10 Times Wrestling Announcers Really F*cked Up

4. Jim Cornette’s NWA Outburst

Triple H Michael Cole Tom Phillips
NWA

Oh dear.

First and foremost, it's important to state that there's zero excuse for racial insensitivity. Like, ever. Jim Cornette, a relic of wrestling's past, really should've known better when he spewed this unsavoury line on an episode of NWA Power in 2019.

Cornette put Trevor Murdoch over as "mad, bad and dangerous". That was fine. Then, he said that Trev was "the only man I know that can strap a bucket of fried chicken on his back and ride a motor scooter across Ethiopia". That, obviously, was not, and Twitter instantly went berserk over Jim's call.

The NWA were left with no choice but to come to terms on Cornette's release. He resigned in the end, and the company apologised for any offence caused.

Side note: Jim had used this exact same line back in 1988 during a promo with The Midnight Express. Why he thought it'd be cool to repeat it in 2019 is anyone's guess.

Contributor

Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.