10 WWE Wrestler Attires That Paid Tribute To Other Wrestlers

7. Johnny Gargano - Shawn Michaels (NXT TakeOver: New York)

Johnny Gargano's TakeOver: New York plan might have changed from the intended blowoff with Tommaso Ciampa to an NXT Championship match against Adam Cole, but he was still shrewd to evoke an "end game" with his Iron Man-inspired attire.

This isn't WhatCulture Comics, but the "easter egg" wrestling reference he placed in there was one to marvel at.

Shimmering sequins snuck out at the sides of the design on his trunks, whilst the 'Johnny Wrestling' moniker was in the aforementioned WrestleMania XII colours of Gargano's real life hero and Performance Center coach Shawn Michaels.

'Johnny Wrestling' had already effectively paid tribute to 'HBK' with his work alone. Gargano became 'Johnny TakeOver' as Michaels had 'Mr WrestleMania' with a seemingly endless stream of instant classics on NXT's biggest stage, but this incredible outing with Cole was perhaps his very best. A maiden Championship victory whilst sporting the stunning look and colour scheme only furthered the favourable comparisons.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 7 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 almost 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 60,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL 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