Dwane ‘The Rock’ Johnson’s daughter has confirmed the date of her WWE debut as she prepares to follow in her famous dad’s footsteps.
Simone Johnson AKA Ava Raine, 21, already has a lot of buzz around her as WWE’s first-ever fourth generation wrestler.
While her dad is a multi-time World Champion and considered an all-time great, wrestling is in their family’s DNA.
First there was her great-grandfather, ‘High Chief’ Peter Maivia, who worked in NWA and WWE in a career which spanned across the 1960s and 70s.
Then came his son and her grandfather, Rocky Johnson, who made history himself by becoming the first-ever black champion in WWE history with his Tag Team Championship win alongside Tony Atlas.
There are naturally high expectations for Ava Raine, who will take to the ring for the first time in front of a crowd at NXT Stand & Deliver in Los Angeles on April 1.
Her debut will come during WWE’s massive WrestleMania Week run of events and she will take her place among her The Schism teammates – Joe Gacy, Rip Fowler and Jagger Reid.
They will face off against their tag-team rivals Chase U, which comprises of Andre Chase, Duke Hudson, Thea Hall and their newest ally Tyler Bate.
The eight-person tag match was confirmed on Tuesday night’s episode of NXT after the two factions came together for a debate about which group is the best, with them deciding the only way to settle it was in the ring.
One person who is sure to be cheering Ava Raine on is her dad.
better savor what you have left of that university.
— A V A (@AvaRaineWWE) March 22, 2023
see you at stand & deliver. https://t.co/KJ5KfGyiMf
Speaking about her decision to uphold the family tradition, The Rock insisted that she didn’t want to ride on anyone’s coat tails and wanted to “blaze her own path”.
He told Entertainment Tonight: “She is fiercely independent. It’s very important for her to make her own way. Blaze her own trail. Blaze her own path. She doesn’t come to me looking for a lot which I respect. And I’m here watching and supporting.”
