Eric Bischoff believes AEW can benefit from signing Ric Flair.

Flair is a legend in the wrestling business. He has won world titles in NWA, WCW, and WWE. “The Nature Boy” saw his run with WWE come to an end citing creative differences. Flair appeared for AAA, accompanying Andrade “El Idolo” to the ring for his match with Kenny Omega at Triplemania.

During the latest episode of the 83 Weeks Podcast, Bischoff discussed Flair potentially making his way to AEW and why it would be good for both parties.

“I’m not sure if that’s going to happen or not. I did spend quite a bit of time with Ric both Friday night and Saturday night, and we talked a lot about AEW. I didn’t ask Ric specifically if he was going to go. I figured if Ric wanted to share that information, he’d volunteer it. I didn’t want to ask. I know Ric. I’ve known Ric a long time, 25-30 years, and Ric loves the business today as much as he did 20 years ago. I think if there’s an opportunity there, I would be surprised if Ric didn’t jump on board. I’d be equally as surprised if Tony Khan and the folks over at AEW didn’t find a reason to not extend an offer to him. Ric is a very valuable asset.

“I said this to Kevin Nash and Scott Hall and they both agreed with me. From where we sit, which is on the outside for the most part, but all of us pay pretty close attention and have a decent feel for things. We all agreed without hesitation that, in many respects, Ric Flair is as over today as he’s ever been. I’d go as far as to say Ric Flair is more over today than he’s ever been as a personality.”

During the Sept. 10 episode of AEW Rampage, Andrade defeated PAC. After the match, Andrade nailed Chavo Guerrero, who had been serving as his manager for a few weeks. This has led many to speculate that Andrade will bring in Ric Flair to be his new manager. Of course, nothing has been made official at this time.

Talking on his 83 Weeks podcast this week, Eric Bischoff pitched in on the many conversations relating to Ric Flair. Much has been said in recent weeks about Flair, and Bischoff had his own views that he wanted to share.

Ever since his departure from WWE the rumors have been running wild about where Flair will go next. AEW looks like the most obvious choice, especially following his appearance beside Andrade at AAA Triplemania earlier this month. While appearing in a managerial role is the most likely, there has been lots of talk about the 72-year-old wanting to get back in the ring.

While this might be unlikely in a full-match capacity, Eric Bischoff discussed why there is now, and always will be an appeal to someone the likes of Ric Flair getting his hands dirty in the ring.

“Watch what happens when Ric Flair steps in the ring in AEW,”

Eric Bischoff

“Just watch what happens. We saw what happened in Mexico in AAA when Ric Flair and Andrade got together. When Ric Flair steps back in the ring and starts chopping somebody, nobody is going to say to themselves ‘Oh man, that was a weak chop, he doesn’t chop as well as he did 20 years ago.’ Nobody could give two shits. They’re going to have a blast, they’ll rejoice. It’s going to trigger their memory and they’re going to go back in time and remember some of those magic Ric Flair moments. That’s what they’re paying their money for.” Eric Bischoff Explained.

Eric Bischoff Knows First-hand You Can’t Build a Legacy on Legends Alone

Talking further, Eric Bischoff confirmed that no wrestling company can build an empire by relying on older superstars like Flair. He did however say that it is important for older superstars to make appearances while giving room for the next generation to grow.

“You do need younger talent, definitely building that roster full of the future, there’s no question about that. I’m not suggesting all you do is feature that older legacy talent, but people still want to see them get in the ring, they still want to see them active, they still want to rejoice in seeing talent like Ric Flair to this day at 72 years old step in the ring and have some fun.” Eric Bischoff reasoned.

This is a tactic WWE have used in recent years, with the likes of Goldberg and yes, even John Cena, returning for short bursts to get the crowd going. Eric Bischoff knows full-well Ric Flair is never going to have a full-time run or another championship reign inside a major promotion. However, we all know that Ric Flair will never retire, and all it will take to make a place come alive is a strut, a chop and a woo!”

Eric Bischoff is a man who knows the wrestling business through and through. From his time in charge of WCW to his years in WWE. He has close associations with AEW and remains a vocal point for the wrestling community.

Talking recently on his 83 Weeks Podcast (a name that points to WCW’s Monday night winning streak) he discussed WWE and criticised their storytelling capabilities. Furthermore, he addressed what he feels is a complete lack of long-term story vision in the wrestling world at large.

“As recently as 24 months ago I was in the thick of it in WWE. There were no three- and six-months storylines locked in, I can assure you of that. Maybe that’s changed, hopefully, it has and I think you need to have a good plan, a three-month plan, a six-month plan, if you can have a year great.” Eric Bischoff said, his comments were initially directed at WWE however soon broadened to the grander scale of the entire wrestling business.

