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For almost four decades, Vince McMahon has ruled over the WWE as Chairman of the board, on-air authority figure and has had the final ruling on all creative decisions. Were you to ask any wrestler what they consider to be the most important aspect of getting a push in the WWE, wrestlers will often say building a relationship with Vince McMahon. Repeatedly, wrestlers have had to prove themselves to Vince McMahon. With some going as far as to engage him physically, such as Kofi Kingston, to gain the respect of the boss.
In an industry such as professional wrestling, stars often become frustrated with their position on the card. In response to this, some may act out in a way that leads to tension with McMahon behind the scenes. When such incidents arise, the common outcome is that the star will approach McMahon and apologize for their conceived wrongdoing. One example of this is Madusa, following the infamous dumping of the WWE Woman’s Championship in the trash on an episode of WCW Nitro in 1995.
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To maintain control of his locker room, the WWE Chairman has had to display a certainty in his decision-making and confidently stand by his actions. Or else run the risk of his control being called into question.
With that said, it can be easy to assume that courtesy may be a one-way street when it comes to the Genetic Jackhammer of WWE. However, lately, stories have begun to emerge of Vince McMahon showing compassion and apologizing for his wrongdoings. With that in mind, here are 5 times Vince McMahon has said he is sorry.
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#5: Mark Henry
Recently, WWE veteran Mark Henry was a guest on Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Sessions podcast on the WWE Network. One talking point that stood out during his interview with the "Texas Rattlesnake" was the time that Vince McMahon ribbed him regarding a match with Sin Cara. The former WWE ECW Champion said that McMahon and the crew members ribbed him by sending Henry to the ring for a dark match with the luchador that never happened.
Henry explained that the longer he waited for Sin Cara to emerge the angrier he became, and he eventually stormed his way backstage. Once there, Henry discovered that most of the backstage personnel had already left, prompting him to call McMahon to voice his annoyance over the rib.
According to Henry, the boss was remorseful for what had happened and promptly apologized to the veteran superstar. Vince McMahon would then go on to draw Henry’s attention to the emotion he had shown in the ring while waiting for Sin Cara and urged Henry to channel this anger and passion into a new storyline that was being developed just for him.
That storyline would turn out to be The Hall of Pain, easily Mark Henry’s best run in the company that saw him capture the World Heavyweight Championship and helped to secure his spot in the WWE Hall of Fame a few short years later.
#4: Martha Hart
The tragic passing of Owen Hart at WWE Over the Edge 1999 has long haunted the pro wrestling business and remains to this day one of the darkest moments in the sport’s long history. For those unfamiliar, Hart, under the guise of his Blue Blazer gimmick, was set to wrestle a match with The Godfather for the WWE Intercontinental Title at the PPV.
As part of his entrance, he was to descend to the ring on a zip line, a-la Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania 12. However, WWE had opted to use a snap release clasp that opened prematurely sending Owen hurtling toward the ring & to his death.
The event produced an outpouring of emotion all across the wrestling world and saw Martha Hart file a wrongful death lawsuit against Vince McMahon and the WWE. Citing a lack of oversight that she felt resulted in her husband’s untimely passing.
Recently the tragic story entered the news once more following the release of the heartaching episode of Vice’s Dark Side of The Ring series dedicated to Owen Hart and Martha’s lawsuit against the WWE. Interviews given by Martha to promote the episode prompted Vince’s lawyer to release a statement claiming that Vince had offered a heartfelt apology to Martha during the settlement hearing.
#3: FTR
It is hard to look back on the WWE career of The Revival and not feel that the talented duo was not allowed to reach their full potential. Following an incredible run in NXT that saw them wrestle classic matches with the likes of DIY and American Alpha, fans of the old school team were salivating at the thought of the pair reviving the stale tag team on the main roster. Incredible matches were ahead for the two-time NXT tag team champions with the likes of The Usos.
The team finally made their WWE main roster debut in 2017 on the post-WrestleMania Raw and the audience greeted them with a thunderous ovation. The bloom quickly fell from the rose and it wasn’t long before The Revival was on the losing end of a beat down courtesy of veteran members of the infamous Kliq.
Even when the duo was paired against with the aforementioned Samoan tag team, it was mostly played for laughs with segments dedicated to Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder shaving each other’s backs & a bizarre skit where The Usos poured a substance dubbed “Ucy Hot” onto The Revival’s ring gear prompting them to skid across the ring feigning intense irritability at the supposed heat.
Despite capturing the WWE tag team titles, it seemed that The Revival would not be permitted to achieve the same acclaim on the main roster as they had in NXT and reports quickly surfaced that both men were looking to get out of their WWE contracts.
After a long period of speculation the tag team was released in April 2020 and now compete as FTR on Wednesday nights over on AEW Dynamite, where they are currently building toward a long desired matched between them and The Young Bucks.
Recently it emerged that during their final conversation with Vince McMahon, the WWE Chairman apologized for the creative system being broken when the team pointed out that they had been submitting story ideas to the creative team. FTR would reveal their suggestions were never passed along to McMahon.
#2: Bret Hart
It has been well-documented that the relationship between WWE Hall of Famer Bret Hart and Vince McMahon has been strained to say the very least. Tensions had been high at various points in the mid-’90s due to creative differences and the continued presence of Shawn Michaels in the main event title scene.
Tensions boiled over at the 1997 Survivor Series in the infamous Montreal Screw Job. During a WWE title match between The Hitman and HBK McMahon ordered referee Earl Hebner to call for the bell awarding the submission victory to Michaels, though Hart had not tapped out. Despite having all the makeup of a storyline angle this was a very real moment, one that would allow fans a peek behind the curtain of WWE backstage politics and would go on to help to usher in the Attitude Era.
After the show went off the air, The Hitman was understandably upset at what had happened and the locker room became tense as stars chose sides. One man not often brought up when speaking about this incident is The Undertaker who recently shed new light on what transpired after the PPV feed ended. In an interview with ESPN, "The Deadman" discussed his disbelief with what he had just seen and revealed that he had told Vince McMahon to go and confront Bret and say sorry for what had happened.
#1: CM Punk
CM Punk had faced an uphill battle for stardom throughout his tenure in the WWE. From being dismissed by Triple H in 2005 during a tryout match, to his lackluster first run as World Heavyweight Champion in 2008 which ended during a match Punk was not even a part of. This all changed during a 2011 edition of Monday Night Raw when Punk cut his famous Pipe Bomb promo.
Punk voiced every grievance he had toward the WWE machine and his anger toward The Rock being in the main event of WrestleMania instead of him. The promo would kick off the fabled Summer of Punk that saw the Superstar capture the WWE Championship from John Cena at Money in the Bank before leaving the company with the title.
However, the truth behind the promo remained true for Punk as this storyline wrapped up and through a combination of fatigue, injury, concerns regarding the health & safety practice of WWE doctors, and creative frustration Punk walked out of the WWE following the 2014 Royal Rumble. The internet was set ablaze and chants of "CM Punk" filled arenas all across America.
Punk would be officially released by the WWE shortly after that year’s WrestleMania. Punk would then appear on Colt Cabana’s podcast to provide fans with an explanation as to why he had walked out on the WWE. Punk alleged he had been encouraged to work while concussed, given a Z-Pak in response to a serious infection, and that when he finally was released by the WWE it was via fax on his wedding day.
Following on from this in a move few would have predicted Vince McMahon would appear on the Stone Cold Podcast on the WWE Network and would discuss the firing of CM Punk going as far as to apologize to the former champion for him being fired on what should have been a joyous occasion, though he claimed it was merely a coincidence.
