One MIND-BLOWING Secret From EVERY Month Of The WWE Attitude Era

28. January 1999 | The WWF Almost Out-Dumbed WCW

Tank Abbott WCW
WWE

Tank Abbott was an infamous supporting character in the downfall of WCW. 

For newer fans, a rough analogy would be if WWE decided to strap up Cain Velasquez after he wrestled Brock Lesnar, in that Tank Abbott was also a former UFC fighter with next to no aptitude for professional wrestling. Abbott’s situation was even stupider than that, though, because while it never happened, Vince Russo wanted to award Abbott with the World Heavyweight title when WCW was in a seriously perilous situation, whereas in late 2019, WWE was future-proof and making record profits in spite of itself. Abbott was also infamous for pulling out a knife and threatening to kill Big Al in a match at Superbrawl 2000. Abbott was an avatar for WCW’s diabolically awful decision-making - and yet, the WWF almost got to him first. 

Per the January 25, 1999 Observer, the WWF was expected to meet with Abbott to open up discussions over a fight with Bart Gunn at WrestleMania 15 (the spot that was eventually given to Butterbean). The WWF also wanted to sound out Kimo Leopoldo. (Leopolodo went on to defeat Abbott at UFC 43 in June 2003. Neither man would’ve had any trouble putting Bart Gunn away). 

In another trivia note, Mark Kerr was further down the shortlist. Kerr was the subject of ‘The Smashing Machine’, Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson’s 2025 Oscar-bait vehicle - meaning that, if the stars had aligned a bit differently, the Rock might have shared a card with the man he would later play in a biopic.

Contributor
Contributor

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!