Vince Russo held talks with WWE this summer season about surprising return to artistic after 27 years

Conrad’s Nook is a brand new weekly column written by Conrad “The Mortgage Man” Thompson. A buddy and confidant to a few of wrestling’s largest names, Conrad has grow to be wrestling’s unofficial “Podfather,” co-hosting weekly exhibits with the likes of Eric Bischoff, Bruce Prichard and JBL. Each Tuesday, Conrad now brings his insider perspective to Uncrowned with a mixture of unfiltered opinions, behind-the-scenes scoops, and observations from internationally {of professional} wrestling.

Hey, hey, it is Conrad Thompson — and the rumor and innuendo that shocked me probably the most this previous summer season was that the extremely controversial Vince Russo was in talks to make a surprising return to WWE artistic.

Commercial

One of the vital vital — and infamous — figures in fashionable pro-wrestling historical past, Russo was a key participant throughout American wrestling’s hottest-ever interval within the late ’90s to early 2000s. As WWE head author from 1997 onwards, Russo’s edgy storylines, emphasis on shock worth and crash TV techniques helped WWE flip the tide within the Monday Evening Wars vs. WCW.

In late 1999, he made a sensational — however in the end ill-fated — transfer to stop WWE on quick discover to grow to be head author and government producer of WCW.

A return to WWE all these years later would once more ship shockwaves across the trade — and that’s what was underneath dialogue. I heard that Russo, now 65, had a sequence of conversations with WWE President Nick Khan a couple of attainable return to WWE this previous summer season.

Russo has remained concerned in wrestling for a lot of the previous quarter-century. He had a number of stints — once more, I’ve to succeed in for the phrase “controversial” right here — with TNA, he is podcasted and contributed to many documentaries and, most not too long ago, he served because the lead artistic for Juggalo Championship Wrestling (JCW).

Commercial

However nobody would have predicted that WWE can be focused on returning Russo to the artistic workforce after 27 years.

The New Yorker’s place in wrestling historical past has been a scorching matter ever since his time in WCW did not work out. Russo’s WCW was marred by among the most controversial reserving choices in wrestling historical past, together with the choice to place the WCW World Championship — the belt that Ric Aptitude, Booker T, Hulk Hogan and Goldberg lent a lot credibility to — on actor David Arquette.

Now, it is a indisputable fact that Russo helped pull WWE out of its very common “New Era” period, which was full of horrible gimmicks like Duke the Dumpster and Sparky Plugg, into the “Perspective Period,” the place “Uncooked” was reaching 10 million viewers within the U.S. alone.

Commercial

It is also a indisputable fact that Russo’s WCW run was horrible and led many in wrestling to exclaim, “See? With out Vince McMahon reining him in, Russo sucks!”

However, all that stated, I believe JCW followers would argue that Russo may add worth to WWE. I’m not saying {that a} consensus would imagine he’s the key sauce to reinvigorate WWE, however I do imagine a phase of the fanbase would imagine Russo may contribute.

Solely, I do not assume he’ll get the possibility. Not as a result of he isn’t gifted, however as a result of he’s Vince Russo. There are two generations of wrestlers and WWE personnel who’ve robust, adverse opinions of him — a few of whom might have by no means even met him. His repute precedes him, to say the least.

Vince Russo within the WWE artistic room in the present day? Will not work. Any concept from his mouth shall be met with extra pushback and fewer of an open thoughts than if the an identical concept got here from somebody sitting proper subsequent to him.

Commercial

We noticed on “WWE Unreal” when Street Dogg was accurately arguing that WWE had one thing particular in Chelsea Inexperienced, just for Chief Artistic Officer Triple H to easily dismiss the thought as a non-starter. As a result of the thought of getting Inexperienced transfer up the pecking order was coming from Street Dogg, I do not imagine it was taken severely, and the change was used to additional set up Triple H as “the authority.” Pardon the pun, however to fake hierarchies and politics do not exist in wrestling is simply unreal. Generally of us do not like an concept just because it wasn’t their very own.

The identical would occur with Russo. I do not assume it’s a good match, though WWE may do worse than having Russo be a work-from-home artistic advisor.

However I suppose we’ll by no means know, as a result of once I adopted up on this a couple of weeks in the past, I used to be instructed it “died on the vine.”

Vince Russo is just not the reply, however I’m glad WWE is at the very least serious about shaking issues up on their tv exhibits. The reality is, the format of a pro-wrestling present hasn’t modified since my buddy and “83 Weeks” co-host Eric Bischoff modified it within the mid-’90s.

