7 Times Wrestlers Got Chewed Out LIVE ON-AIR
1. Taka Michinoku
Vince McMahon was just weeks away from leaving the WWE broadcast booth and becoming Mr McMahon forever when footage aired of the official signing of new Light Heavyweight division favourite Taka Michinoku in October 1997, but never had he looked closer on-screen to being the evil boss archetype than when he dished out a brutal one-word bollocking to the future Kaientai man.
Flanked by various officials at Titan Tower for a photo opportunity of the big moment (that itself was filmed for this insert on Monday Night Raw), Taka's inking of the deal was being presented as historic for performer and promoter, but McMahon evidently felt as though he wasn't exactly giving it socks. Clocking Michinoku's seemingly innocuous contentment and not fancying any of that thank you very much, the former Chairman's face snaps into a fume, producing something a whispered rage as he says "SMILE" at his shocked new signing. Not even when Dick Togo was dropping senton bombs on him every week would Taka suffer such an obvious and visible pain in the stomach. And presumably not until the 2000 return of Scott Levy to the company would McMahon experience such obvious buyer's remorse.
It's little wonder he looks terrified when trying to overcompensate for his first apparent misstep, follow the instruction and show some teeth. Michinoku's doing his best with the cheesy grin, but the eyes never lie. Was this the moment the