The WORST Wrestling Moment Every Year (1989 - 2025)
13. 2013 | The Big Show Gets The Yes! Chant
Daniel Bryan was a phenomenon in 2013 - so much so that he might have been the most universally loved WWE wrestler of the century, at least until Cody Rhodes returned in 2022.
The hardcores loved Bryan because was one of the best in-ring talents ever. Without compromising his brilliance, he appealed to families and children with his rousing “Yes!” chant and spirited babyface persona; if anything, longtime fans of Bryan were impressed with his ability to game the system.
This could not have been timed better: amid the unrest initiated by the Pipebomb, that created a chasm between the casual and jaded hardcore fans, here was a guy beloved by both!
There was just one problem: Bryan was too small and he didn’t apply tanning lotion. Also, Vince had his heart set on building up Roman Reigns: a more toned and tall but significantly less popular industry plant.
It would be reductive and borderline deranged to suggest that Vince resented Bryan and foamed at the mouth when being informed of his t-shirt sales, but he really didn’t want to get it, either. Bryan was swiftly relegated to the midcard by the end of 2013, his breakthrough year. The “Yes” chant was essentially Fandangoing in Vince’s eyes. He thought it was a fun thing that the fans enjoyed doing, and not a rallying cry vocalised in support of one specific wrestler, which is why the Big Show started doing it instead.
Watching Show cosplay as Bryan was excruciating, yes, but this qualifies as Worst Moment because of what it said about WWE. It was a message board cynic’s paranoid vision of WWE, but also real at the same time.
Big Show is bigger, give him Bryan’s stupid chant.