Throughout the turbulent, wacky, unusual history of the WWE, there have been some truly strange and, at times, horrific stories coming out of backstage interactions. These include heated confrontations, physical brawls, and incidents that bring out the darker side of the ring. One story that falls under the radar at times, occasionally coming out to see the light of day, is the tale of former wrestler, Nailz, legitimately attacking none other than the chairman himself, Vince McMahon.

Nailz Was On The Verge Of A Potential Push

Nailz, formally working under the name of ‘Mr. Magnificent’ Kevin Kelly, made his start working in AWA, before quickly proving himself worthy of finding a home in the WWF after a few failed tryouts here and there over the course of a year. He would make his official debut in 1992, under the name of ‘Nailz’, who would prove to be quite a peculiar character.

Nailz WWE

The premise of the gimmick was that of an ex-convict, who accused the Big Boss Man of abusing him during his stay in prison, with Boss Man’s gimmick being an ex-prison guard. Nailz also pleaded innocent to any wrongdoing, being unfairly imprisoned. This first feud for Nailz would be a scarily similar parallel for what was to come in the latter stages of his WWE run — which seems like an absurd thing to claim, and is a testament to how crazy the entire situation was. Backstage controversy in the company isn't something unusal, however, so the situation may not even be shocking to some.

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He emerged victorious in his feud with Boss Man, culminating in a Nightstick on a Pole match at Survivor Series, following a rivalry that spanned months and months. He would then begin the initial teases of a feud with The Undertaker, as well as a small feud with The Ultimate Warrior. It wasn’t a bad collection of big named foes, so what exactly went wrong, and where did Nailz go?

WWF Nailz, Undertaker, Ultimate Warrior

Nailz Allegedly Strangled Vince McMahon In His Own Office

Nailz was quickly released from the company in late 1992, after an alleged altercation with McMahon. The pair had reportedly been arguing over a financial issue, in which Nailz believed he deserved and was owed more pay from his match against Virgil at that year's SummerSlam event.

What ensued was ugly. Nailz advanced on McMahon, knocking him off his chair, proceeding to strangle the boss. Reports have come from the likes of Bret Hart and Bruce Pritchard on the incident, with both stories coinciding with the main points of the narrative. Whilst some men may have walked down the tumultuous path of challenging the boss, fewer will have actually put hands on him.

Nailz vs Virgil

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After being separated, time was up for Nailz as a member of the WWF roster. Whilst the physicality and violence in this tussle was unseemly, the legal battles that ensued were much uglier. Nailz would accuse Vince McMahon of sexually assaulting him – charges that were eventually dropped. He and the company would go back and forth, with Nailz accused of extorting McMahon of over one-hundred thousand dollars, which was also dropped. Claims went even as far as Nailz alleging that McMahon had arranged for him to be murdered.

The Rivalry Between Vince McMahon And Nailz Even Made It To Court

During the infamous steroid trial, in which McMahon was undergoing accusations of pumping his talent with steroids illegally, Nailz would attempt to make another strike. In a scandal that led very close to having McMahon arrested, there were multiple errors, poor witness testimony, and other incidents that led to McMahon being acquitted, with he and the company living to fight another day.

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Vince And Linda McMahon Steroid Trial

One of those witnesses happened to be the recently released Nailz, who would back the claims of the WWF talent being given steroids by the company. However, Nailz underwent an angry tirade in court, announcing his hatred for McMahon in a rather embarrassing and awkward testimony, unable to keep a level head, which may have even helped McMahon’s case.

The Incident With McMahon Ended All Chances Of A Successful Career

Nailz made the jump to WCW, although his time as ‘The Prisoner’ was rather short and uninspiring, as was the rest of his professional wrestling career, which ended in 2001. Nailz had an intimidating look, and a lot of potential to be something in wrestling, with proof of this being shown in some of the names he shared the ring with. Although he was just in the early stages of his run, Nailz was apparently under the impression that he deserved to have more of a push, seeing himself as a big star.

Any chances of that were of course squandered when he wrapped his hands around the throat of the man that paid his wages (or didn’t, from the perspective of Nailz). McMahon has actually had a history of roughing it up with talent, with some gainging his respect, and the incident may have brought some respect to the guts Nailz had for lashing out, whilst others viewed his actions as those of stupidity. Either way, it’s a unique case, with some seriously murky waters.