Greg Gagne On Why Verne Gagne Wouldn't Make Same Moves As Vince McMahon

Verne Gagne was once one of the biggest stars professional wrestling had produced. He started out as an amateur wrestler and professional athlete based in the Midwest before transitioning into one of the most prominent technical grapplers in the world of pro wrestling. As one of the founders of the American Wrestling Association in 1960, Gagne began to leverage that popularity into real influence in the sport. The AWA would quickly become a major player on the scene, helping develop future stars such as Ric Flair and The Iron Sheik.

Greg Gagne, the son of Verne, recently appeared on SiriusXM's "Busted Open Radio" to discuss the legacy of his late father and the history of the AWA. One of the things Gagne spoke about was the period when Vince McMahon Jr. began expanding the WWF into other territories, and discussed whether or not his father would have done the same thing given the opportunity.

"No, he wouldn't [have expanded into other territories]," Gagne said. "We had opportunities to go into Los Angeles and put our TV in there, and Verne wouldn't do it. There were some of the other markets that he wouldn't go and step on any of the promoters' territories. He just wouldn't do it. He said that was an agreement they made a long, long time ago. And Verne, ... he told me 'Your word is who you are. And a handshake is your contract.' And that's what he lived by."

Less than a decade later, after losing many of their stars to the WWF, the AWA was out of business. From there, Verne Gagne retired from the wrestling industry while many of the talents he developed would rise to superstardom. Gagne passed away in 2015.