest matches in the history of WrestleMania. 

Rock would win the match in what amounted to a passing-of-the-torch moment and watched with childlike glee as Hogan posed for the fans in Toronto, witnessing his boyhood dream come true.

He would return to the grand stage a decade later, battling John Cena in a match whose circumstances felt a lot like this one.