Jake Roberts: Vince McMahon ‘An A**hole’ For WWE Storyline
The Hall of Famer’s 1996 return was controversial
WWE Hall of Famer Jake ‘The Snake’ Roberts has hit out at Vince McMahon over a controversial WWE storyline in 1996.
Roberts had returned to the WWE after four years away, and after losing to Steve Austin at the King of the Ring, entered a feud with Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler, with The King mocking Roberts’ very public battle with alcoholism.
Roberts shared his thoughts on the angle with Inside the Ropes’ Gary Cassidy, saying:
“Well, I thought it was a horrible thing for McMahon to ask me to do,” said Roberts. “It was cheap, it was disrespectful, it didn’t prove a damn thing other than the fact that Vince McMahon’s an a**hole, so there you go. Lawler, he’s in the the same boat. Both a**holes.”
One part of the story saw Lawler force-feeding Roberts a bottle of bourbon after their encounter at SummerSlam 1996. WWE would run a similar storyline with Road Warrior Hawk in 1998.
Roberts did eventually win his battles with addiction, and can currently be seen in AEW as Lance Archer’s manager.
On his longevity, Roberts said:
“You know, I’ve got some issues that I have to watch, but it’s getting better all the time because I did quit smoking. That’s really hard to do. I will be around for a long time, I have grandkids I want to hang out with now. I want to make somebody else miserable [laughs], so have fun. Yeah, I’m doing much better.”
