Dwayne Johnson Pays Tribute To His Father After His Passing

For the first time since his father Rocky Johnson‘s passing, Dwayne Johnson is speaking out.

Taking to his Instagram account, The Rock posted a video of his father during his championship wrestling days and captioned it with a heartfelt tribute.

“I love you. You broke color barriers, became a ring legend and trail blazed your way thru this world,” Dwayne wrote. “I was the boy sitting in the seats, watching and adoring you, my hero from afar. The boy you raised to always be proud of our cultures and proud of who and what I am. The boy you raised with the toughest of love. The intense work. The hard hand. The adoring boy who wanted to know only your best qualities. Who then grew to become a man realizing you had other deep complex sides that needed to be held and understood.”

The post continued: “Son to father. Man to man. That’s when my adoration turned to respect. And my empathy turned to gratitude.”

RELATED: WWE Hall of Famer Rocky ‘Soul Man’ Johnson, Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson’s Father, Dies At 75

Dwayne also wrote that his father “gave me life” and “life’s invaluable lessons.”

“Dad, I wish I had one more shot to tell you, I love you, before you crossed over to the other side,” Dwayne wrote in ending his message. “But you were ripped away from me so fast without warning. Gone in an instant and no coming back.”

Both men had legendary wrestling careers, with Dwayne inducting his dad into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2008. Rocky passed away on Wednesday (January 15) at the age of 75. A blood clot has reportedly been cited as the cause of his death.

Our thoughts are with Dwayne Johnson and his family during this difficult time.