Rock explains why he skipped WrestleMania 41

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson surprised many fans by not appearing at WrestleMania 41, despite earlier expectations that he would play a major role in the main event. His absence sparked conversations across the wrestling world, especially since his involvement had been widely discussed leading up to the big night.
WrestleMania 41 turned out to be a memorable event for other reasons, with John Cena creating history by winning his 17th world championship title. He defeated Cody Rhodes in a highly anticipated match, making him the WWE star with the most world title wins. This moment broke the long-standing record held by Ric Flair, and it instantly became one of the biggest highlights of the night.
Adding to the drama, rapper Travis Scott also made an appearance during the main event, influencing the outcome of the match. Fans were expecting The Rock to appear as well, especially since he had played a key role at the Elimination Chamber earlier this year. It was there that he convinced Cena to turn heel — a major shift after nearly two decades. Because of this setup, many believed that The Rock would be present at WrestleMania 41 to support Cena or influence the match's outcome.

However, The Rock later cleared the air about his absence during an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show. He explained that the decision to skip the event was his own. According to him, he stepped away so the attention would fully be on John Cena and Cody Rhodes, rather than shifting focus to himself.
He was quoted by Yardbarker saying that he intentionally moved out of the spotlight to allow others to shine. "Step back and let the Final Boss step back into the shadows. Let all that spotlight go on John. Let it go to Cody. Let's not make it about Cody's soul or John's soul. Let's let them do what they do," The Rock told Pat McAfee.
By doing so, he made it clear that his absence was meant to honor Cena's historic achievement and to avoid overshadowing the special moment with his own star power. Fans now have a better understanding of why one of wrestling’s biggest icons chose to stay behind the scenes during such a major event.