Dolph Ziggler Discusses Wrestling Gear He Was Told To Never Wear Again
Over the years, Dolph Ziggler has found a number of ways to incorporate his love of classic heavy metal into his wrestling attire. But, as he shared in a recent radio interview with Iowa's 95 KGGO, there was at least one eye-catching outfit that he was warned never to wear again.
The offending gear in question was worn for his Intercontinental Championship match against John Morrison at the 2009 Hell in a Cell. Clad in a vest, trunks, and gloves covered in snow-leopard print, complete with freshly bleached blond hair and, in his own words, "the craziest, biggest purple-orange spray tan you could ever get," Ziggler looked every bit the part of a 1980s hair metal singer. "I go, 'This is so outlandish and douchey and it's going to be great,'" he explained of his thought process behind the look.
Even the commentators calling the match took notice; Jim Ross cracked a Siegfried and Roy joke, and Todd Grisham made a pun about Ziggler's "blazing speed." But, the reception backstage was not quite as positive. Ziggler laughed when he revealed what happened when he returned to the Gorilla position after the match: He was told "in some words I can't repeat" that he was to never wear that outfit again.
Even so, Ziggler has still managed to work plenty of other musical references and inspiration into his ring wear. His primary gearmaker, Rick Michaels, is also a fan of hair metal, so Ziggler described a smooth collaborative process where Michaels is able to bring Ziggler's different ideas — a little Mötley Crüe here, a little RATT there — to life. "It's really cool to get that back and forth to be able to have that much control over it," he said. "And if he was into classical music, maybe I wouldn't like the gear as much. But he knows exactly what I'm going for, which is rare."