Everything You DIDN’T KNOW About WCW’s Final Days

13. The New WCW Wanted To Establish A Fascinating Working Relationship

WCW Slamboree 1998 Eric Bischoff Vince McMahon
WWE

Eric Bischoff is a grifting hypocrite. This isn’t news.

Bischoff, in his sad anti-AEW crusade, accuses Tony Khan of booking matches with no story. Not only has Tony Khan booked some of the most riveting storylines in modern wrestling history - Kenny Omega Vs. Hangman Page, CM Punk Vs. MJF, Swerve Strickland Vs. Hangman Page - but Bischoff did this almost exclusively with the cruiserweight division. Eric Bischoff practically invented the concept of good wrestling for good wrestling’s sake on mainstream U.S. wrestling TV. He is the J. Robert Oppenheimer of flippy sh*t, only without self-awareness.

Bischoff has also warned Khan - as if Khan would listen to a man who has tanked two separate major companies - about catering his product towards a niche hardcore fanbase. There’s no way AEW can “grow” with that approach.

Which is very funny because, per the January 22, 2001 issue of the Wrestling Observer, Bischoff, working towards a Fusient Media-led takeover, was close to reaching out to Toryumon in a bid to establish a working relationship. For the uninitiated, Toryumon was the short-lived precursor to Dragon Gate, the promotion which mastered the trendy hybrid of puroresu and lucha libre - i.e., the exact sort of wrestling that while great lacks mass appeal on U.S. TV. Clearly, Bischoff wished to stock up on exciting new flyers to refill his depleted pool of cruisers…

…so that hardcore wrestling fans could enjoy watching them wrestle.

In Bischoff’s defence, A) this would have kicked ass, and B) he actually made plans to do something of substance with the division.

It was not the only working agreement WCW wanted to strike…

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Michael Sidgwick (Creative Writing BA Hons) is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over a decade of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential UK institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!