The finals occurred at Survivor Series on November 15, 1998, the place the Rock defeated Vince McMahon’s associate, Mankind, to win his first WWF Championship. His first match came at Survivor Series on November 17, 1996, in an eight-man elimination tag match; he was the only real survivor and eliminated the final two members of the opposing staff, Crush and Goldust. His reputation prompted him to be booked in a feud with fellow Nation members Mark Henry and D’Lo Brown, turning babyface in the process. Henry defeated him at Judgment Day: In Your own home on October 18, 1998, after interference from Brown, effectively breaking up the stable. Upon returning in August 1997, Maivia turned heel for the first time in his profession by lashing out at followers who had been booing him and joining Faarooq, D’Lo Brown and Kama within the stable called the Nation of Domination. He then successfully defended the Intercontinental title in opposition to Faarooq at Over the edge: In Your home on May 31. The stable would then seek advice from themselves as merely “The Nation”. Maivia then efficiently defended the title towards Helmsley at In Your home 13: Final Four.
Later that night, he entered the Royal Rumble match and lasted until the final two before he was eradicated by Stone Cold Steve Austin. Rock and Mankind would win the tag titles for the third and remaining time after beating the new Age Outlaws on the October 14 episode of SmackDown! Perhaps the future holds a extra limited quantity of new titles premiering each month. The Rock then lost a primary contender’s match to Triple H, at Fully Loaded, after interference from “Mr. Ass” Billy Gunn. The segment earned an 8.4 Nielsen ranking, considered one of the highest rankings ever for a Raw section. In the principle event of the January 4, 1999, episode of Raw Is War, Mankind defeated the Rock for the championship after interference from Stone Cold Steve Austin. The next night, on Raw is War, the Rock debuted a brand new Intercontinental Championship design and would later overthrow Faarooq as chief of the Nation of Domination to spark a feud between the two. The two faced off once more, at St. Valentine’s Day Massacre: In Your home on February 14, 1999, in a final Man Standing match which ended in a draw, that means Mankind retained the title. On February 13, 1997, he won the Intercontinental Championship from Hunter Hearst Helmsley on Monday Night Raw.
On January 31, during an episode of Sunday Night Heat, the Rock and Mankind participated in an Empty Arena match, a match that took place in an arena with 22,000 empty seats the place any part of the ability could possibly be used to contest the match. The following evening on Raw is War he was fired from the Corporation after he was betrayed by Shane McMahon, turning him face once more and beginning a feud with Triple H, The Undertaker and The company Ministry. A clean-minimize face character, Maivia was pushed closely from the start regardless of his wrestling inexperience. Intended to point out a vicious streak within the Rock’s character, the Rock hit Mankind in the pinnacle with a steel chair 11 times as an alternative of the scripted 5, 5 photographs already being risky (most wrestling matches within the Attitude Era involving steel chairs had at most 2 or three shots to the top). This feeling was enhanced at the instances after i chose a previously unopened dōjinshi: unwrapping the shiny cellophane created a crackling sound that signalled luxury and funding in myself. He’s teamed up with Spike Lee five occasions, Quentin Tarantino six times and the Marvel Universe nine instances.
The Rock contested this match twice, each times in Texas (vs Triple H in Dallas, and vs Al Snow in Houston). The Rock then resumed his feud with Triple H, as the 2 had a two out of three falls match at Fully Loaded: In Your home for the Intercontinental title, which the Rock retained in controversial trend. He then refused to acknowledge the Rocky Maivia identify, as an alternative referring to himself in the third person because the Rock, although he would still be billed as “The Rock” Rocky Maivia till 1998. The Rock would then regularly insult the viewers, WWF performers, and interviewers in his promos. After 20 minutes of chaotic brawling in the ring, the stands, a kitchen, the catering space, an workplace, the arena corridors and at last a basement loading area, Mankind pinned the Rock utilizing a forklift truck to win the WWF title. WWF Championship against The Undertaker, at King of the Ring, which the Rock lost.
