Kevin Nash Addresses Criticism Of His WWE Championship Reign
Kevin Nash has admitted he “had no idea what he was doing” during his WWE Championship reign in the 1990s.
From 1993-1996, Nash wrestled in WWE under the name of Diesel. The star was initially brought in as an onscreen bodyguard for Shawn Michaels and the pair had a fruitful partnership for several months.
However, things fell apart after Michaels accidentally Superkicked him during a bout at the 1993 Survivor Series. From there, Nash became a top babyface in the company and in November 1994 defeated Bob Backlund to capture the WWE championship for the first and only time.
He then embarked on a year-long reign with the title which unfortunately coincided with a big downturn in business for WWE. At the time, many were critical of Big Daddy Cool, claiming he was underserving of the top spot in the company, and that was reinforced by the decline in live event attendance and TV ratings.
Kevin Nash – “I just happened to be the president during the depression”
On the latest edition of ‘Kliq This’, Nash reflected on that time in his career, admitting he was put into that position very early in his career.
“My thing is this, I went from [his WCW character] f***ing Oz to having the IC, Tag, and World Title in three years.
“Even though I was the lowest-drawing champion of all time or whatever people want to say about me, I still am the longest-reigning champion in the 1990s which [includes] the Attitude Era. I just happened to be the president during the depression.”
Despite the negative reaction to his reign, Nash wouldn’t change anything, saying that in the wake of Vince McMahon‘s steroid trial, he was an ideal candidate for the role.
“I wouldn’t change it. The reason I got everything I did … after the drug trials … I read someone say ‘You’re a good-looking giant dude — that’s why you got to where you got.’ No f***ing s**t! I was the biggest dude … I was lean and clean. That’s why I got pushed.”
The Hall of Famer went on to admit he was “so f***ing green” at the time, and had “no idea what he was doing out there”, but says he wasn’t going to say no when McMahon offered him the opportunity.
“I was just a guy Vince chose. What was I supposed to say? No?”
Nash held the title until November 19th, 1995 when he was defeated by Bret Hart at Survivor Series. He remained with WWE for several months before leaving for WCW alongside Scott Hall in the summer of 1996.
There, he and Hall joined forces with Hulk Hogan to create the nWo, and the rest is history.
H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the above transcription.