"I hit him as hard as I could" - Kane on his match with WWE legend
WWE Superstar Kane (real name Glenn Jacobs) recently spoke with Bradshaw and Gerald Brisco on the Stories with Brisco and Bradshaw podcast. In one highlight, Kane spoke about his hard-hitting slugfest with Vader at No Way Out of Texas: In Your House.
The pay-per-view was held at the Compaq Center in Houston, Texas in February 1998. Kane and Vader had become embroiled in a bitter rivalry when The Big Red Machine attacked the latter during the Royal Rumble earlier that year. Kane was in his prime and scheduled to face the Undertaker at WrestleMania the next month.
On the podcast, Kane mentioned that because he was about to work a program with the Undertaker, he could not sell any of the moves that Vader hit him with. He also noted that Vader was a big, tough guy who did not sell a lot in their bout.
“We beat the hell out of each other," said Kane. "I'm getting ready to work with the Undertaker. So I get punched in the face and I couldn't sell it. And Leon, Leon was a big tough guy man, great athlete. I hit him as hard as I could and he wouldn’t bat an eye. And I remember after the match I roll out of the ring and Paul Bearer is looking at me with eyes this big and asked, ‘Was that a shoot?’ And I was like yeah I think so.”
Kane recalled the backstage ribs before his match with Vader
Kane also mentioned everyone was ribbing Vader before their match. He recalled how Paul Bearer had to wear the Vader mask in order to ridicule Vader on screen. The WWE Hall of Famer said that while he was at the top of his monster run in WWE during that time, he also knew that Vader was a big, strong man. Kane even admitted that he feared all the ribbing could lead to Vader taking it out on him in the ring.
Still, Kane mentioned that, in the end, all was well with the two men, as they hugged it out backstage after the match.
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