Ex-WWE Champion was going to dethrone Roman Reigns, felt Kurt Angle, instead of Cody Rhodes

Roman Reigns' legendary run as champion ended at WWE WrestleMania 40 at the hands of Cody Rhodes, but Kurt Angle initially believed The Rock was earmarked for the spot.

WWE caught the fans off guard with multiple surprises on the Road to WrestleMania as The Rock returned initially to tease a match against Roman Reigns before turning heel and joining The Bloodline.

Kurt Angle recently discussed the WrestleMania angle on his podcast and revealed he initially felt The Rock was back to take the title off Roman Reigns. The Hall of Famer noted that the build on TV suggested that Dwayne Johnson could be the biggest threat to Reigns' title reign.

However, the heel turn was a curveball from WWE not many expected, and Kurt Angle called it a "genius" move from the company:

"You know what? It was really cool. I really enjoyed how they were able to intermingle the Rock into the storyline. I thought The Rock was going to come back and beat Roman Reigns for the world title. It was like, okay, you almost could read it was going to happen. I don't know if they changed things because they were listening to the fans or whatever, but Rock turning heel was genius." [8:17 - 8:44]

It reminds me of when he first started: Kurt Angle on The Rock's recent WWE work

It might seem incredibly tough to boo one of the most popular personalities in the world, but Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson, isn't your average performer, as he proved during his latest on-screen stint.

Rock looked sharper than ever as a heel by ushering in a new era in the WWE with his promos and delivering a commendable in-ring performance on Night One of WrestleMania.

Kurt Angle thoroughly enjoyed The Rock embracing his heel persona and recalled it being similar to the Great One's early years in WWE.

Angle added:

"If they decided to do that without the fans' approval, it would be incredible if they could rock and get him to turn heel. He was really good, too, man. It reminds me of when he first started and the heel he was back then." [8:45 - 9:08]

The Rock is back in Hollywood after wrapping up WrestleMania but is expected to return to the ring. Whether he goes after Cody Rhodes' title or gets involved in The Bloodline saga, Dwayne Johnson has many excellent creative options at his disposal.

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Please credit The Kurt Angle Show and give an H/T to Sportskeeda for the transcription.