It appears that Wayne Rooney is not only good with his feet – but also his hands. The Manchester United striker has faced some fearsome opponents on the football pitch over the years, but they don’t come much bigger than 6ft 7in, 246lb wrestler Wade Barrett.
Rooney theatrically slapped Barrett at ringside after the pair came face to face at the Manchester Arena this week. Rooney, 30, hit Briton Wade Barrett after the wrestler trash-talked him.
Rooney was attending the WWE RAW wrestling event with son Kai, Ryan Giggs and Darren Fletcher, when Barrett picked up the mic and called him out during the show.
“In this ring are two men who can be easily be described as championship material,” Barrett told the crowd. “Which is, of course, more than can be said of Wayne Rooney and Manchester United.”
“I’d hate for your little boy to sit there and watch his own father fail. Because let’s face it, he gets to experience that every single time you step on a football pitch.”
After threatening to knock Rooney out, Barrett prodded him in the chest, only for the England star to react with a right-hand slap that sent the giant wrestler tumbling theatrically to the floor, much to the delight of the crowd.
The incident – true to professional wrestling – was of course scripted.
After the incident, Barrett tweeted: “I’m heading to Old Trafford early tomorrow morning. I hope @WayneRooney has the guts to meet me there.”
Welcome to @ManUtd's @WayneRooney, ringside with us at @WWE #RAW! @PremierLeague #RAWManchester pic.twitter.com/yfpZXaEnEB
— WWE (@WWE) November 10, 2015
This isn’t the first time the pair have clashed. Back in February, Barrett accused Rooney of diving to win a penalty during a FA Cup clash against his beloved Preston North End.
Rooney responded using his own Twitter account, joking: “I’ll get Stone Cold Steve Austin out of retirement for you. Haha.”
Hanging out in the Old Trafford changing room. Where's @waynerooney at? @ManUtd pic.twitter.com/3JMZXtE4jx
— Stu Bennett (@StuBennett) November 10, 2015