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| source// wwe.com |
Ask many pro wrestling fans what their main problem is with WWE nowadays, and there’s a decent chance they will answer that the promotion seems far too scripted. Today, almost every aspect of a character’s act is perfected before they even step from behind the curtain. In pro wrestling history, including that of WWE, this hasn’t always necessarily been the case.
Before, spontaneity was encouraged. Promoters enjoyed seeing performers come up with their own ideas and gimmicks. In the WWE system of today, things are incredibly rigid. Scripts are reportedly handed out to those verbalising big promos on television and pay-per-view. To past generations of wrestlers, this is a horrifying trend.
Had things been so tightly controlled back in the days of yore, it’s likely that a lot of wrestling’s most infamous aspects may have slipped the net. That’s a frightening realisation, but to take away freedom from performers is to restrict their creativity and willingness to come up with ideas. Ideas which just might work.
Some catchphrases or characters come from unlikely sources, and some have even been born out of sheer frustration. All of the entries on this list had a spontaneous feel to them, and the performers in question decided to roll with their ingenuity to see what could be achieved. In most cases, it was an awful lot.
10. Scott Hall's Entire 'Razor Ramon' Character
When Scott Hall met with Vince McMahon and Pat Patterson in the early-1990’s to discuss his forthcoming WWF run, things could have ended up wildly different. One of McMahon’s big ideas for his new signing was to have Hall reportedly play a military character. The gimmick the wrestler ended up playing was remarkably different.
Likely horrified by what was being presented to him, Hall decided to pitch his own idea. Almost out of desperation, he told the WWF management team all about a movie he had seen called Scarface. The main character, Al Pacino’s Tony Montana, was a fiery Latino figure. McMahon eventually liked the premise, despite apparently never having viewed the film.
Seeking a name, Hall sought the advice of Tito Santana. He already had the ‘Razor’ part sewn up, but it was Santana who suggested it should be followed by ‘Ramon’. The rest is history, but had Hall not thought quickly on his feet, who knows what his WWF guise could have ended up being.
9. CM Punk's 'Pipebomb' Promo Style
“Do I have everybody’s attention now?”, CM Punk would often ask during segments on the microphone. It’s become clear through his comments since leaving the company in 2014 that Phil ‘CM Punk’ Brooks was often a frustrated person during his WWE tenure. That anger manifested itself brilliantly on the June 27, 2011 episode of Monday Night Raw.
At the time, there were some claiming that Punk had gone into business for himself with his comments. That’s a ridiculous notion, there’s no doubt his microphone would have been cut from backstage within seconds if it wasn’t entirely planned. The thing is, the idea for Punk to ‘shoot’ on the mic was scheduled, but not everything he said or did was 100% planned.
Sitting down and crossing his legs, Punk looked like a martyr who was willing to stick his neck on the line to say his piece. Mentioning everything from ROH and NJPW, to friends like Colt Cabana, he also insulted the McMahon family.
Punk’s spontaneous arrogance was infectious, and it indirectly led to the most fruitful period of his career. People still talk about the ‘Pipebomb Promo’ today.
8. Mick Foley Introduces Mr. Socko
When a grown man elicits mass cheers for pulling a dirty sweat sock from his nether regions, there’s an argument to made that anything can get over in pro wrestling. It’s fair to say that Mick Foley’s natural charisma and likeability greatly helped his cause when it came to such an act, but it’s still an incredible feat.
Since the debut of his Mankind character, Foley had been using the Mandible Claw as one of his main finishing holds. The general idea was that he would painfully insert fingers into an opponent’s mouth, causing a feeling of agony and paralysis. It was a scary move, so naturally Mick elected to start wearing a sock on his hand whilst doing it.
As Mankind became more and more endearing to fans, Foley decided to draw a face on a sock and store it in his tights. Then, when about to perform the Claw, he could pull it out to a huge response. It was a wacky idea, one which surprised the likes of Steve Austin when it became a genuine success.
7. Vince McMahon Says 'Bret Screwed Bret'
The 1997 Survivor Series will perhaps always be the most famous in the history of the event. It’s truly difficult to see anything topping the controversy and fallout from a WWF Heavyweight Title match between Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart. As most wrestling fans know, Vince McMahon was at the centre of the resultant furor.
Calling for the bell whilst Hart was locked in his own Sharpshooter move, McMahon had – for all intents and purposes – screwed over one of his most cherished talents. The wrestling world was left stunned, and Bret’s career was never the same again. Somewhere along the line, McMahon made the spontaneous decision to capitalise on the hatred.
Organising an interview with Jim Ross on WWF television, the previously mild-mannered announcer stated to his colleague that he hadn’t been responsible for Hart’s downfall. Instead, he reasoned, “Bret screwed Bret”.
With that one line, the Mr. McMahon character was born, and the WWF never looked back. McMahon decided to go all in on his callous attitude, ironically ushering in ‘WWF Attitude’ with open arms and going on to star opposite Steve Austin in a mega-feud.
6. A Simple Kick Becomes Vital To The Stone Cold Stunner
It’s been said that it was actually Michael ‘P.S’ Hayes who introduced Steve Austin to his new finishing move, the Stone Cold Stunner in 1996. Beforehand, the wrestler had been making use of the Million Dollar Dream, a move more closely associated with his former manager Ted DiBiase. Now, Austin was looking to catapult up the WWF ladder, and he needed a killer finish.
