McMahon was still looking for "the next" Hulk Hogan before he realised the first Steve Austin was the real answer to his problems. En route to 'The Rattlesnake' he took one of his most expensive wrong terms on a f*cking massive bus. The Lex Express' translucent windows couldn't hide the transparency of the gimmick himself. Lex Luger looked like the United States had vomited on him, which was ironically as close as the gimmick came to representing the true feelings of the audience.
Frustratingly, he'd got Luger right on Day One. Signed for his World Bodybuilding Federation ahead of a transition to the wrestling when that collapsed (because of course it did), 'The Narcissist' was allegedly not that hard a role for Lex to do the method work on. That his body was every bit a 'Total Package' during a crackdown on steroids sold the persona too. He wasn't a patriotic babyface, but - distracted by his struggling empire and an incoming federal trial - McMahon was desperate for a quick fix, and size was a safety net.
Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 7 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 30 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz", Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 50,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett
