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Fans signs are an integral part of professional wrestling as it’s the fans’ way of telling what they love and more importantly what they hate. Seeing some signs in the crowd make you wonder how creative wrestling fans are while some others bring out the stupidity of the human mind.
There are many stories of fan signs getting confiscated or ripped apart due to the large amount of controversy it carries but that hasn’t stopped the fans from going over the limit at times. And it would be hard to blame them as well since they are the heart and soul of the business at the end of the day.
So for everyone who has enjoyed watching out for fan signs every time WWE brings in a show, here is a look at some of the most controversial fans signs ever.
#1 Triple H fears divorce
re the fans started urging Hunter to take up complete control of the WWE from Vince McMahon, there was a phase where they hated him.
No this hate was not for his gimmick but was for his personal life. Hunter was having an affair with Chyna back in the late 90s and he apparently cheated on her to marry Stephanie McMahon in the end.
Many of the fans saw this as a business move from Hunter as marrying Stephanie would’ve made him the king of professional wrestling once Vince died. The fans who had this impression lefts no stones unturned when they wanted to express something about Hunter.
#2 Die Rocky Die
If the fans don’t like a wrestler they are going to let you know it. The Rock was initially introduced as the first ever third generation superstar in wrestling with a name Rocky Maivia.
He also had a nickname, the Blue-chipper, which was pretty embarrassing. Though the company had high hopes for Rock, the fans never bought his character. He was getting jeers every time he came out and it went to such extremity that they even had signs that urged Rocky to die.
The same guy later went on to become the most electrifying superstar ever and that shows why gimmick is important in wrestling.
#3 I'm glad that I don't have to hear Michael Cole
It’s not too controversial to be frank but it sure is damn funny. No matter what Michal Cole does, the fans didn’t see him as a fit replacement for Jim Ross and they were pretty vocal about this as well.
After all those great insults, some guy had the idea of teasing the television fans by making up this sign. It had a deep meaning that watching live shows was better not because of the experience, but because they didn’t have to hear Michael Cole.
WWE still sticks with Cole as their top commentator while JBL, Joey Styles, William Regal or even Paul Heyman could fill in that void beautifully.
#4 Brets a shitman not a hitman
The WrestleMania 13 pitted Steve Austin against Bret Hart in a submission match. Heading into the match, Bret was a face and Austin was on the evil side but after the match was over, the tables turned and Bret was given a fresh heel character while Austin became the lovable babyface.
Both men continued their fed after WrestleMania and Austin, who now had the fans behind him, gave out some of the best insults against Bret Hart.
And one of them went like this, ‘Put a S in front of Hitman and you’ll know what I think about Bret Hart’ it was a classic moment and some fan decided to make a sign out of this promo as well.
#5 Missed NXT and settled for Raw
This was a fan sign that recently got confiscated and to be frank, he’s got a point there. The fans are well aware that NXT is a better product than Raw or SmackDown.
While some remain silent about the fact the others go out and produce signs like this. Showing up such a sign on Raw was clearly bad for business according to WWE so they decided to ban the sign from being used.
Sad part in the end is that WWE never learned despite such reactions and continued to give out pointless feuds and segments.
#6 Cenas fruity Pebbles
The fruity pebbles references about John Cena started to come up ever since the Cenation leader decided to do an advertisement for the product.
The colorful cloths and arm bands that Cena wore made matter worse soon and we were getting a lot of fruity pebbles signs on live shows.
The best one from the lot has to be this. It’s an insult to Cena and at the same time is a praise to CM Punk for being something different while Cena only sold the PG crap with his gimmick.
#7 I could be home watching Nitro
Recently, after the WWE network was launched, some guy who was extremely unhappy about the content he got on Raw came up with the sign which said he could watch WCW Nitro back in home by paying just 9.99.
This is one of the most recent entries into the list. WWE actually decided to confiscate the fan that had this sign and a lot of stories broke out in the internet after that.
It was a big satirical blow to the creative team as the fans considered a dead promotion being better than what they were offering on live television.
