10 Wrestling Facts We Didn't Know Last Week (June 29)

10. JR Was Supposed To Fire Eric Bischoff The Day Of Beach Blast '92

Ricky Steamboat Rick Rude Beach Blast 1992
WWE.com

WCW's Beach Blast 1992 pay-per-view is memorable for an excellent 30-Minute Iron Man Match pitting Ricky Steamboat vs. Rick Rude and a wild brawl between Sting and Cactus Jack. It may have been notable for something else had Jim Ross went along with Bill Watts' plan to fire Eric Bischoff.

That's right, fire Easy E.

On his Jim Ross Report podcast, JR discussed Watts' decision, and then admitted that he defied orders upon arriving at the arena in Mobile, Alabama. Earlier that day, Ross had accidentally boarded the wrong plane (he got one bound for Pensacola, Florida) and decided to have a few drinks whilst waiting for the correct flight.

When he did arrive, Jim didn't feel like playing the bad guy or ruining a fellow announcer's career, so he side-stepped Watts' request and Bischoff kept his job. Imagine how differently things might have turned out had Ross went along with orders.

The next year, Bischoff replaced Watts as Executive Producer.

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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.