10 Most Shameless WWE Promotional Tactics

4. Exploiting The Death Of Eddie Guerrero

Randy Orton Rey Mysterio
WWE.com

The Eddie Guerrero tribute editions of Raw and SmackDown were quite beautiful send-offs to a beloved legend.

Through a modern lens, there’s a sense that wrestling went a little too hard on sanctimonious tributes rather than a bit of introspection once in a while (though Guerrero’s passing was something of a catalyst for changing that), but the broadcasts showed earnest love to ‘Latino Heat’, his fans, and the wrestlers that adored him.

Then, some three months after that, WWE had crashed his low-rider into the stage and suggested the late former Champion was residing in hell.

These were the headline incidents but not the only ones. He was mentioned so often on SmackDown that it was a bit like his character was a ghost at a big blue feast. Vickie and Chavo Guerrero’s integration as full-time heels together following Rey Mysterio's World Title loss (which itself was fuelled by a desire to toast Guerrero at WrestleMania) kept the flames burning long after the cheap heat had been extinguished.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 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 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, 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