LA Knight has become one of the most beloved talents among WWE fans. Since his debut in February 2021 at NXT TakeOver: Vengeance Day, LA Knight has been increasing his fame and recognition because of his performance within WWE. Thus becoming one of the most valued talents in the Stamford-based promotion. His charisma and handling of the microphone have allowed him to connect with the public, who usually gives him a standing ovation with each of his appearances. Because of this, he has been compared to some of the most charismatic legends in the business, such as The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin.

However, some industry legends believe that Knight’s similarities to The Brahma Bull and Austin 3:16 are often too strong. So much so that he has been accused of imitating the WWE legends. Kevin Nash addressed this issue during an edition of his podcast, Kliq This, where he said that LA Knight is a total imitation of Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson.

He said, “Am I the only one who sees like an absolute ripoff of The Rock? To the point that when he cut a f**king promo on Logan Paul or whatever the f**k his name is, the only thing he didn’t do was turn the mother f**ker sideways! Jesus Christ. Does everybody have amnesia? There’s nothing original.” So does Knight imitate The Rock and Austin intentionally?

LA Knight is inspired by the legends of the sport

Well, the answer to the question would be a big no. While he does have a voice very similar to the Brahma Bull, he has his own style of promo delivery. But he did admit during an interview that he was 100% influenced by the WWE legends. But so is every other superstar who has ever graced the ring. He said, “I’m 100% influenced by those guys, absolutely. I’m influenced by Flair. I’m influenced by Savage. I’m influenced by Jake the Snake. I’m influenced by other entities outside of wrestling. I’m influenced by musical artists and by actors. So I mean, yeah, all that stuff’s in there. At the end of the day, you put all that together; you get that conglomeration; you got yourself, LA Knight.”

If you take legendary characters such as the late Bray Wyatt, even he was heavily inspired by ‘Waylon Mercy’, a gimmick played by former professional wrestler Daniel Eugene Spivey. There are also instances of gimmicks being inspired by pop culture, such as Sting’s gimmick, which is taken from the 1994 movie Crow. Liv Morgan, too, is heavily inspired by Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn from Suicide Squad.

Also, this isn’t the first time that Knight has been accused of imitating a WWE legend. He revealed in an interview that he was also accused of copying Hulk Hogan. Knight said, “It doesn’t matter. I’ve heard that since the very beginning. I’ve heard that since I started in 2003. You know, when I first started, people would say, ‘Oh, he sounds like The Rock, or he sounds like Austin, or even my very first set of gear. I think it was like my second set of gear when I was in Ohio. I had red and yellow, ‘Oh, he’s being Hulk Hogan.’ Everybody’s always going to make a comparison of some sort.” 

So it looks like we can put this case to rest and assure critics that Knight does not imitate any superstar. In fact, the way his WWE career is going so far, future superstars may draw inspiration from him instead. But what do you think? Is LA Knight a rip-off of Austin and The Rock, according to you? Let us know in the comments.