WrestleMania and the Rock: Top 20 Highlights of His WWE Career

The Rock has many nicknames: The People's Champion, the Brahma Bull, the Great One, the Corporate Champion and the Most Electrifying Man in Sports Entertainment.

With the Rock's announcement that he will return to the ring at WrestleMania 28, I thought it would be a great time to look back on Rocky's career and discuss his highlights.

It's nearly impossible to rank these moments in a particular order, since they are all great in their own ways.  So think of this as a highlight reel rather than a definitive list.

No. 20: The Rock's Debut

Like all great things, this one has a beginning. The Rock debuted at the 1996 Survivor Series and was the sole survivor of his team, signaling his mega-push that the fans hated.

Speaking of hating, check out Rocky's pineapple haircut and tassel combination. I really hope someone wasn't paid to come up with that look.

Those with a sharp eye will catch Barry Windham as "The Stalker."  Poor Barry...poor, poor Barry.

No. 19: The Rock Meets the NWO

While the WWE version of the New World Order left a lot to be desired, they did provide us with this memorable moment.

To be honest, I would probably pay $30 to watch the Rock make fun of people for three hours, so maybe I'm just a bit biased.

No. 18: Rock Returns to Help Eugene

Believe it or not, Eugene was actually once a very hot new character on Raw. Fans unexpectedly got behind the underdog until the creative team shoved him down everyone's throats and they turned on him.

In any event, during one particular segment, Eugene was being bullied by Jonathan Coachman and looked to be defeated until the Rock returned from exile to defend him.

His return electrified the crowd and the Rock made sure to deliver a promo as only he could.

No. 17: Rocky Takes over a Nation

The Rock was poised to be the breakout star of the Nation of Domination and everyone was just waiting for the trigger to be pulled.

In 1998, the Rock finally gave the People's Eyebrow as a signal to send Farooq packing and launch himself into megastardom.

No. 16: The Rock Wins the Royal Rumble

A pretty standard entry here as the Rock takes home the 2000 Royal Rumble, last eliminating the Big Show in controversial fashion.

The Rock would go on to face HHH, Mick Foley and Big Show in a Fatal Four Way elimination match for the WWE at WrestleMania.

Bonus points here for the Rock's promo before the match, where he said there were only two men he feared in the Rumble: Crash Holly and Headbanger Mosh.

No. 15: The Rock Ends the Alliance

We all know that the WCW Invasion angle was not even half of what it could have been, but it was still a huge angle that encompassed the promotion for almost a year.

In the end, The Rock eliminated the invading WCW and ECW forces by leading Team WWF to victory in a Winner Takes All match at Survivor Series 2001.

It also garnered the Rock a rare PPV win over Stone Cold Steve Austin, a definite highlight indeed.

No. 14: Backlash 2000

Anyone who was a wrestling fan in 2000 knows how effective HHH and Stephanie were during the McMahon-Helmsley Era.  HHH held onto the World Title like a vise and became the first heel to leave WrestleMania as champion.

At Backlash, the Rock had a great match and finally ended the Game's reign with an assist from a returning Steve Austin.

It was the Rock's fourth World Title and certainly not his last.

No. 13: The Rock Breaks a Record

After a break from wrestling to start his movie career, the Rock returned and picked right up where he left off.

He defeated Kurt Angle and the Undertaker at Vengeance 2002 to win the Undisputed Title, a title that would go on to become disputed pretty quickly after this.

It was the Rock's record breaking seventh title win and he paid it off by putting Brock Lesnar over clean as a sheet at SummerSlam.

No. 12: WrestleMania XIV

The Rock character really put on a show at WrestleMania XIV, winning by disqualification against Ken Shamrock and participating in an interview with former Bill Clinton bed buddy Gennifer Flowers.

In one interview, not only does the Rock manage to insult homeless people but he also debuts the phrase "if you smell what I'm cookin'."

No. 11: 2003 Toronto Promo

When he returned as a heel in 2003, some fans took it upon themselves to continue to cheer The Rock.

The Rock, on the other hand, took it upon himself to mock those fans until he was blue in the face.

