Former WWE referee Mike Chioda has claimed Vince McMahon does not want referees letting their tattoos show on television.
McMahon has no such reservations over wrestlers and body ink, with most of the roster boasting some pretty cool tatts. Referees, however, are held to a different standard, with Chioda stating such employees are to be very well groomed on the job.
Speaking on his Monday Mailbag podcast on AdFreeShows.com, Chioda explained that tattoos have to be covered up as long as they're on referees.
“That’s been a no-no for all these years," he said. "‘Dangerous’ Danny Davis had tattoos down his forearms and he used to have to come out with long sleeve shirts. Short hair, should be clean-faced, clean shaved all the time.
"It was the rules and regulations of being a referee. Even short hair got to a point because I know I had to chop off that mullet I had over the years. I have like 5 (tattoos) myself. I have two big ones on my back. One on my left arm a little bit below my shoulder. One on my thigh on my right leg, a big one of my grandmother.
"You had to hide them being a referee. They would be visual distractions. The referee is not trying to be in business for himself. I think it would take away from counting because you’re seeing maybe this whole sleeve of tattoos and the referee is counting, one, two, three. You gotta keep it clean cut.”
A Reasonable Request
McMahon is known to have plenty of quirks. This one is pretty understandable - referees should, in fact, look professional on TV.
As Chioda points out, they'd also be distracting, although we don't see you missing that awesome finisher because you were busy checking out the referee's tattoo.
Source: Monday Mailbag (H/T WrestleTalk)