Commercial

We badly want a brand new format to shake us up. We all know that when a wrestler is thrown out of the ring, we’re going to a business. We all know that when the digital camera randomly begins following a wrestler backstage, they’re about to stumble upon their enemy, problem them to a match, and all of the sudden Adam Pearce or Nick Aldis will seem out of nowhere to “make it official” — simply as we noticed final night time on “WWE Uncooked” with Sami Zayn and Je’Von Evans.

I am prepared for one thing new. WWE TV has grow to be formulaic, to say the least. The transition from the New Era to Perspective reinvigorated the fanbase, and we’re overdue for the same type shake-up now, I imagine.

Somebody must provide you with one thing new, like Bischoff did when he took the cameras exterior the sector and backstage, by means of the parking zone, and did issues so surprising that you just thought, “I do know this can be a work — however that felt so actual!”

I am old-school however I cherished when the Horsemen attacked Dusty in a parking zone, or when Kevin Nash lawn-darted Rey Mysterio into the manufacturing truck.

Commercial

I believe we’d like much less in-ring promos and extra of a cinematic type presentation. I notice it wasn’t the perfect concept, however Austin breaking into Pillman’s home 30 years in the past simply felt “completely different than,” as Bischoff would say.

I do not know what the brand new format ought to be, however somebody does, and I hope WWE finds them.

Figuring out the WWE/Russo talks had been taking place, I took Russo stepping down from his function as head author for Juggalo Championship Wrestling as a positive signal a deal was completed.

I have been instructed that completely wasn’t the case.

I took quite a lot of flack for it on social media, however I stand by what I stated on Ariel Helwani’s present the opposite week — whereas WWE places on exhibits before everything for its shareholders, AEW places on exhibits for wrestling followers.

However I wasn’t an enormous fan of the primary occasion in AEW’s most up-to-date pay-per-view providing, WrestleDream, which came about on Oct. 17 in Orlando.

Commercial

The eight-man Clockwork Carnage match for the AEW World Championship — with champ Will Ospreay, Samoa Joe, Kazuchika Okada, Adam Copeland, Darby Allin, Konosuke Takeshita, Ricochet and Mike Bailey — did not do it for me.

I do not essentially assume the foundations are the difficulty. Some followers assume a two-stage bout which has parts of the Royal Rumble thrown into an elimination match, which then turns into a multi-person Iron Man match, is just too convoluted. I believe it is a good gimmick, and do not we at all times complain that wrestling followers are method smarter than they’re given credit score for? How are the foundations of Clockwork Carnage any tougher to understand than a dozen different sports activities?

No, I did not adore it as a result of I did not assume the AEW World Title ought to have been on the road. To me, Clockwork Carnage ought to be like AEW’s Cash within the Financial institution. You crown a No. 1 contender each autumn on this match, however you do not put the champion in there. The idea of the match seems like a TV predominant occasion, not a pay-per-view predominant occasion.

Which leads me to my subsequent scorching take: I am not loving what I’ve seen of Will Ospreay’s AEW title run up to now.

Commercial

Will’s title win at Wembley was as nice, as emotional, as well-planned and well-executed as anybody may have ever hoped for. Nobody can ever argue in any other case (though my buddy Eric Bischoff tried to). Will’s win over Kenny Omega, for me, no query, was the second of the 12 months within the match of the 12 months, which was on the cardboard of the 12 months.

However I believe lots of people, together with myself, had been anticipating Will to go on a Kenny Omega-like “Finest Bout Machine 2.0 World Tour” of kinds. As an alternative, we have had him in tag matches on TV and now, at WrestleDream, he was in an extended gimmick match with seven different abilities.

The matches have been enjoyable, however when All In was over, I used to be anticipating extra of that NJPW type of a “big-match presentation” transferring ahead for Will’s title run.

I do know this will likely piss folks off, however I discovered Darby’s transient run as AEW Champion to be extra enjoyable than what we’ve seen with Will to this point.

Commercial

Make no mistake, Will is an unbelievable wrestler and really clearly worthy of being champion. However I wish to see him in nice singles matches as champion. I want we had gotten him and Okada as the primary occasion at WrestleDream as a substitute of a TV predominant occasion two weeks prior. We have all heard that Tony Khan provides his champions quite a lot of freedom, and I believe it’s Will Ospreay who’s steering his title run on this present course.

I believe we wish to see the world’s best wrestling champion — which the AEW title has an awesome declare to representing — in nice single title matches.

Adam Copeland has introduced that 2027 is his last 12 months in wrestling, and I am trying ahead to his farewell tour. I hope this development continues in wrestling. As a basketball fan, I appreciated that followers knew it was Kobe Bryant’s final season earlier than the season started.

Commercial

Common season video games did not really feel so “common” after that. Each recreation was Kobe’s final “this or that” and it added a way of event to an in any other case routine occasion.