This promo can be summed up in one phrase:  "He said Toronto!  Yay!  That's where we live!"

No. 10: SummerSlam 1998

OK, we're getting serious now with the top 10.

This match has the benefit of not only launching the Rock's career towards the main event, but also Triple H's.

Hunter and the Rock had been feuding over the Intercontinental title for months and finally met in a ladder match at SummerSlam to settle things.

They proceeded to have a great match, working the live crowd into a frenzy and showing that both guys were ready for bigger and better things.

No. 9: The Rock Turns Heel

After hitting rock bottom (sorry) as "The Blue Chipper" Rocky Maivia, the Rock suffered the most well-timed knee injury in the history of wrestling.

Upon his return, Rocky immediately joined the Nation of Domination and finally mebraced the boos that the fans had been hurling at him for months.

After being allowed to cut loose from the reins of being a babyface, heel Rocky was allowed to mock fans and channel his hatred of them towards advancing his career.

#8: Steve Austin and the Intercontinental Title

Steve Austin and the Rock have had many different feuds but this one was first.

Austin had actually suffered a neck injury and couldn't defend the IC title but refused to job to Rocky because he was worried it would hurt his Stone Cold character.  He ended up surrendering the belt to Rock on Raw before kicking his ass.

Indirectly, it actually helped both guy's characters because Austin was reinforced as a no-nonsense badass while the Rock was a egotistical jerk who didn't deserve what he had.

#7: The Rock Returns

I don't care how jaded you have become about wrestling the past few years:  This moment gave you goosebumps.

It was also the loudest I have heard a live crowd in years, proving that the Rock can still bring it when he needs to.

#6: WrestleMania XIX

One of the greatest rivalries of professional wrestling has been Steve Austin vs. The Rock and you knew it wouldn't stop until one of them retired.

In the end, it came down to WrestleMania XIX, where the Rock and Austin put on yet another great match that turned out to be the last of Steve Austin's illustrious career.

Austin did what should be done and laid down for the Rock clean in the middle of the ring, giving Rocky his first and only win over Stone Cold at WrestleMania.

#5: The Rock Breaks Out

Once the Rock joined the Nation of Dominiation, it didn't take long for fans to notice that he was a star in the making.

It's hard to narrow it all down to one promo but this one does a pretty good job of displaying the charisma that Rocky had during this time.

Fans quickly caught on to Rocky's over-the-top promos, his ridiculous bragging, and posing that annoyed them to no end.

Everyone knew he was going to be a star but no one knew how big he was going to be.

#4: The Corporate Champion

After losing the IC title, the Rock clearly had the fans on his side.  He was the best promo man in the business and was improving rapidly in the ring on a daily basis.

WWE, for their part, booked the Rock perfectly as he never actually turned face.  He kept acting like the same arrogant jerk as before but now the fans were behind him.

Finally, at Survivor Series 1998 there was a tournament held for the vacant world title.  The Rock was clearly the crowd's favorite but Vince McMahon shocked everyone by turning on corporate stooge Mick Foley and making the Rock the crown jewel of his stable.

#3: The Promos

While I've mentioned some of the Rock's more memorable promos, there are far too many great ones to include.

There is no one, with the exception of Ric Flair, who ever came close to being as good on the stick as the Rock is.

#2: This Is Your Life!

While on the surface, it's simply a comedy segment featuring the Rock N Sock Connection, this moment is special for a very different reason.

It is the highest rated segment/match in the history of Raw.

Garnering an 8.4 rating, the segment actually gained viewers while it was on, meaning that people were calling their friends and telling them to flip over to it.

To put this in perspective, last week's Raw got a 3.8...and that was the day after WrestleMania.

#1: Rock vs. Hogan

I might catch some heat for this one.

I was a kid when Hulkamania was running wild and I was a teenager during the rebellious Attitude Era, so it seemed like this match was booked just for me.

The live Toronto crowd was rabid the entire time and clearly brought this match to a whole new level.

To this day, the only match I've seen that rivals the epic feel of this match has been Taker-HBK, so that's saying something.