Whats your favorite road/backstage story from over the years?

[supernatural1981]

So as the title suggests what is your favorite road story you have ever heard or read?

One of mine has to be... Bradshaw v Steve Blackman, 1999/2000

WWE was in between shows at the local airport, and the wrestlers were waiting by the baggage collection bay and Bradshaw decided to dick about trying to push Blackman onto the moving luggage belt. Blackman turned around unflustered and planted a crescent kick flush on Bradshaw's jaw, knocking him clean out, picked up his bag and walked on. Both shook hands when it was done.

The other one that i read only tonight was at a indy show, Sabu had oral sex on one of the valets in the locker room but when one of the other wrestlers asked him if it was good, he said something along the lines of "smell my mustache."

so c'mon whats the best or worst story you have heard/read over the years/

 

[GodCompleX]

Gotta love a good Meng (Haku) story:

The Brutus Beefcake Incident
One of the most famous Meng stories happened during his time as Haku in the WWF. Brutus Beefcake had gone to management and complained that Meng slapped him too hard during their match. When Meng found out he walked straight to Beefcake's locker room and grabbed him out of the shower. He started choking him and lifted him two feet in the air while everyone else looked on because they were too scared to step in and break it up. Eventually Hulk Hogan came in and talked Meng down.

The Airport Incident
In an interview with James Guttman of World Wrestling Insanity, Meng discussed how he wrestled to support his family and not for the fame or popularity. That's why he took particular offense when anyone called wrestling fake.

"When I walk in and you tell me it's fake, I'll show you how fake the business is. Whether I take your teeth out or take your eyeballs off or whatever it was in those days. Maybe they're going to kick my butt around, but watch it - I'm coming back and finding you. But those were those days. I'm glad nobody picked up a gun and shot my ass. But in those days, that's how it was, James. It's my love for the business."

He then confirmed that one of the most outrageous tales about him was indeed true.

"Yeah. It was in Baltimore Airport. There was a hotel there. We were staying at another hotel - the Marriot or something. There was another hotel there, though. It was hopping at the time. The music was playing and it was packed. It was during the week I believe. Me and Siva Afi went over and there were lots of babyfaces there at the bar. So we went and sat in the other corner away from them. When they were ready to close, we had a few drinks, and on our way out there were five guys just sitting there. Of course, the same thing came out. The "fake" stuff. "Hey, are you guys with those guys - wrestlers? The fake wrestlers on TV?" You know. I said, "Yeah. I'll show you." And I reached over without thinking - there are four other guys there (laughs) - grabbed his face, and bit his nose off. Then the fight started. Me and Siva kind of cleaned house there and left. I'll never forget it (laughs)."

 

[OYDK]

I'll jump in on the Haku (Meng) bandwagon...

There was another confirmed incident of him sticking two of his fingers into another wrestler's (Art Barr) eye and nearly popping the eyeball out of its socket. When asked about the incident Haku said, "I didn't take his eyeballs off. I was ready to, my hands were in there, ready to take his eye off, but then I realized how stupid we were. Here we are brothers on the road together. I told Jim after all these things, and he got fired for it, and all these things here, and I feel bad for him, Jim. It was something that happened at that moment." So basically the guy had this awe inspiring change of attitude right before ripping out a man's eyeball.. Classic.

Another more recent rumor/story is the JBL/Miz incident where Miz apparently ate chicken or some other form of delicious meat over JBL's bag and JBL didn't let him change in the locker room for a year or something like that.

 

[PingPongBundy]

I always wondered if the Haku nose incident was true. I never knew he had actually confirmed it.

