15 Biggest Political Power Plays By WWE Talents
4. Jeff Jarrett Refuses To Wrestle Chyna
In wrestling, "holding up the promoter" is a phrase used to describe when a talent refuses to perform (usually after being heavily advertised for the show) unless he/she is guaranteed something from the promoter beforehand (usually a large sum of cash). This phrase has often, and sometimes inaccurately, been applied to talents such as the Ultimate Warrior, Jake Roberts, and Jeff Jarrett.
In the case of Double J, the incident in question came at No Mercy '99 in which Jarrett, the reigning Intercontinental Champion, was scheduled to lose the title to the Ninth Wonder of the World, Chyna. The situation became complicated when WWE allowed Jarrett's contract to expire prior to getting the title off of him. Jeff's contract had actually lapsed the day before the October pay-per-view.
Chyna would later allege that Jarrett "held up" Vince McMahon for a sum of $300,000 before agreeing to perform at the No Mercy Good Housekeeping Match. According to Jarrett, however, he simply asked for money that was owed to him up front. Instead of waiting months for payouts like contracted WWE talents, Jeff wanted to ensure he was taken care of on the way out.