David Crockett Recalls No One Wanting To Give The Rock A Try In WCW

WCW missed out on a chance to bring in a prospect who would later become one of the biggest stars in the history of professional wrestling. David Crockett recently revealed that Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson briefly passed through the company before he signed with what was then the World Wrestling Federation.

"He came to WCW for a little while," Crockett told the DDP Snake Pit podcast. "He didn't wrestle for us. No one wanted to look at him."

WWE Hall of Famer Diamond Dallas Page recalled the first time he met The Rock. Page said Paul Wight (known as The Big Show in WWE) introduced him to The Rock backstage at WrestleMania X8.

"Big Show says, 'do you want to meet The Rock?' And I said, 'Yeah, I'd love to meet the guy. Jake (Roberts) really put him over, I'd like to meet the guy', Page recalled. "We go in there, we go in the locker room, and Big Show, and those ones in Canada, where the Skydome is, you know they're huge huge locker room. And no one is there and Big Show goes, 'Rock, you still here?' 'Yeah, I'm in the shower'. He goes, 'good, I've got a huge mark dying to meet you.'"

The Rock gained fame by referring to himself as "The People's Champion" in the WWF. However, Diamond Dallas Page was the first to be referred to as "The People's Champion" during his time in WCW. In fact, Page wanted to feud with The Rock over the nickname. That shared legacy led to a parting shot from Page during their first meeting.

"And now I'm leaving and I'm almost to the door, and all of a sudden I hear, 'Hey Diamond'. And Big Show moves out of the way and I can see The Rock, you know he's got that mullet, sideburns, he's putting on one of his $1,500 Versace shirts. I can see him rolling in character, right? He goes, 'You know Diamond, there's only one People's Champion'. And Big Show's like, 'Ohhhh', and I just deadpanned him and go, 'You know Rock, you're right. And you – well, you're looking at him.'"

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit the DDP Snake Pit podcast with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.