More than 20 years later, former WWE star Heidenreich has given his thoughts on that Michael Cole segment.
On an episode of SmackDown on September 16, 2004, Heidenreich abducted Cole from the announce desk. Taking the commentator to a room backstage, the deranged wrestler pinned Cole up against a wall. After “thrusting” into Cole multiple times, Heidenreich read Cole a poem before letting the announcer go.
The segment has become one of the most infamous in 21st-century WWE, right up there with Katie Vick and Snitsky punting a baby into the crowd. Unsurprisingly, the segment is not one that has been discussed on TV, and is unlikely to feature in Cole’s Hall of Fame video package when the time comes for his induction.
Away from wrestling for over a decade, Heidenreich’s status was discovered online when a fan took a photo of the former Tag Team Champion at his new place of work, Walmart. The following month, Heidenreich gave an interview with Chris Van Vliet to discuss his career, and that segment.
When asked how he feels about the segment in general, the former WWE star admitted that it would always live on in infamy, adding that you don’t really practice for something like that:
“It’ll always be disturbing, there’s no doubt about it. I mean, it was brought to me, I don’t remember particulars, but I do remember thinking, man, this is really off the wall. When you’re training to do vignettes and practicing in Louisville, you don’t practice for a vignette like that.”
Continuing, Heidenreich addressed the pitch for the segment, and how it has become a part of his pro wrestling legacy:
“Well, they said I was gonna abduct him, and bring him to the back, and then put him in a room. Then I think it was like you’re gonna act like you were like watching him, and you’re going one place with it. It’s like you’re going like it, and then you say, I’m gonna give you a poem. But it sounds like I’m gonna give him something other than a poem. I don’t know if it’s innuendos and stuff when you say it, ‘I’ve been watching you, I know what you want, and I’m gonna give it to you.’ But I look back and all the things that have been said about all these years, it’s kind of made me infamous, more than famous. But it’s disturbing still, and it’s weird.”
Van Vliet brought up that while there was some innuendo, fans could clearly see what was being implied:
“Yeah, for sure, man. But I mean, when they bring it to you, I’m not gonna say no. Like when they said you’re gonna be with Legion of Doom, I’m like, all right. Whatever they bring to you, that’s where I was. If they told me to do a backstage thing or do this, and not like killing somebody or something, where you have to go to jail. I would do it, I’m gonna do it the best I can.”
Heidenreich also added that Michael Cole was open to doing the segment, noting that it was part of an overarching story:
“I guess he was kind of like, this is weird, and joking around. But he wasn’t like I didn’t like it, off-put or not wanting to do it. I mean, I could tell he was down for whatever. It’s like we’re working together, right? It’s a scene, and we’re building a story. He was whimpering. I mean, even though it was disturbing and weird and bizarre, I would have never come up with that on my own. I think it helped [my memory]. That thing made me more memorable. People will never forget that.”
Heidenreich Has No Regrets Over Infamous Michael Cole WWE Segment
When asked if there were any regrets about the segment in 2026, the former WWE star responded that there were none, adding that he was happy with how things turned out. Additionally, Heidenreich noted that it would be something he would always be famous for:
“No. I think I did the best performance, I guess. I liked it the way it ended. He was about to leave, I said, “You’re going to thank me? It was a poem by Heidenreich. I thought it was cool. I ended up calling them disaster pieces after a while, because I figured they’re so bad instead of masterpieces, but yeah, I mean, I like the character Heidenreich. Always in my mind, I thought I would go back. I had an idea to come back. I didn’t even think about telling you this. I never went back, but I wanted to. I just probably just didn’t know how to approach it to do it. If I would have went back, could I say the idea I always thought about?”
Heidenreich was released by WWE in January 2006. Looking to make a return at that point, the former Tag Team Champion then detailed his pitch that would see him abduct Vince McMahon to lead to a return angle:
“I thought they would show from my perspective, somebody watching Vince, almost stalking him, and whatnot, but never show it’s me. Eventually I abduct him from the show. I take him and I put him in a trunk, and I bring him to a building, and they still don’t know. He’s missing, and then eventually I have him chained a building with a light or something, low light. Then I walk up, and you see the red gloves, and then I read him a poem. My thing is, you cut me, you took my life from me, you took my world. That was my world, and I was gonna abduct him and make him pay, and I guess try to make him re-sign me or something, but it was gonna be kind of outside, not just getting back to wrestling, being like he robbed me of everything. Because it was a big thing.”
Featured image: WWE
