- Rock 'n' Sock Connection
Infobox Wrestling team
article_name=Rock 'n' Sock Connection
type=T
caption=The Rock (left) and Mankind
members=The Rock
Mankind, Mick Foley
names=Rock 'N' Sock Connection
Rock 'N Sock
heights= 6 ft 3 ½ in (192 cm) - The Rock
6 ft 2 in (188 cm) - Mick Foley
weights= 562 lb (255 kg)
debut=1999
disbanded=March 14, 2004
promotions=WWF/E|Rock 'N' Sock Connection is a former
professional wrestling tag team of The Rock and Mankind that wrestled in the World Wrestling Federation between 1999 and 2000 and briefly in 2004. As a team, they held the WWF Tag Team Championship three times.cite web | url = http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/worldtagteam/ | title = World Tag Team Title History | accessdate=2007-05-20]History
On
August 30 1999 , the Rock 'N' Sock Connection was formed when theThe Undertaker and Big Show attacked The Rock on "Raw", leading The Rock to challenge both of them to a match. At the time, it was considered career "suicide" to face a team as deadly as The Undertaker and The Big Show. With this in mind, Mankind (who recently started using a sock named "Mr. Socko" as part of his gimmick) asked his former enemy if he could help with his fight against Undertaker and Big Show. The Rock reluctantly accepted, and later that night, the two captured The Undertaker and Big Show's WWF Tag Team Titles when they pinned Big Show after a double People's Elbow. [cite web | url = http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/worldtagteam/304454132135 | title = First Title Reign | accessdate=2007-05-20]They lost the belts on
September 7 in aBuried Alive match against Undertaker and Big Show, when then-heelTriple H interfered. However, Triple H was really only helping out Undertaker, as he hit The Big Show with a sledgehammer. [cite web | url = http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/worldtagteam/304454132126 | title = Undertaker and Big Show's Title Reign | accessdate = 2007-05-20]On
September 20 , the Rock 'N' Sock Connection won the titles back in a Dark Side Rules match against The Big Show, Mideon, and Viscera (The Undertaker did not feel like being in the match so they took his place, thus turning the match into a three-on-two). [cite web | url = http://www.wwe.com/inside/titlehistory/worldtagteam/304454132117 | title = Second Title Reign | accessdate= 2007-05-20] Three days later on "SmackDown!", theNew Age Outlaws reunited and challenged Rock N' Sock Connection for the titles, which The Outlaws won.Several days later, Mick Foley helped WWF "Raw" achieve some of its highest ratings ever with a segment featuring himself (as Mankind) and The Rock. The "This is Your Life" segment aired on
September 27 1999 , and received an 8.4 rating. [cite web |url=http://slashwrestling.com/raw/990927.html |title=Slashwrestling RAW report - with ratings |accessdate=2007-01-13 |author=Christopher Robin Zimmerman ] Two weeks later, The Rock told Mankind that he was tired of him, did not like the whole Rock 'N' Sock team, nor did he enjoy Mankind stealing his catchphrases during promos. Mankind begged The Rock to team up with him for one more night, but he did not tell The Rock who they would be fighting.They ended up challenging The New Age Outlaws for the championships on
October 14 1999 . That night, the Rock 'N' Sock Connection won the tag team titles for the third time, meaning they would have to continue teaming together to defend the titles. Four days later on "SmackDown!", before their title defense againstThe Holly Cousins , Mick Foley gave the Rock an autographed copy of his book, "", but later found it in the trash. Mick confronted The Rock and cursed him out for throwing away his life's work. Later that night, during their match, a crushed Mankind refused to participate as he sat despondently on the steel steps, facing away from the ring, as Hardcore and Crash Holly beat The Rock for the Titles.The Rock and Mankind began a feud with each other, until Foley discovered that it was his close friend,
Al Snow who threw the book in the trash, since the book contained many Al Snow jokes. In real life, Foley and Snow continually make fun of each other and their careers. [Foley, Mick. Have A Nice Day: A Tale of Blood and Sweatsocks (Foreword p.x)]Reunions
The Rock 'N' Sock would later reunite to take on the
McMahon-Helmsley Faction . They teamed off-and-on until Foley's in-ring retirement inMarch 2000 and The Rock's blossoming movie career.In 2004, The Rock 'N' Sock Connection reunited at
WrestleMania XX when they took on then Evolution membersRandy Orton ,Ric Flair , and Batista in a 3 on 2 handicap match. However, The Rock 'N' Sock Connection lost the match when Orton pinned Foley after an RKO. [cite web|url=http://www.wwe.com/superstars/wwealumni/therock/bio/|title=The Rock's WWE Alumni Profile|publisher=WWE.com|accessdate=2007-06-04]In wrestling
*Double People's Elbow (both members perform an elbow drop)
*Rock Bottom/Mandible ClawChampionships and accomplishments
*"'World Wrestling Federation
**WWF Tag Team Championship (3 times)Notes
References
*cite book | author = Mick Foley | title = Have A Nice Day: A Tale of Blood and Sweatsocks | publisher = HarperCollins | date = 2000 | pages = 511 | isbn = 0061031011
External links
* [http://www.wwe.com/superstars/wwealumni/therock/bio/ The Rock's WWE Alumni Profile]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
