Over the years, Wrestling promotions have had been sued more times than you could probably even count. Promotions can and will be taken to court for a variety of different reasons. The WWE are certainly no strangers to being sued; they are currently being sued for their role in the concussions of many wrestlers.
Though many do sue the company, wrestlers are certainly not immune to lawsuits. Even though wrestling is a staffed show, things can go wrong in the ring and fans can sometimes get injured by a flailing chair, car door, or even a fist if the competitors are fighting through the crowd.
The character side is not the only thing that can get the wrestlers in trouble with the courts though. They all have other issues going on the same as the rest of us and can be sued for personal reasons or reasons that have absolutely nothing to do with the WWE.
A lot of these cases are kept under wraps and are very hard to find and research. In this article, we’ll take a look at 5 times WWE wrestlers were sued, some of which you may not have heard of!
#5 Natalya
This is easily the most entertaining case of a wrestler being sued that I could find. Initially reported by Dave Meltzer in Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Natalya had a lawsuit filed against her by a prison convict who seemingly could not decipher the show he was somehow watching in jail from real life.
He attempted to extort money from the WWE Superstar with threats of going to the higher courts if it wasn’t paid. Obviously, Natalya is neither a fool, nor does she have time to be blackmailed so the case did go to court as the convict looked for $250,000, claiming that: “ Neidhart was a dominatrix who had beaten him between the period of 2005 and 2009 when they were together at hotels throughout the U.S. and had forced him into extreme sexual abuse and even to prostitute himself.”
The best part of this is the fact that he was representing himself. He was off to a loser before he even started! Further details came from Mike Johnson of PWInsider.com as the convict Christopher Donnelly accused Natalya of aborting his child and forcing him to do unspeakable degrading acts.
Needless to say, this was thrown out of court immediately by the judge most likely because t it was completely fabricated. You have to wonder how deluded you have to be to even go ahead with a lawsuit of this nature. It certainly didn’t affect Natalya’s career as she is currently looking to dominate the SmackDown Women’s division, not convicts.
#4 Titus O’ Neil
A WWE cameraman has recently filed a lawsuit against Titus O’Neil. Not just any lawsuit though, a $1.2 million lawsuit! TMZ Sports was the first to break the story; and apparently, Titus attacked the cameraman when a prank for the hit WWE Network show Swerved went a bit wrong.
He allegedly knocked the camera out of the cameraman’s hand causing damage to his hand, wrist and even his fingers. Titus had been hit by a cattle prod as a prank in the segment and apparently did not take it well. He is not under criminal investigation thankfully, and this is more to do with damages than assault.
Swerved is similar to the MTV shows Jackass and Punk’d and actually has Jeff Tremaine on board for the different stunts. It’s supposed to be a laugh, and I love the show personally, but some superstars do not take being pranked or ribbed as well as you would think. One episode saw Ric Flair storm off even when Charlotte came out to calm him down.
Unfortunately, a lawsuit has come out of this one. I hope this does not see the show become scripted and I also hope that Titus and the cameraman can come to an agreement.
#3 The Rock / Triple H
Judgment Day is remembered for the brilliant Iron Man match between The Rock and Triple H which saw Shawn Michaels as the special guest referee and the return of The Undertaker.
However, during this match, a fan was injured as The Rock and Triple H fought their way through the crowd. The boy was just seven years old and was accidentally pushed by a falling woman and ended up having her fall on him. Another report has a chair coming into play, causing further injuries but that’s inconsequential.
The boy decided to sue The Rock and Triple H for "reckless, willful and wanton conduct" as well as the WWE for failing to stage the match in the crowd properly and the lack of security to prevent the injury. Fair enough, apart from the fact that this all happened no less than ten years after the incident.
The man in question, Ronald Basham, had to have surgery on his knee and it cost quite a bit as medical care does in the USA, and this is most likely what prompted the case to be brought up and taken to court. One would assume the fan was looking for a settlement from WWE for the incident; however, TMZ.com exposed the fact that Ronald played physical sports for years and even found pictures of him competing in stock car races and crashing into walls.
I could not find the outcome of the case, unfortunately, so it is unknown if the lad was successful but either way, it hasn’t hampered The Rock, Triple H or WWE in any way, nor has it ruined the memory of an amazing pay-per-view.
Also read: 10 WWE Superstars you might not realise had small roles in Hollywood movies
#2 The Big Show
I can certainly think of easier ways to make a quick buck than starting a fight with a 7 foot 500-pound behemoth, getting knocked out and then suing said 7 foot 500-pound behemoth. Nevertheless, this is exactly what happened to the Big Show.
Back when he was working for WCW, Paul Wight was known as The Giant rather than The Big Show. He had just finished wrestling at a show in the Nassau Coliseum in New York and was enjoying a drink in one of the Marriott Hotels with a bunch of wrestling fans. One fan, however, decided to harass The Big Show and try and goad him into a fight.
Robert Sawyer was the man in question. Standing at 6’6” (so not a small man by any means) and approximately 220lbs, Robert thought it would be a perfect idea to slag Paul off to his face and tell him such things as “you’re not that big” and “go to another federation”. He eventually initiated physical contact with him as he pushed him and Paul knocked him out and broke his jaw.
Luckily, in March 1999, the case was found in Big Show’s favour as he claimed self-defense from being abused and threatened. He explained he had asked the man politely to stop asking for it before the altercation.
Big Show signed for WWE during this business and became one of the biggest stars of the promotion. He still wrestles today and is in incredible shape!
Below, is the CCTV footage of the incident…
#1 CM Punk
CM Punk did not leave the WWE on good terms at all. He was tired, beat up and sick of the backstage politics that he felt had hampered his character and his success, despite being the longest reigning WWE Champion of the modern era.
Appearing on the Art of Wrestling podcast with his good friend Colt Cabana, Punk promised to be completely outspoken, and it was a candid interview by all accounts. Punk did not hold back. What started the fire of court proceedings was the mention of WWE doctor Christopher M. Amann.
Punk claimed that Amann misdiagnosed a staph infection that could actually have resulted in severe consequences. It is alleged that Christopher diagnosed it as a fatty deposit and did not drain it despite it being a potential MRSA or staph infection.
There is also a claim that Punk suffered a head injury in the 2014 Royal Rumble which went unnoticed and untreated, but it is the staph infection that is the primary cause of concern for CM Punk.
Dr Amann is suing Punk for defamation of character and damages to his reputation following the podcast as he believes the comments are all false. Punk claims that WWE encouraged Christopher to file the lawsuit due to their reputation being damaged from comments Punk is defending under the First Amendment of free speech.
It certainly is a messy lawsuit and can’t be good for either party.
Punk still has a massive fanbase, but as he is currently signed with UFC and has a lawsuit against his name from a WWE doctor, he is unlikely to make a return anytime soon. The lawsuit does not look as though it will be settled until 2018 at least.
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