Posted in: Movies, Sports, TV, WWE | Tagged: conor mcgregor, dwayne "the rock" johnson, dwayne johnson, HRL, the rock, wrasslin, wrestling, wwe

WrestleMania Appearances by Conor McGregor and The Rock Rumored Thanks to Betting Odds

Professional wrestling may be fixed (don't tell anyone), but that hasn't stopped bookies from taking bets on sports entertainment. In fact, gambling oddsmakers have become a major source of dirt sheet rumors in the buildup to every major wrestling event. The biggest of those, of course, is WrestleMania, and betting odds have spawned rumors of two big names appearing at the event: Conor McGregor and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.

Betting website Oddschecker sparked the McGregor rumors on Thursday with an "insight" pointing to McGregor's odds of appearing at WrestleMania in some capacity.

"As with any Wrestlemania, one of the biggest talking points is what celebrities and sports stars will turn up on the night," said Oddschecker spokesperson George Elek. "One of the more vocal celebrities rumoured to be in attendance is the Notorious Conor McGregor – and if bookies are correct – he could well be appearing on the Grandest Stage of Them All. Bookies have priced up McGregor as 7/4 to appear at the event, which for reference is the same price Manchester City were to win the Premier League this season."

And on Wednesday, bookies virtually guaranteed that Johnson will appear at the show, and even favored The Rock engaging in an impromptu match, according to WWE betting odds.

"The Rock is still one of the WWE's biggest names and an appearance from the Great One would spike interest and generate huge publicity for Vince McMahon's business," said Elek again. "The bookies believe he is almost certain to appear once again at The Showcase of the Immortals and 1/100 implies a 99 percent chance that we will see The People's Champion inside the Squared Circle."

25-1 odds even said Johnson would actually compete.

Of course, the really hardcore wrestling spoilers tend to come right before a big event, as "smart money" comes in and drives the odds as people with insider knowledge apparently place big bets on the show. However, bookies are in the business of making money (and in some cases breaking legs), so if someone like The Rock is so heavily favored to appear, it seems likely that he probably will (someone has to congratulate Roman Reigns after his victory after all), and it seems plausible that McGregor will as well.

Not that any of that should encourage you to bet money on fake fights. But if you obsessively follow backstage wrestling news, betting odds have at least as good a shot as dirt sheet speculation of spoiling the results of pro wrestling events. We'll see what happens in April.

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