Jake Hager’s emergency eye surgery has kicked off another round of debate about Power Slap, and Jim Cornette thinks the whole thing proves exactly what he’s been saying for years. After hearing what happened to Hager, Cornette unloaded on Dana White’s slap-fighting promotion, arguing it isn’t a real sport and saying it’s only a matter of time before someone gets hurt even worse.
Jim Cornette didn’t dance around the subject either. Speaking on his YouTube channel, he immediately went after Dana White, saying Power Slap exists for one reason and one reason only.
“Dana White’s whole deal is let’s appeal to f**ing morons. The UFC has gone maggot and he’s got Power Slap for the real f***ing maggot. And that’s all he’s doing and he’s giving morons pittances of money to stand there and make fools of themselves.”
From there, Cornette explained why he doesn’t believe Power Slap deserves to be called a sport. In his eyes, there’s no athletic skill involved when two people simply stand still and take turns hitting each other as hard as they can.
“There’s nothing about it that’s a sport ’cause there’s no talent involved. IT’S NOT ABOUT BEING TOUGH. It’s about being stupid because tough guys are people who are tough and fearless and can thrash you. It’s the fake tough from the hillbillies and the goofs where they think tough is just standing there and let somebody haul off and hit you as hard as they can without doing anything to stop them. So, there’s no sport to it. It’s an entertainment for morons.”
Cornette also couldn’t believe what he says competitors are risking compared to what they’re getting paid. He contrasted the reported purses with Dana White’s reputation for betting huge amounts of money in Las Vegas, arguing the fighters are putting their health on the line for very little in return.
“He pays a pittance to these morons that think that they can do it and prove that they’re tough. When he’s literally betting six figures on fing poker hands in Las Vegas and he’s giving these guys five or 10 grand to start maybe to fing slap the s*** out of each other.”
Those payment figures are Cornette’s claim and weren’t independently verified during the discussion. Hager’s injury is what really pushed Cornette over the edge. He pointed out that Hager wasn’t knocked unconscious this time, but argued the slap actually did more damage because it landed around the eye instead of where it was intended.
“Last time Hager got knocked out and it put him down. This time he didn’t bend over. It didn’t knock him down but it did worse damage.”
That led into what Cornette says is the biggest problem with Power Slap. According to him, no matter what the rules say, nobody can perfectly control where a full-force slap lands once they’re trying to knock someone out.
“They’re not supposed to slap in the f***ing ear because… it’ll shatter his eardrum, give him permanent vertigo and could do a brain bleed that would kill you. This f****… slapped him up on the upper cheek and in the eye socket area, which is also where they’re not supposed to slap.”
To back up his point, Cornette even compared it to professional wrestling. He said trained wrestlers still occasionally miss their targets when throwing worked punches, so expecting slap fighters to land every full-power strike perfectly just isn’t realistic.
“You got highly trained pro wrestlers that are trying to throw punches within a millisecond… and failing often. You think these fers are gonna go, ‘Oh, I don’t want to hit his ear’? No. I want to win this fing 10 grand they’re gonna give me.”
Cornette believes that’s why the entire concept is flawed from the start. He argued that even if someone willingly signs up for it, the sport can never truly be controlled because one badly placed slap could have devastating consequences.
“If you want to participate in something whose sole existence is for people to laugh at you and say, ‘Look at what a dumb f** you are,’ then that’s your prerogative. But it’s still not able to be controlled to be what it’s supposed to be.”
He then took things even further, predicting that if the promotion keeps going, it’s only a matter of time before someone suffers an even more tragic outcome.
“One of these days they’re gonna have some f*** just swings and misses and hits the goddamn bridge of the guy’s nose… and he’ll be dead before his knees hit the floor.”
That was Cornette’s personal prediction, not a report that such an incident has happened. He made it clear he doesn’t believe Power Slap has much of a future. In his opinion, injuries like Hager’s are exactly why the promotion eventually won’t survive.
“They’re gonna get a lot of attention with old Power Slap until they’re f***ing brought down as a criminal enterprise. This s*** can’t last.”
Hager is now recovering after emergency eye surgery, but his injury has once again put the spotlight on Power Slap and the risks that come with it. Cornette clearly thinks this won’t be the last serious injury the promotion sees, and after Hager’s latest setback, the debate over the sport’s future is only getting louder.
Do you think Cornette has a point, or do you see the promotion differently? Let us know in the comments below.
This transcript was produced exclusively for Ringside News from the original recording. Republishing the transcription in full is prohibited. When using excerpts, provide prominent credit and a link to this article.
