What’s the story?
In a recent appearance on BBC Radio 1, Triple H revealed the origin of The Rock’s legendary signature move, The People’s Elbow.
Triple H stated that the move started off as a joke, with The Rock using it at a couple of live events, however, the now-iconic elbow became a permanent weapon in Rocky’s arsenal once the fans started popping for it.
In case you didn’t know...
Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson is one of the most popular professional wrestlers of all time, with his signature moves such as the ‘Rock Bottom’ and ‘The People’s Elbow’ being extremely popular ever since the Brahma Bull started using them in the 1990s.
Despite the fact that The Rock hasn’t been a full-time performer in WWE since the mid-2000s, his moves are to date, some of the most ‘over’ moves in the sport.
The heart of the matter
Triple H revealed that The People’s Elbow was, in fact, derived from a prank that a few members of the locker room decided to play on The Undertaker.
He stated that The Rock decided to pull off the People’s Elbow at a WWE live event, hoping that the whacky-looking move would throw off Taker, make him break character and laugh.
“Can I tell you that I love working with The Rock, so this is in no way disparaging that. But, it (The People’s Elbow) is the hokiest move ever. You’ve gotta wait for like 20 minutes while he takes his elbow pad off and works the crowd,” said Triple H in an interview with BBC Radio 1.
“He runs back and forth, and then he comes up and drops an elbow on you, that looks like it barely touches you, except a lot of times the point of his elbow hits you right in the mouth, and you come up bleeding, and you’re like ‘How can you bust me open on that?’”
Additionally, Triple H insinuated that the People’s Elbow and the occasional botch is just one of the things that tend to happen in the ring.
What’s next?
Triple H presently serves in a backstage capacity in the WWE, with a potential match with Kurt Angle rumoured to take place at Wrestlemania 34 next year.
On the other hand, The Rock remains busy with his Hollywood obligations and has no immediate plans in the WWE.
Author’s take
I strongly disagree with Triple H here.
The People’s Elbow may be a hokey move, but given the fact that it’s usually performed by The Most Electrifying Man In All Of Sports Entertainment, The People’s Champion, The Rock, one can’t help but pop when he lays the SmackDown in the ring.
