10 Wrestling Promo Lines That Were WAY Too Personal
2. Randy Orton Fat-Shames Kevin Owens
In a stunningly predictable development, WWE got the one vaguely good NXT call-up wrong. Of course they did.
Kevin Owens arrived in NXT as an instant game-changer. This was part of the old brand's electrifying appeal, one that generated such immense faith in the process; beloved, killer acts were massive deals with none of the bullsh*t "testing" process endemic to WWE's playbook. Better yet, Owens' and Sami Zayn's backstory was elegantly folded into company canon. Even better than that, Owens was presented as a serious proposition on Raw. He challenged John Cena and beat him cleanly. The match was one of the best back-and-forth regulation workraters of its time because the worn layout was the exact point: the idea was that Owens was literally on Cena's level.
Mere weeks afterwards, Randy Orton wondered aloud if Owens had put on weight, on live TV, and just in cade you thickos didn't get it, he did the "big belly" gesture with his hands.
Kevin Dunn received the heat for, but that was rubbished, despite insider whispers suggesting he was part of an anti-Owens camp. Ultimately, someone allowed it to make it to the script, and this personal dig masquerading as a terrible joke meant that fans stopped taking Owens seriously.
A disgusting organisation that has changed in some respects this year, at least.