Accounts of how Vince McMahon treated talent and those that worked under him differ depending on the source, however the accepted consensus has all the time been that he ran a good ship and would chew people out once they didn’t do things the way in which he wanted them done. Even veteran referee Mike Chioda wasn’t excluded from this, as he recalled during an appearance on the “Busted Open Radio” podcast.
“The one night I -probably- I did so mistaken was Candice [Michelle] and Beth Phoenix; best out of three falls,” he recalled when asked if he wishes there was a single night he could redo in his profession. “We just get off a seventeen-day Europe tour, and I knew Candice, she was hanging tough all week, you already know, we were all hanging out, partying. She was somewhat drained. She got dehydrated in that match, and stuff like that.”
Chioda further told that Candice Michelle ended up taking a foul bump after going to the highest of the turnbuckle and falling down fast within the corner. “She was still awake, and I used to be like, ‘Alright, just cover Beth, just cover!’ I knew she was hurt, but when I call the match, Beth still wins the title?” he noted, assuming that he was secure to make a judgment call.
Mike Chioda claims that male wrestlers would all the time push through injuries to be certain that the finishes to matches were met
Unfortunately for Mike Chioda, Beth Phoenix didn’t exactly play things the way in which he had hoped she would, and as an alternative pulled the dehydrated Candice Michelle by her hair out of the corner. “I used to be like ‘oh, s**t!’ I counted 1-2-3. I used to be so proned, as a referee, to complete the matches with the boys, the ladies, everybody, all the time, the boys, that is one thing the wrestlers all the time did: whether or not they were hurt or not, man, they might get right into a finish instantly,” the veteran referee added.
“The referee, really, just never stops the match unless he talked to the boys,” Chioda explained. “So, I counted three, man, Vince was hot, she dislocated her shoulder, she was badly concussed, thank God she was okay in a while and stuff, but Vince, man? That is the one time, and only time, he ever f**king reamed me out, man.” Chioda then admitted that he was purported to stop the match immediately, and took responsibility for not making a greater call, while claiming that Vince McMahon was angered by how he didn’t use all of the control he had as a referee to be certain that the wrestlers weren’t injured.
Prior to now, Michelle has looked back on her feud with Phoenix and never mentioned the incident, but as an alternative called the feud the most important highlight of her profession.
In the event you use any quotes from this text, please credit “Busted Open Radio” and supply a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.