Details on Vince McMahon rejecting WWE legend's pitch to win the Royal Rumble and Undisputed Championship
Mick Foley recently recalled how Vince McMahon immediately shot down his idea to win the 2004 Royal Rumble and WrestleMania 20 main event.
Foley drove to Stamford, Connecticut, in late 2003 to hold talks with McMahon about his in-ring return. At that point, the WWE legend had not competed in a match in more than three and a half years.
Speaking on Throwing Down w/ Renee & Miesha, Foley said the WWE Chairman disliked his idea of unifying the WWE Championship and World Heavyweight Championship:
“I said, ‘I’d like to enter the Rumble and win it, and because I’m technically not a SmackDown or a RAW guy, I would like to challenge both champions to a three-way match, win that at ‘Mania, and become the Undisputed Champion.’ And without even blinking, Vince just replies, ‘I have no interest whatsoever in doing that.’”
Vince McMahon ᴼᴿ Mick Foley https://t.co/CqYZnuMvZp
At the time of Foley’s pitch, the World Heavyweight Championship (RAW) and WWE Championship (SmackDown) only appeared on their respective brands. While Triple H and Goldberg feuded over the World Heavyweight Championship, Brock Lesnar held the WWE Championship before losing it to Eddie Guerrero.
Vince McMahon had a different idea for Mick Foley
Randy Orton vs Mick Foley from Backlash 04 is a classic match. Do you agree? https://t.co/OwNkrSaylK
After dismissing Mick Foley's suggestion, Vince McMahon booked Chris Benoit as the winner of the 2004 Royal Rumble. Benoit also went on to win the WrestleMania 20 main event against Triple H and Shawn Michaels to capture the World Heavyweight Championship.
Foley, meanwhile, lasted 43 seconds in the 2004 Royal Rumble match before eliminating himself and Randy Orton at the same time. The storyline led to him and The Rock losing to Evolution (Orton, Batista, and Ric Flair) at WrestleMania 20.
Orton also defeated Foley in a No Holds Barred match at Backlash 2004. The 23-minute contest is widely viewed as one of the best of both superstars' careers.
Please credit Throwing Down w/ Renee & Miesha and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.