"It's a little awkward" – AEW star on The Rock's post-WWE WrestleMania 41 remarks

The Rock's WrestleMania 41 absence was the talk of the WWE fanbase after the two-night event on April 19-20. In a recent podcast episode, AEW commentator Jim Ross addressed the Hollywood star's controversial post-WrestleMania comments.

Many expected The Rock to show up at WrestleMania 41 after aligning with John Cena and rapper Travis Scott at Elimination Chamber. However, he did not appear on either night of the event. After being criticized by Dave LaGreca of Busted Open, the 53-year-old wrote on Instagram that "the business is a complete work."

On his Grilling JR podcast, Ross agreed with host Conrad Thompson that The Rock's reply was "weird":

"Yeah, it is. It's a little awkward, to be honest with you. A little awkward, to be quite frank about it. It's one of those deals that's gotta play out, Conrad. I don't know where it's headed. I don't think any of us know where it's headed, but time will tell, time will tell, without question, and I'm anxious to go along for the ride." [41:45 – 42:12]

John Cena defeated Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania 41 to win the Undisputed WWE Championship. The Rock later said on The Pat McAfee Show that he removed himself from the storyline because he wanted Cena and Rhodes to have the spotlight.

Jim Ross reacts to WWE's behind-the-scenes show

This summer, a new Netflix show called WWE: Unreal will give fans an insight into the company's creative process. While The Rock mostly has the freedom to do what he wants, Triple H is responsible for overseeing the main roster's week-to-week storyline developments.

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WWE: Unreal has divided opinion among fans, but Jim Ross thinks people should give the show a chance:

"Interesting concept. I'm willing to play along with it to see how it evolves, what the plans are, how it will end up, what the end game will be, so time will tell." [43:08 – 43:23]

Ross also gave his honest thoughts on Steve Austin crashing an ATV into a ringside barricade at WrestleMania 41.

Please credit Grilling JR and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.

About the author

Danny Hart is a journalist who has been reporting on pro wrestling (WWE) at Sportskeeda since 2017. He grew up as a massive fan of football/soccer and wrestling, leading him to pursue a career in sports journalism.

Before assuming his current role, Hart worked as a football writer at Goal.com between 2009 and 2016. He prides himself on writing original content that is fact-based and highly accurate. Hart thoroughly proofreads his work before submitting it and relies only on credible sources for information.

Hart’s favorite pro wrestler is The Undertaker. He admires the 2022 WWE Hall of Famer’s ability to reinvent his character and remain relevant across his decades-long career. If given the keys to WWE’s creative department, he would bring back The Phenom for a farewell bout against AJ Styles in a stadium full of fans. Not only that, but he would love to have the multi-time world champion’s greatest rivals seated at ringside for the spectacle.

When not watching and covering sports, Hart enjoys long-distance running, playing video games, and listening to audiobooks and podcasts.

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Edited by Danny Hart