10 Insanely Racist Pro Wrestling Moments You Totally Forgot

Top 10 Insanely Racist Moments in Pro Wrestling that You Forgot About

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the Top 10 Insanely Racist Moments in Pro Wrestling that You Forgot About.

For this list, we’ll be ranking the racially insensitive moments or storylines that may have flown under our collective radar over the years. Yet, like some sort of cringy fever dream, evidence of their existence continues to rear its ugly head.

Can you recall any of these when they first aired? Let us know in the comments!

#10: Don’t Disrespect Yoshi Tatsu

The world of professional wrestling has historically been a place of exaggerated characters, and broad cultural stereotypes. The “foreign heel” archetype was one that unfortunately stuck around far longer than it should, and remnants of that racism can still be felt in this match between Yoshi Tatsu and Shelton Benjamin. It took place after ECW had become part of the WWE programming banner, and featured Benjamin making mocking bows and shows of disrespect in the direction of Tatsu. Thankfully, Benjamin received his comeuppance, however, as Yoshi Tatsu beat him for the win.

#9: On the Borderline with JBL

This infamous segment with JBL, a.k.a. John Bradshaw Layfield, would never fly today. For starters, the former Acolyte had already been gaining heat for his 2004 feud with Eddie Guerrero, thanks to a series of racially-charged promos. This all came to a head, however, with a vignette that placed JBL at what was supposed to be the U.S./Mexico border. It was shot in anticipation of the pair’s match at that year’s “Judgement Day” pay-per-view, and JBL goes ALL IN with the racism. He spits out anti-immigration rhetoric, and even kicks out some hired actors that were pretending to be Mexican families trying to cross the border. It’s wild stuff.

#8: Cryme Tyme’s Singalong

It could be argued that the creative idea behind Cryme Tyme was itself racially motivated, as the writers clearly set these superstars up as a parody of “gangsta culture.” This idea is leaned into even further during this short but not-so-sweet segment from “SummerSlam” 2007. Here, Cryme Tyme busts in on a backstage pow-wow between Mr. McMahon, The Coach, Teddy Long and William Regal. It soon devolves into a dance circle around McMahon, although Regal does humorously join in for the big finale. The intention behind this segment was probably only intended to be silly and comedic, but the optics could certainly prove to be problematic today.

#7: Afro-Goldust

Dustin Runnels will always be considered a Hall of Fame talent. The man has the wrestling business in his blood, and has succeeded in adapting the Goldust gimmick into many interesting phases over the years. The “Artist Formerly Known as Goldust” era is perhaps left forgotten, however, thanks especially to moments like this one. It starts off on an immediate bad note once the parodic “funk” music starts to play. Then, we’re “graced” with the image of Goldust rocking an Afro wig and blackface, and we can’t believe our eyes. Jim Ross and Jerry “The King” Lawler make references to “The Mod Squad” and “Shaft” in an attempt to lighten the racial overtones, but it’s no good: this was just a BAD idea.

#6: The Muhammad Hassan Problem

First thing’s first: the Muhammad Hassan Problem had absolutely nothing to do with Marc Coplani, the man who played the character. The wrestler was just doing his best to sell a gimmick that was flawed from the start. Hassan was once again playing up the “foreign heel” archetype, only this time as an Arab-American feeling persecuted in a post-9/11 America. The wrestler’s promos often rang true alongside sentiments of the day, yet Hassan was continually pushed as a bad guy. This all came to a head during Hassan’s feud with The Undertaker, thanks to a poorly-conceived “terrorist” storyline. Additionally, the timing of this storyline coincided with the London bombings in 2005, making the entire Muhammad Hassan character problematic from the start.

#5: The Mexicools

Super Crazy. Juventud Guerrera. Psicosis. These names should ring a bell with anyone who has followed Mexican wrestling over the years. Putting them together in a faction sounds like a great idea, right? Well, we’re dealing with the WWE in the mid-2000s, so…WRONG! The Mexicools were created as a parody of Mexican stereotypes, but they did so in the most tone deaf manner possible. Their debut featured them writing down to the ring on a John…er, make that “Juan” Deere lawn mower. They also wore matching coveralls, leaning into the stereotype of Mexicans as being day laborers. It’s so brazenly racist that we can’t believe this made it from drawing board to wrestling ring.

#4: Somebody Like You

It was the feud that Triple H absolutely should not have won. Booker T was finally in the world title picture at WWE, and his rival was smugly playing the race card in the weeks leading up to their match. Most infamously, Hunter used the phrase “somebody like you,” when referring to Booker T as the sort of superstar who doesn’t “get to be world champion.” The promo does also reference Booker’s time in WCW, but Triple H’s body language and eye contact with his opponent says another story. This actually could have been resolved in a satisfactory way, had Hunter received his comeuppance. Instead, Booker actually did lose at WrestleMania, much to the great dismay of the WWE fans.

#3: Kung-Fu Naki

Poor Funaki. Although we’re glad that the Japanese superstar earned some proper respect as a WWE commentator after his retirement, the man just couldn’t catch a break with his character. This isn’t to say, of course, that Funaki’s faction, Kai En Tai, wasn't awesome. The group even connected with fans in the WWE during their tenure, despite the over-the-top Japanese stereotypes that constantly followed them around. An example of the latter was that time when Funaki was being repackaged in 2008 with a new first name. That name? Kung. Get it? Kung-Fu Naki? Ugh! This new gimmick even saw Funaki adopt more outlandish martial arts moves into his arsenal, showing absolutely no shame whatsoever about its insensitive nature.

#2: DX Does the Nation

The world of WWE has unfortunately featured multiple instances of wrestlers wearing blackface. This segment from “Monday Night Raw” might be the most infamous, however, a parody that went beyond-the-pale. D-Generation X was feuding with the Nation of Domination, and decided to dress up like their opponents…with varying degrees of racist results. Triple H, the Road Dogg, X-Pac and more were all decked out like their Nation counterparts, laying down a promo that would live in infamy. The segment was even replayed as part of packages within the feud between Triple H and The Rock, proving that the WWE had absolutely no problem with this sort of content.

#1: Tell Us He Didn’t Just Say That

We’re with you, Booker T. We still can’t believe this actually made it to air, even if it came from the mouth of WWE creator, Vince McMahon. The Genetic Jackhammer was backstage during the 2005 “Survivor Series” pay-per-view, and stopped for a quick chat with John Cena. We can only assume that the latter’s pedigree as the “Doctor of Thuganomics” emboldened McMahon to ask Cena what was “good in the hood.” However, Vince went a step further when he then added another word that we…well, we can’t repeat here in the video. The cutaway to Booker just sort of says it all, however.