The Rock came out to a huge pop with a new version of his theme song on SmackDown. The Rock announced that finally… WrestleMania is coming back to New Orleans. WrestleMania 42 will take place on April 11 & 12, 2026 at the SuperDome.
He turned heel mid-promo and trashed the fans, and then called out Cody Rhodes. Rock hugged Cody and gave him a kiss. Rock said the fans love Cody. Rock said he meant it when he thanked him for carrying the company on the RAW Netflix premiere. Rock said Cody is a great WWE Champion, but he wants Cody to be more than that – Rock wants Cody to be “his” champion. Cody said he’s “their” champion, referring to the fans.
Rock said Cody has millions of followers on Instagram, but he has half a billion. Rock said he can make all of Cody’s dreams come true – if he becomes his champion. Rock said the one thing he’s never had, is a brother, and Cody can be that. The Rock pointed out that Cody said “f**k that” to the plan of The Rock vs. Roman Reigns last year and then slapped him, and you don’t get away with that – and that’s why Cody is special.
The Final Boss told Cody to think about it and give him an answer at Elimination Chamber on March 1st, as he’ll be there too. Rock told Cody that he doesn’t want the WWE Championship, he wants Cody’s soul.
Some fans on X weren’t happy with this segment and want DX member Road Dogg, who is the new co-head writer of SmackDown, fired. You can read some tweets below:
“I like Road Dogg but WTF does he know about booking a good show?!?!”
“They got Road Dogg doing all the writing…that’s all u need to know.”
“Well Road Dogg was writing for SmackDown in 2017-2019 and uhhh… you’ll never guess who’s writing SmackDown now.”
“Triple H ain’t writing the show (at least on SmackDown), it’s Road Dogg. He sucked in 2019 and he sucks now.”
“Welcome back to the Road Dogg experience with creative.”
“Is it too soon to fire Road Dogg?”
“Actively watching a three-hour SmackDown written by the ROAD DOGG in 2025 is a form of self-harm.”
“Maybe Road Dogg is the opposite of Russo? An absolute bomb on his first night and great shows for the rest of his tenure? Maybe? Possible?”
“Glad we could blame Road Dogg for this and not Triple H.”
