It doesn’t take much for a line on live commentary to go viral for the wrong reasons, a lesson WWE Hall of Famer Booker T learned firsthand last week.
A clip from the September 9 episode of WWE NXT spread quickly online, showing a segment with Rhea Ripley and Tiffany Stratton. During the broadcast, fans on social media claimed they heard Booker T make an obscene remark, insisting he said: “I gotta pop my d—k, man.”
Booker T addressed the situation on his Hall of Fame podcast, clarifying that viewers misheard what he actually said. According to him, the real line was much simpler: “I gotta pop my neck, man.”
The controversy lingered when he later appeared for a one-off guest commentary spot on SmackDown. On his podcast, he explained that the online reaction made him more cautious: “Pop it? No, I refrained. I didn’t want that to blow up on me again. People trying to make up stories and trying to cancel me.”
He also spoke directly about the backlash, adding: “I really don’t know why people want to cancel me. I’m a man of great talent and living my best life.” (h/t Ringside News)
This wasn’t the first time Booker T faced criticism at the commentary desk. In October 2022, he was accused of homophobia over on-air remarks about wrestler Quincy Elliott. He denied those accusations, saying at the time that he simply did not understand the character.