I'd have to say that my favorite road story I ever read involves Andre the Giant. In the documentary, which I believe was called "Larger Than Life," Tim White (I believe it was Tim White, could have been Rene Goulet) said that Andre was drinking in a bar. A group of four or five guys went over to him to harass him. They were saying things like "oh you're big but you're not strong" as well as other harassing lines. Andre politely told them that he was just at the bar to enjoy a drink and asked them to just leave. They kept it up and Andre had had enough. He chased them out of the bar where they jumped into a car. So Andre, all by himself, turns the car over on its side and gets out of there in a hurry. Apparently they never bothered to call the police. Even a bunch of idiots like that had to have the sense to realize that the police would have a hard time believing that this angry giant flipped the car over.

 

[BuriedByCena]

I am a huge fan of the vince mcmahon stories. I heard stuff like he was into cocaine and steroids back in the day. Then he would have drunken wrestling matches all the time with the guys. I wish i could have seen that in the 80's/90's.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

Bret's book had a fun story along those lines, where Vince was drunk 'rassling with the boys and Hercules slammed him so hard he bounced off the bed and "sobered up instantly" and left... Herc was apparently shitting himself he'd get fired.

Jericho's books are full of some great stories, especially the latest one where he describes a Khali/Big Show backstage fight, some of his less savoury drunken episodes including goading Kofi Kingston into trying to start a fight with Vince and a homeless guy who looked at his shoes and refused his money.

Anything involving Cornette is always gold as well...especially if he is telling it. I especially like a tale he tells about Big Bossman when he was in the NWA, he was green but so into Kayfabe that he no sold slamming his hand in a car door and pretty much crushing it legit because there were fans nearby... only to scream and cry like a baby once he got through the door... that's one tough bastard...

I think my favorite one, as told by the wrestler concerned is Jacques Rougeau knocking out Dynamite. Much as I love the Bulldogs, it was clear Tom was a scumbag to the other guys... few dispute Jacques version of events, even Bret in his book and Jacques doesn't "crow" about it, but tells it in a measured way that shows Tommy deserved it... it's out there on a few shoots. I always liked that story cos it was the bully getting his from the guy no one thought would fight back... I had a fight the same back in school where the bully ended up with a busted nose in front of my schools (still) record attendance for a fight... I got a litter duty as punishment for half an hour, had teachers shaking my hand and had a great final year after that... the other kid nearly got kicked out of school (ironically he is now a cop) cos they'd wanted someone to knock him out for years... when I heard about the Rougeau/Dynamite thing, seemed the same to me.

 

[HatchetMan84]

It's not really a "road story" per say, but i always love hearing when people talk about the Brawl For All and how the whole thing was designed to get Dr. Death over as a legit tough guy - and then he goes out and can't fight for sh*t and gets his head knocked off by Bart Gunn.

Lots of people tell tales of how Dr. Death was such a feared fighter, and the boys were scared of him but then how did he go out and get KTFO by a relative nobody? I guess it could happen to anyone. BTW - i'm not trying to dis-respect Dr. Death he was a good person and i enjoyed watching his matches.

I love hearing stories of how Bradshaw has had his ass beat in almost every encounter where he has acted like a dick to someone. Just like in real life - 99% of the guys who look big / strong almost always end up having their asses handed to them by smaller / supposedly weaker people....

 

[Wolf Pac]

Probably the Plane Ride From Hell is my favourite road story. The crazy events that took place on that plane - McMahon challenging Angle to a wrestling match, Lesnar and Perfect getting into a wrestling match of their own to determine the better amateur wrestler and a bunch of guys having to seperate the two cause they were close to the plane door, a drunken Ric Flair parading around in nothing but his robe, Bradshaw knocking out Michael Hayes and X-Pac cutting off his mullet and stapling it to a wall the next day at a Raw event, Dustin Runnels harassing Terri, is there anything else that I'm forgetting? This led to some firings and the banning of alcohol on future flights. You could turn all this shit into a movie - The Hangover meets Airplane! These guys were friggin nuts, man.

