10 Wrestling Facts We Didn't Know Last Week (4 Oct)
6. Why Eric Bischoff Originally Spurned TNA TV
If one thing has become clear over the past few years on Eric Bischoff's '83 Weeks' podcast, it's that co-host Conrad Thompson is only too happy to call out any attempts to side-step the truth. This directness puts Bisch at ease, and it makes for a much better pod. On the latest episode, Eric explained why he wasn't interested in being on TNA TV at first.
He was only there to make sure Hulk Hogan didn't have to deal with Vince Russo.
Bischoff and Hulk neither trusted Russo as a person or respected his creative vision as a writer in 2009, and Hogan's deal with TNA hinged on him having nothing to do with the guy he'd butted heads with in WCW. As a result, Eric was brought onto the scene strictly as a backstage worker. Inevitably, that led to an on screen role, because of course it did. This is pro wrestling, after all.
On the podcast, Bischoff (who made sure to say he wasn't badmouthing TNA for no reason), said an on-camera gig didn't appeal because of the highs he'd experienced in WCW. Nothing he did in Impact could top that, and Bisch didn't want to try.