Running Gag / Pro Wrestling

• If a WWE show has a Spanish Announcers' Table, you can rest assured that it will not survive the night. It was eventually lampshaded when the action neared the English-speaking commentators, and then one of them told the competitors that "The Spanish guys are over there."
  • In fact, it's been confirmed that the table is deliberately built to collapse on impact - something that Mick Foley credited with saving his life during that infamous Hell in a Cell match at King of the Ring 1998.
• For a long while in WWE, every time the APA (Acolyte Protection Agency—Faarooq and Bradshaw a.k.a. JBL) tried to play cards, they ended up getting into a fight with someone, or something else somehow interrupted them. Eventually Bradshaw just yelped, "Can't we just finish one single game of cards?!"
  • They finally finished their game of cards during the 25th anniversary of Raw, where Ted DiBiase emerged victorious with a royal flush of spades.
  • Any time someone entered their "office", Faarooq and Bradshaw would yell at them to "use the door" which was set up in the middle of an otherwise open space.
  • Speaking of Faarooq, aka Ron Simmons... DAMN!
• When Edge & Christian first debuted in WWE, they were loner characters who would enter the arena from somewhere in the crowd. When they became tag team champions and turned heel, they stated that running through the crowds was "a bit much" and started entering through the stage instead. Even though they no longer entered through the crowd, every time their music hit, the cameras would still pan over the crowd as though looking for where they were going to enter before ultimately cutting to them walking down the ramp.
• When Mick Foley released his first book, Have a Nice Day, it included 72 jokes at the expense of fellow wrestler Al Snow.
  • Foley got a bit of a comeuppance in Chris Jericho's second book, "Undisputed". Foley has never beaten Jericho in a match, a fact Jericho mentioned quite often. And speaking of Jericho...
• Armbar!
• U.S. Champ Dolph Ziggler constantly underestimates Zack Ryder whenever they face off against each other, yet Ryder ends up picking up the victory, whether thanks to Hugh Jackman, Mason Ryan, or even doing it on his own. Sure, Ziggler pinned Zack when the title was on the line (thanks to a Jack Swagger distraction, no less), but he's been pinned by the Long Island Iced Z every other time. Dude needs to get serious, bro.
• If Natalya Neidhart and Alicia Fox are ever wrestling each other, chances are one of them is going to get a chunk of her hair ripped out.
• Every time John Laurinaitis introduced himself, he always used his full title: "Mr. John Laurinaitis, Executive Vice President of Talent Relations and (Interim) General Manager of (Both) Raw (and SmackDown)."
• In Pro Wrestling Guerilla, The Young Bucks would often start a match by superkicking the ring announcer, making everybody laugh. Eventually, the announcer got his revenge by dodging the attack and then flooring them both with a double clothesline.
• Every time the Royal Rumble comes around, Wade Barrett will make a tweet claiming Papa Shango is returning.
  • Also, expect Kofi Kingston to be saved from elimination in some ridiculous, awesome way.
• The "WHAT!?" chants, which counts as an Overly Long Gag seeing as it's been very much alive for over fifteen years.
• Kane's "obsession with torturing" Cincinnati Reds baseball great Pete Rose:
  • Rose was the surprise^note (his participation had been announced but not his specific role) special guest ring announcer for the The Undertaker-Kane match at WrestleMania XIV, which was held in Boston, MA. Rose went heel on the crowd, ripping on the Boston Red Sox, making sure to work in a Bill Buckner reference.^note (During Game 6 of the 1986 World Series between the Red Sox and the New York Mets, Buckner had the misfortune of not stopping a ball from rolling between his legs, allowing the Mets' Ray Knight to score the winning run. The Mets would go on to win the series.) Kane and Paul Bearer came down to no introduction and Kane Tombstoned Rose.
  • The following year, WM was in Philadelphia. However, before the Kane vs. Triple H match, Kane was attacked by the San Diego Chicken, an advertising mascot most associated with baseball's San Diego Padres. Kane unmasked the chicken, found Rose, and Tombstoned him again.
  • The following year, WM was in Anaheim, CA. Kane and Rikishi d. X-Pac and "Road Dogg" Jesse Jammes. After the match, Rose, appropriately, tried attacking Kane with a bat. He failed, of course. Kane chokeslammed Rose and Rikishi gave him the Stinkface, which Jim Ross compared to Rose's treatment by Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig.^note (Rose had been banned from baseball in 1989 by then-commissioner Bart Giamatti {yes, Paul Giamatti's dad} due to his betting on games. Selig maintained the ban until his retirement in 2015, and it continues to this day under current commissioner Rob Manfred.)
  • This commercial for No Mercy 2002.
  • Rose then guest hosted the March 22, 2010 episode of RAW, which was before WrestleMania XXVI. As his first order of business, he set up a match between Shawn Michaels and Kane, which Michaels won. Later in the night, Rose then bragged about finally getting his revenge on Kane to Christian backstage. Then as he was walking into his dressing room...
• Every time Randy Savage lost a World Heavyweight Title, either in WWE or WCW, he lost it to either Hulk Hogan or Ric Flair.