Despite being a harsh critic on comedic wrestling and unrealistic styles of wrestling, Jim Cornette took part in some of the most ridiculous matches of all time.
He has long been a critic of wrestlers like Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks, for their high-flying and spot-heavy matches apparently “killing the business”.
Omega in particular drew the ire of Cornette, for the time he wrestled a nine-year-old girl whilst in Japan. This was a joke match and not meant to be taken seriously at all, but Cornette blew a gasket and held a grudge with Kenny Omega ever since.
However, Jim Cornette did something even worse in Smokey Mountain Wrestling he wrestled a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle.
Jim Cornette Wrestled A Ninja Turtle
Jim Cornette wrestled multiple times against a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle in 1993, during summertime shows for Smokey Mountain Wrestling.
The legendary manager would wrestle against Kowabunga, which was referee Brian Hildebrand inside a mock Ninja Turtle suit.
Cornette revealed that the matches were put on for the kids, and weren’t meant to be taken seriously (sound familiar?).
Speaking on Jim Cornette’s Drive-Thru podcast in 2017, the wrestling legend said;
“We would occasionally do this in the spot shows in the summertime when the kids were out of school because I only had to pay one extra guy, Brian Hildebrand, as I didn’t have to pay myself.
“We would have the manager Jim Cornette versus Kowabunga the Ninja Turtle for the kiddies.
“I loved working with Brian because he made me look good. He was a great worker. He was Dominic DeNucci’s best student, and that is taking into account Shane Douglas and Mick Foley.
“I think both of those guys would say, technically, Brian Hildebrand was a better worker than either one of them, and more exciting in his own way athletically. He was just too small.”
“Brian was my top referee, but in the summertime, as something for the kids, the Ninja Turtle would beat up the fat, middle-aged manager, and the kids would get a tickle out of it.”
You can click the video to watch Jim Cornette wrestling a Ninja Turtle (Kawabunga) in Smokey Mountain Wrestling.
Hamish is a writer and podcaster and wrestling fan who is a key part of the Atletifo team.
After playing countless hours of WrestleMania X8 on the Gamecube, he discovered Rey Mysterio getting his head crushed by The Great Khali, and thus a love for professional wrestling was born.
He is also a Media Graduate, as well as writing for multiple sites about Premier League football and the culture of Wales – his home country.