Eric Bischoff feels people nowadays rely too heavily on the statistics that get thrown up week to week. He likened this to living in the past. Instead, he recommends reading the crowd. Arguing this gives you knowledge of what they want to see in the future.

Eric Bischoff Advises Promotions to Start Listening to their Crowds

His comments were once again addressed to the industry at large. However, there can be no denying the intended direction of Eric Bischoff’s words.

“But you also have to be flexible enough and spend enough time reading the audience, not the ratings, not the quarter hours. That doesn’t tell you sh**. That tells you what history is, that doesn’t tell you what the audience is thinking or feeling. There’s only one way to know that and that is to be out there with the audience. I hope that there are three and six-month plans out there and if there are, hopefully, people are paying attention to the crowd reaction as well.”

Much has been said about WWE’s storytelling and creative juices in recent months. Almost every wrestler released has listed the stifling atmosphere in the creative rooms that left them frustrated and restless. Eric Bischoff is a man who is no stranger to making mistakes in wrestling. He has tasted success and failure in equal measure. This gives him a wide-angled lens through which he can give his commentary. This surely gives makes him a well-rounded authoritative voice.

Eric Bischoff is not afraid to speak his mind. On the latest edition of his 83 Weeks podcast, Bischoff spoke about WWE’s recent talent cuts. Bischoff believes WWE is playing directly into AEW hands by presenting them with a golden opportunity to sign coveted performers as the wrestling war is heating up.

Bischoff noted that many former WWE Superstars will be free to work for AEW just as their new show Rampge is launching (this Friday night).

Much has been said about the releases and probably the signing of both CM Punk and Daniel Bryan. Both men could make surprise debuts on Rampage. Not to mention the monster among men, Braun Strowman. Then, of course, you have the wrestling world’s biggest free agent right now, the fiend, Bray Wyatt. Wyatt has been active on social media recently, teasing the return of his demonic character.

It seems as if Eric Bischoff believes at least one of these names could be used to kick off Rampage.

Eric Bischoff explained how he felt Tony Khan and the AEW branding team have done well to build interest around many of these stars. They have everybody waiting with bated breath for the next big debut.

AEW Benefitting from WWE’s Mistakes

Eric Bischoff talked about how he feels WWE have given AEW a “huge assist” by allowing so many high-profile stars to become available just as Rampage hits the air.

“I don’t want to say what AEW is doing is flawless, but it’s about as close to it as you can get.”

– Eric Bischoff

AEW has already made great strides as a company since their launch.  Many talents deemed unsuitable for WWE have set their career onto a new trajectory since joining Tony Khan’s promotion. Eric Bischoff feels that the draw to AEW is made stronger by their success, and this, combined with the stature of some free agents right now, will give AEW what they need to not only compete with but beat WWE.

It is clear from his words that Eric Bischoff feels AEW have something big up their sleeves, for their third hour of television and they have Vince McMahon to thank for it.

Chris Jericho and Nick Gage’s deathmatch at Fight for the Fallen ended up resulting in Dominos making a statement that they are evaluating their advertising presence on the show. Eric Bischoff commented on the fallout from the match recently on his 83 Weeks podcast.

“If I was a Dominos shareholder, I’d be a little hot. I’d question what the f**k is my advertising agency doing?” Bischoff said on the show.

“Take it from the guy who wrote the book ‘Controversy Creates Cash’ there is some controversy that really works in your benefit and particularly in this state of affairs we find ourselves in culturally today, there is a lot of controversy that can kick your ass and not be a benefit.”

Bischoff continued to say that it’s not so much that AEW chased off Dominos, but now the agency that represents Dominos will be less willing to purchase AEW ad spaces for other clients in the future as well.

“Dominos has an advertising agency, do you think that Dominos is the only client that that advertising agency has?”

He continued to say that there are very likely executives at Turner worried about the impacts this will have on ad sales for the network.

“Then everybody got excited when Pabst Blue Ribbon jumped in,” Bischoff continued. “Good for them, guess what? They don’t have a pot to piss in in terms of national advertising. Why is that? Because Pabst Blue Ribbon isn’t even a brewery, it’s a brand.”

Bischoff’s comments can be heard in the player below:

Former WCW President and co-host of the 83 Weeks Podcast Eric Bischoff recently discussed the deathmatch style of wrestling on the show.

Specifically, Bischoff would bring up Nick Gage and his style, referencing the recently Dark Side of The Ring episode focusing on the Deathmatch King.

