Former WWE Superstar addresses Vince McMahon rumor
Former WWE Superstar Duke "The Dumpster" Droese has addressed rumors regarding Vince McMahon and his WWE hiring.
The Dumpster spent time working his garbageman gimmick on the independent circuit before WWE hired him in 1994. During his time with the company, he competed in the King of the Ring tournament and the Royal Rumble match before getting released in 1996.
However, prior to his signing, The Dumpster, working then as Rocco Gibraltar, was featured at number 500 on the PWI500 list.
It was this that spawned rumors that Vince McMahon flipped to the back of the magazine and hired him at random. The idea was that Vince could make anyone a star.
The Dumpster, however, put a rest to these rumors during a recent interview with The A2theK Wrestling Show. The former WWE Superstar stated that there was no truth to the rumor and that his inclusion on the famous list was purely coincidental with his WWE hiring.
"Not a single bit of truth to that, actually," he began. [From 2:21 to 2:26]
The Dumpster revealed that he pitched a gimmick to Vince McMahon himself. This took place at a convention, with the then Rocco Gibraltar reportedly impressing Vince with some tapes and promo packages.
"I walked up to Vince McMahon at a convention and pitched him with my tape and my promo package to get a job." [From 3:25 to 3:34]
Vince McMahon didn't sign The Dumpster himself
Although McMahon was impressed with The Dumpster's efforts, he wasn't the man to sign him to the company.
This was before "JR" Jim Ross' stint as the head of talent relations in WWE, as Duke recalled on The A2thK Wrestling Show. He revealed that it was the former manager of The Four Horsemen, J.J. Dillion, that signed him and dealt with him during his run.
"No, it was J. J. Dillon, he was the head of Talent Relations at the time, and I did everything through him, pretty much," he added. [From 4:22 to 4:30]
Profile of Duke "The Dumpster" Droese from the 1995 Grandreams WWF Official Annual! 🗑️ #WWF #WWE #Wrestling #DukeDroese https://t.co/K0INQlbsHH
The Dumpster left WWE on a full-time basis in 1996 but would return for the Gimmick Battle Royal at WrestleMania X7.
What did you think of The Dumper's Vince McMahon comments? Did you enjoy his WWF run? You can share your thoughts in the comment section down below.