Owen Hart's infamous ribs are hilarious. I loved Owen, I enjoyed watching him wrestle growing up, he's one of my favourite wrestlers, and everytime I read about how he was backstage and the pranks he pulled, it always cracks a smile on my face. Ahmed Johnson said he never ribbed anyone he didn't like and I haven't heard any wrestler speak one bad word about him.

I like hearing about the incident that took place between Ken Shamrock and The Nasty Boys at an airport in the late 90's. The story between The Nasties and Shamrock starts years back at a hotel, Shamrock was hanging out with his girlfriend and her friend at a bar, Knobbs and Saggs harass Shamrock's gf's friend and Shamrock almost breaks out into a fight with them, defending the lady. Later that day, Knobbs is pretending to be passed out on his bed or something as Shamrock comes into his room, Saggs then attacks Shamrock from behind, and both Nasties proceed to beat the living shit out of Shamrock and attempt to kill him by throwing him off the hotel balcony until a bunch of wrestlers stops them. Years later, the WWF are on a tour, The Nasty Boys show up at the same airport as the WWF roster, Shamrock sees them and confronts them. Knobbs cowers and runs away, and Saggs turns his back to Ken and tells him that if he touches him, he'll call the police and sue him, as Billy Gunn is holding Shamrock back. The reason I like this story so much is because I can't stand The Nasty Boys and this confirmed for me what I thought they were all along, a couple of punk ass bitches. They should thank the law and Billy Gunn for being there because if Shamrock had gotten his hands on them, he would've murdered those two fucks and he'd be in jail right now.

This is one I just discovered recently. Jim Cornette, Chris Jericho and a couple of other wrestlers are travelling together on the road in a car, they stop at a drive through and orders large amounts of food. When they drive up to the window, the employee at the window tells them that she thought they were just joking and that they didn't make their food, which angers Cornette and leads to him getting out of the car and going on a hilarious rant, cussing out the employees. One of the wrestlers was filming the incident in the back of the car and here's the video.

[youtube]Id4rZhN_LEg[/youtube]

 

[OYDK]

Probably the Plane Ride From Hell is my favourite road story. The crazy events that took place on that plane - McMahon challenging Angle to a wrestling match, Lesnar and Perfect getting into a wrestling match of their own to determine the better amateur wrestler and a bunch of guys having to seperate the two cause they were close to the plane door, a drunken Ric Flair parading around in nothing but his robe, Bradshaw knocking out Michael Hayes and X-Pac cutting off his mullet and stapling it to a wall the next day at a Raw event, Dustin Runnels harassing Terri, is there anything else that I'm forgetting? This led to some firings and the banning of alcohol on future flights. You could turn all this shit into a movie - The Hangover meets Airplane! These guys were friggin nuts, man.

Did this happen in 2002? If so, I believe Scott Hall also got wasted off his ass and tried to start a fight with Bradshaw (or somebody) and ended up getting fired for it. Sounds like a pretty damn fun plane ride if you ask me.

The story between The Nasties and Shamrock starts years back at a hotel, Shamrock was hanging out with his girlfriend and her friend at a bar, Knobbs and Saggs harass Shamrock's gf's friend and Shamrock almost breaks out into a fight with them, defending the lady.

I could believe this. Years back, I was at a bar with my buddies and there were these two massive guys sitting at the bar screaming, burping, and just being obnoxious. I went up to grab a beer and realized that these two big, crazy motherfuckers were Brian Knobbs and Jerry Saggs who were in town for a house show or something of the like. Of course, my buds had no clue who these guys were so I decided to drop it, but the one clear line I remember from Knobbs was, "Hey tuts, if you and your friend are lookin for a good time, me and my boy would love to show ya one." Needless to say that girl got the hell out of there... but the point is, Knobbs and Saggs were the exact same guys out of the ring as the were in it, plain nasty.

 

[Pérez84]

Did this happen in 2002? If so, I believe Scott Hall also got wasted off his ass and tried to start a fight with Bradshaw (or somebody) and ended up getting fired for it. Sounds like a pretty damn fun plane ride if you ask me.

