"Eric and I didn't get along" - WWE veteran recalls how relationship with Eric Bischoff impacted his role in WCW (Exclusive)
Former WWE head writer Vince Russo has opened up on his relationship with Eric Bischoff in WCW. He also commented on whether the promotion would've been around today if another company besides WWE had bought it.
WCW was one of the biggest wrestling promotions in America for over a decade. Many iconic characters, such as The Crow version of Sting, The NWO, Hollywood Hulk Hogan, and Goldberg, were all created in the promotion. Its flagship TV show, Nitro, beat WWE's flagship RAW for 83 consecutive weeks in the ratings war. After Time Warner merged with AOL in 2000, WCW was purchased by Vince McMahon.
Speaking on the latest edition of Sportskeeda Wrestling's Legion of RAW, Vince Russo was asked how much involvement Eric Bischoff had in the sale of WCW. He stated that Easy E was close to buying the promotion, but AOL didn't want to be associated with wrestling.
"I was not involved at all, but Eric [Bischoff] and Fusient, I think Fusient was the name of the company. He was really close to buying the company, very close (...) When that merger happened with AOL and Time Warner, they did not want to be in the wrestling business. When the merger was made and [Ted] Turner was out, AOL did not want to be in the wrestling business. It wasn't about numbers or budgets; it was about none of that. They from the top just wanted to get out of the wrestling business," said Russo. [22:10 - 23:06]
When asked if WCW would've still been around had another company bought it, Vince Russo stated:
"Absolutely. I would not have been a part of it. Eric and I didn't get along, so I wouldn't have been a part of it. But the way Eric does business and conducts business, I absolutely positively believe that they would still be here today." [24:25 - 24:57]
Former WWE writer Vince Russo thinks AEW would've existed if WCW was still around
AEW was formed in 2019 by Tony Khan, and it quickly became the second-biggest wrestling promotion in the United States after WWE. It provided fans with an alternative and seemingly different style of wrestling.
Vince Russo believes that if WCW still existed today, AEW would still be established by Tony Khan.
"Yeah, because Tony Khan loves it. And it doesn't matter if they lose money, that's not even part of the equation," said Russo. [24:40 - 24:57]
What was Bryan Danielson referring to? 🤔
#AEW #AEWDynamite https://t.co/enz8ioPwYb
Wrestling fans had a callback to Monday Night Wars when WWE NXT and Dynamite went head-to-head every Wednesday night at 8 pm. NXT later ended up moving to Tuesday nights, ending the new ratings war.
If you use the quotes from this article, please embed the YouTube video and add a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.