The Rock: Early Life, WWE Career, Moves, Entrance Theme and more

The Rock Profile
  • Full Name: Dwayne Douglas Johnson
  • Ring Name: The Rock
  • Nicknames: The People’s Champion, The Great One, The Brahma Bull, The Most Electrifying Man in Sports Entertainment, Final Boss
  • Date of Birth: May 2, 1972
  • Hometown: Hayward, California, USA
  • Billed From: Miami, Florida, USA
  • Height: 6’5″ (196 cm)
  • Weight: 260 lbs (118 kg)
  • Nationality: American
  • Ethnicity: Samoan-African Canadian
  • Family: Son of WWE Hall of Famer Rocky Johnson; grandson of High Chief Peter Maivia; member of the Anoaʻi wrestling family

Early Life & Background

Dwayne Johnson was born into a wrestling dynasty. His father, Rocky Johnson, and grandfather, Peter Maivia, were both professional wrestlers. Johnson played college football at the University of Miami, where he was part of the 1991 national championship team. After a brief stint with the Calgary Stampeders in the CFL, he transitioned to professional wrestling in 1996.

Wrestling Career

Debut

  • Professional Debut: March 10, 1996 (WWF)
  • Main Roster Debut: November 17, 1996, at Survivor Series as Rocky Maivia

Championships & Accomplishments

  • WWE Champion: 8 times
  • WCW/World Champion: 2 times
  • WWE Intercontinental Champion: 2 times
  • WWE Tag Team Champion: 5 times (with Mankind, The Undertaker, and Chris Jericho)
  • Royal Rumble Winner: 2000
  • Sixth WWE Triple Crown Champion
  • Slammy Awards: 10-time winner, including Match of the Year and “This is Awesome” Moment

Wrestling Promotions

  • WWE: 1996–2004, 2011–2019, 2023–present
  • USWA: 1996 (as Flex Kavana)

Wrestling Style & Signature Moves

Wrestling Style

The Rock is known for his charismatic persona, electrifying promos, and a blend of power and agility in the ring. His style combines traditional wrestling techniques with high-impact moves and showmanship.

Signature Moves

  • Spinebuster: A powerful slam setting up for the People’s Elbow.
  • Samoan Drop: A nod to his Samoan heritage.
  • Sharpshooter: A submission hold that was made famous by in North America by Bret Hart.

Finishing Moves

  • Rock Bottom: A lifting side slam, often leading to a pinfall.
  • People’s Elbow: A theatrical elbow drop, one of the most iconic moves in WWF/E history.

Entrance Theme

  • Current Theme: “Electrifying”
  • Previous Themes: “Do You Smell It,” “Is Cookin’,” “Hollywood Rock”

Notable Rivalries

  • Stone Cold Steve Austin: A legendary feud that headlined multiple WrestleManias.
  • Triple H: Battled over the Intercontinental and WWE Championships.
  • Mankind: Engaged in brutal matches, including the infamous “I Quit” match.
  • John Cena: Faced off in two consecutive WrestleMania main events.

Career Highlights

  • WrestleMania Main Events: Headlined WrestleMania XV, 2000, X-Seven, XXVIII, 29, and XL.
  • “This Is Your Life” Segment: With Mankind, achieved one of the highest-rated segments in Raw history.
  • Hollywood Transition: Successfully transitioned to a blockbuster movie career, becoming one of the highest-paid actors globally.
  • Return as “Final Boss”: In 2024, returned to WWE, aligning with The Bloodline and adopting a new persona.

Personal Life & Fun Facts

  • Family: Father to three daughters, including Simone Johnson (WWE NXT’s Ava).
  • Business Ventures: Co-founder of Seven Bucks Productions; co-owner of the United Football League (UFL); board member of TKO Group Holdings.
  • Acting Career: Starred in major franchises like “Fast & Furious,” “Jumanji,” and “Black Adam.”
  • Philanthropy: Known for his charitable work and motivational presence on social media.

The Rock Stats at a Glance

  • Full Name: Dwayne Douglas Johnson
  • Ring Name: The Rock
  • Nicknames: The People’s Champion, The Great One, The Brahma Bull, Final Boss
  • Height: 6’5″ (196 cm)
  • Weight: 260 lbs (118 kg)
  • Hometown: Hayward, California
  • Date of Birth: May 2, 1972
  • Debut: March 10, 1996
  • Wrestling Style: Charismatic powerhouse
  • Signature Moves: Spinebuster, Samoan Drop, Sharpshooter
  • Finishing Moves: Rock Bottom, People’s Elbow
  • Entrance Theme: “Electrifying”
  • Notable Rivalries: Stone Cold Steve Austin, Triple H, Mankind, John Cena, Roman Reigns
  • Championships: 8× WWE Champion, 2× WCW Champion, 2× Intercontinental Champion, 5× Tag Team Champion
  • Promotions: WWE, USWA
  • Career Highlights: Multiple WrestleMania main events, transition to Hollywood stardom, return as “Final Boss” in 2024
  • Personal Background: Member of the Anoaʻi family; father of three; successful actor and entrepreneur
Jake Skudder
Jake Skudder

Jake is an SEO-minded Football, Combat Sports, Gaming and Pro Wrestling writer, successful Editor in Chief, Sports SEO Coordinator for NationalWorld and SEO Writer for F4Wonline.com. He has more than ten years of experience covering mixed martial arts, pro wrestling, football and gaming across a number of publications, starting at SEScoops in 2012 under the name Jake Jeremy. His work has also been featured on Wrestling Headlines, Wrestlingnewsco, HotNewHipHop, The Hard Times and Sportskeeda.

Previously, he worked as the Editor in Chief of 24Wrestling, building the site profile with a view to selling the domain, which was accomplished in 2019. Jake was previously the Editor in Chief for FightFans, a combat sports and pro wrestling site that was launched in January 2021 and broke into millions of pageviews within the first two years. He previously worked for Snack Media and their GiveMeSport site, creating Evergreen and Trending content that would deliver pageviews via Google as the UFC and MMA SEO Lead. Jake managed to take an area of GiveMeSport that had zero traction on Organic and push it to audiences across the globe. Jake also has a record of long-term video and written interview content with the likes of the Professional Fighters League, ONE and Cage Warriors, working directly with the brands to promote bouts, fighters and special events.

He previously worked for the (then) biggest independent wrestling company in the UK, PROGRESS Wrestling, as PR Head and Head of Media across the social channels of the company.