Former WWE Co-President Looks Back On Partnership With Vince McMahon

Vince McMahon has always been a polarizing character, both on and off the screen. Public perception of him has rarely been positive, due to both his heel WWE character, as well as his various legal battles over the years.

On an episode of "My World," former WWE Co-President George Barrios spoke about his relationship with McMahon, including his first impression of the former chairman. Barrios said he grew up a wrestling fan, and his first memory of his former boss was in the pre-"Mr. McMahon" era.

"I think he was just the announcer, or the commentator, the guy that'd come in the ring," Barrios said. "That's my picture of him. I hadn't followed Vince's career. If you would've asked me who Vince McMahon is before I took the job, I would've said, 'The guy I used to watch.'"

Barrios said that when he took the job at WWE, every colleague and friend, and even his father-in-law, with whom he has a close relationship, questioned his decision, due to their perception of McMahon. His father-in-law asked if McMahon was a "crook," due to the steroid trial of the early 1990s. Barrios said he heard so much negativity, he was shocked the first time he met McMahon.

"The first time I meet him, those are the two things I've got in my head. The bombastic guy that's on TV and people saying, 'This guy's not a good guy,'" he said. "I was stunned by how quiet he was. It took a lot for him to even ask a question even as we were doing the interview... I'm carrying the conversation, but I am shocked by how quiet he is. Wouldn't even kind of look at me as we were talking. Kind of kept looking away. The first impression's like, 'Wow. This is a really introverted guy.'"

Barrios said that over the years, he came to see that McMahon's introversion is real, which was hard for him to deal with as an extrovert. He said McMahon is hard to read, but he never heard the former chairman raise his voice in the ten-plus years they worked together, or even curse too often. Barrios said that he believes McMahon is "misunderstood" and "misperceived," and he knew three different McMahons. The character on TV, the man he described as introverted and serious, and one other personality.

"Every once in a while, there was a third one that would show up, which was this really vulnerable, just a really vulnerable guy," he said. "Very rarely, Vince had, like we all have, we all have our masks... and obviously with him, there's the Mr. McMahon, but I'm talking about the business [man] the inside saw, which is a serious guy. Very driven. Very tough. The tyrannosaurus rex head in his office. There's a third guy that didn't [often] show up which was this very, very vulnerable guy."

Barrios said that vulnerable McMahon showed up in the meeting where he and fellow co-president Michelle Wilson first resigned from WWE. The former executive went on to call McMahon a "really interesting guy" who he said he has a ton of respect for, someone who treated everyone the same, from the top to the bottom of the corporate ladder. Barrios said the pair weren't friends over the years, however, but rather "high performing teammates," and he took a lot from their relationship.

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "My World with Jeff Jarrett" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.