We’ve got two legends of the game here! Jake “The Snake” Roberts and “The Hardcore Legend” Terry Funk! These two are often pitted against each other on the mic and folks tend to lean Roberts. Let’s see who takes this Mic Battle on The Overtimer. Remember, this is all about how they deliver in interviews, non-wrestling segments and the like. Ring the bell!
Jake the Snake
Most know Jake the Snake from his time in WWE between 1986 and 1992 but mainly for his time there during the 1980s. He was one of those guys who was a great contrast to the colorful gimmicks of the time. Jake was dark, sneaky and really didn’t have a definable gimmick. He was a dude with a snake and a devastating finishing move for the time: The DDT.
Without the snake, Jake Roberts would’ve been a guy who knew exactly what to do in the ring, had a basic no-frill approach to wrestling and could talk on the microphone. Like, he could’ve gotten over without Damien the Snake but everyone had a thing in ‘80s WWE.
Andre was a giant, Hogan was a hotdog with a leg drop who fought monsters, Snuka dived off the top rope, Piper wore a kilt and was rowdy, Honky Tonk Man had a guitar—you get the point.
One thing that really stood out about Jake was his mic work. Since he was cold and calculating in-ring and out, he didn’t shout much in WWE. We’re talking about a time when heels were loud, cocky, menacing, and often shouted when things didn’t go their way—except Savage who was all over the place. Faces were energetic, excitable, and shouted often.
Then you had Jake. Who told you what he was going to do, who he was going to do it to, when it would happen, and where you could see it. It’s the four corners of a good wrestling promo and that’s not including making your opponent look good. After all, if you ran them down like Lawler often did it’s no big deal that you beat them and you just look trash if they beat you.
Jake Roberts did all of this without shouting angrily. He raised his voice for emphasis but he didn’t shout. It was conversational like this one from Georgia. In short, the Snake was level with his promos and that made him stand out wherever he wrestled.
Terry Funk
Up and down the spectrum you had Terry Funk. This guy was always raw energy. Early in his career, he was a more traditional wrestler but when injuries started to pile up he changed up his style over time. By the time he started moving east in the U.S territories, he was in wildman mode.
The thing is, Funk was always a wildman. In his father’s Amarillo territory—which is the holy grail of wrestling footage—he took place Texas deathmatches and brawls regularly. Now, while this isn’t about in-ring ability, often how one wrestles dictates how they handle themselves on the mic.
Bruiser Brody was a psychopathic, wild brawler. As a result, he often shouted and growled on the mic when one was in front of him. Ric Flair was the most valuable player in any promotion he appeared in during the 1980s and 1990s and flexed hard on the mic.
Funk was no different. As a clean wrestling face or even a cold heel, his promos were level. He discussed the match, didn’t curse, was respectful of the interviewer and hyped his opponent up as well as his odds of beating him. That switch flipped when he was wronged and he hooped and hollered and swore vengeance.
Then you had Funk as a heel. He was the loudest, the rowdiest and buckest person in the building. He swore, he yelled, he insulted family members and he hemmed up interviewers. Funk would threaten the interviewer and his opponent in such a way that the city’s police should’ve arrived in that arena or studio and took him in.
Going back to style dictates, if Funk was shouting, you could bet the match was going to be a brawl. It was going to be an ugly match with madness involved and things were serious when he started calm and escalated in a raving madman.
The Finish
Both were great on the mic and could get it done. Most fans I discuss these two with would go with Jake the Snake because many of them grew up with Jake and didn’t really see Funk’s stuff from the territories, NWA, WCW or his early ECW stuff. They saw Funk in WWE as Chainsaw Charlie and they probably saw his later ECW work. Of course, there’s the WWE Network but all his really good stuff isn’t even on there.
I’m giving it to Terry Funk. He had more range and he brought energy to his interviews that floated over into his matches. If his opponent was fired up and mad about something he did, Terry was even more fired up and threatened to do worse and that’s when he was at his best.
When he was a kind legend that the other guys looked up to, he could garner sympathy. He even gave us a weird but awesome “I’m hurt so I’m lashing out” performance at ECW November to Remember 1998 where his protégé Tommy Dreamer teamed with Jake the Snake! This one goes to Terry Funk.
