Dave Bautista once had to pay over $100,000 as fine for breaking WWE’s controversial rule

Among numerous other rules in WWE, one important rule is that wrestlers cannot bleed in their match after WWE went PG in late 2000s.

Dave Bautista once had to pay over $100,000 as fine for breaking WWE’s controversial rule

Dave Bautista (via Twitter)

Working in WWE comes with its own rules and regulations that the wrestlers need to follow. If someone fails to follow these rules, the management has different ways to punish the wrestlers. This includes getting a receipt during their match in the form of a stiff shot from their opponent or a monetary fine. Former WWE Champion Batista once got fined $100,000 for breaking a rule during his match against Chris Jericho.

When WWE turned PG in the late 2000s, many rules were changed in their programming. One big change was that wrestlers could not bleed during their matches, which was a regular occurrence before. Blood gave more authenticity to the match, and wrestlers used to do it very often. However, because of the new rules, many wrestlers were not happy.

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Therefore, during his match against Chris Jericho, The Animal decided to bleed regardless. Bautista paid dearly for this, as after the match he was fined $100,000 for his actions. Not only this, but Jericho, the referee of the match, and the producer were all fined $15,000 for their involvement in the action. However, Bautista took the blame on himself and paid everyone’s fine.

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Therefore, because he bled intentionally during a match with Jericho, Dave Bautista paid almost $115,000 to WWE as a fine. Bleeding during the match has been reduced to null ever since; however, sometimes wrestlers bleed the hard way, which is not considered a violation of the rules. On the other hand, AEW has no such policy; thus, wrestlers on their shows bleed very often.

Related: Former WWE Superstar exclaims he would probably take a bullet for Dave Bautista, shares a touching anecdote about the latter

Other rules that lead to huge fines in WWE

Vince McMahon
Vince McMahon (via Twitter)

Bleeding during the match is not just one rule that WWE wrestlers have to keep in mind during their matches. There are several other regulations that need to be followed, or the superstars might face a heavy fine or even suspension in some cases. Over the years, several superstars have revealed a list of rules that they had to follow during their time in Vince McMahon’s company.

One of the most prominent changes to the rules after Chris Benoit’s death was that WWE superstars were no longer allowed to hit chairshots to the head. It was revealed during Benoit’s autopsy that he had suffered severe brain damage due to the chair shots for many years. This was also seen in many other wrestlers from the 1990s and early 2000s, when a chair shot to the head was common.

Other rules include not touching the fans in attendance, not coming late to the show even if your match is later in the night, etc. WWE superstars are also not allowed to consume alcohol or drugs during the show. They also go through a strict Wellness Policy checkup regularly. This is to make sure that the superstars are not taking any drugs to enhance their performance.

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