“I just don’t think that kind of thing [works],” Bischoff began. “Number one, it doesn’t interest me, that style of wrestling. I think it’s bad for the industry in general, I think it appeals to such a small portion of the audience that a larger portion of the audience is turned off by it.”

“Those guys that love that, we saw it the other night with [Jon] Moxley and whatever his name was [Lance Archer]” Bischoff added. “They were digging at each other with a fork. Alright, cool, whatever. For me, I won’t watch that kind of stuff. Number one it’s not entertaining, there’s nothing magic about it.”

Eric Bischoff on Deathmatches

“When Dark Side of the Ring focuses too much on that story, I think it gives the entire industry a bad name,” Bischoff continued, discussing Nick Gage and his deathmatch style. “Passive wrestling audience, the advertising community, the television network executive community, when people see that kind of thing they walk away with a perception of what wrestling is. That perception becomes harmful in the long run.”

“I get it, I love the storytelling I see out of the Dark Side for the most part, but when you get too dark like that, I just think it’s not good for the business long term overall” Eric Bischoffc concluded. “The Jake Roberts story for example was dark, that was hard to watch but I don’t think it hurt the business.”

A number of wrestling personalities have paid their tribute to the late WWE Hall Of Famer “Mr. Wonderful” Paul Orndorff since his passing earlier this month. Eric Bischoff recently joined this list.

The former WCW president dedicated the latest episode of his 83 Weeks podcast to the wrestling veteran and long-time friend. He talked about the various stages of Orndorff’s career during the episode.

Bischoff also recalled the time Mr Wonderful teamed with Paul Roma in WCW. He revealed which current tag team compares to the duo who were then known as Pretty Wonderful:

“Roma was a little more flamboyant and Orndorff was a little more dangerous,” Bischoff said. “I like that, I like how contrasts work. Randy Orton and the skateboard burn out guy, Matt Riddle.

I love that team because that’s just an interesting contrast of characters. It’s like a good buddy cop movie, you generally have contrasting characters that compliment each other and I think that’s the way Paul Roma and Paul Orndorff were.”

• Eric Bischoff on the Lack of Balance in AEW Managers

Randy Orton formed a tag team with Matt Riddle after a match between the two in April this year. Since then, the two have become a fan favorite.

Apart from this, Eric Bischoff also talked about being relieved from his management position in WCW in 1999. He claimed that he felt betrayed by the decision but didn’t go into detail for the reason behind it.

Managers have always been an important part of professional wrestling. They play a crucial role in a wrestler’s career. This is a mentality that AEW has run with. The list of managers is long, including Arn Anderson, Jake the Snake Roberts, Vikki Guerrero and more. Talking on his 83 Weeks podcast, Eric Bischoff addressed what he sees as a problem with the AEW managers scene.

Eric Bischoff had nothing bad to say about the current managers in AEW but rather commented on the lack of diversity among them.

 “Arn, Tully, Jake, these are serious shoot ass-kicking motherf—ers,” Bischoff said. “There’s no Jimmy Hart’s in that conversation, there’s no balance. Yes AEW is doing a great job in terms of integrating some of the legends, I being one of them occasionally getting to show up and I love that. Balancing the serious, intense with the high-flying, super athletic ridiculous skill sets but still have some of that goofy sh-t mixed in so that the whole audience is satisfied. Not just the portion of the audience that identifies with one specific era or style of wrestling.” Bischoff said.

Eric Bischoff Understands The Need for Diversity

Too much of a good thing can make it bad. That applies to all walks of life. Eric Bischoff understands that different fans are looking for different things when they tune in to a show each week. By having something to cater for all tastes, a brand like AEW can appeal to a wider audience.

AEW already have a mix of wrestling talent, from the serious to the comedic. Eric Bischoff believes adding more managerial variety would bring more balance to the ranks. You already have Vikki Guerrero who, it could be argued, plays a Mouth of the South style role, however, she lacks the comedic appeal.

Could a faction like Best Friends benefit from having a jovial manager leading them? Possibly not, but is there validity in Eric Bischoff’s words? With two weekly shows and two dark shows each week, there is surely a spot that could be filled by a comedically inclined manager.

During the 1990s there was one man who was the face of WCW. The icon himself, Sting. With his blonde hair and imposing physique, there was every reason for him to be the face of the TNT network. Former WCW president Eric Bischoff recently spoke on his 83 Weeks podcast about his former main man. As part of the discussion, Bischoff explained the real reason behind Sting ditching the bleached hair surfer gimmick that had been his character for many years.

Wrestling is all about storytelling. We all know about kayfabe and the illusion of character. So what was given as the reason for Sting’s change in attitude was far more dramatic than the reality.