The Stunner was perfect, but even after a few months of using it Austin felt something was missing. There was no real set-up to the move, it came out of nowhere. Later, this would become a key component to Randy Orton’s RKO, but that move has a flashy nature to it that the Stunner lacks. Such a lack of presentation is precisely why Austin decided to add a simple kick to the sequence.
All of a sudden, fans were given an indication as to when the Stunner was about to be performed. Even better, opponents could catch Austin’s foot and reverse, teasing the move for later. The kick became infamous, a crucial part of the move’s success.
5. Jim Duggan's Trademark 2×4
Before he stumbled upon his most successful guise, Jim Duggan tried a lot of different things to try and gain attention. He’d worn a mask as ‘The Convict’, adorned a furry look complete with steel chains, and even performed simply as himself in feathered boas in a bid to get recognised. Nothing was really working, although he was considered a solid wrestler.
One day, Bruiser Brody approached Duggan in the locker room and encouraged him to carry a weapon to the ring. The main reason for this was that fans in the arena were especially wild that evening, and Brody figured it’d be a good idea for his peer to have something he could protect himself with.
Grabbing a nondescript plank of wood, Duggan would never hit the ring without the 2×4 ever again. Overnight, it became synonymous with his act, but it wasn’t something he had ever thought of before. True to Brody’s guesswork, fans parted for Duggan when he emerged and he didn’t have any trouble.
Who could have guessed that a 2×4 wooden pole would become one of the most iconic props in pro wrestling history?
4. The Flair Flop
To non-wrestling fans, the simple ‘Flair Flop’ must look like one of the most ridiculous things ever. It’s the kind of thing which would never happen in a real fight, and does give detractors some ammunition with which to take aim at wrestling. Unfortunately for them, most who adore the spot don’t care a lick.
Incredibly, it wasn’t ever something that ‘Nature Boy’ Ric Flair put a lot of thought into. During an interview with Steve Austin, he revealed that he just decided to start doing it because he thought it would be entertaining. The legend was absolutely on the money with that one, because it went on to become one of the most beloved parts of his entire character.
Taking a few shots from a babyface during the comeback, Flair would routinely then stumble out of the corner he had backed himself into and fall flat on his face. It looked comedic, but it was a great sign to the fans that the heel was in major trouble.
Even when he was face himself, Flair was still able to use the spot. Fans lapped it up, enjoying the originality it offered.
3. John Cena's 'You Can't See Me' Was Initially A Joke
On an episode of WWE’s Velocity program in 2003, John Cena stared at the camera, positioned one hand in front of his face and waved it back and forth. Most watching probably didn’t even bat an eyelid at the gesture, but Cena’s brother had a ball watching his sibling ham it up for his entertainment.
Previously, he had dared John to perform the taunt on WWE television. Cena obliged, and the pair likely thought nothing else of it. After he had performed it a few more times, the gesture stuck around, and Cena even accompanied it with the phrase, ‘You Can’t See Me’.
Even today, this is something the man uses as part of his act in the promotion. It’s incredible to think it was a split second decision from Cena to provide some giggles for his brother, but it became something with mass appeal. Merchandise has been created showing the hand, and it’s one of the most-imitated gestures in today’s wrestling world.
If Cena hadn’t decided to do it randomly, who knows if WWE fans would ever have been witness to it. The whole idea was born out of a silly dance that Cena’s brother did back home.
2. The Rock Starts Saying 'Know Your Role'
During an interview conducted by JBL with Ron Simmons on the WWE Network, the latter shared a quick story regarding The Rock. In the early part of Rock’s career, he had been a struggling babyface. Turning heel, he joined The Nation Of Domination, a faction headed by Faarooq (Simmons).
Behind the scenes before one particular appearance on Raw Is War, Faarooq organised the troops and laid out the plan. In a throwaway moment, he told The Rock that he had to “know his role” in the skit. Ever-eager to try and make an impression, Rocky decided to start using the phrase to his advantage.
On one occasion during a promo, he hurled the line out. Simmons laughed as he recalled looking sideways at his younger peer, realising where he had taken the phrase from. Of course, the line expanded to become, ‘Know your role and shut your mouth’, a key catchphrase for The Rock.
There’s a very good chance that the guy would have become a success even without such a phrase, but it definitely helped his cause. ‘Know Your Role’ was even the subtitle to the WWF Smackdown 2 video game, largely due to its popularity.
1. Austin 3:16
Rushing back to the arena, Steve Austin had just been stitched up at a nearby hospital adjacent to where the 1996 King Of The Ring pay-per-view was being held. His mouth had been lacerated from a stray boot delivered by Marc Mero, but Austin still had a planned tournament final against Jake ‘The Snake’ Roberts to get through.
Upon his re-arrival, Austin asked Michael Hayes (then-known as Dok Hendrix) what Roberts had said during an earlier promo. Hayes remarked that the veteran had used his usual Bible spiel, quoting a verse from John 3:16. Immediately, the wheels started turning in Austin’s head, because he knew he’d have to deliver a victory speech following his King Of The Ring win.
After vanquishing Jake in the final, ‘The Rattlesnake’ stepped up on the podium with Hayes and uttered one of the most infamous lines in wrestling history. “Talk about psalms, talk about your John 3:16. Austin 3:16 said I just whipped your !*$%” were the words he used.
Shortly thereafter, the WWF created a simple t-shirt bearing the slogan, and it became the biggest seller the company would ever generate. Out of nothing, Steve Austin created millions of dollars for both the promotion and himself.
What are you memories of the spontaneous moments and decisions featured on this list? Let us know down in the comments section below!
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