History Wrestling / WilliamRegal

!!! "Regal Tropes":

* AFatherToHisMen:
** As the general manager of NXT, he genuinely cares for each and every person he signs onto the roster as he can relate to the ambitious young blood of the newer generation, and it breaks him knowing that some of these men would one day turn out to be some of the most cold, dangerous men to ever step foot in the squared circle, and like how he once was in the past, they would destroy each other's dreams if it meant accomplishing their own. This is highlighted at [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VwcLDFntJ4I Takeover R Evolution]] when he looked visibly shaken after Kevin Owens assaulted the new champion Wrestling/SamiZayn.
** According to a popular story, he once got in Wrestling/TheBigShow's face in WCW when Show was badmouthing Wrestling/ReyMysterio. Regal even said him that "the only difference between Show and Wrestling/RonReis was a push". Ouch. He also supposedly beat up Van Hammer with plenty of punches and headbutts because Hammer was insulting Mexican and British wrestlers and decided to got into a fight with him to prove it.

* CanonName: Some fans of him from his prime days in WCW will still call him Steven as opposed to William. It's this rather than the typical FanonDiscontinuity because when WWF re-debuted him in 2000 they first canonized the Regal character's full name as Steven William Regal.

* LastOfHisKind: He was considered the last champion in WCW by Larry Zbyszko and Tony Schiavone in the face of the Wrestling/{{n|ewWorldorder}}Wo takeover. Wrestling/DeanMalenko didn't count in their eyes, [[PrejudicedForPecs being a cruiserweight.]]

* MoralityPet: Eugene.

** Might be a bit of GeniusBonus in there with how he pronounces "Umaga." In Samoan, the letter, 'g,' is used for the 'ng' sound. In other words, Regal's pronunciation of "Umaga" was close to how a Samoan-speaker would pronounce that name.

* BreakupBreakout: He formed a tag team in WCW called the Bluebloods with Dave Taylor. Taylor, who has done little besides be half of the Bluebloods, was talented in the ring but had essentially no charisma. In an odd subversion, bookers would reform the Bluebloods when they didn't have anything for Regal to do in singles wrestling - and then when they did, split the team up and release Taylor again.

* VeteranInstructor: As previously mentioned, he is currently the single most experienced wrestler on the WWE payroll, with over 30 years in the business, and his main job these days is recruiting and training the new WWE recruits (especially under the NXT brand).

* MundaneMadeAwesome: Listen to JBL on commentary [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iW7z4JZWLTs&feature=player_detailpage#t=144s here]]. It shows how even an insignificant defensive move such as blocking a chop can be an indicator of how [[GenreSavvy savvy]] Regal is in the ring.

* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: On NXT where was put in charge by Matt Striker.

* ArchEnemy: Larry Zbyszko, Wrestling/TheNastyBoys, Fit Finlay, [[Wrestling/{{Goldust}} Dustin Rhodes[=/=][=Goldust=]]], Wrestling/ChrisJericho

** Might be a bit of GeniusBonus in there with how he pronounces "Umaga." In Samoan, the letter, 'n,' is used for the 'ng' sound. In other words, Regal's pronunciation of "Umaga" was close to how a Samoan-speaker would pronounce that name.

* FanDisservice: At ''No Mercy 2006'', he had a scene in the locker room after he just had a shower, and his towel fell, exposing his privates. WWE immediately apologized for the unscripted accident.

'''William Regal''' (born Darren Kenneth Matthews on May 10, 1968 in Codsall Wood, Staffordshire, England) is an English professional wrestler working for '''WWE''' as the general manager of [=NXT=], and is arguably the biggest British wrestling star since the heyday of Wrestling/DaveyBoySmith. With a career spanning three decades all over the world, he gained the most fame and success initially in Wrestling/{{WCW}} in the mid-1990s as Lord Steven Regal and later Wrestling/{{WWE}}, which he had joined in the last year of the famed Wrestling/AttitudeEra and has been there since, first (and briefly) as Steven Regal the "Real Man's Man", and later (and since then) William Regal. He is currently the most senior member of the full-time talent roster, going by ring experience, having been in the business longer than several prominent WWE Superstars (such as Wrestling/CodyRhodes) have been ''alive''.

* ObfuscatingStupidity: As a character, Lord Steven William Regal is a stereotypical British gentleman with a mean streak, but is an excellent he was one of the best wrestlers in the world in his prime. Particularly in WCW, he came across like an UpperClassTwit much of the time, which caused his actual in ring ability to be underestimated.