Eric Bischoff explained that with his stock rising, Sting had eyes on a transition into movies, and acting. It was exactly that mindset that caused him to grow his hair and revert back to his natural color.

“Sting was taking acting lessons right around this time and working in that direction. Sting made up his mind, he didn’t want that blonde hair because you can’t get a movie, you can’t get a T.V. role with that look so he wanted more versatility.” Eric Bischoff explained.

Eric Bischoff Tried to Help Sting Make it on the Big Screen

It makes sense that a man with Sting’s presence would want to move into acting. Wrestling is, after all, largely a character-driven performance. Wrestling and acting go hand in hand. Just look at stars like The Rock and John Cena. Both have made the transition from the ring to the big screen.

Talking further, Eric Bischoff detailed how he was the man behind Sting’s first acting opportunity.  “I was the executive producer of Stings’ very first movie called The Real Reason Men Commit Crimes. I put the deal together and made it happen with Turner and funded it.”

Sting was one of the biggest names in WCW. It made sense for Eric Bischoff to help him get more fame as that would, in turn, benefit WCW as a company.

Today (July 7th) marks 25 years since the formation of the New World Order, one of the most influential factions in pro wrestling history.

WCW’s Bash at the Beach took place on this date 25 years ago, back in 1996. The wrestling world came to a screeching halt as Hulk Hogan turned heel and was revealed to be the “third man” aligned with Kevin Nash and Scott Hall.

Eric Bischoff recently spoke to TSN, the station which aired WCW Nitro in Canada, and reflected on the faction’s 25th anniversary.

“I think the NWO, in the storyline, in the presentation of the NWO, presentation of the characters in the NWO really changed the industry probably more than anything since Vince McMahon went from being a regional territory under his father to becoming a worldwide territory and really changed wrestling back in the ‘80s,” Bischoff said to TSN.ca.

“But I think other than Vince McMahon really going national and international with the WWE product, I don’t think anything has had more of an impact on the profession wrestling industry than the NWO and all of the things that came with it.”

Eric Bischoff on Comparisons To NJPW vs UWFi Angle

Bischoff would continue to dispel the belief that the NWO angle was taken from the NJPW vs UWFi angle in Japan.

““To this day, I’ve never spent 10 seconds watching any of that,” Bischoff said of the angle. “I was completely unaware of it. It is a narrative that, I think, was created by a bunch of cosplay wrestling journalists, who tried to frame the NWO in that story in a way that suggested it was a derivative of something else and it was not original.”

Eric Bischoff on Turning Hogan Heel

Bischoff would continue to talk about what went into convincing Hogan to turn heel. The former WCW President would say that he spoke to Hogan about turning heel months before the NWO storyline was even an idea. Hogan was not receptive to the idea.

“I had a conversation with Hulk about eight months prior to Scott Hall and Kevin Nash coming in, where I suggested to Hulk that, perhaps, he might consider turning heel and doing a 100 per-cent overhaul of the character,” Bischoff said. “That was eight months prior, like I said, to Scott Hall even reaching out to me or the idea of the NWO even beginning to form in my head and I was summarily escorted out of his home. He did it very elegantly, I might add. He wasn’t mean or aggressive about it, but nonetheless, he made it clear to me that he had no interest in turning heel.”

The full interview is available here.  

While a lot of fans believe that having an off season would be a good idea for the wrestling business, Eric Bischoff is not in the favor of the same. The former WCW president talked about the idea of an off season in wrestling on his 83 weeks podcast. He explained why it will not be a good idea for the industry.

Bischoff was talking about the recent drops in TV ratings and how summertime drops are expected every year. However while discussing the idea of an off season in wrestling to freshen things up, Bischoff said that he wouldn’t vote for it:

“First of all, I wouldn’t vote for an offseason, one of the reasons that wrestling works as consistently as it has since the beginning of television time is because it’s 52 weeks a year and it tours. If you take 52 weeks out of the equation and now you take touring out of the equation, you’re going to lose 60% of your audience over the course of five or six years.”

“You lose your connection to the audience”

An off season would provide wrestlers more time to spend with their families and heal and it may help the promoters in keeping the storylines fresh. However, Eric Bischoff argued that it may also lead to the audience losing interest in the characters they have developed a deep connection with:

“Yeah, but you lose your connection to the audience. Wrestling. The wrestling audience becomes so familiar with these characters. They identify with them. They live vicariously through them. They’re kind of, in their own entertainment way, addicted to them. If you take them off the air for three, four, or five months, they find other shit to do and other things to be interested in.”

Eric Bischoff claimed that the secret sauce to professional wrestling is that it’s on 52 weeks a year. If you go down to 26 weeks a year and you have to start your season over again then you may lose the weekly connection with the audience.

