15 WWE Gimmick Changes That IMMEDIATELY Backfired
5. Tony Atlas Gets Awkward As Saba Simba
The WWF scene had changed massively since Tony Atlas was riding high as one half of the tag champs alongside Rocky Johnson between 1983-1984 when he returned for a third stint in 1990. ‘Dark Side Of The Ring’ revealed just how dramatic and incredible Tony’s life was once his fame faded. He’d been sleeping on a park bench before getting help from his future wife and somehow finding his way back onto television.
Atlas did so as the dire Saba Simba gimmick. On commentary, Vince McMahon alleged that Tony was ‘embracing his roots’, but the whole thing felt painfully racist. Roddy Piper rubbished it straight away anyway by pointing out that it was Atlas. He was having none of the Saba Simba chat, and that was very much that.
Tony taped his first TV match back on 28 August 1990 by beating Chris Duffy. That aired on the 15 September episode of Superstars. The whole thing seemed like a humiliation ritual more than anything else, and it’s remarkable that Tony remains so upbeat about it. He even told VICE for 'Dark Side' that he was chuffed to be making money again and back on TV - everything else was fairly inconsequential to him personally.
WWF fans couldn't get in step with the character change, so it only lasted until shortly after the 1991 Royal Rumble. It was cartoonish (not always the worst thing if handled carefully, but it was awful in this case), and it's become regarded as one of the most offensive ideas McMahon ever committed to tape during his time at the helm.