* ObfuscatingStupidity
** Regal's character is a stereotypical British gentleman with a mean streak, but William Regal was one of the best wrestlers in the world in his prime.
** Using his Lord Steven Regal gimmick in WCW, he came across like an UpperClassTwit much of the time, which caused his actual in ring ability to be underestimated.

* AccidentalMisnaming: Mispronounces wrestler names like Youmanga (Wrestling/{{Umaga}}) and Triple Haitch (Wrestling/TripleH) - although the latter is actually a common pronunciation of the letter H [[BritishAccents in parts of the UK]]. During his feud with The Great Khali, he referred to Khali's translator Runjin Singh alternately, as "Dungeon", "Bunion", and "Onion".

* MeanCharacterNiceActor: Known for being one of the friendliest wrestlers in fan circles, having an all-or-nothing approach when it comes to autograph signings: Everyone gets one or no one does (he finds it rude to only look at one or two kids in a group of dozens), and he happily gives advice to younger wrestlers and those looking to become wrestlers.

* KaleidoscopeHair: The color it appears tends to vary based on the lighting, length, and dampness of his hair. If it's short and slicked back, and he's in a not so well-lit room, it can look [[TallDarkAndHandsome brownish]]. If it's short and slicked back, but the lighting is better, like in a WWE arena, then it can look like a [[EvilRedhead redhead]]. If it's long and dry, and he's in a well-lit room, then it can his natural [[BlondGuysAreEvil blond]] mixed with a (now) [[FirstGrayHair bit of gray]].

'''William Regal''' (born Darren Kenneth Matthews on May 10, 1968 in Codsall Wood, Staffordshire, England) is an English professional wrestler working for '''WWE''' as the general manager of [=NXT=], and is arguably the biggest British wrestling star since the heyday of Wrestling/DaveyBoySmith. With a career spanning three decades all over the world, he gained the most fame and success initially in Wrestling/{{WCW}} in the mid-1990s as Lord Steven Regal and later Wrestling/{{WWE}}, which he had joined in the last year of the famed Wrestling/AttitudeEra and has been there since, first (and briefly) as Steven Regal the "Real Man's Man", and later (and since then) William Regal. He is currently the most senior member of the full-time talent roster, going by ring experience, having been in the business longer than several prominent WWE Superstars (such as CodyRhodes) have been ''alive''.

** According to a popular story, he once got in Wrestling/TheBigShow's face in WCW when Show was badmouthing Wrestling/ReyMysterio. Regal even said him that "the only difference between Show and Wrestling/RonReis was a push". Ouch.

* AFatherToHisMen: As the general manager of NXT, he genuinely cares for each and every person he signs onto the roster as he can relate to the ambitious young blood of the newer generation, and it breaks him knowing that some of these men would one day turn out to be some of the most cold, dangerous men to ever step foot in the squared circle, and like how he once was in the past, they would destroy each other's dreams if it meant accomplishing their own. This is highlighted at [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VwcLDFntJ4I Takeover R Evolution]] when he looked visibly shaken after Kevin Owens assaulted the new champion Wrestling/SamiZayn.

* ArmorPiercingSlap: Gave one to {{Wrestling/Sting}} during a contract signing segment in WCW around 1995-1996, sometime before Sting became Crow!Sting. (The contract was for the Television Title.) Legitimately stiff, it caused Sting to shout "SON OF A BITCH", which got bleeped out. [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YSvh4irwP2s View it here.]]

* LastOfHisKing: He was considered the last champion in WCW by Larry Zbyszko and Tony Schiavone in the face of the Wrestling/{{n|ewWorldorder}}Wo takeover. Wrestling/DeanMalenko didn't count in their eyes, [[PrejudicedForPecs being a cruiserweight.]]

* CowboyBebopAtHisComputer: Wrestling/{{Goldberg}} defeated Regal on the February 9, 1998 ''WCW Monday Nitro.'' A particular sequence in the match sparked a persistent online rumor that seemed to be treated as fact which claimed that Regal "shot" (made it "real") on Goldberg and that Regal was fired for it. Regal claimed that he and Goldberg had worked out a particular move sequence before the match, as Regal was attempting to work around the fact that most of Goldberg's matches to that point had been two-minute squashes. Apparently, Goldberg had forgotten part of the sequence and Regal did what he did to remind Goldberg of it. He said that he did not shoot on Goldberg, that he would never shoot on an opponent and that he was fired for his drug/alcohol problems at the time.

* PreppyName: When Christian called him "Bill", William went on a tirade about how he was not be called that common person's name. So, Christian preceded to refer to him as "Bill" for the rest of his ECW run.