Former WWE star claims Booker T tried to prevent him from joining WCW
Booker T was one of WCW's biggest names before joining WWE in 2001. In a recent interview, former WWE star Ahmed Johnson accused the two-time Hall of Famer of trying to block his move to WCW.
Johnson made his name in WWE between 1995 and 1998. The 60-year-old also had a short spell in WCW between 1999 and 2000 under the name Big T. During that time, he formed the Harlem Heat 2000 tag team with Booker T's brother Stevie Ray.
On Monte & The Pharaoh, Johnson addressed whether the current NXT commentator was happy to see him in WCW:
"No, I already heard the rumors from the boys. No, he was not. He was trying to talk Stevie out of bringing me up. No, he didn't want me in WCW." [3:47 – 3:58]
Johnson is best remembered for winning the Intercontinental Championship from Goldust in 1996. In doing so, he became the first African American to hold a WWE singles title.
Booker T's brother Stevie Ray wanted Ahmed Johnson in WCW
Former WWE writer Vince Russo was a WCW creative team member when Stevie Ray approached Ahmed Johnson about joining the company.
Johnson said he agreed to sign with WCW due to his long-time friendship with Booker T's brother:
"I was at WWF [WWE] and he [Stevie Ray] called me wanting me to come to WCW with him and tag with him. Him and Vince Russo, they wanted me to come up to WCW. I couldn't tell Stevie no, man. We'd been through too much together. Too many wars together." [3:20 – 3:38]
Booker T and Johnson have had several back-and-forth exchanges in recent months. Last week, the latter claimed he knows an alleged secret about Booker's time in prison. The six-time world champion responded by threatening to sue Johnson if he made any "totally false" accusations about his past.
What do you make of Ahmed Johnson's remarks? Let us know in the comments section below.
Please credit Monte & The Pharaoh and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.