Jason Burgos
It seems that hunger and a tough piece of steak cost WWE fans the chance at seeing an unexpected alliance between bitter rivals Chris Jericho and Shawn Michaels.
During the 2000s, there were a lot of low lights for WWE. However, one of the bright spots was the rivalry between Jericho and Michaels. Its first peak came with a match at WrestleMania 19 that the latter won, but then was rewarded with a low blow from his foe. Then again, when Jericho held the World Heavyweight title in 2008.
The pair of current and future Hall of Famers created magic together. Be it in a verbal battle or in the ring. Without a doubt, they were some of each other’s greatest rivals during their legendary careers. However, a few years later, Jericho actually made a pitch for the hated enemies to ally to solve a shared problem.
“The idea was a storyline involving Bray Wyatt and Shawn Michaels,” Jericho told Game Hub. “The premise was that the Wyatt Family would attack me, and the only person I could call who was crazy enough to have my back was Shawn — even after our rivalry.
“He comes back to confront me, and just as we’re about to go at it, the Wyatt Family attacks us both. Now you don’t know whether Shawn was going to take my offer or not, but he’s involved,” he added. “It would be Jericho and HBK against the Wyatt Family, with a SummerSlam match in mind. It was a really solid pitch.”
Bad steak led to a Chris Jericho and Shawn Michaels team-up never happening?
The idea sounds fun and certainly would have benefited the Wyatt Family as they looked to establish themselves on the main roster. However, the idea was turned down by then-WWE boss Vince McMahon. Jericho claims that the pitch failed because he spoke to the company founder at the worst time. During lunch.
“When Vince is eating, he’s not paying attention to anything else,” Jericho claimed. “… Vince just sat there eating his steak, and when I finished, he said, ‘Bad cow.’ I said, ‘What?’ He goes, ‘Bad cow — the steak is tough.’ I said, what do you think of my pitch?
“He goes, ‘What else you got?’ The steak killed the whole angle. But that’s the nature of working for Vince — if he doesn’t like it, you’re done. Same with Tony, to a degree. You have to please your boss.”
So hunger and a “bad cow” killed the chance for WWE fans to see Jericho and Michaels unite against the Wyatt Family.
