4. Vader Worked Against Hogan In Excruciating Shoulder Pain
By the end of 1995, Big Van Vader would be gone from WCW. Later, he'd show up in the WWF, but his run there was nowhere near as fruitful as his one in Atlanta. Throughout the Summer of '95, WCW needed a huge opponent for Hulk Hogan, and Eric Bischoff reasoned that Vader was that man. There was only one problem, the big man had suffered a serious shoulder injury. Pleading with Vader to work at least some of the dates against Hogan, Bischoff didn't want to lose his big marquee feud. In the words of Vader, he worked through unbelievable pain at shows like the Bash At The Beach Pay-Per-View. Showing loyalty to the WCW cause, Vader also realised that there were few other heel options for mega-babyface Hulk Hogan at that time. In later interviews, Vader remarked that whilst he doesn't regret working through the pain, it didn't really do much for his career. He'd have a falling out with management anyway, following a backstage fight with Paul Orndorff. This would directly lead to the termination of his WCW contract, but Vader does deserve credit for working through the pain barrier.
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.
