WWE’s Reasons for Opting Not to Announce The Rock’s Appearances in Advance

The return of The Rock to WWE television during the Day 1 edition of Monday Night RAW was undoubtedly one of the biggest surprises and highlights of the night. The Great One made triumphant comeback by laying the smackdown on Jinder Mahal and teasing a potential bout with Roman Reigns. Interestingly enough, there is a good reason why WWE hasn’t announced The Rock’s appearance in advance.

Prior to his return on Monday Night RAW, The Rock made his return after almost four years on the September 15th episode of Friday Night Smackdown last year. Obviously, he ended up getting the biggest pop on the show by a mile. He even hit The People’s Elbow on Austin Theory, electrifying fans in attendance.

While both appearances by The Rock garnered significant social media and TV ratings, some believe that announcing them in advance could have boosted ratings even more.

While speaking on Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer explained that The Rock’s appearances are not announced in advance because he values the crowd’s reaction over TV ratings.

While Rock is a businessman, his return to WWE is more about fun and excitement than a business-driven decision. Meltzer noted that Rock enjoys the surprise element and the pop he gets from the live audience, and that’s why his appearances are typically unannounced.

“But also, he’s doing this for fun because he doesn’t have to do it. And he’s doing it for excitement. That type of thing. That’s why when he came back Monday, it wasn’t announced at a time like if they had announced that ahead of time. I mean, the rating would have been much higher, much higher than it was. He was doing it because in that case, he wanted that pop because of people in the building not knowing he was going to be there. And there he is. That’s what he wants. Every time he comes back, they never announce it ahead of time. They’ll do the little tease, but they won’t do so, but they won’t do the announcement.”

Australian officials have been actively trying to secure The Rock’s appearance at the Elimination Chamber event next month, adding to the speculation and excitement surrounding a possible clash between The Rock and Reigns. Only time will tell if the match will end up happening this year.

What do you think of this story concerning The Rock? Do you feel WWE should have him compete at WrestleMania 40? Let us know in the comments section below!