Vince McMahon wanted top superstar to wear a helmet to ring because of his receding hairline
Vince McMahon allegedly wanted a top star to wear a helmet to the ring because of his receding hairline.
According to Bruce Prichard the superstar being talked about is WWE Hall of Famer Ron Simmons, also known as Farooq.
Speaking on his podcast Something To Wrestle, Bruce Prichard recalled the vision Vince McMahon had for Ron Simmons.
“Vince had this idea of Ron. I think that when he looked at Ron, from basically the eyebrows down, you had this incredible specimen, but yet, Ron had a receding hairline. Vince thought if we could put something on Ron’s head that he could work in like a helmet of sorts that it would take 20 years off his look. He would look 20 years younger. Actually, it really kind of did, but Ron was Ron. Ron looked like a bada** man that would kick your a** if you crossed him in general because Ron’s the real deal.'' said Prichard
Clearly when Vince McMahon signed Farooq in 1996, he had a clear idea of how he wanted the former WCW World Champion to look.
Vince McMahon had Ron Simmons' new character fully chalked out
When Bruce Prichard and Vince McMahon had met Ron Simmons to persuade him to join WWE, McMahon gave him a full pitch of what his character would be like in WWE.
McMahon told Simmons that his new character would be called Farooq Asaad and would wear a helmet and a ring gear of turquoise color. He also told him that Sunny would manage him as a heel. The helmet was eventually removed as part of his ring attire.
Farooq did debut in WWE with this gimmick, but it didn't go too far. He finally found success in the attitude era when he became part of teams like the Nation of Domination and The APA.