Jake Roberts Explains How His WWE Babyface Turn Came About, Says Preference Is As A Heel

Nine months after debuting in the then WWF, Jake "The Snake" Roberts was dismayed. After getting over as a cunning heel throughout 1986, the company decided to transition him into a babyface for 1987. "I hate being a babyface," said Roberts on "The Snake Pit" podcast. "You got to do crowd-pleasing stuff, you know that's just not me. I like being a p**ck."

After working the January 1987 house shows against both babyfaces (Billy Jack Haynes, Junkyard Dog, George Steele, Tito Santana, Hulk Hogan, Roddy Piper) and heels (Randy Savage, King Kong Bundy, Butch Reed, Paul Orndorff), Roberts' face turn was cemented when the Honky Tonk Man attacked him with a guitar during The Snake Pit interview segment on the February 21, 1987 episode of "Superstars of Wrestling." 

While not fond of the babyface role, Roberts concedes it was the natural progression at the time and he was confident in his ability to shatter anything the company put him in. "Didn't matter to me as long as I was going to be there and close to the top," said the WWE Hall of Famer. 

The progression started in December 1986 when Roberts was scheduled for a WWF Championship program against Hogan. On The Snake Pit segment, Roberts threw powder in Hogan's eyes and dropped him with the DDT. Unfortunately for Roberts, he got cheers from the crowd, which as the heel in the program, wasn't going to work. As a result, the segment only aired in the Providence and Winnipeg markets to hype their championship match at the Providence Civic Center on December 30.

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "The Snake Pit" podcast with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.