"I didn't respect him at all" – WWE legend blasts The Ultimate Warrior
It is well known that The Ultimate Warrior could be difficult to work with during his wrestling career. On a recent podcast episode, Warrior's former opponent Ted DiBiase Sr. gave his candid thoughts on the WWE Hall of Famer.
Warrior joined WWE in 1987 and quickly became one of the company's biggest stars. The former WWE Champion feuded with many high-profile names, including Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage. He also faced DiBiase Sr. several times between 1989 and 1992.
Speaking on Everybody's Got A Pod, DiBiase Sr. did not hold back when asked about Warrior's behavior:
"I didn't respect him at all because he had no respect for us. He had no respect for the wrestling business. For him it was all a means to an end. All the boys understood that, all the boys could see that. I can't understand Vince [McMahon]. I don't know, maybe Vince's ego is, 'I'm gonna take this giant muscle head and watch me make a star out of him,' because Vince thought he could make anybody, and to a degree he did." [0:51 – 1:25]
Although the two legends usually went one-on-one at untelevised live events, they also met occasionally on television. In 1990, Warrior retained the WWE Championship against DiBiase Sr. at The Main Event IV.
Ted DiBiase Sr. on Vince McMahon's booking of The Ultimate Warrior
The most significant moment of The Ultimate Warrior's career came in 1990 when he beat Hulk Hogan in the WrestleMania 6 main event. A year later, WWE Executive Chairman Vince McMahon suspended the controversial superstar after he threatened to no-show SummerSlam 1991 due to a financial dispute.
"Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase challenges The Ultimate Warrior for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship at the WWF/AJPW/NJPW Wrestling Summit event at Tokyo Dome back on April 13,1990 https://t.co/NKhGzUinwD
Ted DiBiase Sr. felt that Warrior struggled in the main-event spotlight because he was one-dimensional as a wrestler:
"He [Vince McMahon] did make him [Warrior] a big star, but his star power didn't last long because he couldn't do anything. He could do four or five things, and after everybody saw that same match over and over and over, you get tired of it. Let's go on to something new." [3:28 – 3:46]
On April 8, 2014, Warrior passed away at the age of 54 after suffering a heart attack. Three days earlier, he was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.
What are your thoughts on The Ultimate Warrior? Let us know in the comments section below.
Please credit Everybody's Got A Pod and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.