10 Wrestling Facts We Didn't Know Last Week (March 16)

9. Vader Told Mick Foley He Hated "Running Away From People"

Back when he was carting a smoking headpiece to the ring and going by the name Big Van Vader, Leon White was regarded as one of wrestling's best big men. Though he could move and bump gracefully for such a large worker, Vader's main appeal in both WCW and Japan was his menacing image. That dissipated heavily once he joined the WWF in 1996.

In WCW, Vader had been a feared heel. He was proud of that gimmick, and he decided to confide in Mick Foley during one WWF road trip that he hated the idea of "running away from people" now he was working with guys like Shawn Michaels and The Ultimate Warrior.

That cowardly heel thing (a WWF staple) never suited Vader at all.

Foley told this story in the middle of an appearance on Busted Open Radio, and the legend also suggested that Vader was jealous that Mick's Mankind character was properly presented. Meanwhile, he was struggling to maintain his once-intimidating aura.