The Forgotten Story Of How Edge Stood Up To JBL In WWE, Explained

Highlights

• JBL had a long history of bullying and tormenting his fellow wrestlers and co-workers, which eventually led to them fighting back.
• JBL's bullying wasn't limited to verbal abuse, as he also engaged in sexual harassment, targeting male wrestlers in the shower.
• Despite his reputation, when someone stood up to JBL, he would usually back down and stop tormenting them, illustrating his cowardice.

JBL is a wrestling legend, from his days as Bradshaw as part of the APA with Ron Simmons during the Attitude Era, to his days as a cowboy hat wearing heel on SmackDown during the Ruthless Aggression Era. He amassed many championships along the way, including a WWE Championship, but he also garnered a horrible reputation for being a bully.

Wrestling is filled with stories of pranks and hazing, but JBL stands out for how relentless and brutally mean he could be. One day he picked on the wrong person when a young Edge decided he'd had enough of being JBL's target.

JBL's Long History Of Bullying

There is a long list of JBL bullying antics that have been talked about over the years. He once tried to get the Hardy Boyz to drink and drive, but when they wouldn't, he threw all of their stuff in a dumpster. When The Blue Meanie once called JBL out pubically for his bullying, JBL responded by beating him up. The most severe instance of recent note was when JBL bullied his then commentary partner, Mauro Ranallo. It impacted Ranallo so much that he decided to quit WWE altogether.

JBL bullied his fellow wrestlers and co-workers so often and maliciously that they began to fight back. When JBL teasingly smacked Steve Blackman on the butt, the Lethal Weapon told him to stop. Of course, for JBL, being told to stop only made him want to act out more. The next time he touched Blackman he ate a couple of fists to the face. The idea of Blackman sticking up for himself isn't surprising in the least bit, but one shocking story had Joey Styles, the scrawny commentator from ECW and WWE, knocking a drunken JBL out with a punch during a 2008 tour of Iraq.

RELATED: 5 Wrestlers JBL Made Look Legit (& 5 He Made Look Like A Joke)

JBL Once Targeted Edge In The Shower

In his book, Adam Copeland on Edge, Edge talked about a creepy incident he had with JBL in the shower. One day, while Edge was completely naked in the shower, JBL walked up behind him and started soaping up Edge's backside. Edge laughed it off as normal hazing, something that a wrestler had to go through to be one of the boys.

In actuality, what JBL did to Edge was sexual harassment, and sadly, Edge wasn't the only male wrestler he accosted in the shower in this way. According to Edge, JBL did this as a test. If a wrestler complained, they were being prima donnas and he could weed them out. Edge might have laughed off this incident, but later there would come a moment that he didn't find funny at all.

RELATED: 10 Things WWE Fans Should Know About Edge & Christian's Time As A Tag Team

The Day Edge Fought Back Against JBL's Bullying

Back in 2017, former WWE Superstars Ken Anderson (Mr. Kennedy in WWE) and Shawn Daivari appeared on the Pancakes and Powerslams Show. During their interview, the topic of JBL's bullying came up. Anderson and Daivari actually excused JBL's behavior. Anderson talked about JBL constantly telling Justin Roberts to kill himself, but said that people are too sensitive. Daivari said JBL targeted people who were trying too hard to get over with him.

Ken Anderson told a story about JBL, saying, "Paul Heyman told me this story about how JBL was needling Edge on a bus, overseas. Edge was pretty new to the company, and [JBL kept needling him]. JBL had a beer in his hand, Edge just stood up, and swatted the beer out of his hand, and said 'Let's go right now. I'm sick of it.' From that point on, JBL said 'Oh calm down, sweetheart.' Everything was smoothed over, and he didn't mess with him again."

It seems to be a constant story with JBL that he'd bully others, but when they stood up to him, either yelling at him or knocking him out, he'd back down. Anderson followed up the Edge story with one about John Morrison. "[John Morrison] stood up to him one night. JBL didn't like the way him and Miz had sold at the end of their match. They hadn't celebrated enough. [JBL was getting on him], and Johnny basically just snapped on him, and told him to mind his own business. They almost went at it."

Daivari told his own story about being bullied by JBL. "John came [backstage] and just picked me as his target. A bunch of people weren't watching [his main event match from backstage], and he goes, 'Shawn Daivari doesn't need to watch the main event! Shawn Daivari knows everything about everything in wrestling! Shawn doesn't have to watch the main event! He's good, he's got it!' And I said, 'No. You've been doing the same match 17 nights in a row. I can call every single move you did, I can tell you exactly what happened, I can tell you what heat you did to the crowd to get them involved, I've seen it! No, I don't need to watch it tonight!'" (h/t Wrestling Inc.)

Thankfully, the old days of hazing and bullying are not the norm any longer. JBL's way of thinking is no longer tolerated, leading to a much healthier locker room in WWE.