WWE Hall of Famer JBL has jokingly recalled being “mistreated” onscreen by one of SmackDown’s General Managers.
For eight years from 2004-2014, Teddy Long was the onscreen figure of authority on SmackDown, acting as the blue brand’s General Manager.
During this time, he worked as a babyface and so found himself on the wrong end of the wrath of many of WWE’s biggest villains.
However, he had one key weapon in his arsenal that helped to keep the likes of Randy Orton, Booker T, and Edge in line, the threat of sending them off to go “One on one with The Undertaker!”
Recently, in honour of Teddy Long’s birthday, the WrestleOps Twitter account posted a compilation of various villains being told they would meet this fate. The video included several appearances by former WWE Champion JBL.
Responding to the clip, JBL joked that it wasn’t funny because Long “abused and mistreated” him during his tenure.
“This isn’t funny, I was abused and mistreated by Theodore Long.”
This isn’t funny, I was abused and mistreated by Theodore Long. https://t.co/DKYITA6SC4
— John Layfield (@JCLayfield) September 15, 2022
Teddy Long began his career in Jim Crockett Promotions in 1985, working his way up from an errand boy to a referee. He transitioned to becoming more of a character when he began helping the heels to win their matches by bending the rules in their favour and using fast counts.
After a storyline saw him stripped of his refereeing duties, Long became a manager for various stars including the tag team Doom, Bobby Eaton, One Man Gang, and many others.
Teddy Long joined WWE in 1998 where he was once again a referee. However, he became a heel manager once again in 2002, offering his services to the likes of D’Lo Brown, Christopher Nowinki, and Jazz.
In 2004, he turned babyface and became the General Manager of SmackDown, a role he stayed in for the better part of eight years. He was released from WWE in June 2014 but continued to make occasional appearances for the company.
Long was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2017.