10 Twisted Times WWE Rewarded A Wrestler For Being A D*ck

5. John Bradshaw Layfield (2004)

Long before audiences realised that he could actually grow into the role, there was an uneasy air about John Bradshaw Layfield's 2004 instapush amongst WWE's hardcore online audience.

Eddie Guerrero was a beloved figure to that particular demographic, and it was with great joy that he'd been so well received by the wider audience at large. What few knew at the time was how close he was with his successor, and how he himself wanted shot of the pressure that came with being top dog.

To those on the outside, it looked as though Vince McMahon was gleefully waiting to take away the toy they loved with a replacement shaped like a younger version of himself. It was worst case scenario stuff with no obvious way out, until the unashamedly insensitive Layfield goose-stepped with a Nazi salute during a German house show.

All cheap heat claims aside, this was subtantial sh*t - substantial enough for CNBC to let him go from his role as a business analyst on their show, but not enough for McMahon to look beyond him to somebody else for one of the biggest sudden pushes of the decade. Heat was heat, so it seemed, and Bradshaw bludgeoned and bullroped his way to title glory within weeks of the misdeed.

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