What Does It Mean When Wrestlers Get A Road Warrior Pop?

The Road Warriors, Hawk and Animal, are one of the most beloved tag teams in the history of wrestling. Years ahead of their time, the men who would go on to win titles all over the world are on many people's Mount Rushmore of tag teams, with their finishing move, The Doomsday Device, being adopted by many teams over the last few decades, but no duo could ever match the intensity and aggression that Hawk and Animal put into their finisher.

The men who would also be known as The Legion of Doom in WWE were so popular in their prime that they have had a term named after them, "The Road Warriors Pop." A "pop" in wrestling is simply another way of describing the reaction of the fans in attendance when something happens suddenly, making the audience's reaction real and authentic in the process. You will hear fans "pop" for various entrances, namely in a match like the Royal Rumble when someone enters as a surprise entrant, where a wrestler's entrance music will "pop" the fans massively, leading to an even bigger reaction from the audience when said wrestler eventually does walk through the curtain.

What's the difference between a regular pop and a Road Warriors pop? It's simple, a Road Warriors pop is bigger, happens every single time a certain act arrives for a show, and is generally harder to pull off. Why is it harder to pull off? Because no one could even come close to matching the reaction of the fans when they heard "WHAT A RUSH!" blaring over the speakers whenever Hawk and Animal made their entrance for a scheduled match, or a surprise appearance. 

Some people might think a Road Warriors pop is just something that is exaggerated by those within the business, but there are men and women still working today that witnessed in person what it was like to see the Road Warriors make their entrance.

One of those men is WWE Hall of Famer Arn Anderson who, back in 2021, recalled teaming with his Four Horsemen stablemates Ric Flair and Ole Anderson for a tag team match against The Road Warriors and Dusty Rhodes. While Rhodes, Hawk and Animal were popular, even Anderson didn't expect the reaction that his opponents got, stating "Dusty and the Road Warriors started down that aisle, and I'd never heard anything like it. It was unbelievable, the chill bumps I got."

Animal himself even stated in a 2018 interview that he never understood what a "Road Warrior pop" meant, and that both he and Hawk were just trying to do what every other wrestler was attempting to do; get a reaction from the fans in attendance. However, he was flattered at the fact that people still used the term long after he had retired, and both he and Hawk would be very happy to know that the term is still used to this day as both Road Warriors have since passed away.

As for modern examples of what a "Road Warrior pop" looks like, CM Punk's return to wrestling for AEW in 2021, as well as his return to WWE in 2023 fall into that category, as do most entrances made by Stone Cold Steve Austin in WWE, especially during the Attitude Era with Backlash 2000 being one of the most famous. With that said, it's likely that no matter how popular a wrestler might be today, the term "Road Warrior pop" will be used forever.