How The Rock Hit The Smoothest People's Elbow Ever On WWE Smackdown
Robert Clark
Published Mar 28, 2026
Quick Links
The Rock’s People’s Elbow was one of the most iconic wrestling finishers of all time. It was the most electrifying move in all of sports entertainment, and that’s because every time The Rock executed it he would channel the excitement of the crowd and make the maneuver stronger. Also, the theatrics before where he would remove his elbow pad and throw it into the crowd always got the fans hyped up for the move. While The Rock has won many matches with the People’s Elbow, there was this one instance where he executed the smoothest People’s Elbow of all time and it stands out.
RELATED: The Secret History Of The Rock's People's Elbow Finisher, Explained
The Rock Hit The Smoothest People’s Elbow Ever On The British Bulldog
On the September 30th, 1999 episode of SmackDown, Triple H and The Rock battled for the WWE Championship with The Rock as the special guest referee. After Triple H hit British Bulldog with the Pedigree, he went for the cover, but The Rock didn’t count the pin but instead started clapping.
Triple H then tried to strike The People’s Champion, but he got hit with a Rock Bottom instead. British Bulldog then tried to pin The Game, but The Great One screwed him as well as he didn’t finish the three count and dropped his signature his “It doesn’t matter” line.
The British Bulldog left the ring and grabbed the WWE Title. It seemed like he was going to hit Triple H but then swung the belt towards The Rock who was prepared for it. He then went for the People’s Elbow on British Bulldog, as he untucked his shirt, threw his sunglasses at the crowd, ran over him, and then slid across the ring before executing the move, allwhile wearing dress clothes.
RELATED: The 15 Best Wrestling Finishers Ever, According To Ranker.com
The People’s Elbow Was A Silly Looking Move
A lot of fans will agree that The People’s Elbow was a very dumb move. Even one of The Rock’s best rivals, Triple H, said that it was the “hokiest finisher,” although in jest. A wrestler would have to lay down for The Rock to finish doing his thing before hitting the move. But The Rock was so charismatic that he made an elbow drop such a popular wrestling maneuver. He first started doing the People’s Elbow when he joined The Nation of Domination, but it wasn’t until he turned face that it became so popular with the fans.
RELATED: 5 Reasons Why The Rock Made A Better Babyface (& 5 He Was Better As A Heel)
The People's Elbow Was Created To Make The Undertaker Break Character
The origin story of the People’s Elbow is also quite amusing. According to Triple H, The Rock invented this move with a sole purpose: to get The Undertaker to break character. This wasn't the first time someone tried to make Undertaker laugh. "I believe the first time Rock did The People’s Elbow was in a match where we were trying to make ‘Taker crack. It absolutely started [as a joke] and then it was getting a huge reaction and everybody went with it."
Fans really liked the People’s Elbow, so he started using it regularly on WWE television, although there were many fans who didn’t like the fact that The Rock started using it as a finisher. This wasn’t a big issue, even kayfabe-wise, because The Rock would often hit his opponents with a Spinebuster or a Rock Bottom to “finish” them and the People’s Elbow was just the pièce de résistance to seal the victory. No matter how hokey it was though, seeing The Rock slide across the ring to deliver the People's Elbow to the British Bulldog will always be the epitome of cool.