What do you think about Eric Bischoff’s assessment about an off season in wrestling? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section.

• Eric Bischoff On Why WWE’s Latest Releases Were “Good Business”

Eric Bischoff recently spent some time on his 83 Weeks Podcast speaking about WWE’s most recent round of talent cuts. According to Bischoff, WWE’s latest releases were good for business.

“I’m more and more convinced that what WWE is doing – and I think Nick Khan is probably the catalyst for a lot of this – is making good business decisions,” Bischoff said on the show.

Bischoff then spoke about what would go through his mind if he was in a management position with WWE.

“If I’m involved in some of the decisions in trying to get that stock price up, I’m looking at my talent roster which is a significant part of the expenses in WWE,” Bischoff continued. “I’m thinking to myself ‘well wait a minute, we are going to modify our touring schedule, we’re not going to tour the same way we used to – and I think that’s probably true – I need to start making good decisions. We’ve got 300 people under contract, perhaps that’s too many.”

Bischoff continued to say that perhaps WWE’s strategy regarding keeping so many talents under contract was to keep that talent from going to AEW. He does not believe the company is preparing for a sale, however.

“I’m more convinced now than I was last week that what WWE is doing is aggressively managing their business model,” he continued.

“When the dust settles, I think we’re going to see WWE’s stock price back to where it was pre-COVID. I think we’re going to see a new touring model that makes more sense in the long run and I don’t think WWE is going anywhere (referring to a potential sale), at least not in the near future,” Bischoff continued.

Former WCW President Eric Bischoff will be returning to AEW TV to host a segment at this Friday’s episode of their weekly show Dynamite.

The news of his appearance was revealed by Chris Jericho on Busted Open Radio. The former AEW champion announced that they will be having a celebration for Inner Circle on this week’s episode of the show.

Jericho then revealed that Bischoff will be making a return to the AEW programming this week to host the segment, claiming that he has made amends with the former WCW official:

“This is exclusive, we haven’t told anybody this, but it’s going to be a returning Eric Bischoff to host and MC the whole segment. First time that Bischoff and I have ever been on the same side!

Much like when I called Mike Tyson, when we had our change of heart a few months ago, another guy I called was Eric Bischoff.  We have made amends and Eric agreed to come down and MC the celebration of the Inner Circle.”

This will be the fourth AEW appearance for the former SmackDown general manager. He made his debut for the promotion back in August 2020 when he hosted the debate between Chris Jericho and Orange Cassidy.

He then made an appearance during the town hall meeting between Y2J and MJF in October. Bischoff was last seen on March 3 Dynamite where he was a part of the press conference between the Inner Circle and The Young Bucks.

The subject of the level of control exerted by the NWO during their WCW reign has always been the subject of much speculation. Talking on a recent appearance on the Wrestleslam podcast, Eric Bischoff attempted to put those rumours to bed.

Talking openly and honestly, Bischoff admitted that there was a degree of creative control given to the trio, but it was not anywhere near as big of a deal as many make out.

“Hall and Nash didn’t have creative control,” Bischoff said. “To clarify, they did have language in their agreement that gave them meaningful consultation. Meaning they were guaranteed to have a conversation with me and it would have been a meaningful conversation, but a meaningful conversation and creative control or two different things, And they did not have creative control.”

This leaves only one member of the group with any degree of creative control. Hulk Hogan, the leader of the group and an icon of the sport. However, when talking about it, Eric Bischoff revealed exactly how frequently Hogan exerted his clause.

“Hulk Hogan had creative control and he only used it once.” Bischoff said, clearing the air on the subject.

Creative control is a subject of some discussion these days. Especially after leaked rumours of infighting within the executive ranks of AEW.

Eric Bischoff took the time to share his own thoughts on the matter, allaying any fears that people might have.

“But I don’t think the challenge that people are talking about really exists in AEW today.” Bischoff said, before adding As far as AEW goes, as far as I know, Tony Khan is the one that’s calling the shots,”

While the perception of a wrestling war between WWE and AEW often keeps the fans busy, Eric Bischoff believes that there is no real war between them. The former WCW president recently talked about the competition between the two promotions on the latest episode of his 83 weeks podcast.

He first discussed how AEW will be returning to road before WWE in July. Though opposed to the perception of how it might affect Vince McMahon, Bischoff claimed that he doesn’t think the boss cares:

“I don’t think Vince cares, I know wrestling fans like to think that there’s this battle between AEW and WWE. The very fact that I made an appearance on AEW a month before they inducted me into the Hall of Fame suggests to me that they really don’t care. Are they aware? Sure. Is Vince McMahon walking around kicking people in the ass saying ‘God dammit, how did they beat us to the punch?'”

