WWE Hall Of Fame Legend Ted DiBiase Says There Is Only One True Heel In The WWE Today
When Ted DiBiase was wrestling in the WWE, he was a perfect heel, and the Million Dollar Man was someone that the fans loved to hate. However, in a recent interview with Jim Ross on The Ross Report, DiBiase said the biggest problem with the WWE today is that there are no real heels in the company. Ted DiBiase said the only real heel in the company is Bray Wyatt, the son of DiBiase’s former tag team partner Mike “IRS” Rotunda.
While it sounds like Ted DiBiase is just another old wrestler complaining about today’s style of wrestling, he said that isn’t true at all. As a matter of fact, Ted said that he doesn’t want to be seen as one of the “old farts” knocking the business because of changes in style and points out the good things he sees, such as Bray Wyatt.
That DiBiase comment almost seems like a slight dig at the recent Rip Rogers controversy where he shared a tweet about indie guys just doing flips and then no-selling finishing moves while fans chant “this is awesome.” That took on a life of its own when current WWE world champion Randy Orton re-tweeted that and then insulted most of the indie wrestlers who wrestle a more high flying style now.
Instead, Ted DiBiase is more concerned about the actual storytelling aspects of in-ring wrestling, and specifically using more wrestling and action and less talking about it on Monday Night Raw. DiBiase said that there are probably real reasons for this, but the WWE is still selling out everywhere, so it is working. Bray Wyatt is one of those people who do a lot of talking, but as Jake “The Snake” Roberts showed years ago, that could work as long as a wrestler backed it up in the ring as well.
However, when it comes to the role of heels, that is where Ted DiBiase said there is something missing. Outside of the in-ring action, DiBiase said that there are obvious differences between now and when he was a top star in the WWE when it comes to how heels are portrayed, with Bray Wyatt as the only one that seems to come close today.
“The other thing and I don’t know if it’s the company. The company is a publicly held company and I don’t know if there are restrictions now or what, but there aren’t any real heels. I guess the closest in my book, and I’m not watching close enough anymore, but as far as character and realism, I thought Bray Wyatt, Mike [Rotunda]’s kid, came across as one of the most genuine heels we had recently.”
When Ted Dibiase was wrestling in the WWE, there were a ton of vignettes where he was insulting everyone and throwing money around to get his way at the expense of others. Ted would humiliate people in the ring for money. It worked to make DiBiase one of the most hated heels in the entire professional wrestling industry, which made the WWE a lot of money. Not even a heel like Bray Wyatt has achieved that level of animosity from the fans.
At the same time, Ted DiBiase said that he does not know that much about how to create new stars and characters. DiBiase said that he wanted to take on a role in WWE creative but didn’t have what it took to build people into stars, as his Million Dollar Man persona was something Vince McMahon created for him. Ted DiBiase said that he just knew how to be a perfect heel.
“I understand the psychology of the business. I understand who I am and I know how I interact with other people, but that’s a gift, the storytelling. Not everybody has that gift and it’s kind of like the way I work.”
Ted DiBiase went on to say that Vince McMahon saw that in him as well. He said that, when he was working in the WWE, McMahon compared him to another amazing heel in Ray “The Crippler” Stevens. Vince said that both men were the best workers in the business but neither really could explain what they were doing to others.
While Ted DiBiase said that there are not many real heels outside of someone like Bray Wyatt in the WWE, it still sounds like he respects the process of the WWE when it comes to building new stars today.
[Featured Image by WWE]
