Rollins’ Stomp Banned, Steals Pedigree in WWE Shake-Up

Seth Rollins Reflects on Pivotal WWE Moments: The Banned Curb Stomp and The Shield’s Breakup

In a candid conversation on Club Shay Shay, WWE superstar Seth Rollins delved into some of the most transformative and controversial moments of his career, including the controversial banning of his iconic Curb Stomp finisher by Vince McMahon and his audacious decision to adopt Triple H’s Pedigree.

The Genesis of The Shield and an Early Vince McMahon Encounter

Rollins recalled the early days of The Shield’s debut at Survivor Series 2012, a period marked by unconventional ring gear and a memorable first impression from Vince McMahon. “We’re in these stupid turtlenecks and these cargo pants,” Rollins reminisced, “and they literally tried to give us riot gear like shield riot gear like these giant plexiglass shields that said shield on them and these night these clubs like these batons.” The group’s initial rehearsal saw McMahon himself, running the ring preparations in Indianapolis, Indiana, question their need for props. “Vince is on the ring by the ring and he’s like, running the rehearsals at the time. And he sees us with these clubs… And he’s like, ‘What? You need clubs to beat him up? Are you really that tough?'” Rollins described how the team quickly discarded the batons under McMahon’s watchful eye.

The Curb Stomp’s Demise and the Rise of the Pedigree

Perhaps one of the most striking revelations was the abrupt banning of Rollins’ devastating Curb Stomp finisher. “He banned it. Banned it,” Rollins stated emphatically. The ban came just a day after Rollins achieved his first major career milestone: winning the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania. “I win the title. Get on a jet. Fly to New York. I do the Today Show. Get back on the jet. Fly back over here to San Jose for Raw. This is all in the same day.” Upon his return, Rollins was summoned by McMahon. “So I go in the office, he’s like sitting there and he does this thing. He’s like, ‘So, um, you know, the the the stomp, I think, um, I think we’re going to we’re going to move in a different direction. Um, we’re going to find we’re find something else, you know, equally as good and uh equally as uh, you know, devastating. Um, but uh, I think we’re going to go in a different direction.'”

Rollins speculated on the reasoning behind the ban, suggesting it stemmed from McMahon’s viewing of the Today Show segment. “He sees the stomp. He sees people referring it to the curb stomp. Somebody in his >> inner circle said, ‘Hm, Vince, I don’t know about I don’t know about that move. I think it might be a little too dangerous. I might be, you know, there might be a connotation to it.'” Rollins expressed his bewilderment, noting, “I’m like I’m like, brother, we’ve been doing it for years. It’s pro wrestling. None of it is… You can call it something else if you want. I didn’t come up with the name. You came up with the name. You call it what? Call it the stomp. Call it whatever.”

The ban left Rollins without a finishing move while he was the reigning world champion. After a couple of months, he made a bold decision. “I decided to just steal Triple H’s pedigree… cuz he wasn’t he was he was off he was like done at the time like kind of not wrestling anymore so I was like all right I’ll take it.” Rollins masterfully navigated this decision by seeking McMahon’s approval. “I’ll ask Vince about it and then I know Vince will say yes just to spite Triple H and Triple H can’t say nothing about it.” He justified the move by his status as Triple H’s protégé and the fact that Hunter wasn’t actively wrestling. “It was a good idea though. Anyway, I was a bad guy. Hunter was my my mentor. I was his protege. He wasn’t wrestling. It was I was like it’s a good way to carry on the legacy of the move.” McMahon’s approval, whether for strategic reasons or not, allowed the Pedigree to become a significant part of Rollins’ arsenal.

The Painful Betrayal: Breaking Up The Shield

Another pivotal moment discussed was the shocking betrayal and subsequent breakup of The Shield. Rollins revealed that the idea to split the group was pitched months earlier, but the members initially resisted. “We were like, ‘No, man. We’re not ready. We’re not ready for that. Like we’ve been bad guys. The crowd was really starting to get behind us. We wanted to be good guys. We wanted a longer run. Like we felt like we had a lot more in the tank.'” The group was enjoying a successful run as fan favorites, particularly after a series of matches with Evolution.

However, the decision was made for them. “They brought us into the office and they just said, ‘Here’s what we’re going to do tonight.’ It was also in Indianapolis, Indiana, by the way,” Rollins noted, highlighting the city’s significance. “And they’re like, ‘This is what we’re going to do, and Seth is going to be the one to pull the trigger.'” He described the palpable tension and uncertainty that followed. “I remember like in the room just the silence and when we walked out of the room it was like what do we what do we do you know like do we can we stop this like are we doing the right thing and you know it was it was it was there was a lot of tension there.”

Despite the personal difficulty, Rollins acknowledged the long-term impact of the split. “At the end of the day, it was one of the most shocking betrayals and shocking moments in the history of our company and our industry and what it set in motion… it has been a complete paradigm shift in our industry. You look at myself, Roman, Moxley, we’re at the very tippy top and if we had stayed together it just wouldn’t be possible.” He expressed gratitude for being the catalyst for this change, even though he still feels the repercussions. “I still feel the repercussions for that today. Like people still ask me to this day, 12 years later, why did you break up the shield?”

The Audience’s Power: Shaping Good Guys and Bad Guys

Rollins also touched upon the dynamic of determining whether a performer is a good guy (babyface) or a bad guy (heel). “Ultimately, the audience. Ultimately, the audience does,” he asserted. While creative teams offer suggestions, it’s the crowd’s reaction that solidifies a character’s alignment. “You put forth your best effort. Ultimately, the audience really decides if you’re going to be cheered or booed.”

He cited Roman Reigns as a prime example. “Roman Reigns is a guy that they wanted to be a baby face, the top baby face for a long long time. And they were like, ‘You’re we’re going to do this. I’m going to force this to happen.'” It wasn’t until Reigns turned heel in 2020-2021 that his career truly ignited. “He became more comfortable. He became, you know, an honest version of his character and of himself.” This heel run, Rollins explained, paradoxically paved the way for his current success as a babyface, making him arguably the biggest star in the industry. “And so you you you the audience did that. They they forced that by rejecting rejecting rejecting for so long.”

Another example was Bryan Danielson (Daniel Bryan), whose popularity surged organically. Rollins also highlighted his wife, Becky Lynch, and her pivotal moment at SummerSlam 2018. “They tried to force her into a role as a heel… and she slaps the Jesus out of Charlotte Flair in the middle of the ring and everybody in the back thought she was going to be a heel. But if you would have been paying any attention to what was happening, you knew that when she slapped Charlotte, that place in it was Brooklyn was going to go nuts and they did. And it it catapulted her, the audience took her into, you know, the biggest female baby face that’s ever lived in this company.”

The conversation concluded with an invitation to join Club Shay Shay, emphasizing the unpredictable and engaging nature of the show’s guests and discussions.

Source: Seth Rollins’ Curb Stomp Banned By Vince McMahon & Stealing Triple H’s The Pedigree I CLUB SHAY SHAY (YouTube)