10 shocking moments from WWF (WWE) 2001

#7 Vince humiliates Trish Stratus

Too far?

The vast majority of wrestling fans love the Attitude Era, and understandably so. However, there were moments during that period in the company's history where the limits of acceptability were pushed to the point where the fans were turned off rather than entertained. Arguably, the most notable of them involved Vince McMahon and Trish Stratus.

Vince was going through perhaps his most overt heel run in the first half of 2001, turning into an egomaniac after beating WCW in the Monday Night Wars. He began playing with people and disrespecting his family, especially his wife Linda.

During a storyline in which Linda was in a permanently comatose state, Vince would humiliate his wife with the help of Trish Stratus, flaunting their affair in front of the entire WWF fan base. As Wrestlemania 17 approached, Vince's behaviour became more extreme, deciding to turn on Trish and subject her to the most humiliating ordeals imaginable.

In scenes that are not typically repeated during WWE's current PG-rating era, Vince would force Stratus to strip down to her underwear and bark like a dog in front of the crowd. Even in an era in which the fans lapped up controversy and sexually charged story angles, the mood of the arena during this segment was noticeably awkward and uneasy.

In one sense it did set up Wrestlemania 17 perfectly, with Trish getting her revenge by slapping Vince and causing him to lose his match against his son Shane, but there is definitely a reason why the company doesn't tend to talk about these scenes anymore today.