• Eric Bischoff On Who Paid For TNA’s Rebranding As Impact Wrestling

Eric Bischoff claimed that he knows people think there is a war between the two companies because deep down they want another wrestling war, but WWE is ‘on a different planet’ compared to AEW:

“WWE is on a different planet than AEW right now. That’s because AEW is about 24 months old or so, WWE has been around for decades and decades and decades. A lot of catching up to do folks, there is no war. There is no angst or anxiety from WWE in my opinion when it comes to AEW.”

Eric Bischoff also discussed how the formulas of producing content has changed since the Monday Night Wars because the companies are more reliant on the revenue from TV deals and so they are focusing on quantity over quality.

The former SmackDown general manager explained that the reason for the decline in the content quality of WWE is because they have not conditioned themselves and developed a formula for producing the same quality of content while increasing the amount of it.

The company now known as Impact Wrestling started off as Total Nonstop Action or TNA. The transition of the branding began in 2010 and Eric Bischoff recently revealed who was responsible for it.

The former Impact executive discussed the company during the latest episode of his 83 weeks podcast and explained how the name was a bad idea from the start.

Speaking about the rebranding of the company from TNA to Impact, Bischoff revealed that Spike TV and Viacom who were the TV partners of the company at the time were the ones who pushed for the change:

“Spike pumped the brakes and said sorry, if we’re going to continue with this show and try to sell it, we have to rebrand it. It was a tough battle, there was a lot of push back internally, mostly from the people who didn’t have anything to do with running the business on a day to day basis from Texas, that being Panda Energy.

Mommy and Daddy, mostly mommy, didn’t want to spend the money so Spike did! Spike paid for the rebranding, Spike paid for the research, these are things the company should have been doing for themselves” said Eric Bischoff, “But they didn’t and wouldn’t so Spike said alright if you won’t, we will.”

• Eric Bischoff Talks AEW vs NXT Not Being a ‘Real War’

The former Impact official also revealed that Spike was paying the contract money for some of the high profile talent signed to the company at the time as a separate budget item, outside of the TV license agreement.

Though despite the money spent on it, the TNA name continued to be associated with the promotion until 2017, when Anthem bought the company and rebranded it as Impact Wrestling officially.

Eric Bischoff recently spent some time on his 83 Weeks podcast discussing which 5 modern-day wrestlers he would choose to start a new promotion with. He ended up choosing 3 wrestlers currently with AEW and another 2 currently with WWE.

Bischoff noted that he’s a big MJF fan and has been impressed with Matt Riddle as of late as well.

“In AEW, I’m a huge fan of MJF. Anyone who follows me on social media probably knows that. He’s just an amazing young talent, and the fact that he’s as young as he is and as good as he is, I think we’ve only seen the tip of the iceberg. I dig him as a performer. This one will shock people maybe, but Matt Riddle. I’m kind of digging it. He’s different, and he’s good. He’s gonna get better and better and better.”

Bischoff continued to talk about the RK-Bro team of Riddle and Orton on RAW.

“I love the Randy Orton and Matt Riddle combination,” Bischoff continued. “I don’t know if it’s long-term, but there’s a buddy cop moving that takes place in the ring. You’re talking about two different types of personalities that could really play well off of each other. The potential and entertainment for that combination is off the charts good. I dig Matt Riddle and think he’ll be one of the people I’ll be watching. So, right now, I’d say him and MJF. Cody Rhodes is doing a great job and has a lot of things going on. If he doesn’t get himself spread too thin and stays focused, I think Cody could emerge as one of the biggest names in the business.”

In addition to MJF, Riddle, and Orton, Bischoff then mentioned Kenny Omega and Cody Rhodes as the other two in his top-5.

“[MJF], Matt Riddle. I’d snatch Randy Orton in a heartbeat. Kenny Omega, got enough momentum. If you’re starting fresh, there’s a lot of talent in WWE, but I only get five. You’re looking at anchors and people you’re gonna be depending on for the next five or 10 years. I’m going Cody,” Bischoff said during the interview (transcriptions via 411Mania).

In 2009, Dixie Carter suspended Jeff Jarrett from TNA Wrestling after it was revealed he was romantically involved with Karen Angle, Kurt Angle’s ex-wife. Jarrett and Karen would end up marrying in 2010. Eric Bischoff recently spent some time on his “83 Weeks” podcast talking about how this played out backstage in the company at the time.

“It was certainly unique, especially since Kurt was still in the company,” Bischoff said on the show. He would continue to say, however, that everyone seemed to get along just fine backstage.

“When everybody was backstage, when Karen was there, when Jeff was there, when Kurt was there, when the kids were there, they got along like an extended family. Since there was no real issue within their family that I could see – not that I would judge it one way or the other anyway – but again when they were all together – because Karen would often come backstage and bring the kids and she’d be with Jeff and Kurt was there and Kurt’s soon to be wife, I mean, everybody got along.”

“I can’t imagine being in that situation. It would be awkward anyway, regardless of whether Kurt Angle was the baddest man on the planet or whether he was an accountant.”

“I have a lot of respect for Jeff and for Karen and for Kurt. I think they’ve done a wonderful job under the circumstances keeping their families together as individual families and together as a broader 2-family scenario.”

Bischoff’s full comments on the matter can be heard in the player below:

Paul Heyman appeared on the latest edition of Talking Smack and spoke about Eric Bischoff being announced as part of the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2021.

“This is an honor that is long overdue, and it’s well-earned,” Heyman said. “It’s most deserved. The criterion to be in the WWE Hall of Fame is impact upon the industry and it would be very hard for anyone to argue that Eric Bischoff did not make as significant an impact on this industry as almost anybody else in its history.”

“I respect WWE for having the intelligence, and for understanding just how much Eric Bischoff belongs in the Hall of Fame. And I congratulate, profoundly congratulate my old rival Eric Bischoff for his induction into the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2021.”

Heyman and Bischoff were both in WCW in the early-90s but Heyman was gone by the time Bischoff was promoted to an executive role. More recently, Heyman served as Executive Director of RAW from 2019-2020. Bischoff was Executive Director of Smackdown for a few months in 2019 as well.

“The 1990s in this industry were ruled by Eric Bischoff, Paul Heyman, and Vincent Kennedy McMahon. And only one of us is still relevant enough to be on television each and every week,” Heyman continued.

WWE announced yesterday morning that the former WCW President Eric Bischoff will be one of the inductees for the 2021 class of Hall Of Fame.

The news was broken to the former Raw general manager by Corey Graves during an episode of the after the bell podcast and the wrestling veteran got emotional when he learned about it.

WWE commentator Vic Joseph later shared a clip of it on his Twitter account and you can watch Bischoff’s reaction to the news in the video as seen below:

Eric Bischoff became the Senior Vice President of WCW in 1994 and he remained the top executive of the company until 1999. He has had multiple stints with WWE since then with his most recent run being his tenure as the Executive Director of SmackDown in 2019.

• Eric Bischoff Talks AEW vs NXT Not Being a ‘Real War’

He is the second name to be announced for the 2021 Hall Of Fame class after the company confirmed former women’s champion Molly Holly as the first inductee of this year’s class.

Eric Bischoff and Molly Holly will be joined by the inductees of the 2020 class of Hall Of Fame during the ceremony this year after WWE officials had to halt the ceremony last year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The 2020 class will see the likes of Batista, nWo, The Bella Twins, JBL, Jushin “Thunder” Liger and The British Bulldog being inducted in the Hall Of Fame.

Eric Bischoff has been announced as part of the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2021. WWE revealed the news today on an episode of “The Bump.”

The Hall of Fame ceremony this year will be a virtual event. Both the class of 2021 and the class of 2020 will be inducted as last year’s event was canceled due to the pandemic. Molly Holly was the first inductee announced for the class of 2021.

Scheduled to be inducted this year:

• Batista
• The nWo (Hulk Hogan, Scott Hall, Kevin Nash, Sean Waltman)
• The Bella Twins, Brie and Nikki
• John Bradshaw Layfield (‘JBL’)
• “Jushin” Thunder Liger
• The British Bulldog
• Molly Holly
• Eric Bischoff

There was some controversy regarding Bischoff not being included in the New World Order group being inducted as part of the class of 2020. The NWO inductees have been limited to Hollywood Hogan, Scott Hall, Kevin Nash, and Syxx-Pac (Sean Waltman). Waltman would later speak on Bischoff not being included in the group.

“I think it’s crazy, I’m bummed out that Eric Bischoff is not in on this. I feel bad for that, I actually feel bad about that. It goes without saying,” Waltman said on his podcast.

Reactions To Eric Bischoff’s Induction

Here are some reactions to the news of Eric Bischoff being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame’s Class of 2021:

Former WWE Executive Director of SmackDown and WCW President recently discussed the finishing ‘Wednesday Night War’ between NXT and All Elite Wrestling.

“I have a hard time when people talk about the Wednesday Night Wars, they’re not the Wednesday Night Wars” Bischoff stated on 83 Weeks. “Two shows head to head does not a war make. A good war is when all boats rise with a high tide, when it lifts the entire industry.”

Eric Bischoff on WCW vs WWF

Bischoff then discussed the comparisons between the 90’s war between WCW and the WWF. “That’s what we saw here, even though the WWF was suffering in some respects, their business was improving markedly so in other respects because of Nitro.”

“I think sometimes that gets lost in the gang warfare of wrestling relations” Bischoff continued. “Meaning if you’re a fan of WWF you couldn’t be a fan of WCW, if you’re a fan of WCW you hated WWF, if you’re a fan of AEW you can’t stand NXT, if you’re a fan of NXT you can’t stand AEW, that’s silly horse s–t that people subscribe too. It doesn’t necessarily make a war, what makes a war is when you’re competing against each other, forcing each other to improve your product and then you’re watching the audience grow in response. Therein lies a good war.”

credit 83 Weeks and a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

Former WCW President and co-host of the 83 Weeks podcast Eric Bischoff recently spoke to the It’s Our House Podcast. Easy E discussed a number of topics, including which current performers he sees that could possibly ‘transcend’ the pro wrestling business.

“You guys put me on the spot here, I’m gonna give you an answer” Eric Bischoff began. “But just know that there’s a lot of people that I hold in such high regard and have so much respect for and I think are so valuable as performers and human beings. I’m gonna offend those people, I apologise.”

“If I was in Las Vegas and I had one $100 bill, and I was forced to place a bet on one person – I put it on Cody Rhodes” Bischoff continued. “Okay. I think when you talk about somebody who has the potential to transcend the business, that means to become a bigger star, or at least a star outside of the wrestling business as inside of the wrestling business.”

Eric Bischoff finished by comparing the AEW EVP Cody Rhodes to one of WWE’s biggest ever talents, John Cena. “That’s how John Cena became a big star” Bischoff stated. “Everywhere you looked, including WWE, but outside of WWE, you would see John Cena. He became that. WWE was preaching outside of the choir. And they connected with people that they weren’t connected with just on the wrestling show by using John Cena because he had that potential and ability to transcend the business in that regard. I think Cody Rhodes has the same potential.”

Eric Bischoff recently spent some time on his podcast discussing the commentary team in TNA during his tenure with the organization from 2010 to 2014. According to Bischoff, he wanted to hire Jim Ross to work for TNA in 2011.

Conrad Thompson asked Bischoff on the show what he thought of the commentary team of Mike Tenay and Taz that was in TNA at the time.

“I loved them both individually, I think they are both incredibly talented,” Bischoff said about the team. “I’ve said this before, I’ll say it again, and I’ll probably keep saying it until the day I can no longer say it. You’ve got two guys doing color. There was no play-by-play and I think that doesn’t serve the product.”

Bischoff continued to say that Mike Tenay was great at color commentary but did not know how to do play-by-play.

“To me as a producer, it was a huge, glaring, blackhole and a void in the product.”

Bischoff then said that it was the reason why he tried to get Jim Ross to TNA in 2011.

“It’s one of the reasons why I was instrumental in supporting Jim Ross coming to TNA,” he continued. “I was the one who supplied Dixie Carter with Jim Ross’ phone number to get that ball rolling. I knew we needed a good play-by-play guy with Taz in order to complete the story, complete the package.”

Ross never did sign with TNA. He continued to be employed by WWE at the time up until being fired in 2013.

Bischoff’s comments can be heard in the player below:

Former WCW President Eric Bischoff returned for his 83 weeks podcast and during the latest episode of the show, he made some interesting comments about the current state of AEW.

The former SmackDown Executive Director was talking about Chris Jericho’s comments about TNA in 2011 where Y2J had called the company out for not believing in themselves and wasting their resources.

Bischoff said that these comments could come back to haunt the former AEW Champion in future because his company has flatlined in the past year:

“I think it’s going to come back to bite him in the ass is what I think, AEW last week they did about 800,000 viewers, they opened the door with 1.5 million viewers and haven’t been able to crack 1 million since or if they have it’s been only on 1 or 2 occasions. They’ve essentially flatlined at 7 or 800,000 viewers on average for the last year and a half.

“That’s an observation that could, unless something turns around in the next 18 months, come back to haunt someone like Chris.” said Eric Bischoff, “Quite frankly, AEW has flatlined and it’s been that way essentially for a year.”

• Eric Bischoff Says DX Was A Copy Of nWo

The former WCW official continued to say that it’s easy to talk about a business you are not in. He mentioned how Chris Jericho had never run a business when he made the statement and he was making them from a position of a talent.

What do you think about Eric Bischoff’s comments about the current state of AEW? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.