Shawn Stasiak Recalls Working With The Rock On Post-9/11 WWE Smackdown

Shawn Stasiak recently looked back on his match with The Rock on the post-9/11 episode of WWE Smackdown. Stasiak lost a quick match to the then-WCW World Heavyweight Champion on the episode, which aired just two days after the 9/11 attacks. He looked back on the experience during an interview with Nick Hausman of Haus of Wrestling.

“I got to work with Dwayne Johnson, The Rock, that night,” Stasiak recalled. “I was the Wile E. Coyote of the WWE, at the time, you know, the laughingstock and comical relief. It was just fun that I got to rub shoulders with Rock a little bit; I wish I would have had an opportunity to actually work a real program and, you know, develop, but the rest is history. It is what it is. It was bittersweet, you’re, on one end, you’re representing freedom and America, really. A very patriotic night, but it was depressing and sad.”

He continued, “Again, lots of fear and anxiety going on, but to work with Dwayne was really special for me, too. Again, I wish we had more time or more of an opportunity of working together, but just to have that moment. I was glad to be part of it. It was a stupid, goofy character, but at least it made people laugh, and it put smiles on faces, and it eased up some of the tension that we all felt. So I was I was happy to be part of that.”