I'm not sure but I think he was drunk enough to fall asleep for almost all the ride. As a result he kept his ass safe......

 

[Wolf Pac]

Did this happen in 2002? If so, I believe Scott Hall also got wasted off his ass and tried to start a fight with Bradshaw (or somebody) and ended up getting fired for it. Sounds like a pretty damn fun plane ride if you ask me.



I could believe this. Years back, I was at a bar with my buddies and there were these two massive guys sitting at the bar screaming, burping, and just being obnoxious. I went up to grab a beer and realized that these two big, crazy motherfuckers were Brian Knobbs and Jerry Saggs who were in town for a house show or something of the like. Of course, my buds had no clue who these guys were so I decided to drop it, but the one clear line I remember from Knobbs was, "Hey tuts, if you and your friend are lookin for a good time, me and my boy would love to show ya one." Needless to say that girl got the hell out of there... but the point is, Knobbs and Saggs were the exact same guys out of the ring as the were in it, plain nasty.

Yes, it was 2002. According to JR, Hall was asleep during most of the flight and wasn't involved in any incident. He was still released though because he wasn't in the best condition on the UK tour. It was a drunken Michael Hayes that was picking a fight with Bradshaw which led to him getting knocked out and his mullet getting chopped off.

Another example of why I hate The Nasty Boys.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

The plane ride from hell was the lowest from WWE's point of view, in that it got out... I am sure there were several worse flight over the years... but that this became so public meant they had to "act" sad thing is it also was the last time they "overreacted" and didn't have the post Eddie wellness programme... Take Hennig, had they done as they do now he'd have been packed off to rehab, kept in his job and not cut loose to die in a hotel room barely 9 months later with cocaine in his system... as it was then they were all about limiting embarrassment and taking out the "easy targets". Scott had evidently been in rough shape on the tour, so easy cut... it also sent a message to Nash and Hogan so Vince would have thought nothing of it... seem to remember Goldust and Perfect being the other high profile casualties, even if their "crimes" were minor on the flight. Had the IWC/Meltzer not been able to find out... nothing would have happened to anyone... after all we all know Flair has paraded "Au Nature Boy" on every flight he's ever taken... Goldust and Terri were in the midst of an ugly divorce, won't be the first row they had or the last... and I am sure Perfect wrestling guys on the plain or the arena wasn't unheard of either... but they were betting the farm on Brock...albiet stupidly, so they cut Hennig....and probably killed him. Had he been still on the road or got that rehab, then I'd be willing to bet he'd be around today.

Can't say it's a "great" story, it's probably WWE's worst moment, up there with firing Koko for battering Vince's #2 for racist slurs or Jimmy Snuka 1983... not something they should be proud of...

 

[FlairFan2003]

The story from Ric Flair' book about Scott Steiner, pointing out how ignorant he would be towards jobbers and behind the scenes staff, and how he and Scott sometimes pulled really cruel ribs on wrestlers much lower on the roster. He details a rib that involved leaving Butch Reed with his hands and feet taped and embarrassing him pretty good, stating that Reed was "fun loving" guy who didn't cause a stir. At the time storyline wise Reed was in the Doom Tag Team with an up and coming Ron Simmons, a relatively new addition to the wrestling scene (Reed was an old vet but never a top tier guy).

Flair details how he saw Simmons at a bar after a show and they shared a drink. During that time just out of curiosity Flair stated he asked Simmons if he knew about what The Steiners did to Reed and what he thought. Simmons said little beyond admitting he was aware. According to Flair he prodded Simmons, asking him what he would do if they tried to pull a similar prank on him (after all, he was fairly un-established on the roster, prime target for their antics). Simmons at first quietly stated it wouldn't happen, prompting Flair to prod him some more asking him just he would do if in fact The Steiners did "F#ck with you". According to Flair, Simmons turned, stared him in the eye, and decisively stated "They wont F#ck with me Flair because Im UN F#CKABLE!"

