10 Most Paused WWE Moments

3. Kevin Owens Headbutts Vince McMahon

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This was a wild and ill-advised move for anybody to take, much less a frail-looking Vince McMahon, particularly because it wasn't a move. He ate a shoot headbutt straight to his cobwebbed dome mere months after Katsuyori Shibata was forced to retire, if we're still doing the bad faith WWE is safe actually bit.

It's also wild to look back on footage broadcast just four years ago. At the time, it was thought McMahon looked old. He has aged exponentially in the years since, so much so that his speaking voice is garbled and almost imperceptible. The life has caught up with him, and so, it would seem, have moments like this: a deranged, not-not thrilling angle "worked" with the sort of commitment that would be better for all parties, if he applied it to the booking pencil.

A threatened firing countered a threatened lawsuit to lead to the grisly scene, which ultimately was a chapter in the first of two, f*ck's sake, Kevin Owens Vs. Shane McMahon programmes.

Owens tricked McMahon into the strike, and when burst through his forehead, an internal bruise immediately formed underneath it. The shock warranted the playback in itself, but the preceding moments were paused to check if Vince had subtly opened himself up beforehand to make this very slightly less reckless than it looked.

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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 current Undisputed WWE 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!