--- title: "6 Most Controversial ‘Worked Shoot’ Promos In Wrestling History" canonical: "https://wrestletalk.com/features/6-most-controversial-worked-shoot-promos-wrestling-history/" type: "post" language: "en-US" author: "Daniel Schachtmeier" section: "Features" published: "2022-06-04T11:25:35Z" modified: "2022-06-04T11:25:35Z" --- # 6 Most Controversial ‘Worked Shoot’ Promos In Wrestling History This week MJF shocked the world as he delivered a worked shoot promo on AEW Dynamite. A worked shoot promo contains elements of reality and breaks boundaries that usually are not meant to be broken. Over the years several instances have left the wrestling world in shock as fans questioned if someone just went totally off script or not. Oftentimes the promo follows increased frustration of the talent that has been public knowledge, or it addresses a current known issue in the industry. Today we are going to look at six promos that got fans questioning everything they thought they knew. ## **6. AJ Lee (August 2013)\** ![](https://cdn.wrestletalk.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/AJ-Lee-April-Mendez.jpg) In August 2013 the WWE Women’s Division was a completely different world. In fact, it wasn’t even called that. WWE referred to their women’s roster as ‘Divas’. Also in 2013 WWE found themselves with an extremely popular hit reality show called ‘Total Divas’, which featured several stars like The Bella Twins, Natalya and Naomi. Always absent from the show was the champion at the time. AJ Lee. After yet another 5-minute nothing match featuring the Total Divas, Lee took the microphone. She buried all women in the ring, claimed they were not talented enough to be actors, and therefore became reality stars. Then she continued to imply that they only are in WWE because they got into the right relationships and they would never be able to touch her. The promo made waves as AJ Lee said what many were thinking at the time. Lee continued to push the limitations of the WWE Divas Division and would go on the pave the way for the future. ## **5. Seven (November 1999)\** ![](https://cdn.wrestletalk.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/sevenwcw.jpg) Dustin Rhodes is known as one of the most legendary active performers in the industry. In 1999 he added another huge moment to his career that people still talk about today. Shortly after leaving WWF, Rhodes returned to WCW with the ‘Seven’ gimmick. Before his debut, the company aired several vignettes hyping it up. But upon arrival, Rhodes immediately referred to his gimmick as crap on live television. He continued to state that he left the WWF because of gimmicks like this and that Goldust sucked. While he was getting rid of the new gear he claimed that WCW made him do this, he himself would have preferred to just be Dustin. He then told WCW and the WWF that they can both ‘kiss his ass’ and that he was going to make the life of WCW officials a living hell for disrespecting the Rhodes name. The promo was fueled further with Dustin Rhodes mentioning the real-life firing of his father Dusty Rhodes as a booker in WCW. Unfortunately, this unusual and controversial moment did not amount to much as WCW was already dying. ## **4.** **Bret Hart (March 1997)\** ![](https://cdn.wrestletalk.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/bret-hart-mar-28-a.jpg) In 1997 tensions between Bret Hart and WWF management were boiling hot. When asked by Vince McMahon on live television during the Monday Night Raw before WrestleMania 13, he simply lashed out. He shoved McMahon to the ground and continued to rage over mistreatment in the WWF. All while swearing heavily into the microphone. What added to the realism was the commentary voicing their discomfort and Jim Ross even apologizing to the audience during the promo on several occasions. The promo was a complete shift for Bret Hart and eventually led to a heel turn. Later that year the Montreal Screwjob happened and the rest is history. ## 3. **MJF (June 2022)\** ![MJF](https://cdn.wrestletalk.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/MJF-angry-face.jpg) The promo that just happened a few days ago already has to be considered one of the greatest worked shoot promos of all time. For weeks it has been reported that MJF was legitimately frustrated with AEW. He felt AEW president Tony Khan valued former WWE stars more. Apparently, AEW originals like MJF weren’t paid anywhere near the same. In addition, Cody Rhodes made the successful jump to AEW earlier this year, which meant MJF had legitimate options. With MJF [almost no-showing the Double Or Nothing event](https://wrestletalk.com/news/what-really-happened-mjf-flight-double-or-nothing/) things looked very bad between the two parties. In the end, MJF did show up on AEW Dynamite this week, lashed out at Tony Khan, verbally attacked the fans, and said that he wanted to be fired. AEW cut his microphone and MJF was chased out of the arena by CM Punk after AEW cut to commercial. Right now AEW has removed everything about MJF from their online and television appearance. ## **2. Joey Styles (May 2006)\** ![](https://cdn.wrestletalk.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/joeystylesshoot.jpg) Joey Styles broke many boundaries when he took to the microphone in May 2006. ECW’s only true commentator called out the WWE when he left Monday Night Raw so he could call the action on WWE’s version of ECW. Styles called out WWE for forcing him to use the infamous WWE terminology rather than saying ‘wrestler’ or calling moves. The frustrations reached their peak when he was pulled from WrestleMania as Vince McMahon thought he wasn’t a good enough storyteller. Styles said he isn’t a storyteller, he is a wrestling commentator and called out the fans for buying into this crap. The promo was very real and also very uncommon as it came from an announcer rather than a wrestler. It was the first time someone addressed WWE terminology and commentary directing on their program. Those elements set this promo apart and truly make it an iconic moment in WWE history. ## **1. CM Punk (June 2011)\** **![](https://cdn.wrestletalk.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/CM-Punk-Pipebomb.jpg)** Where do we start? The pipebomb will always be one of the most historic moments in wrestling history. In June 2011 CM Punk saw his contract legitimately run out with WWE. But before that, he got himself a WWE Championship match. With John Cena. At Money In The Bank. In his hometown of Chicago. So far, so good. Cena just lost the main event match against R-Truth on Raw, when Punk sat down on the ramp. What seemed like a normal go-home promo at first suddenly turned into the biggest worked shoot promo of all time. At the time many fans became frustrated with WWE and WWE ignored them. CM Punk changed the industry when he called himself the Best in The World, called John Cena an ‘asskisser’, and mentioned Ring of Honor and NJPW live on air. It is safe to say that this changed the industry forever and no-gos in WWE were addressed and Punk became the Voice of the Voiceless as he dared to say what nobody else did. For Punk himself it created the ‘Summer Of Punk’ in WWE and it made him one of the biggest stars wrestling has ever seen. **To make sure you stay updated with all the latest wrestling news, add WrestleTalk.com to your [Google Discover](https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/2819496?co=GENIE.Platform%3DAndroid&hl=en) feed and follow us on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/WrestleTalk_TV)!**