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Charlie Haas recently recalled how John Laurinaitis was responsible for his drastic WWE gimmick change.
Haas is arguably best known for his tag team partnership with Shelton Benjamin. In 2008, the three-time Tag Team Champion underwent a transformation when he began impersonating other superstars. His most memorable parodies included Beth Phoenix (The GlamaHaas) and Hulk Hogan (Haas Hogan).
Speaking to Inside The Ropes’ Liam Alexander-Stewart, Haas claimed WWE’s Head of Talent Relations likely gave him the character to make him leave.
“They were trying to get me out of WWE,” Haas said. “When they gave me the character gimmick… John Laurinaitis, Johnny Ace did that… I wasn’t gonna pout about it, ‘Oh, this is bulls***.’ I did it to the best of my ability. I tried to honor these icons, which they were.” [19:12-19:30]
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Haas portrayed the outlandish personas on RAW between August 2008 and May 2009 before moving to SmackDown as a heel in the WWE Draft.
One positive came from John Laurinaitis’ idea
While Charlie Haas does not look back on his impersonation gimmick with fond memories, his multiple characters proved to be a big hit with fans.
More than a decade later, the former Team Angle member still makes money signing autographs as the superstars he impersonated.
“If I sign it as The GlamaHaas or Haas Hogan or Stone Cold Steve Haastin, those things are worth a lot,” Haas added. “I mean, you’re talking 50 to 70 bucks an autograph if I sign it that way. So I’m like, ‘All right, so who’s laughing at what?’ I think it was their way of trying to get me out, but it is what it is.” [19:39-20:00]
If Laurinaitis wanted Haas to quit, the WWE executive’s alleged plan did not work. The 50-year-old carried out instructions as requested before receiving his release from WWE in February 2010.
Please credit Inside The Ropes’ Liam Alexander-Stewart and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.
