Manchester United captain, Wayne Rooney theatrically slapped a brash 6ft 7in WWE superstar, Wade Barrett at WWE RAW in front of thousands of fans during a ringside stand-off last night in Manchester.
Wayne Rooney lands a theatrical slap on Wade Barrett after being called out by the wrestler at WWE RAW in Manchester
Manchester United and England captain, Wayne Rooney theatrically slapped 6ft 7in WWE superstar, Briton Wade Barrett in front of thousands of fans during a ringside stand-off last night at the Manchester Arena after the wrestler trash talked him.
The 30-year old player sat in the front row with his 6-year old son Kai. After spotting Rooney in the front row, Barrett attempted to humiliate the striker as he grabbed the microphone and said:
'In this ring are two men who can be easily be described as championship material. Which is, of course, is more than can be said of Wayne Rooney and Manchester United.'
The England captain jokingly challenges Barrett to come down and fight him from his seat at ringside in Manchester
Barrett then made his insult personal as he made reference to Rooney's eldest son.
He sneered: '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.'
The rant prompted Rooney to rise from his chair and challenge the one-time bare knuckle boxer Barrett to a fight. And moments later, the pair came to blows with Rooney landing a thumping slap across the wrestler's face.
Rooney is all smiles as he poses with his young son, Kai on his Instagram account earlier
The frenzied crowd chanted Rooney's name as the striker's blow left Barrett sprawling on the floor. The incident true to professional wrestling, was of course scripted and Rooney 'revelled' his role.
Afterwards, Barrett tweeted: 'I'm heading to Old Trafford early tomorrow morning. I hope @WayneRooney has the guts to meet me there.' He added: 'Does anyone have Phil Bardsley's phone number?'
Last night's fight was a culmination of a previous row between the pair on Twitter, dating back to last February when Barrett, whose real name is Stu Bennett, accused Rooney for diving during a FA Cup clash against his beloved Preston North End.