The Rock and Mick Foley were two of the most important wrestlers of the Attitude Era. Along with Steve Austin, they were the most beloved wrestlers of the time during their various character changes. Foley went back and forth between Mankind, Cactus Jack, Dude Love, and himself. Rock evolved from a generic face to a hated heel and eventually the most charismatic wrestler ever on the microphone.
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The duo of Rock and Foley eventually created the Rock 'n' Sock Connection. WWE placed Rock and Foley together as partners after their brutal feud in early 1999 over the WWE Championship. Both wrestlers showed effective chemistry whether they were a team or enemies. The following memories show the Rock and Foley as bitter enemies or the best of friends.
10 Bitter enemies: Mick Foley's first WWE Championship win
The Rock dropping the WWE Championship to Mick Foley for his first title win added to the special nature of this moment. Foley was trying to overcome Rock, who was backed by Vince McMahon and The Corporation.
The match was a back and forth contest, with members of The Corporation and D-Generation X at ringside. Foley pinning Rock added to their rivalry that would lead to a few more brutal matches. Rock getting his comeuppance as a heel made Foley’s big win more memorable.
9 Best friends: "This is your life" segment
WWE received massive ratings for one famous segment between The Rock and Mick Foley. The storyline saw Foley trying to win the friendship and love of The Rock when both were playing face characters.
Foley brought out a few guests to share embarrassing stories about Rock’s backstory. The segment was over big time with fans, who loved the uncomfortable humor. Foley was the MVP of the segment thanks to his comedic timing.
8 Bitter enemies: Halftime heat
WWE ran their first of three halftime specials on Super Bowl Sunday all the way back in 1999. Sunday Night Heat was the home of the empty arena match between The Rock and Mick Foley for the WWE Championship.
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Rock and Foley fought all over an empty venue for about twenty minutes. Foley scored the win over Rock to win the WWE Championship once again in a dangerous match. The intensity of the feud added a lot of excitement to matches like this one.
7 Best friends: Winning tag titles
The Rock 'n' Sock Connection became an official tag team towards the middle of 1999 when they competed in the tag division. Both wrestlers were at the top of their game when it came to character work and it made their promos must-watch material.
Rock and Foley won the WWE Tag Team Championship on three different occasions from the spring to fall of 1999. The fans always loved seeing the two top tier faces holding the gold together even if the tag team was a makeshift pairing.
6 Bitter enemies: WrestleMania 2000 main event
Mick Foley saw his loyalty to The Rock end when both guys and Big Show were the three challengers to Triple H’s WWE Championship reign in WrestleMania 2000's main event. All four wrestlers betrayed each other at different times in the match.
The strangest moment saw Triple H and Foley working together after about three months of brutal battles. They tried to take out Big Show and Rock before turning on each other. Rock was placed against Foley one final time in the fatal 4-way.
5 Best friends: Their daughters becoming friends
One of the coolest elements of Mick Foley and The Rock's friendship is that a new generation of Johnson and Foley relatives are continuing the tradition. Rock’s daughter Simone and Foley’s daughter Noelle have both entered different areas of wrestling.
Foley revealed that Noelle and Simone have a texting friendship that allows him to catch up with Rock through his daughter. Time will tell if fate leads to another Rock 'n' Sock Connection, assuming their daughters can make it to the main roster.
4 Bitter enemies: Survivor Series 1998 double turn
Survivor Series 1998 held huge appeal when a one-night tournament was announced to crown a new WWE Champion. Mick Foley entered the finals with the help of The Corporation against The Rock who represented the fans.
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The finish of the match saw a huge swerve play out with McMahon ringing the bell to parody the Montreal Screwjob and award the victory to the Rock. Foley was betrayed by McMahon as The Rock turned heel to win his first WWE Championship by screwing over his opponent.
3 Best friends: The Rock protesting Raw to get Foley rehired
The McMahon-Helmsley regime saw Triple H and Stephanie McMahon exerting full control over WWE for a few months in 2000. Mick Foley was one of the names included on a pink slip during a pole match against The Rock.
The aftermath saw Rock leading the other faces to the ringside area where they refused to compete until Foley was rehired. This was among the more memorable moments of The Rock breaking his persona to help a friend in an angle.
2 Bitter enemies: Brutal "I Quit" match
The 1999 Royal Rumble event featured one of the most violent matches in WWE history. Mick Foley defended the WWE Championship against The Rock in an “I Quit” match, allowing them to use every weapon in the book.
Rock hit Foley with eleven unprotected chair shots to the head while Mick was already handcuffed. Both wrestlers have said that the match went too far.
1 Best friends: Taking on Evolution
The Rock showed his ultimate loyalty to Mick Foley by making his first WWE in-ring return in over a year to help him out at WrestleMania XX. At the time, Foley was targeted by Randy Orton and the rest of Evolution heading into the PPV.
The Rock returned as the partner of Foley for a handicap match at WrestleMania. This was Rock’s final match until 2011 and he was more than happy sharing the spotlight with Foley. The Rock 'n' Sock Connection put over Evolution, setting the group up as the top faction of the era.
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