Flair stated he immediately dropped the topic and changed the conversation.

It is interesting, you never hear stories about anyone messing with Simmons though.

 

[Waylon Mercy]

The plane ride from hell was the lowest from WWE's point of view, in that it got out... I am sure there were several worse flight over the years... but that this became so public meant they had to "act" sad thing is it also was the last time they "overreacted" and didn't have the post Eddie wellness programme... Take Hennig, had they done as they do now he'd have been packed off to rehab, kept in his job and not cut loose to die in a hotel room barely 9 months later with cocaine in his system... as it was then they were all about limiting embarrassment and taking out the "easy targets". Scott had evidently been in rough shape on the tour, so easy cut... it also sent a message to Nash and Hogan so Vince would have thought nothing of it... seem to remember Goldust and Perfect being the other high profile casualties, even if their "crimes" were minor on the flight. Had the IWC/Meltzer not been able to find out... nothing would have happened to anyone... after all we all know Flair has paraded "Au Nature Boy" on every flight he's ever taken... Goldust and Terri were in the midst of an ugly divorce, won't be the first row they had or the last... and I am sure Perfect wrestling guys on the plain or the arena wasn't unheard of either... but they were betting the farm on Brock...albiet stupidly, so they cut Hennig....and probably killed him. Had he been still on the road or got that rehab, then I'd be willing to bet he'd be around today.

Can't say it's a "great" story, it's probably WWE's worst moment, up there with firing Koko for battering Vince's #2 for racist slurs or Jimmy Snuka 1983... not something they should be proud of...

This is the part of that whole sordid story that tends to get lost in the shuffle. Just prior to that, Hennig made a terrific comeback in the WWE with his surprise appearance at the Royal Rumble. He was in great shape, and was received warmly by the crowd. He was poised to receive a decent mid-card push, and it would have made for a terrific last run for an amazing wrestling veteran.
Nobody else, save for Hall, I guess, really suffered any consequences for their actions on that flight. Hennig, unfortunately, chose to make an example out of Vince's new prized possession - Brock Lesnar. Hennig probably would have kicked his ass too, but it never got to that point. Lesnar was the golden child, and Vince sent a clear message to the locker room that he was not to be touched. Hennig was cut not long after the incident, and he became yet another of the profession's casualties - gone far too soon. Lesnar went on to take his ball and walk away from the WWE.

 

[enviousdominous]

Another more recent rumor/story is the JBL/Miz incident where Miz apparently ate chicken or some other form of delicious meat over JBL's bag and JBL didn't let him change in the locker room for a year or something like that.

Miz did an out of character interview with Stone Cold recently where he explained how this all went down. Apparently he ate some chicken and, without creating a mess, threw the bones into a waste bin. When he was walking away from the locker room he heard "MIZ!" shouted in an angry tone. Stone Cold asked "It was Benoit wasn't it?" to which Miz replied "Yes, it was Benoit" and Stone Cold laughed. Apparently Benoit was so upset that he personally banned Miz from the locker rooms for months after the incident.



My favorite story, a very tame one mind you, was what happened during the infamous Andy Kaufman vs Jerry Lawler feud(according to Jerry Lawler). Jerry and Andy were good friends, and Andy with his heel antics was making a ton of cash for CWA. Jerry had a big problem though, Andy liked to flip the script on a random whim. When Jerry gave a piledriver to Andy, the plan was that Andy would eventually shake it off and leave hurt but irate. Andy chose to sell as though he had been killed, and mumbled that they should get an ambulance. They knew he was okay, and told him no because an Ambulance would cost $500. Andy said that he would pay the fee, and was stretchered out as though he'd been trampled by elephants. Then they were both set to appear on Late Nite with David Letterman, and the plan was that Andy and Jerry would apologize and Andy would sing "What the world needs now, is love sweet love". Andy calls Jerry the night before the show and asks "What if you just hawled off and slugged me?" which frightened Jerry at first prompting a response of "Andy, I don't want to go to jail.". Andy admitted that it was a silly idea and as far as Jerry knew they were going to follow the script. Andy chose to go way off script on tv and lash out at Jerry in an effort to bait him into reacting angrily, eventually managing to get Jerry to slap him. Andy sold the slap as though he had been hit by a foul baseball and the incident erupted into one of the most famous moments in pro-wrestling history. They had big plans for the feud, but unfortunately Andy started to succumb to the effects of lung cancer not long after and couldn't continue living his dream.

