Donald Trump and Vince McMahon came head-to-head in WWE in what was dubbed the ‘Battle of the Billionaires’ at WrestleMania 23. Trump was a familiar face at WWE matches, but he never appeared in the ring until 2007. During Raw’s Fan Appreciation Night, Trump played the people’s champion when he showered money down on the fans like confetti. Thus began a rivalry storyline between the two which resulted in the 45th American President slapping McMahon on the face.
At WrestleMania 23, both Trump and McMahon agreed to send their proxies to fight it out in the ring. McMahon chose the Samoan wrestler Umaga while Trump picked the relatively new Bobby Lashley. Donald Trump’s appearance in WrestleMania 23 boosted the show’s pay-per-view buys.
Donald Trump Slaps Vince McMahon In One Of The Most Popular WWE Storylines
Former American President Donald Trump made a huge impact on Vince McMahon‘s WWE during its earlier years. Trump hosted two editions of WrestleMania at the Trump Plaza in Atlantic City in the late 1980s. He made his grand entry into the ring and the WWE storyline when he chastised Vince McMahon’s bragging during a Fan Appreciation Night in Raw. A rivalry started between the two American businessmen, dubbed the ‘Battle of the Billionaires’ in the WWE.
The duo openly challenged each other to send a proxy to fight at the 23rd edition of WrestleMania in 2007. The loser would be forced to shave bald in front of the entire crowd. ‘The Donald’ and McMahon later appeared for a press conference to build the hype for WrestleMania. When the former President and former WWE boss came face-to-face, McMahon played the annoying villain character as usual.
However, fans couldn’t have predicted what happened next. The seemingly calm Trump slapped McMahon across his face, shocking the cocky wrestling mogul. When McMahon tried to retaliate, Trump’s bodyguard pushed McMahon to the floor, humiliating him. Stone Cold Steve Austin stood there as a witness, as these antics transpired between the two billionaires.
Who else is old enough to remember when Trump SLAPPED Vince McMahon in the face? 🤣 pic.twitter.com/hPFyVtV3Se
— Ryan Fournier (@RyanAFournier) February 28, 2024
Bobby Lashley, Trump’s proxy wrestler, was also present at the press conference and opened up about the incident in an interview with Kenny McIntosh of Inside the Ropes. Lashley revealed that none of the press conferences was planned. He had to react to the situation on the spot and revealed that this unscripted chaos was part of the wrestling business. Lashley shared:
“None of that was planned. That’s the way it goes man, you’ve got to understand some people get it. And those guys knew what the business was about, and how to sell a match, and everything just went crazy. I was just acting, reacting to the situation. We have so much chaos and craziness going on, so you’ve just got to react how you would normally react and that’s what I was doing.”
Trump once again proved that he was WWE material when he entered the ring before the WrestleMania match to sign the contract. He was accompanied by two female wrestlers and trash-talked with McMahon in the ring. Steve Austin appeared and threatened Trump which resulted in a scuffle. The Donald shoved McMahon over a table during this scuffle. The views were already piling up for the match at this point.
Donald Trump v. Vince McMahon — What Happened At WrestleMania 23?
Donald Trump and Vince McMahon watched the match mostly from the sidelines while Lashley and Umaga went at each other. Steve Austin served as the special guest referee for the match but Umaga went on to attack him. Shane McMahon came out of nowhere to throw some jabs at Steve Austin and replaced him as the referee of the match.
The Donald came out of nowhere to punch down Vince McMahon and pinned him to the ground while throwing some jabs. Stone Cold also emerged from the surprise attack and threw out Shane from the ring. Once inside the ring, he also took down Umaga who was gaining the upper hand over Bobby Lashley. Lashley took the opportunity to deliver a Spear to the Samoan wrestler and gave Trump the victory.
McMahon was held down in a chair and he was shaved bald in front of a booing crowd. As McMahon took the walk of shame backstage, Austin celebrated the win by chugging beer. However, he delivered a stunner to floor Trump before leaving the ring. Trump returned once again to the WWE, this time buying the entire RAW for a week.
