Chyna’s Greed for Steve Austin-Esque Money Triggered Vince McMahon’s “Million Dollar” Decision: “She Felt She Was Worth More Being a Female”

Ex-WWE chairman Vince McMahon was a man of business. He turned his wrestlers into global stars and went through many hoops to keep them at his disposal. Despite coming off as stubborn, McMahon would always put professionalism ahead and do business when he felt it was the right thing to do. This also includes offering big money contracts to his stars and paying them a good deal to keep their services. However, WWE legend Jim Ross revealed that McMahon let one of his biggest talents, Chyna, walk away because she wanted a big-money contract.

During the Attitude Era, WWE saw a cluster of main-event talents rise to the top. One of the standout performers from this era was the ‘Ninth Wonder of the World’ Chyna. A well-built, muscular woman Chyna was a far cry from the usual WWE divas of that era. Her success and alliance with Triple H and Shawn Michaels as part of D-Generation X made Chyna a household name. She wrestled against men and even won the Intercontinental title twice.

It was this unique star power that prompted Joane Laurier aka Chyna to ask for a million-dollar per year downside guarantee from WWE. Jim Ross who was the head of talent relations at that time recalled how WWE decided not to pay her that amount.

 Vince McMahon let Chyna go after her huge pay demand

In 2001, Chyna’s contract with WWE was coming up for renewal. Having broken barriers and enjoying immense popularity, Chyna played her hand. She wanted a million dollars per year as a downside guarantee. At that time, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin was getting that much guarantee as the company’s top star. Speaking on his Grilling JR podcast Ross said that Chyna felt her uniqueness warranted that big money from WWE.

Ross said, “She wanted a million-dollar guarantee because she felt she was worth more being a female, being even more unique than Stone Cold and some of the other guys, there was only a handful of guys making a million dollars a year. ” He said although he wanted to re-sign her the guarantee that she asked was too big.

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JR recalled, “I said, ‘Vince, if I can’t get a decent number, we may have to pass on it. He said, ‘Well, that’s your call.’ I couldn’t give her a million dollars a year. Could she have earned over a million dollars per year? She probably did a couple of times, if I remember correctly. But that guarantee was just too big.” Even though Chyna was a pioneer female star in WWE, the downside guarantee was huge. Although Vince McMahon went out of his way to meet such demands, even he thought that this was too much money for the former Women’s Champion.

Sadly, both parties couldn’t come to an agreement, and Chyna left WWE in 2001. She wouldn’t be seen in the company again. After trying her hand at a few things she, unfortunately, passed away because of a possible overdose at the age of 46 in 2016. WWE posthumously inducted Chyna into the Hall of Fame in 2019 as a member of D-Generation X.

Chyna’s sad WWE exit

Chyna arrived in WWE as a bodyguard for Triple H and Shawn Michaels. Her physique made her stand out and she regularly wrestled men on WWE programming. In a trailblazing career, she became the first woman in WWE history to win the Intercontinental Championship as her popularity grew. In another first, she also participated in the men’s Royal Rumble match.

Chyna and fellow DX member Triple H were rumored to be in a romantic relationship. But things begin to unravel after The Game’s on-screen romance with Stephanie McMahon turned into a real-life relationship. From then on Chyna struggled to cope with the change. She had a tough time dealing with the situation which eventually led to her moving away from the company.

Despite this, Chyna’s legacy in WWE will forever endure. She laid the very basis for women in WWE to overachieve and proved that the sky is the limit. Her name is revered to this day and she will go down as one of the great and memorable WWE superstars of all time.

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