Ex-WCW Boss Eric Bischoff Reveals Why NWO Had So Many Members
Bisch knows it was overkill, but there was a reason...
Eric Bischoff told Fightful's Sean Ross Sapp that the nWo had so many members because WCW were planning a brand split years before WWE even thought about it.
There was a difference though.
Vince McMahon wanted to split his roster in two - Bischoff didn't, but he felt forced because Ted Turner had mandated the new Thunder TV show on Thursday nights. That added a lot of strain to WCW, and things got worse when it became clear that funds for the new program would come directly out of the wrestling division's budget.
TBS didn't want to pay for a damn thing. That effectively left WCW with a "buy on" product, something that Bischoff knew would never work. He was right in the long run.
His contingency plan was to centre Thunder around new hire Bret Hart in 1998 and make Nitro a strict New World Order product. That's why bums like Vincent, Horace Hogan and countless others were drafted onto the nWo scene.
They would've made up Nitro's undercard.
Bischoff knew this was quickly killing his vision for the group, but his hands were tied. Eventually, he decided against splitting the rosters for Nitro and Thunder.