5 Wrestling Promo Flubs We Still Laugh at Today
Everyone loves a good blooper. Well, Vince McMahon might not. Look, everybody makes mistakes. Wrestlers are actors and actors make mistakes all the time. However most of the time when an actor flubs a line it ends up as a special feature on the home video release and not on live television. Sometimes you get a pipe bomb and sometimes you get a sparkler. Here are five wrestling promo flubs we still laugh at today.
#5 - HBK and Shawn Michaels can not Co-exist (November 1997)
One night after the Montreal Screwjob Degeneration X marched to the ring with a sense of confidence. Shawn Michaels finally got one over on a man he hated in real life. Shawn Michaels was the man. Shawn Michaels was the WWF Champion but more importantly Shawn Michaels was high as hell.
Many people forget how terrible HBK's promos were in the late 90s mostly because we were all wearing those rose tinted attitude era shades but it was at this time that the Heartbreak Kid was going off the rails.
On the night after the screwjob Shawn said that the WWF wasn't big enough for "HBK and Shawn Michaels". The WWF was too small for Shawn Michaels and himself.
Glorious.
#4 - Hulk Hogan is gay? (Smackdown 2003)
It's LGBTQ hero Hulk Hogan, everybody! Yay.
Leading up to Wrestlemania 19, Hulk Hogan were locked into a bitter rivalry over who exactly was the rightful father of Hulkamania and to a lesser extent Wrestlemania. So it stands to reason that if you're going to take the biggest names in wrestling, take them to the biggest show in wrestling and then have them do the wrestling then obviously you're going to give them some air time.
Vince McMahon probably wishes that he didn't give Hulk Hogan the mic that night because during a confrontation between the Boss and the Hulkster, Hogan proceeded to say that he was "The right Gay, at the right time". Catching the slip up the Grandaddy of Hulkamania decided to repeat himself only to mix up the words 'guy' and 'gay' a second time.
The promo itself was full of awkward pauses from the older Hulk Hogan who was approching the end of his WWE tenure but that line will always hold a special place in my heart.
Long live Gay-Icon Hulk Hogan.
#3 - Syxx doesn't know what he's talking about (WCW Monday Nitro 1997)
1997 was not a stellar year for World Championship Wrestling. What with Degeneration X forming, Stone Cold being on the rise to popularity and the NWO systematically taking over the promotion to use as their own personal play ground. It also wasn't a good year for the man known as Sean Waltman. Things got even worse during a promo Waltmen, known as Syxx in WCW did during an episode of Monday Nitro.
The promo occurs during a match between Dean Malenko and Konnan. The show stops focusing on the action and starts focusing on a PRE-TAPED promo from the former 123 Kid. Syxx, who was Cruiserwieght Champion at the time began to call out the man of a thousand holds Dean Malenko for messing up and losing to him Superbrawl. "You messed up, Dean Malenko" The Kid says taking off his shades "You got spanked at Superbrawl and you messed up Eddie Guerrero". What?
He then proceeds to laugh and mumble through the rest of the promo.
Yes, 1997. Drugs for everybody.
I don't know if WCW aired the wrong promo but this moment is now remembered forever and is probably best left off of future best of DVDs.
#2 - Kalisto does the Lucha Thing (Smackdown 2016)
Probably the most recent entry on this list. In the summer of 2016 Kalisto was Drafted to Smackdown Live! after the announcement he was interviewed backstage by Tom Philips or one of his many clones and proceeded to cut a promo that would give Jim Cornette a heart attack.
The masked superstar fumbled over his words and laughed and scoffed. Repeating the word lucha over and over before yelling 'WOO' and exiting frame. The moment was meme'd to near death for the rest of the summer and the rest is history.
#1 - Booker T calls Hulk Hogan the N-Word (Unaired WCW Promo)
How could it not be this one? The king of promo botches and my personal favorite. This instantly quotable gem comes from an interview of Harlem Heat done by Mr. 'OH SHIT' Himself, Mean Gene Oakerland.
After asking a question Booker T goes into a rant about how Harlem Heat wants to destroy Lex Luger and Hulk Hogan. It all goes down hill from there and from now until the end of eternity I have my favorite reaction Gif of all time.
We want the gold. Hulk Hogan. We're coming for you (Redacted).
- Casey