#8 Vince Russo sleeps with goats
Vince Russo is probably one of the most hated figures in professional wrestling. He has a wealth of experience in his resume but is always considered as someone who screws up the creative ideas and gives crappy content.
Russo’s run in WCW gave many awful moments and fans still see him as an integral part for the company going out of business.
During the twilight days of the company, the fans were so frustrated that they decide to make this sign carrying an insult which Russo probably deserved.
#9 Bret Hart humps cows
We talked about Bret’s brilliant heel run earlier and most of the heat that he garnered was because of the opponent he was going against.
Austin made Bret look like those super villains in the movies and the fans loved to hate the Hitman. While the previous idea of shitman was given by Austin himself, this came from some fan’s creative brain.
It was a great insult to be frank and since WWE was so desperate to get over WCW in the Monday Night wars, they didn’t mind having such signs on television.
#10 Roddy Piper has AIDS
The 80s and 90s saw the wrestling business boom mainly because of Vince McMahon’s willingness to take the sport mainstream. One of the biggest stars in that era was Roddy Piper who knew how to steer up the fans.
He was and still is one of the best talkers in the business and this guaranteed a lot of heat for him. This sign poked up during one of his heel runs and fans showed no mercy whatsoever in insulting the Scottish superstar.
It was during the time in which AIDS was still a big thing and this made the sign look even worse on television.
#11 Can we get Flair an Escalator?
The wrestling fans either love you or they hate you and Flair was incredibly easy to love or hate depending on what alignment he worked in. It was his gimmick that garnered the emotions for majority of the occasions but at times, the fans went personal with Flair.
The Nature boy was going on wrestling even after his prime and the fans didn’t hold back in expressing their displeasure in what Flair was doing.
They projected Flair as an old man who couldn’t even walk properly and then there was this sign which asked for an escalator instead of the ring steps for Flair.
#12 Eddie moed my lawn
Professional wrestling is not a stranger to racist gimmick and stories. WWE has been accused of being a racist place by many superstars with Alberto Del Rio and Rey Mysterio being the latest names to uncover what happens in the backstage.
The however fans never took racism beyond a particular limit but this was one of the rare cases. The sign said Eddie moed my lawn and it was a direct insult to the Hispanic Americans.
Mexicans that cross the border for a better living are often considered to be servants by bigots and racists. Seeing such a controversial sign among the WWE fans and that too against someone like Eddie was shocking to say the least.
#13 Dusty you suck and your son is gay
Dustin Rhodes aka Goldust had big expectations to live up to thanks to the great success that his father Dusty Rhodes had. Dustin started off his career in WCW but soon moved to WWE where he was given the Goldust character.
Goldust was an enigmatic gimmick which had a lot ambiguity about his sexuality. Goldust had a habit of licking the ropes during his entrance and that coupled with his in ring antics against male superstars made the crowd stamp him as gay.
Dusty at the time was also getting a lot of heat for screwing things up in WCW. So the fans decided to culminate both incidents and make up this sign.
#14 Chris Benoit died for his sins
This is one of the classic examples of wrestling fans taking it too far. Chris Benoits death was not only a big loss for professional wrestling but it was also a black mark in the promotions history.
During his days as a wrestler, the fans did love Benoit to the core but after what he did to his family, Benoit started garnering mixed reactions. So some stupid wrestling fans came up with the idea of making these signs.
Making fun of someones death is never a good idea and if that person is the most controversial figure in wrestling, you know what I mean.
#15 If Cena wins we riot
The rabid fans of ECW are considered to be the most entertaining and energetic. The tales of ECW fans hijacking the show and at the same time making it a success are nothing short of legendary.
Back in 2006, when WWE gave the second annual One Night Stand pay-per-view, the fans made it clear that they wanted nothing of John Cena. Cena was scheduled to headline the show against Rob Van Dam and the fans made a sign that said, if Cena wins we riot.
It was one of the most hostile receptions that Cena has had in his entire career and knowing the ECW fans, they would’ve actually rioted if Van Dam didn’t win that match.
