5 WWE Superstars who held positions of authority that you probably don't remember
The Authority figures have been a staple of WWE programming for two decades. Ever since WWE struck gold with the ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin vs. Mr McMahon mega-feud, they’ve been trying to replicate that success with numerous different authorities, often to no avail.
It’s not hard to see why they keep going to this story idea: not only do they have tangible proof of the formula working vis-à-vis Austin-McMahon, but it’s something that resonates with many people. The concept of the evil, overbearing boss is something that many people can relate to, so whenever they see a babyface being abused by a power-hungry person of authority, they want to see that babyface succeed because it’s something they can relate to.
It has reached a point where WWE has developed an obsession with authority figures on their regular programming. Nowadays, the authority figures are not just matchmakers that act as secondary characters in feuds involving various wrestlers. They’re key figures themselves, and in some cases, they also wrestle (see: Shane McMahon).
Of course, not every WWE personality that became an authority figure was a big success. For each one that succeeded, there was at least one that failed to set the world on fire. Some people have the charisma and speaking abilities to make an authority character work, while others do not. Here are five WWE Superstars that held positions of power that were so forgettable that they only ever get mentioned in retrospectives like this one.
#1 Ric Flair
‘Nature Boy’ Ric Flair has done it all in pro wrestling, so it shouldn’t surprise anyone that Flair actually had a brief tenure as owner of Raw.
After Survivor Series 2001 ended and team WWF defeated the Alliance, the WWE roster ended up doubling in size. The idea at the time was that the newly-combined roster would be split in two, with each show being owned by a different person. It was revealed that Shane and Stephanie had sold their stock to Flair, who then became the co-owner of WWE and the man in charge of Raw.
Also read: Ric Flair wants Jay Lethal in WWE
Flair’s time as owner of Raw was somewhat limited, as his only major feuds in this capacity were against the Undertaker (who had been furious over being ‘selected’ to Raw and later challenged and defeated Flair at WrestleMania X8), and Mr. McMahon (with whom Flair feuded over total control over WWE).
It was rumoured that the feud between Flair and McMahon was meant to go longer into 2002, but due to Steve Austin leaving WWE abruptly, things were changed, and the dispute ended much sooner.