10 Absolutely Incredible WWE Backstage Vince McMahon Stories

How Vince CAME To Hire Gail Kim.

Vince Mcmahon
WWE.com

Vince McMahon is a walking - nay, arms-out strutting - paradox.

This is a man who built the biggest wrestling empire of all time despite loathing the word "wrestling". This is a man who has attracted the most fans ever to his product despite loathing the word "fans" and gearing that product to an audience of one - himself - more often than not. This is a man who with his impossibly hammy facial expressions and genetic jackhammer boasts has provided some of the funniest moments in the history of the business, but whose handling of talents has long been considered a sick joke. This is a man woefully and perpetually outside of the cultural sphere and yet has still managed to dominate households over the course of two omnipresent mainstream boom periods.

This is a man who in 2017 names pay-per-view events after 1950s rock n' roll staples and still presents one-dimensional foreign menaces as his top champions, even though Gorgeous George advanced beyond that mode that very decade.

He isn't so much a man as this impossible myth, somehow crazier behind the curtain than he is in front of it...

10. The Burrito Confusion

Vince Mcmahon
Zapatista

The "Is Vince McMahon a genius?" case will likely rage forevermore, long after McMahon has escaped his mortal coil.

There is much evidence for the defence. (Inter)national expansion, WrestleMania, yada yada, he's up to his dimpled chin in your millions. The prosecution however is able to rest with one hilarious truth: McMahon doesn't even know what he eats for dinner.

Former creative staffer Dan Madigan recounted a legendary tale to PWTorch in 2013 in which he pitched the spiked burrito angle between Eddie Guerrero and The Big Show ten years prior. This saw Guerrero get one over on Show by giving him the sh*ts. Self-fulfilling prophecy aside, Eddie was bulletproof at the time. WrestleCr*p became charming in his hands for a few cracking years before his tragic death. McMahon however rejected the pitch at first because he had no idea what a burrito was. He couldn't even infer from the context that it was a Mexican foodstuff, which might explain why there is more exposition than wrestling on WWE programming. What's even more astonishing than McMahon's culinary ignorance is the fact that he ate more burritos than George Steinbrenner ate calzones. Every day, according to Madigan, McMahon snacked on a steak wrap cut in half smothered in ketchup.

What did he think he was eating?

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and surefire Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!