Donald Trump, the re-elected President of the United States, nominated Linda McMahon as the Secretary of Education. Interestingly, Trump shares a long-standing history with the McMahon family, stretching back to 2007, culminating in a memorable, televised moment when Trump shaved Vince McMahon‘s head bald during a kayfabe feud at WWE WrestleMania 23. This event took place at the Ford Field Arena in Detroit, Michigan.
Trump and McMahon’s association dates even further, to the late 1980s. During this time, Trump, then a prominent businessman, sponsored WrestleMania 4 and 5, playing a significant role in cementing WWE’s marquee event as a cultural phenomenon. Their collaboration reached new heights in 2007 with the ‘Battle of the Billionaires.’ The premise was simple: each billionaire would choose a representative wrestler to fight on their behalf, and the winner would shave the loser bald. Trump selected Bobby Lashley, while McMahon placed his trust in the late Umaga. To make the match even more electrifying, WWE roped in the legendary ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin as the special guest referee.
WWE is no stranger to getting celebrity personalities on board, and 2007 was the year when Trump stole the show. The seeds of the on-screen feud were sowed in January of that year, when Trump marked his arrival to the WWE in style, showering the crowd during an episode of Monday Night Raw with hundreds of dollars.
McMahon himself was in an angle called the Million-Dollar Mania later in the year. For three weeks, he would call WWE fans on the phone, ask them for a password, and if they got the right answer, they would be awarded a portion of one million dollars straight out of McMahon’s pocket.
What happened in the match?
The match itself made for a hard-hitting contest, with two powerhouses going against each other. McMahon and Trump had their moments too, engaging in limited physical capacities but getting involved in the match nonetheless. With Trump and Lashley portrayed as ‘Baby Face’, aka the good guy, and McMahon and Umaga as heels (the villain), the match ended with Austin stunning the Samoan Bulldozer, allowing Lashley to pick up the bones and land the pinfall.
A shattered McMahon had no option but to sit on a chair in the middle of the ring, and with the whole world watching, including almost 81000 inside the arena, get his head shaved.
This wasn’t the only ‘Hair vs Hair’ match in the WWE. In 2002, WWE Hall of Famer Edge did the same to former WWE champion Kurt Angle, and the following year, Chris Jericho gave another WWE legend Kevin Nash a haircut.