Jake Roberts’ Brutal List: The 10 People He Genuinely Couldn’t Stand in Wrestling
Jake “The Snake” Roberts is widely regarded as one of the greatest psychological wrestlers and promo masters in the history of the business. His DDT finisher was revolutionary, and his dark, calculated persona made audiences believe every word he said. But behind the character was a man who carried deep, real grudges — many of them formed inside the wrestling industry itself.
In various interviews over the years, Roberts has been unflinchingly honest about the people he felt wronged him, exploited him, or betrayed him. Here is his personal list of the 10 people he has named as those he could not stand, counted down from 10 to 1.
10. Bret Hart
Roberts’ issue with Bret Hart was not personal betrayal or violence, but a fundamental philosophical disagreement about wrestling. Jake believed the business should be about emotional manipulation and making the audience feel something real. He saw Hart as a technical perfectionist whose style prioritized athleticism over psychology and crowd connection.
Jake also questioned Hart’s size and drawing power as champion during a difficult period for the company. While the two have traded criticisms for decades, this entry stands apart as more ideological than hateful.
9. Shawn Michaels & The Click
This grudge ran much deeper. During his 1996 return to WWF, Roberts was newly sober and trying to rebuild his life as a born-again Christian. He claims members of The Click (including Shawn Michaels) openly mocked his sobriety, placed drugs in his luggage to sabotage him, and made his life miserable.
Roberts viewed the group as having too much unchecked political power backstage, able to influence matches, pushes, and careers while protecting themselves.
8. Buzz Sawyer
Roberts accused Sawyer of being a “cheap shot artist” who worked excessively stiff on younger, less established wrestlers who couldn’t fight back. He also claimed Sawyer took money from trainees (including a young Mark Calaway, later The Undertaker) and provided no actual training in return. To Jake, Sawyer represented predatory greed and cowardice inside the ring.
7. The British Bulldogs (Dynamite Kid & Davey Boy Smith)
This is one of the darkest entries. Roberts described the Bulldogs’ “ribbing” as crossing far beyond pranks into genuine cruelty. He alleged they targeted vulnerable people, including a mentally handicapped young man, with dangerous acts such as injecting substances. He also claimed they mistreated their mascot dog, Matilda.
While acknowledging their in-ring talent, Roberts refused to separate performance from character, calling Dynamite Kid an “utter bastard.”
6. Big Van Vader
Roberts suffered a broken sternum in a 1996 match with Vader. When he confronted him, Vader reportedly said he had simply “gotten excited by the crowd.” The same injury happened again in a rematch two months later. Roberts eventually refused to work with him again, saying he could no longer trust him to protect his opponent in the ring.
5. The Ultimate Warrior (Jim Hellwig)
This was about a stolen career opportunity. In 1991, Roberts was positioned in a major storyline with The Ultimate Warrior that could have elevated him significantly. Warrior reportedly demanded more money and threatened to walk out of SummerSlam, leading to his immediate firing after the match. The angle died instantly, derailing Roberts’ momentum and costing him a potential title run.
4. Jerry Lawler
In 1996, as part of a scripted feud, Lawler repeatedly mocked Roberts’ real-life sobriety and Christian faith on television. The angle reached a low point when Lawler poured real whiskey down Roberts’ throat and over his face during a segment. Roberts has described the physical and emotional pain as devastating. When the script called for retaliation, Lawler refused to take the same treatment.
3. The Honky Tonk Man (Wayne Ferris)
During a 1987 Snake Pit segment, Honky Tonk Man hit Roberts with a real, solid guitar instead of a breakaway prop. The impact fractured Roberts’ neck and left wood and fiberglass splinters in his back. Roberts has repeatedly stated this was the moment that began his painkiller addiction, which later spiraled out of control. He believes the Honky Tonk Man has never taken proper responsibility for the injury.
2. Hulk Hogan
Roberts was positioned for a major program with Hogan in the mid-1980s. During a Snake Pit segment, he hit Hogan with a DDT, and the crowd erupted in cheers for him. Instead of capitalizing on the moment, the office shut the program down to protect Hogan’s invincible hero image. Roberts believes this decision capped his career ceiling and turned him into a tool to elevate others rather than a top star himself.
1. Grizzly Smith (His Father)
The deepest and most painful entry. Jake has stated that his father, wrestler Aurelian “Grizzly” Smith, raped his 14-year-old mother, and Jake was the result. He claims his father sabotaged his early career, discouraged promoters from booking him, and offered no support. Jake has also spoken about far darker allegations involving abuse within the family.
This trauma formed the root of the darkness Jake brought to his character — a darkness that was never entirely an act.
The Weight Jake Carried
Jake Roberts survived addiction, physical injuries, backstage politics, and profound childhood trauma. The wrestling business both made him a legend and inflicted wounds that lasted decades. His willingness to speak openly about these experiences has given fans a raw, unfiltered look at the human cost behind the larger-than-life personas.
Despite everything on this list, Roberts eventually found sobriety, peace, and a measure of redemption with help from friends like Diamond Dallas Page. His story remains one of the most complex and compelling in wrestling history.
