The Rock slaps Cody Rhodes in the face after he decides to fight Roman Reigns at WrestleMania

The Rock slaps Cody Rhodes in the face after he decides to fight Roman Reigns at WrestleMania

WWE held its WrestleMania XL Kickoff press conference tonight (Feb. 8) at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. There was a ton of hype all week long for this event, with the expectation that the main event of WrestleMania 40 would be officially announced. Is it Roman Reigns vs. The Rock or Cody Rhodes?

The Rock was booed in the arena when co-host Pat McAfee brought up his name and his insults today about the Cody Crybabies. Fellow co-hosts CM Punk and Big E discussed whether or not Cody’s hard work and success in the ring this year means he deserves the WrestleMania main event spot over The Rock’s box office draw.

Triple H, Bianca Belair, Rhea Ripley, and Becky Lynch all took the stage throughout the first 30 or 40 minutes of the press conference before we got to the part everyone really wanted to see.

World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins was on stage and called out Cody Rhodes to finally make his decision, but The Visionary was instead interrupted by Paul Heyman and WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns. The Tribal Chief said everyone should actually be talking about his decision, because he’s gonna choose his own opponent for WrestleMania.

Roman then chose The Rock.

The Rock’s music hit and he made his entrance to confront Reigns. There was a mixed reaction for his arrival, although the boos grew louder when his music stopped playing and he started to talk about The Rock vs. Roman Reigns being the biggest main event in WrestleMania history. The “We Want Cody” chants were met with opposing but quieter “No we don’t” chants.

The Rock took that opportunity to go after the Cody Crybabies. He was greeted with “What” chants in return.

He showed a graphic of The Bloodline family tree and said it’s proof that there’s only one powerful and dominant royal family in professional wrestling. If you don’t think that means The Rock vs. Roman Reigns is the biggest main event in WrestleMania history, then it doesn’t matter what you think. Whether you like it or not, The People’s Champion vs. the WWE Universal Champion, bound by blood, is the biggest main event in WrestleMania history. Roman and The Rock then embraced!

Cody finally came out and called bullshit on the whole thing. It’s not up to Roman or The Rock to determine the main event of WrestleMania 40. Cody is the one who won the Royal Rumble, and he has made his decision.

And that decision is…he chooses Roman Reigns!

Cody said it doesn’t matter who sits at the head of the table when neither The Rock nor Roman have done any of the cooking over the last two years. Cody took a shot at The Bloodline’s ancestry, and that didn’t sit well with either Roman or The Rock. The Rock slapped the taste out of Cody’s mouth, inciting a wild scene where Rollins got in The Rock’s face and WWE officials had to step in in order to prevent a violent brawl.

The scene on stage ended there, leaving the co-hosts to wonder what the hell is going in and what’s happening next on the road to WrestleMania. Could there be a tag team match of Roman Reigns & The Rock vs. Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins coming our way before we get to Rhodes vs. Reigns at WrestleMania 40? And where does Cody’s choice leave Seth Rollins and The Rock at WrestleMania?

CM Punk mentioned that The Rock is a member of the TKO Board of Directors, which might be a hint of a corporate power play that still gets him added to the WrestleMania main event. Meanwhile, Big E reminded everyone that WrestleMania is a two night event, so maybe there’s enough room for multiple matches to resolve this problem.

The Rock and Roman Reigns crossed paths with Triple H on their way out the venue, and they said he better fix it.

This incredible piece of business was executed better than just about anyone could imagine, with The Rock’s heel turn and massive ego giving Cody the clear path to insert himself back into the main event of WrestlMania 40 as the clear hero of the story who everyone can root for.

What did you think of this angle featuring Cody’s return to the WrestleMania 40 main event? Let us know in the comments below, Cagesiders.