The WWE and its superstars have certainly created their fair share of controversy in their time. Lots of superstars spend hours upon hours on the road, and that can lead them astray. Other superstars can just be straight up jerks and get away with what they had done.
Today in WWE, it seems to be a lot stricter as wrestlers can get heavily punished for even minor infringements but it hasn’t always been that way. But back in the day, if you drew money, a lot of what you had done got simply swept under the carpet.
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5. Plane ride from hell
The infamous ‘Plane ride from hell’ incident took place on a seven-hour flight from Great Britain to the United States back in 2002. Most of the shenanigans have been attributed to heavy drinking on the flight, which was partially caused by the flight being delayed for an hour before takeoff.
Brock Lesnar and Mr. Perfect got into a wrestling match and scuffled on the aisle of the plane while Michael Hayes and JBL got into a fist fight. Dustin Runnels (Goldust) was also allegedly loudly serenading his ex-wife Terri Runnels, till WWE Vice President of Talent Relations Jim Ross told him cut it off.
With all of this going on, it was Ric Flair who finally took it too far. He walked around the plane, allegedly wearing only his robe, flashing the flight attendants, twirling his privates and forcing the flight attendants to put their hands on his crotch.
WWE settled the attendants’ lawsuit out of court, and they inducted Flair into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2008. Needless to say, this incident is not talked about within the WWE or on WWE programming today.
4. Stone Cold Steve Austin’s domestic abuse
This one is a real sore spot for WWE because it involves one of their biggest ever stars. On June 15, 2002, police responded to a call to the couple's residence and found Debra with bruises and a bloody nose. Austin was arrested within a month and charged with misdemeanour assault, to which he pleaded no contest.
In an interview with Sean Hannity in 2007, Debra claimed that not only did WWE employees know about the abuse, but they were actively complicit in covering it up. They didn’t want anyone to know that their top money-making star was a wife beater in case it tarnished his image.
Shockingly some of the measures that were allegedly taking, ranged from concealing the bruises on her face to placing a gag order on her so that she couldn’t talk about what happened.
3. Jerry “The King” Lawler
If you can believe it, back in 1993, Lawler was charged with the rape and sodomy of a 13-year-old girl. Although those charges were eventually dropped, Lawler did plead guilty to harassing a witness in the case—a 14-year-old girl who was going to testify against him.
So what did WWE decide to do? Well, initially WWE suspended Lawler, but let the 2007 WWE Hall of Famer back into the fold after the charges were dropped.
It’s a case where WWE would certainly not want people to know about as it would not only tarnish Lawler’s legacy, but tarnish the image of the WWE as a whole.
2. John Cena and Kendra Lust
Kendra Lust is an American “alternative media” star of French-Canadian descent who has appeared in over 140 films to date. Even though she has adamantly denied the rumours, many believe that she is the main reason why John Cena and his wife got a divorce.
Leaked photos of Lust, who is also married, wearing skimpy lingerie while holding up a WWE Championship belt seemed to confirm the allegations. However, Lust has said that she has never even met Cena, let alone had a relationship with him, but she also admitted that she would be more than willing to hook up with him.
Needless to say, WWE certainly want this one hidden tightly away in a lock box and pretend it never happened.
1. WWE Steroids Scandal
In 1993, Vince McMahon was charged by the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York with routinely obtaining anabolic steroids and distributing them to his wrestlers. He was also accused of employing a shady Pennsylvania doctor with an easy hand on the prescription pad to ensure regular shipments of juice to the then-WWF headquarters.
The trial ended in a farce, with a mishmash of sloppy legal errors and underwhelming witness testimony—including that of an uncommonly subdued Hulk Hogan—securing McMahon's acquittal on all charges.
To think, this one trial could have ruined WWE for good.
