"You beat me to it" - Vince McMahon's reaction to WWE legend trademarking his name before him
Ricky Steamboat narrated an incident that happened prior to him joining WWE, where he trademarked his name before Vince McMahon could.
Steamboat recently appeared on Stories with Brisco and Bradshaw where he revealed how he trademarked his ring name and nickname before Vince McMahon did.
The Hall of Famer, along with McMahon and Pat Patterson, came up with "The Dragon" moniker before his WWE debut. Steamboat revealed that the WWE Chairman often trademarked the names of WWE wrestlers, but this time around, he did it before McMahon.
"Two weeks later I’m doing TV, first TV. We’re passing the hallways and he goes, ‘You beat me to it.’ I didn’t know what he was talking about. I said, ‘What are you talking about?’ He says, ‘You got the rights to The Dragon’ and I said, ‘Well, just business Vince, just business, you know?’ I own the rights to ‘Steamboat’ and ‘The Dragon’, only in wrestling-related venues," said Steamboat. (H/T Post Wrestling)
The Hall of Famer said that McMahon didn't say anything relating to the trademark after that conversation.
Ricky Steamboat's run in WWE
Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat shows Chris Jericho that he's still got it during their match at Backlash 2009 https://t.co/lXY9Kybo8c
Steamboat's first run with WWE came in 1985 after leaving NWA. He had a three-year run before joining WCW, but returned to McMahon's promotion for a brief run in 1991.
After retiring from in-ring action, he made a comeback to WWE in the mid-2000s as a producer. He also became involved in various storylines, most notably against Chris Jericho.
The Hall of Famer wrestled Jericho, when he and other WWE legends - Jimmy Snuka and Roddy Piper, faced the current AEW star at WrestleMania 25. He was later a trainer at NXT and has made sporadic appearances in WWE in recent years.
Roddy Piper, Jimmy Snuka and Ricky Steamboat face off against Chris Jericho at WrestleMania 25! #RIPRoddyPiper http://t.co/trs1hwtLFM