5 WWE Superstars Vince McMahon punished for breaking kayfabe

In the late 80s, Vince McMahon shocked the wrestling world by spilling the beans on professional wrestling being a fixed sport. Wrestlers and promoters had tried their best to keep kayfabe alive for decades on end. You wouldn't see a babyface and a heel traveling together and talking with each other in a public place.

To prevent WWE Superstars from being regulated like actual sportspersons, Vince McMahon announced publicly that WWE was, in fact, a fixed sport, with pre-determined endings to matches. Despite the big secret coming out in front of the whole world, there have been several instances in the past where Vince McMahon wasn't thrilled with his wrestlers crossing the line and breaking kayfabe.

Let's take a look at five WWE Superstars who were punished by Vince for breaking kayfabe.

#5 'Hacksaw' Jim Duggan and The Iron Sheik

This incident took place in 1987, when Vince McMahon was still of the opinion that the business needed to be protected. After a WWE event in May, Jim Duggan and Sheik were pulled over by police officers. The incident took place in New Jersey and the two Superstars were caught for driving erratically. Duggan and Sheik were under the influence of marijuana and cocaine, respectively.

Their arrests gained massive media coverage and fans were shocked to learn that a babyface and heel were caught traveling together. The fact that Duggan was a patriotic American while Sheik hated the USA with all his guts, only stirred the pot more.

When Vince McMahon learned of the incident, he immediately fired The Iron Sheik, while Duggan was slapped with a temporary dismissal. Although drugs were certainly a part of the business at the time, the two Superstars had committed an even bigger sin by getting caught together and breaking kayfabe.

#4 Serena

Longtime wrestling fans might remember Serena as one of the members of The Straightedge Society that was 'saved' by CM Punk. She was a former addict who let Punk shave her head as a part of her path towards cleansing herself and improving herself as a human being.

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In August 2010, Serena was fired from WWE. The reason for her firing was that she failed to live her on-screen life outside the confines of a WWE ring. A few weeks before her firing, WWE aired a segment that showed Serena entering a bar, which didn't sit well with Punk. Many took this as a scathing message from WWE to Serena, for not being able to do justice to her straightedge gimmick in real life. Although Superstars are not expected to be in character at all times in this day and age, WWE seemingly expected Serena to go that extra mile.

#3 Matt Hardy

Matt Hardy got into a feud with Kane in 2004, following which he was sidelined with an injury. In early 2005. Fans of the former Cruiserweight Champion noticed that he had removed all photos of longtime girlfriend Lita from his official website.

On being asked why, Hardy told the fans to ask the question to Lita. Soon after, he took to his website and shared a detailed account of what had happened between him and Lita. Hardy revealed that Lita was having an affair with his best friend, Edge.

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Almost immediately, WWE fired Matt in April 2005. It was evident that Matt's antics didn't sit well with WWE. Lita began getting bombarded with chants of "you sc**wed Matt" on a regular basis. WWE sensed an opportunity and rehired Hardy to kick off a feud with Edge and Lita, in what is considered by many as one of the greatest rivalries in WWE history.

#2 Daniel Puder

On an episode of SmackDown in November 2004, Kurt Angle wrestled a shoot match against Tough Enough contestant Chris Nawrocki, injuring him in the process. Angle proceeded to challenge other rookies, with Daniel Puder accepting the same. Puder wasn't happy with Angle's treatment of Nawrocki, and decided to teach him a lesson. Having prior MMA experience, Puder applied a Kimura Lock on Angle and almost broke his arm.

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This resulted in Puder becoming the most hated man in the locker room. He made an appearance in the Royal Rumble match in 2005, and was severely chopped on the chest by Hardcore Holly, Chris Benoit, and Eddie Guerrero. After the beating, Puder was thrown off the top rope by Holly. Puder wasn't seen on WWE TV after this incident. WWE let his contract run and offered him a developmental deal in the end, but Puder chose to leave the company.

#1 Triple H

The May 19, 1996 incident that took place at Madison Square Garden is forever etched in wrestling history as being one of the most controversial moments of all time. The main event of the show saw Shawn Michaels wrestle Kevin Nash, following which Scott Hall and Triple H joined the duo inside the ring. Triple H and Nash were heels at the time, and seeing the four Superstars hug it out in the middle of the ring was a shocker for fans who still believed that wrestling was a real sport.

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Vince couldn't punish Hall and Nash, as the duo was about to leave the company. Michaels escaped punishment too, as he was the WWE Champion at the time. Triple H ended up taking the blow, and his push was halted immediately. Vince decided to push Steve Austin instead, which led to him winning the King of the Ring tournament in 1996.