Eric Bischoff On WCW Still Influencing WWE Today, Crying During Beth Phoenix's WWE HOF Speech, DDP
Eric Bischoff joined Main Event Radio to talk about inducting DDP into the WWE Hall of Fame, WCW's enduring legacy, and the women's wrestling revolution. You can download the full interview by clicking here, they sent us these highlights:
Coming back to WWE for the Hall of Fame Ceremony:
"It was a lot of fun. You get to meet so many people who are behind the camera. They have such a hard-working loyal, professional and dedicated staff. I was probably just as excited to see people who work behind the scenes as those in front of the camera. The woman who handles travel who has been there for 31 years. The production team, they all know who they are and they're a great staff of people."
Inducting DDP:
"It was a blast. It was an emotional moment. I knew how much it would mean to him. Thus it meant a lot to me to be able to do it. I felt bad in a way. I was kind of conflicted because in Page's heart he wished and still does wish that Dusty Rhodes would've been able to do that. I felt like such a distant insignificant 2nd choice as a result. I also know that Page has a lot of respect for me and I do for him. I wish Dusty could've done it. Dusty was a mentor to Dallas in more ways than just getting in the ring. He had an influence on his entire life."
WCW's enduring legacy:
"People are finally figuring it out that at the end of the day that WCW created some of the best talent in the history of the world. It was a great run. WCW had its moment and that's what it was; it was a moment. And we created some great stories and changed the industry to a large degree. The fact that we are watching a live Monday Night Raw every week is due to Nitro. The fact that we are watching 205 Live and the cruiserweight division is because of what we did. There are so many things that we changed in the industry that we still enjoy today. Booker T, Diamond Dallas Page, myself, and even Bill Goldberg for crying out loud main eventing Wrestlemania. That is WCW's legacy. We are still here today. The nWo is still selling merchandise 20 years later. That's our legacy."
Women's wrestling revolution:
"I was sitting in the front row during Beth [Phoenix]'s speech. I had never met her before and she made me cry 3 times. She was so emotional and she was speaking from her heart. She really crystallized for me the growth we are seeing now in women's wrestling. To see her talk about what it means for her as a girl, as a woman to be able to aspire to reach the level that she did in WWE and to know that same emotion and desire exists in young girls all over the world. It's possible, yes you can do it, and when you do you can now achieve that level of success."