DDP was running a nightclub and doing the odd spot of wrestling managing when he decided to give in-ring competition a crack. Page was nearly forty years old when he decided to take a stab at it. Whenever Page wasn't on the road he would be in WCW's training facility, the Power Plant, working on his craft. A lot of wrestlers told Page he was crazy for trying to get into wrestling at his age. He had a lot to catch up on and he still went down to the Power Plant, even when he was working on the roster full-time and had 'made it'. Page was viewed as little more than a talented midcarder in WCW until 1997 and his epic feud with Randy Savage. Against Savage, Page excelled. Randy was an old pro and, although his best athletic years were behind him, he could still turn it on when the time called for it. Savage and Page had one of the best feuds of the year and had countless good-to-great matches on TV and PPV. By letting Page go over him and making him look so strong, Randy made him. Page became WCW World Heavyweight Champion in 1999, defeating Ric Flair, Hulk Hogan and Sting in a fatal four way match. Page was rubbing shoulders with some big time players and getting a huge push. Perhaps it was more than his talent warranted. Page could put on a decent match, but he wasn't the best worker and was notorious for needing his matches completely scripted out beforehand. Dallas received a lot of mainstream attention around this time. He teamed with celebrities like Jay Leno and Karl Malone in high-profile PPV main events. This, for a man who was a lowly manager just a few years beforehand. Page is regarded by many as one of the top WCW stars, especially of the later years. He definitely overachieved, considering his age and how late he got into the business (it should be noted that he was very good friends with WCW booker Eric Bischoff, by the way).
