The Salt of the Earth finally hits a home run

MJF usually spends his time trying to convince us he is the physical embodiment of a trash fire. He loves to stir the pot, poke bears, and act like the biggest heel in the industry. But every once in a while, he drops the act and shows us he actually understands the business. His recent comments about Roddy Piper and the Outsiders proves he has done his homework.

Calling Roddy Piper his favorite of all time is the smartest bit of posturing he has ever done. It is the wrestling equivalent of a kid saying his favorite band is The Stooges rather than the latest garbage on the charts. It signals to the older heads that he gets it. He isn't just about the cheap heat or the unscripted promos. He respects the art of the slow burn and the art of being despised without needing to rely on a crutch.

The Outsiders changed the paychecks

The core of his take is that wrestlers today owe everything to Kevin Nash and Scott Hall. People like to talk about the cool factor of the nWo back in the mid-90s. They talk about the spray paint and the leather jackets. But MJF is pointing at the ledger. Before the Outsiders jumped ship to WCW, a wrestler being a highly paid professional was a rare exception. Hall and Nash changed the financial leverage for everyone on the roster.

If you think the current wrestling boom is organic, you are sniffing glue. It exists because two guys decided they were worth more than the status quo, pushed the envelope, and forced the entire industry to compete. Without the guaranteed contracts that the Outsiders bullied into existence, the modern worker would be fighting for scraps. You can love or hate the booking, but you cannot hate the guy who bought the house you are currently living in.

The flip side is a bit pathetic

Here is where I have to pull MJF back to earth. While his analysis of history is spot on, he is acting like he is the only guy who knows how to read a history book. He thrives on this persona of being the savior of the business. It is a bit rich for a guy who has spent his career in a bubble of modern contract structures to act like he personally pioneered this trail. He is benefitting from a system he didn't build and yet acts like he is the architect.

Also, his obsession with being the next Piper is showing. Piper was a genius because he never had to tell you he was great. He just walked into a room and you knew. MJF spends half his time begging for the crowd's approval of his own greatness. If he wants to be the next Piper, he needs to stop talking about it and just be the guy who starts riots. You don't get compared to the icons by reciting their Wikipedia pages in a podcast studio.

Why this matters in 2026

We are currently sitting in a market that is vastly different from even five years ago. Wrestlers are more mobile and better paid than at arguably any point in history. When MJF praises Nash and Hall, he is defending the current 40 percent of the roster that might not be working at this level without that specific leverage shift. It is a calculated take, sure, but it is one grounded in cold, hard, green reality.

I will give him this: the dude has a better grasp of the industry's mechanics than 90 percent of the people on his own roster. Whether he is being genuine or just trying to secure a future Hall of Fame nod, he hit the bullseye. He is annoying, he is arrogant, and he takes himself way too seriously. But when it comes to understanding why the business looks the way it does, he is absolutely on the money. He just needs to learn that the best version of him isn't the one reciting history, it's the one making it.