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‘With great power, comes great responsibility’. Today, more than ever before, fans of professional wrestling have the ability to alter wrestlers’ career paths. The explosion of social media has equipped fans with the ability to tell the organisations what they exactly think about the product.
In the past, there were several occasions when the organisations changed storylines/angles, succumbing to the pressure exerted by the fans. In this day and age, the fans are more vocal than ever before.
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This, coupled with the fact that WWE - a publicly traded company, needs to please its sponsors, has given the fans the ammunition to have their voices heard.
However, this has also led to the fans starting some ridiculous campaigns and petitions. While the fans are within their rights to express their feelings, one needs to understand that WWE is more entertainment than sport. Today, we take a look at five of the weirdest petitions the WWE fans ran online.
#5 Petition for Roman Reigns to remove his “illegal” vest
It comes as no surprise that a large portion of WWE fanbase dislikes Roman Reigns. For years, the fans have expressed their displeasure concerning Roman Reigns’ push to the top. This included booing Reigns at every possible opportunity, and celebrating the fall of the ‘Roman Empire’.
More recently, the fans rejoiced when Reigns was decimated by Braun Strowman - an indication of their true feelings towards Reigns. However, one fan took the absurdity up a notch when he started an online petition, for Roman Reigns to remove his vest.
In his petition, the fan stated, “Roman Reigns has been breaking the rules of Admiral-Lord Mountevans Unified Rules of Professional Wrestling through the use of illegal body armour to protect himself during the course of matches with legitimately dressed competitors, and has been doing so throughout his career. We require swift action that prohibits the use of this body armour in all future WWE contests by Mr Reigns and anyone else.”
It is unknown if the petition was real or just some troll trying to make a name for himself, but nearly 4,000 fans signed the petition!
#4 Petition to fire Naomi
In the past, the tag of ‘pro wrestling fan’ was seen as a taboo. The thought of two men hitting each other with weapons, and the perceived ‘thirst for blood’ didn’t sit too well with the general populace.
However, over the years, the fans understood the artistic value and the nature of the wrestling business. With WWE also shying away from car crash TV and changing their product, the audience understood that professional wrestling is similar to a Hollywood movie.
However, there have been times fans proved that there will always be something that would annoy them, regardless of how family friendly WWE’s product gets. More recently, a fan started a petition asking WWE to fire Naomi.
The fan explained that Naomi wasn’t a good role model for the kids, because, “she goes around shaking her bottom on TV in front of small children”. Apparently, the fan wasn’t pleased when his niece started twerking, and requested that something be done immediately.
#3 Petitioning the White House to add Daniel Bryan to the main event at WrestleMania 30
Back in 2013, the wrestling world rejoiced the birth of a new sensation. For over a decade, Daniel Bryan was one of the best technical wrestlers on the planet. However, after signing with WWE, he was reduced to a mid card role, and holding the tag team title. All that changed in the summer of 2013 when the fans got behind their beloved Superstar.
However, WWE initially refused to give in to the fans’ demands. During the Royal Rumble match in 2014, Daniel Bryan wasn’t even involved in the battle royale, leading to the fans booing the eventual winner, Batista.
The fans, for once, were on the same page - they wanted to see Daniel Bryan main event WrestleMania 30 for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.
To make it possible, the WWE fans started a petition to the White House, asking the Oval Office to intervene, and push for Daniel Bryan to compete for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 30!
#2 Petition to remove Donald Trump from the WWE Hall of Fame
Professional wrestling and politics, no matter what the promoters say, are entwined. Former professional wrestlers have become politicians - the best example would be the former Governor of Minnesota, Jesse Ventura.
More recent examples would be Kane, Rhyno and the former CEO of WWE, and the current Administrator of Small Business Administration under the Trump Administration, Linda McMahon.
The line in the sand, of course, is understanding the extent to which politics can be integrated into professional wrestling. The current President of the United States, Donald Trump is a big fan of the McMahons and the WWE. In fact, Trump was inducted into the Celebrity Wing of the WWE Hall of Fame back in 2013.
However, after Trump’s comments during his presidential campaign, where he targeted the Mexicans and the minorities in the United States, WWE fans started a petition, where they demanded that Donald Trump be removed from the WWE Hall of Fame.
WWE immediately shot down the request, saying they are not in the business of politics and had no plans to respond to any of the political rhetoric.
#1 Petition to fire Braun Strowman
Last month, Braun Strowman and Roman Reigns were involved in a segment, where Strowman annihilated Reigns. This involved Strowman tossing Reigns off a loading dock while Reigns was strapped to a gurney.
Strowman then flipped an ambulance, with Reigns inside it (kayfabe). While the fans in attendance were ecstatic about Strowman getting rid of their pesky, unwanted babyface, not everyone was thrilled with Braun’s actions.
One particular fan failed to comprehend that WWE, similar to Hollywood movies, involves good guys and devious villains. This resulted in the individual starting a petition, asking WWE to fire Braun Strowman for his actions.
Needless to say, the petition went viral for obvious reasons and even got the attention of Strowman himself, who replied saying he does what he wants, whenever he wants.
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