Former WWE Superstar understands why Chris Jericho didn't want to face him
Fandango has opened up about the biggest victory of his WWE career against Chris Jericho at WrestleMania 29.
In 2013, the 39-year-old defeated the wrestling legend in his first televised match as the Fandango character. Jericho initially had reservations about the storyline and wanted to face Ryback instead.
On Rene Dupree’s “Cafe de Rene” podcast, Fandango recalled how he was only told about the surprise outcome a day before the show. He speculated that then-WWE Chairman Vince McMahon may have decided on the finish at the last minute after speaking with Jericho:
“Maybe Vince just doesn’t know because he’s probably still discussing it with Chris,” Fandango said. “I feel like there was a little tension there. I think Chris was supposed to work Ryback or somebody else, and then maybe a month or a month and a half out Vince kinda threw the Fandango thing at him, so I can see where he was a little irked with the whole angle.” [17:59-18:23]
Jericho later revealed that he was “really mad” about Vince McMahon’s decision to book him against Fandango. He eventually came around to the idea after discussing his issue with WWE icon The Undertaker.
How Vince McMahon viewed Chris Jericho vs. Fandango
The WrestleMania 29 rivalry revolved around Chris Jericho’s participation on American television show “Dancing With The Stars.” Vince McMahon capitalized on his superstar’s appearances on the program by creating an evil ballroom dancer gimmick for Fandango.
Fandango has an upset victory over Chris Jericho at #WrestleMania 29! https://t.co/dAKBwbl5Ou
The former NXT Tag Team Champion added that McMahon wanted to create one of the greatest upsets in WWE history:
“It was a pretty simple match,” Fandango continued. “Vince didn’t want a wrestling match. He said, ‘I’ve got a locker room full of f**king wrestlers already. You’re not a wrestler. You’re a ballroom dancer.’ He wanted it to be the biggest upset of all time.” [19:00-19:12]
Chris Jericho defeated Fandango a month after WrestleMania 29 at Extreme Rules 2013. However, the feud is best remembered for their unexpected WrestleMania match outcome.
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Please credit “Cafe de Rene” and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.