5 Times Vince McMahon threatened to fire WWE Superstars but didn't
Regular followers of backstage WWE stories will no doubt be aware that Vince McMahon has personally fired several WWE Superstars over the years.
A modern-day example of this came in 2018 when Big Cass made a series of mistakes during the time of his rivalry with Daniel Bryan on SmackDown. Cass held a 40-minute meeting with Vince McMahon, who made the decision to fire the 7-footer.
Long-term WWE fans will also be familiar with the time when Vince McMahon fired Jeff Jarrett in 2001. The WWE Chairman had just completed his purchase of WCW and he made it clear during a live simulcast between RAW and Nitro that “J-E, Double F” would be “Capital G, Double O, Double N, Double E” after the show.
Now, while Vince McMahon went through with his decision to fire those high-profile names, did you know that he has put pressure on other performers by implying that they could lose their jobs?
In this article, let’s take a look at five times that Vince McMahon threatened to fire WWE Superstars if they did not do as they were asked.
#5 Vince McMahon threatened to fire Kenny Dykstra and Ric Flair
Kenny Dykstra was once told by Vince McMahon that both he and Ric Flair would be fired if they executed a certain move in one of their matches.
Dykstra and Flair were involved in a storyline in late 2006/early 2007, which saw the former Spirit Squad member defeat the two-time WWE Hall of Famer in three consecutive matches on television.
Speaking on Pancakes and Powerslams in 2020, Dykstra revealed that Vince McMahon warned both him and Flair that they were not allowed to perform Flair’s usual throw from the top rope.
“That same match, right before we went out, Vince took his headset off, and he said, 'If you throw [Flair] off the top rope, you're both fired. So, don't do it.' I was like, 'Okay, but that's kinda his spot.’ Like, everybody throws him off the top rope. And Flair was like, 'Don't worry, we'll figure it out, out there.'” [H/T Wrestling Inc.]
Flair threatened to risk the wrath of Vince McMahon by climbing to the top rope during the match. However, he then poked his opponent in the eye and they did not go through with the spot that Vince McMahon asked them not to do.
Dykstra added that Vince McMahon probably did not want them to execute the move simply because Flair used to do it in every match.