Vince McMahon is a visionary, and his vision has been the driving force of World Wrestling Entertainment. From character-formulation to setting up stipulations and establishing factions, The Boss is known for having made some of the most crucial decisions (with the exceptions of Papa Shango and the ‘Kiss my ass club’) that have gone on to devour any sort of competition. Here are ten bold decisions that Vince took in the quest for higher ratings:
Trending
#10 The birth of the Mr McMahon character
WWE has no future plans for Rhea? Here's why!
Vince McMahon’s coming into character was one of the boldest moves which gave WWE ratings a massive upthrust. It brought to life an owner’s gargantuan ego-mania which shaped storylines and catapulted World Wrestling Entertainment to the zenith of its existence.
Over the course of time, Mr McMahon would explicitly exercise his hegemony (storyline) over World Wrestling Entertainment and produce some compelling television. The change in character was a moment of genius which laid the foundation for the business to scale greater heights and there was ‘no chance in hell’ that Ted Turner could do anything about it.
#9 Billionaire v/s Billionaire
Vince McMahon pulled another surprise in the year 2007 when he feuded (storyline) with the current United States President, Donald Trump. McMahon, known for involving some of the biggest personalities in the world in his storylines, shaped the billionaire v/s billionaire rivalry in a way to create massive hysteria.
Two of the most notorious figures in the country pitted against each other was always slated to garner the interest of not only the World Wrestling Entertainment fans but the entire United States population. The rivalry would have taken a rather diabolical turn (in a good way, of course) had the two billionaires decided to fight it out themselves, but they decided to use proxies instead. The entertainment quotient was delivered by Stone Cold Steve Austin who guest-refereed and stunned the unsuspecting Donald Trump!
#8 The phenomenon: Stone Cold Steve Austin
Austin donned various gimmicks as part of World Championship Wrestling and his crossover to their fierce rivals WWE didn’t bring him any glory during his formative years as “The Ringmaster”. It was only after a close revamp of his persona and the adoption of a new gimmick that he turned into the bald anti-hero who took the United States by storm.
The Stone Cold character became synonymous with the success of the WWE, trumping WCW to a rather uneasy secondary spot, courtesy the storylines involving the boss and the anti-establishment Texas Rattlesnake. Arguably, Austin’s emergence onto the scene is what infused the “attitude” in the Attitude Era on which the WWE’s laurels still rest, unperturbed.
#7 Experimenting with different characters
Vincent Kennedy McMahon is one of the leading visionaries in the realm of the professional wrestling business, something he has proved time and again. When a relatively unknown 6 foot 10 superstar named Mean Mark Callous was offloaded by the WCW, it gave Vince McMahon an opportunity to work his magic and come up with a character that would change the face of pro-wrestling forever.
Also read: Top 10 Superstars who have never headlined WrestleMania
McMahon put his mental machinery into full-swing to bestow upon Mark Calaway, the character of ‘The Undertaker’. The Undertaker’s ingress into the World Wrestling Entertainment as a western mortician was awe-inspiring (Jim Johnston’s music adding to the ominous aura). The Undertaker would go on to establish himself as one of the most successful wrestlers in the history of the sport. WCW’s loss was WWE’s gain, and much of the success could be attributed to Vince.
#6 DX invading WCW
Cross-promotion invasions are fun; they help sustain the interest of the fans and often pave the way for epic storylines, that are sold as a litany, years later. One such litany-worthy moment happened in 1998 when Triple H led his DX battalion to proclaim war over fiercest rivals, WCW.
Draped in camouflage and driving a jeep, the DX knocked on the front door of the WCW building and poked fun at the promotion. It was one of the most daring endeavours undertaken by the World Wrestling Entertainment to sky-rocket the ratings, and it was at the behest of none other than the person holding pinnacle power: Vincent Kennedy McMahon!
#5 Bill Goldberg’s return
To succour the apparently dropping ratings, Vince McMahon decided to pass the baton to none other than Bill Goldberg who made his highly anticipated return to the squared-circle in 2016. It lived up to the hype and Goldberg’s comeback led to a massive upthrust in WWE ratings which was surprising and certainly a bold move on Vince’s part because Goldberg’s last appearance in the WWE was a snooze-fest of a match with Brock Lesnar, much to the displeasure of the fans who boo-ed both superstars.
#4 The announcement of the Attitude Era
One of the most epic promos ever cut in the history of the WWE was Vince McMahon’s when he ushered in the beginning of the Attitude Era. Mincing no words and pulling no punches, Vince McMahon wanted the world to know that the WWE was pushing the boundaries and opening up creative-envelopes, making a tacit reference to annihilating competition!
The announcement of the Attitude Era meant doing away with the outlandish cartoon-character reminiscent storylines and building-up on juxtaposing reality and fiction. (They still had characters like ‘The Headbangers’, so a few his claims weren’t true)
#3 Vince winning the gold
At a time when the WWE roster was dominated by big names like The Rock, The Undertaker and Stone Cold Steve Austin, all three of them vying for gold, it was none other than the boss who stepped up to the pedestal and took the top spot. Vince McMahon decided to play roulette with this storyline of his, which ultimately paid off in the form of high ratings.
#2 Nexus invading Raw
It was the year 2010, and the fans were bored of the rigmarole. It was the same year when the NXT was formed, and Vince McMahon decided to catapult NXT members into the foreground. Thus, the Nexus sought conception under the watchful eyes of the boss and vowed to dethrone the top-guns of the business. Pitting relatively unknown young-lads against the main-roster members was always a gamble, but Vince being Vince, took it.
#1 His return and ‘sealing’ Roman’s fate in 2015
The World Wrestling Entertainment was in severe doldrums in the year 2015 when ratings plummeted to an all-time low. Most of it could majorly be attributed to the lacklustre Royal Rumble PPV earlier that year. The WWE looked to Vince McMahon to play the saviour again… and he did! In just one episode, the ratings shot up massively. While it wasn’t sure if the crowd would be receptive to the return, the numbers suggested otherwise!
Send us news tips at [email protected]
