10 Things We Learned From Bruce Prichard’s Rob Van Dam Podcast

4. He Wanted To Scrap A Romance Angle With Stephanie McMahon

Rob Van Dam Stephanie McMahon
WWE Network

After catching wind of a romance storyline WWE had planned for him with Stephanie McMahon in late-2001, Van Dam approached Prichard and told him that he wasn't comfortable with the idea. Citing his jealous wife as the main issue, Rob said he'd appreciate if Bruce could make sure it didn't happen.

The next week, RVD was booked to flirt with Steph live on Raw, and that made Rob mad.

Irate that WWE had gone against his simple wishes, Van Dam turned up backstage at the next set of tapings and asked Brian Gewirtz where Prichard was; later, Bruce heard that Rob planned to play "pick a hand" with him. In other words, the one he'd be getting smacked over the head with it.

Stephanie, to her credit, tried to put Van Dam at ease before shooting the flirtatious segment. She told him to relax, reminded him that they were only acting and that none of this was real-life. That didn't allay Van Dam's fears about confronting a suspicious wife back home.

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Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.