In the interview Jerry mentioned having tensions with Jim Carrey on the set of Man on the Moon. Apparently superfan Jim thought that he knew how Andy was, and would pull pranks and behave unprofessionally to get into character. Jerry had to set him straight by saying "You might think you know Andy, but he was a close friend of mine. Andy would never behave this way.".

 

[THTRobtaylor]

This is the part of that whole sordid story that tends to get lost in the shuffle. Just prior to that, Hennig made a terrific comeback in the WWE with his surprise appearance at the Royal Rumble. He was in great shape, and was received warmly by the crowd. He was poised to receive a decent mid-card push, and it would have made for a terrific last run for an amazing wrestling veteran.
Nobody else, save for Hall, I guess, really suffered any consequences for their actions on that flight. Hennig, unfortunately, chose to make an example out of Vince's new prized possession - Brock Lesnar. Hennig probably would have kicked his ass too, but it never got to that point. Lesnar was the golden child, and Vince sent a clear message to the locker room that he was not to be touched. Hennig was cut not long after the incident, and he became yet another of the profession's casualties - gone far too soon. Lesnar went on to take his ball and walk away from the WWE.

I saw Hennig on that tour and he was in insane shape and easily could have been pushed to the World title in that time. It's sad cos he never had this fire in his other comebacks in the 90's, he was always half assing to keep collecting the insurance... but the Lloyds policy was a thing of the past by then and he had a real shot at a Cinderella story... If it was Brock, then it was dumb... it would have been a great matchup to have IN THE RING... typical WWE of the time, more concerned about sending messages to its talent then actually doing the right thing... post buy out cockiness on Vince's part more than anything.

 

[enviousdominous]

I'm a Jim Cornette guy, so I'd like to share one more for the road.

The time Jim threatened to shoot Brock Lesnar is my most favorite episode from the dramatic saga he's written over his career.

Jim was dating his future wife Synn when the incident took place. Synn had recently had her vag pierced because that made her sassy or something. Brock was slightly flustered at the time with having a huge ego and also having dealt with Jim doing nothing about an incident where Jim's best friend Kenny Bolin had playfully flirted with Brock's girlfriend. Brock, being a socially stunted dork, thought he could get some petty revenge by taking liberties in a match involving Synn. Brock was supposed to press Synn over his head and throw her at his opponents who would catch her outside the ring. The agreement was that Brock would go easy on his crotch grip during the spot because Synn was extra sensitive down there. Brock gave her box a Vulcan neck pinch that could paralyze a gorilla, and Jim was none too pleased after Synn came crying to him.

I understand that Jim's words were "NOW I WON'T FIGHT YOU! BUT YOU BETTER BELIEVE THAT I WILL SHOOT YOU!!" which apparently prompted the beast incarnate to run crying to Vince because he was threatened.

 

[Aeon Mathix]

Trying to see if I remember this one right.

Back in 2003, Kurt Angle had started something backstage saying that no one on the roster could take him down (amateur style wrestling) and everyone including Brock Lesnar tried and failed.

Then they were on a plane heading somewhere and Kurt got up to go to the bathroom and when he came back Vince McMahon tried to take him down and while they were scrambling around they bumped the Undertaker who was sleeping and Taker woke up thinking a fight was going on and punched Angle straight in the face.