10 Times WWE Actually Worked With Other Companies

8. ECW - Paying Paul Heyman

Christian TNA
WWE

"WWE bankrolled ECW" has been the take for as long as the Extreme organisation has been out of business, but there have been several varying tales on how exactly Vince McMahon started financially aiding Paul Heyman in the 1990s.

On his own hugely enjoyable DVD profile, Heyman explained that McMahon paid ECW's HHG ownership $1000 as part of the agreement to sign Too Cold Scorpio in 1996, then simply continued to pay it weekly after the fact.

Vince McMahon himself was less clear about the reality of the situation in his own comments on the hugely successful 2004 Rise & Fall Of ECW documentary, awkwardly noting - in a manner of speaking, quite frankly notwithstanding - about him paying what he felt was fair to the organisation having perpetually raided it for talent and concepts.

Money travelled from Connecticut to Philadelphia, we know that much. All despite the companies being locked in a supposedly fierce rivalry. And about that...

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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett