The Rock joined 'The Nation of Domination' OTD 23 years ago in an iconic storyline

On this day 23 years ago, Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson joined the iconic Nation of Domination faction which was formed by Faarooq, D'Lo Brown and others in 1996. During his time in the faction, The Rock established himself as one of the biggest heels of the Attitude Era and it kick-started his iconic rivalry with WWE Hall of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin. WWE fans started loving The Rock, who they hated for his previous babyface persona. They loved the new Rock because of his trash-talking and incredible promo delivery, which the old Rock failed to bring to the table. 

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The Rock joined the Nation of Domination in 1997

After making his debut as Rocky Maivia in 1996, The Rock competed in multiple matches but received a lot of heat from fans and critics for his dull persona. After The Rock lost his Intercontinental Championship to Owen Hart and went on a break to recover from his knee injury, WWE officials decided to turn his character into a heel, which is how the trash-talking Brahma Bull came to be. The Rock returned to WWE on August 12, 1997, where he joined Faarooq, D'Lo Brown and Kama’s Nation of Domination.

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Feuding with Stone Cold Steve Austin and backstabbing Faarooq

He then refused to acknowledge the Rocky Maivia name, instead referring to himself in the third person as The Rock. He would often insult the audience, other superstars, and interviewers, which the WWE Universe loved to hate. His first feud was with Stone Cold Steve Austin and the pair faced each other for the first time at the D-Generation X: In Your House PPV. With the help of the faction, The Rock soon won back his Intercontinental Championship and went on to face the likes of Ken Shamrock.

However, a major change in the Nation of Domination came on a March 1998 episode of WWE RAW, where The Rock attacked Faarooq and replaced him as the new leader of the Nation of Domination. The Rock face Faarooq a number of times and defeated him on most occasions. Under The Rock’s leadership, the Nation of Domination started referring to themselves as simply "The Nation" and welcomed Mark Henry to the group.

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Feuding with D-Generation X and ending Nation of Domination

The Nation then started a feud with Triple H and D-Generation X, with the two stable leaders facing each other in the quarter-finals of the 1998 King of the Ring tournament, which The Rock won. Despite losing in the final of the tournament, The Rock continued his feud with Triple H and the two clashed at the Fully Loaded: In Your House PPV, where the Rock once again defeated Triple H to retain his IC title. However, he lost his title to The Game at SummerSlam a month later.

The Rock blamed The Nation for his title loss, which forced fellow members Mark Henry and D'Lo Brown to turn on him. Mark Henry went on to defeat The Great One at Judgment Day: In Your House, which also marked the end of Rock’s faction. However, after leaving the stable, The Rock became the face of WWE and went to ignite iconic feuds with Stone Cold and Triple H.

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Image Source: WWE.com