WWE was well aware of The Rock potentially missing WrestleMania 41 a long time ago, says veteran

WrestleMania 41 was incredible, but The Rock's absence was widely considered a disappointment. Many fans were expecting to see The Final Boss on Night Two, especially considering his previous involvement in the John Cena-Cody Rhodes storyline. However, according to a veteran, WWE knew that he would not be present.

Following WrestleMania weekend, many were under the impression that The Rock's absence from the event was something last-minute. However, according to veteran journalist Dave Meltzer, WWE knew for some time that Dwayne Johnson's presence was not guaranteed.

Speaking on the Wrestling Observer Radio podcast, Meltzer revealed that he had been following the situation surrounding The Rock and WrestleMania 41 for quite some time. However, every time he inquired about the potential for his appearance, he was told that the 52-year-old was not scheduled.

​

"The Dwayne Johnson thing is something that I was following really close all the time, and I did think he would be there, but I was always told he was not scheduled," said Dave Meltzer. [From 29:59-30:07]

Meltzer even revealed that he was told to report that The Brahma Bull would miss the event, in the hope that he would show up out of anger.

Regardless, it seems as though WWE was well aware that Dwayne Johnson would not be present at The Show of Shows, and as such, the finish for the main event of Night Two was planned well in advance.

The Rock claims he did not want to take the spotlight away from John Cena

Following WrestleMania 41, The Rock made an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show via video. There he spoke about a variety of things, including his absence from Las Vegas.

As mentioned earlier, many were expecting him to make his presence felt, especially considering they were under the impression that he "owned John Cena's soul." However, The Final Boss revealed that he did not want to take the spotlight away from Cena's win.

He claimed that getting involved in the finish would've taken away from what was a historic 17th world championship win for Cena and that his winning the title as a heel was what was "anchoring" the storyline.

In hindsight, perhaps his absence did keep the focus on Cena's record-breaking win. Nevertheless, one cannot help but hope that he re-inserts himself into the storyline sometime in the near future.

​