Over the years there have been many backstage stories from every WWE show or PPV, as it’s SummerSlam we thought we would compile some of the craziest backstage stories from the last 30+ years of ‘the biggest party of the summer’
Each of these stories, matches and plans have come from a different source, so take them with a pinch of salt.
1996: Vader Winning the Big One?
Anyone who has seen Vader wrestle knows he was possibly one of the most agile big men in the ring. Vader was already known all over the world before he arrived in WWE (then F) in 1996, it wasn’t long before the big man had his signs on the WWE Championship.
Unfortunately for Shawn Michaels, he was the one in Vader’s way, or so you would think. Prior to SummerSlam 1996, the writing team had penned that Vader was to go over Michaels and win the big one. Michaels apparently complained about this, not because of the finish as you would expect, but because Vader was ‘too stiff’ in the ring and he wouldn’t work with him. Strangely the match went ahead but only the finish was changed.
1992: Legion of Doom’s Hawk Drunkenly Injured Animal?
I don’t think its news to any long-term WWE fan that ‘Road Warrior’ (Legion of Doom) Hawk struggled with alcohol abuse throughout his career.
This became a serious issue in London for SummerSlam 1992, a drunken Hawk drove Himself and Animal to Wembley Stadium on his bike. Hawk reportedly missed a parking spot-causing Animal to leap from the moving bike and end up scraping the skin off his shins. Although his injuries could have been worse, Animal was apparently in a lot of pain due to the burns sticking his tights to his legs with blood, and was understandably furious with Hawk.
2002: Paul Heyman’s Commentary Team is Number One?
Back in the summer of 2002 a rookie Brock Lesnar was not only King of the Ring but was set to be the youngest WWE Champion in history. This is the story we all know, but a bigger backstage story was happening between Paul Heyman and Vince McMahon.
Heyman at the time was the head writer for Smackdown and believed that Tazz and Michael Cole should commentate on the main event match, Vince was adamant about having JR and The King, after a lot of back and forward Heyman got what he wanted.
Interestingly from then on both commentary teams were used for PPVs. Each team commentating on their respective brand’s matches.
1999: Jessie ‘The Body’ Ventura Sued?
We all know how much WWE love involving a legend or Hall of Famer in a current storyline, and this was the case back in 1999 when the WWE Championship triple-threat match needed a special referee. The man to do it was not only a future WWE Hall of Famer but he was currently the Governor of Minnesota, Jessie ‘The Body’ Ventura.
The only problem with this is some of the politicians who opposed Ventura said this was a conflict of interest. This went all the way to court where Ventura actually won his case, not only that but he was paid about $100,000 in royalties for his appearance. Didn’t mess with ‘The Body’.
2016: Jericho confronted Lesnar Backstage?
Brock Lesnar is portrayed as a legitimate fighter in the WWE since he is a former UFC Heavyweight Champion, but his legitimacy has never looked more real than at the end of SummerSlam 2016.
The Beast was meant to take on The Viper in the main event, and for a brief moment, he did. Lesnar proceeded to brawl with Orton and after some vicious elbow strikes to the head, Orton was left lying in a puddle of his own blood.
Everyone watching was left wondering if this was a shoot or not, but it was Jericho who demanded answers from Lesnar as soon as he returned backstage. Some reports say Jericho and Lesnar came to blows, others say Triple H stopped this from happening to insist this was a work. Jericho was clearly unhappy with the finish and wasn’t in the loop.
1990: Shawn Michaels Couldn’t Tag-In?
Before Shawn Michaels was the Heartbreak Kid he was one half of The Rockers who were loved in the 80’s and early 90’s. Michaels was always considered the standout of the team, but this couldn’t be further from the truth at SummerSlam 1990.
Michaels had injured his leg before SummerSlam but neglected to tell WWE. The writers fixed this by having one of his opponents Hercules (of Power and Glory with Paul Roma) hit him with a chair before the match.
Although Michaels was in the match, he was only there in spirit as he didn’t get in the ring to wrestle, leaving Jannetty to basically go it alone.
1991: Ultimate Warrior’s Money Demands?
Ultimate Warrior may have gotten the win at SummerSlam 1991, but his win didn’t last long when he was immediately fired after the match was over.
24-hours before Warrior had demanded that he get paid an extra $500,000 in cash, as he thought his SummerSlam purse should equal that of his tag partner and WWE Champion Hulk Hogan.
McMahon agreed to the terms but had no intentions of following through with the demand. Warrior received a termination notice stating that he basically isn’t in Hogan’s league. Hogan is a living legend, the WWE Champion, and transcends wrestling.
1992: Nailz Attacked Vince for More Money?
Talking of money, Nailz (remember him?) also demanded more money from Vince McMahon after his SummerSlam 1992 outing.
Reports say that Nailz cornered McMahon in his office and began shouting at him for a considerable amount of time before throwing him over the chair and chocking him out. Onlookers say Vince couldn’t breathe and was even turning blue.
Nailz was obviously fired but that wasn’t the last Vince seen of his attacker as he testified against McMahon in the steroid abuse trial stating he ‘hates McMahon’s guts’
2016: Lesnar vs Orton’s Unplanned Finish?
We have already mentioned that not many people knew about the Orton Lesnar finish in 2016 with Jericho demanding answers backstage, but it would seem even Orton wasn’t aware of just how rough the finish would be.
When USA Today asked about the match and the brutal finish Orton said ‘“The fact that I had a concussion and was out for three weeks and wasn’t able to do anything pissed me off,” This would suggest (at least to us) that Orton was aware of the plans but was not clued in on how hard or brutal the elbow shots from Lesnar.
We hope you enjoyed this ‘Did You Know’ SummerSlam special. If there are any other crazy backstage stories you have heard, let us know below or on Twitter or Instagram @SLTDWrestling. Make sure your following both for daily ‘Did You Know’ facts.
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