AEW did an outstanding job with Sting’s farewell, and I hope Copeland’s tour can really feel simply as particular.

I do have an concept for this, if I’ll. Sting ended his profession the place all of it started, the Greensboro Coliseum, the place he first challenged Ric Aptitude for the World Title in primetime on TBS on the very first Conflict of the Champions. He ended his profession in the identical constructing, with Aptitude in his nook.

As a fan, I hope Adam Copeland is ready to finish his profession within the SkyDome along with his outdated buddy, Christian Cage.

Commercial

Longtime followers will keep in mind their origin story as classmates who had an opportunity to see WrestleMania VI of their hometown. WWE even discovered Adam within the crowd sporting his Hulkamania t-shirt. How becoming would it not be if Copeland bought the identical therapy Sting did, and completed up again the place all of it started — on the SkyDome with Christian Cage.

Now, the higher query could also be, as associates or foes?

Copeland asserting 2027 shall be his last 12 months in wrestling was considerably anticipated.

Not solely is he on the enterprise finish of fifty, however John Cena and WWE confirmed what a legend’s year-long farewell tour may do for the field workplace.

Commercial

Whereas Cena’s last 12 months had been hamstrung by an alliance with a heel Rock and Travis Scott which went nowhere, a one-sided loss to Brock Lesnar that nobody wished to see, and Cena tapping out in his last match versus the almost-forgotten Gunther … I are inclined to imagine AEW will see Copeland off proper.

Similar to it was too dangerous that the WWE and AEW rivalry stopped Cena from wrestling Copeland’s “Edge” one last time final 12 months, it’s too dangerous we cannot get Cena concerned in Adam’s final stand, both.

Edge and Cena had been the pillars of WWE’s Ruthless Aggression period. Together with Randy Orton and Dave Batista, these two outlined a era in the best way Rock, Triple H and Austin outlined the Perspective Period. And to make a comparability even older than that, if John Cena was the Hulk Hogan of his period, Edge was his Macho Man.

Hogan wanted Savage, and I really feel Cena wanted Edge.

Commercial

It’ll be an unbelievable year-long goodbye for a man who someway made a goofy vampire gimmick work within the late ’90s, fought his option to the highest of WWE, after which returned to the game years after damage had compelled him into retirement.

I do know AEW and TK will do proper by Adam Copeland.

Did anybody else discover Triple H and Stephanie McMahon tweet a number of instances in regards to the Sphere in Las Vegas this previous weekend? I do know it was their anniversary (congrats to them), however how typically can we see Triple H submit private stuff on his timeline, a lot much less about the identical factor time and again in the identical weekend?

Commercial

First it was all in regards to the Metallica gig, then it was the “Wizard of Oz” present … it simply appeared odd.

We nonetheless do not also have a date for subsequent 12 months’s WrestleMania in Saudi Arabia (normally ‘Mania dates are introduced a full 12 months forward of time).

I believe WWE has a backup plan for SaudiMania. However logistically, are you able to pull collectively a 60,000-seater stadium, staging, lighting, rigging, and many others., on quick discover and never lose your shirt within the course of?

Or would it not make extra sense to have the identical of us who labored on the graphics packages for the UFC occasion on the Sphere get to engaged on a WWE equal in case WWE wants a back-up plan?

Commercial

This seems like an absolute no-brainer. Dana White and the UFC ran the Sphere in 2024 — and it was sponsored by the Saudis.

WrestleMania on the Sphere.

It makes all of the sense on the planet to me to have Sphere locked and loaded as a Plan B for SaudiMania. Sure, it will imply three years in a row of WrestleMania in Las Vegas, nevertheless it was as soon as famously referred to as the “Struggle Capital of the World,” and the Sphere would really feel like a “contemporary paint of coat,” as my man Bruce Prichard likes to say.

Lastly, I wish to thank Derek Cuculich, Kris MacDonald, Colin Erwin, the Poffo household, Tony Giese and Heritage Auctions for his or her assist in auctioning off my WrestleMania III Intercontinental Championship.

Commercial

We set a file for wrestling belts this previous Saturday night time, because it beat Hulk Hogan’s WrestleMania 2 belt by greater than $300,000, going for $716,000.

As a belt collector, I wished that file again. It did not occur whereas they had been alive, however I am glad I used to be capable of lastly assist the Macho Man beat Hulk Hogan.

Kidding, in fact.

Hogan’s boots from the very first WrestleMania stay the costliest wrestling collectible ever bought, topping $1 million earlier this 12 months. I might prefer to announce right here in the present day I’ll break that file in 2027!

See you subsequent week!