Paul Heyman didn't want legendary duo to join WWE, according to Vince Russo (Exclusive)
Former WWE writer Vince Russo recently recalled how Paul Heyman allegedly tried to prevent The Dudley Boyz from leaving Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW).
Bubba Ray and D-Von Dudley were among the most successful tag teams of the 1990s. After initially making their name in Heyman's ECW promotion, the Hall of Fame duo joined WWE in 1999.
Russo was responsible for recommending ECW wrestlers to Vince McMahon as part of WWE's talent exchange agreement with Heyman's company. On Sportskeeda Wrestling's Writing With Russo, he claimed that the former ECW owner lied to McMahon about The Dudley Boyz:
"What really p****d me off is when I went to Vince and said, 'Vince, we should get so and so. He'd be good for the company, he'd be good on the show,'" Russo said. "Vince would go to Paul and say, 'Paul, we'd like so and so.' And then Paul would actually come back and tell Vince that (…) 'The Dudley Boyz aren't interested in coming to the WWE.' And I'm like, 'Really? Really, bro? They'd rather be at your bingo hall, right?'" [1:55 – 2:36]
Watch the video above to hear more from Russo about the time he lost respect for Heyman.
How Vince Russo found out Paul Heyman was lying
Former wrestling writer and photographer David "Blackjack" Brown contacted Vince Russo about Bubba Ray and D-Von Dudley's interest in working for Vince McMahon.
While speaking with Brown, Russo learned that Paul Heyman lied when he said the tag team did not want to join WWE:
"All of a sudden, I get a call from Blackjack Brown. Guess who wants to talk to me? The Dudley Boyz. So I get on the phone with The Dudley Boyz. They absolutely positively wanted to come to the WWE. I actually set up a meeting with them and Vince [McMahon] that I was at. It was just the four of us." [2:51 – 3:16]
The boyz reunited again for the first time in about 7 years Bubba, spike and D’Von the Dudley boyz!!! #ecw https://t.co/LV2hp3RRcJ
Earlier in the video, Russo explained why he had such a problem with Heyman's business dealings:
"I had an issue with it because Paul Heyman was on the [WWE] payroll. He's on ECW, bro, and they're the rebels and they're fighting from underneath. Yeah, meanwhile, you're collecting money from Vince McMahon. That's the bottom line." [1:01 – 1:15]
The Dudley Boyz are viewed by many as one of the greatest tag teams of all time. They were inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2018.
Do you think Paul Heyman purposely lied? Let us know in the comments section below.
Please credit Sportskeeda Wrestling's Writing With Russo and embed the video if you use quotes from this article.