6 WWE Superstars you probably didn't know were close to the McMahons

The McMahons are the most influential family in all of professional wrestling. You know, owning WWE tends to give a family that sort of power. Ever since Vince McMahon managed to obliterate the competition that WCW provided in the Monday Night Wars of 1990s, no other promotion has come close to challenging WWE’s monopoly on the wrestling market. While AEW is giving a tough competition, they haven't been able to break down the promotion.

What this does is make the proposition of befriending any member of the McMahon family an extremely attractive concept. Of course, getting close to the family is easier said than done these days when they are a successful bunch.

Most of the McMahon household’s closest friends come from the days when the then-WWF was still struggling. These men and women have earned the gratitude of the McMahons and Vince and co. will forever consider them to be friends.

So, without any further ado, here are six WWE Superstars you probably didn't know were close to the McMahons:

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#6 R-Truth

Whenever one thinks of R-Truth, Vince McMahon's name is possibly the last thing that will come to one's mind. However, the former United States Champion holds the rare distinction of being the boss's best friend. Here's what R-Truth had to say about his relationship with Vince:

"I remember Vince saying that he liked me because I just treat him like Vince and he said 'you're just as honest as you wanna be, you don't bulls**t me,' and our relationship just started from there and doing the handshake tours with him. (...) We've had some good, fun times, some crazy times but it's like, we've always respected each other but he's helped me out. He has a way of teaching you without teaching you and if you pick up on that, he's attracted to that, he likes that and our relationship just built over the years of me growing and him growing," he said. [H/T: The Sports Rush]

R-Truth has only one short main event run in his career, fighting John Cena for the WWE Championship at 2011's Capitol Punishment pay-per-view. But that isn't the only highlight of Truth's career. The McMahon family dancing with him on SmackDown's 1000th episode, him making Brock Lesnar laugh by declaring and then undeclaring himself from the 2020 Royal Rumble are some of the moments that fans will always look at with a smile.

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#5 The Wild Samoans

The Wild Samoans are a legendary tag team in the world of professional wrestling, but their relationship with the McMahons comes more from their family links than their in-ring accomplishments.

They are the uncles of some of the biggest superstars such as The Usos, Rikishi, Umaga, and the like, but it is the son of one of the Wild Samoans – Sika – who really makes this bond. The name of that son is Roman Reigns.

Sika was rumoured to be extremely upset when Rollins walked away with the world championship during WrestleMania 31 after he was promised that Reigns would get the belt. The next year, Reigns won the big belt at WrestleMania 32. There might not be a confirmed connection between the two events but there’s no denying the sway The Wild Samoans hold due to their friendship with Vince.

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#4 Andre the Giant

For those of our younger readers who don’t know the name Andre the Giant, you might know him as the superstar after whom the annual WrestleMania men's Battle Royal was named. Andre was one of the most famous superstars in 1980s. The man was universally loved by fans and other wrestlers all across the world.

One of the key reasons for this love was his gentle disposition. Despite his massive frame, he was one of the nicest men you could ever meet in the business. This was exemplified by his friendship with a young Stephanie McMahon.

So close were the two that Andre became close friends with the whole McMahon family. When the Giant’s health was deteriorating towards the latter end of his career, Vince ensured he got a hero’s send-off in his last match at WrestleMania. His death remains one of the saddest moments in the entire wrestling industry.

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#3 Stone Cold Steve Austin

Looking at Stone Cold Steve Austin’s run in the WWE, it might be tempting to put him in the same category as CM Punk – someone who was extremely gifted but never on the good side of Vince and co.

The truth is, though, Austin and Vince have always been good friends even if they haven’t always seen eye to eye. The two built a great rapport during The Texas Rattlesnake’s incredible run in the company, especially during the segments where he antagonized the former WWE Chairman.

Despite their differences, which led to Austin walking out on the company and being suspended, he was able to make up with Vince. Both men admitted that they did things wrong and moved past it to forge a bond that still remains strong today.

Austin still plays a minor role with WWE, including sporadic appearances like the ones he does at WrestleMania and the talk shows he has hosted for the WWE Network. The Texas Rattlesnake returned to this year's WrestleMania to have his first match in 19 years, defeating Kevin Owens in the main event of WrestleMania on Saturday. He proceeded to show up on WrestleMania Sunday, hitting Theory, Pat McAfee and Vince with the Stone Cold Stunner.

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#2 Bob Holly

When you think of friends of the McMahon family, you usually associate them with the upper tier of wrestlers. This is not always the case, though, as proven by Bob Hardcore Holly’s friendship with Vince McMahon.

During his run as Sparky Plugg, a wrestler who was also a car racer, Vince custom built a stock car for Holly. When the gimmick ultimately failed and Holly moved onto his highly respectable run as Hardcore Holly, Vince decided to gift Holly the car and let him keep it for his own personal use.

This established Holly firmly in Vince’s corner and was always a loyal employee of the WWE.

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#1 The Undertaker: Vince McMahon's greatest creation

Have you ever wondered why The Undertaker is given so much respect in WWE? Sure, he’s been an amazing performer for over two decades but so have a lot of other Superstars. No, what makes The Undertaker truly special is his undying loyalty to Vince McMahon and the company.

While the stars jumped ship to WCW left, right, and centre during Monday Night Wars, the one man who could never be poached by WCW was The Deadman. He never once wavered in his commitment to Vince and the WWE and this loyalty is what the ex-Chairman values over everything else.

Vince gave Taker control over the entire locker room and also gave him an unprecedented level of creative control over his character. WWE creative literally had to contact Taker to gain approval for any of their inputs. The entire locker room also had to first approach The Undertaker in case of any disputes and only if he couldn’t solve them would they be allowed to reach out to Vince McMahon.

Despite his persona on screen and away from the ring, no one else has earned the respect of Vinnie Mac quite the way Mark Calaway has.