There have been many wrestlers whose characters and personalities were enhanced by eye-catching tattoos. Roman Reigns is an excellent example among the current crop of talent. The Tribal Chief's sleeve tattoo makes him look like a legitimate badass.
However, the fans have always wondered whether there were any restrictions in the WWE regarding body art. Is Vince McMahon against talent getting inked?
Bruce Prichard spoke about the topic during the most recent edition of the Something to Wrestle podcast on AdFreeShows.com.
Prichard began by joking about The Undertaker and sarcastically bringing up The Deadman's tattoos. All jokes aside, Prichard revealed that he advised The Undertaker against getting any tattoos:
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"Yeah, Undertaker, man. I told him from day one (laughs). When he got that first big tattoo, 'Oh god damn it Mark, stop! This is going to ruin your career.' You know, you've got to limit yourself! It's very bad for your career. Your push is stopped right now! I'm going to stop pushing you! Umm, no! A part of that is 100 percent true (laughs), the advice that I gave 'Taker, don't ever get a tattoo."
Tattoos don't have the same stigma that they had in the 70s and 80s: Bruce Prichard
Prichard stated that Vince McMahon might have had a problem back in the day when a superstar got an unusual tattoo. However, Prichard explained that the times have changed, and the stigma attached to tattoos that was prevalent in the 1970s and 80s is no longer present:
"I don't know, you know. There had been some that, he was probably going, 'What the hell? What the hell did you do? Why did you do that?' But, especially now in the 2000s, where tattoos don't have the same stigma that they had in the 70s and 80s. It's a little different."
A large part of being a successful professional wrestler depends on a talent's look, and a tattoo can have drastic effects. Rhea Ripley revealed in March last year during an interview with talkSPORT that the WWE had prohibited her from getting upper body tattoos.
The former NXT Women's Champion said that while she wore pants to hide her lower-body tattoos, her dream was to cover her entire body with ink:
"My dream since being a little girls is to be the most tattooed human ever. I just love tattoos, I don't know why! I've always loved them. But, unfortunately for me, WWE isn't clearing my upper body [for tattoos]." "That's why I wear pants! I got pants so I wouldn't have to clear my tattoos because you can't see them. I'm trying to finish my leg sleeves, then hopefully I can convince people to let me get my arm sleeves and other stuff, but we'll see how that goes,' said Ripley.
What are your thoughts on wrestlers and tattoos? Who do you think has the best?
Please credit Something to Wrestle with Bruce Prichard and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.