5 WWE gimmicks that were actually Vince McMahon's creations

#3 Konnor's Rat gimmick

Konnor and Viktor, dubbed as Ascension, were a promising duo in WWE NXT, but weren't used to their fullest potential when they moved up to the main roster. Fans who witnessed Konnor's run in NXT when he was a part of the third season of the show, might recall that he portrayed the gimmick of a rat! As expected, the gimmick didn't last long and he was later paired with Viktor.

Konnor recalled in an interview that he was having an awkward meeting with WWE Chairman Vince McMahon, and it ended with Vince giving him the character of an actual rat.

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I was like oh my god this is it. I’m done. I’m finished, and he goes, ‘can you talk nasally?’ And I go, ‘what?’ [He goes], ‘nasally.’ I’m like man what is he talking about? He’s like, ‘can you talk like this?’ I was like oh my god. What is happening here? So lieu and behold, that’s how the rat character came about. It was something that Vince envisioned. Whether it was a rib, I don’t know. Hell of a rib.”

You can check out the clip below that shows Konnor's character in action:

Viktor and Konnor were released by WWE in late 2019, thus ending Konnor's nine-year stint with the promotion.

About the author

Abhilash Mendhe is a pro wrestling journalist at Sportskeeda with nearly five years of experience. He completed his MBA from the Symbiosis Institute of Telecom Management in 2016 and worked with multiple banking institutions, including Tech Mahindra. While he started writing WWE articles for Sportskeeda in 2019 as a hobby, it eventually became a significant part of his professional journey.

Abhilash checks his articles thrice before sending them to the editing team, ensuring his work is highly accurate and reliable.

He has interviewed prominent pro wrestling personalities like Noam Dar, Angry Miz Girl, Brendan Cobbina, and Jesse Lambert. Abhilash is a big fan of AEW star Orange Cassidy, as he believes the former International Champion’s on-screen gimmick of an extremely lazy guy resonates with him.

Given the opportunity to script WWE’s next big storyline, Abhilash would treat fans to the second installment of The Bloodline Civil War. He would book Roman Reigns to re-form The Bloodline with The Usos and Sami Zayn upon his comeback. The angle would see The Tribal Chief-led group go head-to-head with The Rock, Solo Sikoa, Tama Tonga, and Jacob Fatu in a blockbuster family feud.

When not reporting on pro wrestling, Abhilash likes to work out, go on walks, read, and explore new eateries.

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Edited by Alan John