Kevin Nash Dismisses Modern Theory On Work Rate
Kevin Nash believes the current understanding of what constitutes work rate is all wrong.
The 6ft 10″ former WWE Champion spent over a quarter of a century as an active competitor following his 1990 in-ring debut for WCW and earned plaudits over the years for a string of terrific matches with the likes of Bret ‘Hitman’ Hart and Razor Ramon that defied his giant stature.
Nash, however, believes that the current view on high work rate has become too dependent on acrobatic ability and even singled out one supposedly overused spot that makes him turn off his television.
During a recent episode of his podcast ‘Kliq This‘, Nash highlighted his belief that the art of storytelling was the true measure of work rate:
“Work rate doesn’t mean doing a bunch of moves. Work rate means telling a story.
One of the best workers of all time was [Hulk] Hogan. He had a formula. You f*cking knew his formula. It was like paint by numbers. You watch him against The Rock in Toronto, and that’s working. That’s the work.
The work isn’t whether or not you can land a moonsault. That tells me that you either spent time on a trampoline, time in one of those rooms with a trampoline that you jump on foam cubes, because when I broke in, guys didn’t do that shit.”
Nash would go on to vent his frustration at the frequency of an often-used ringside spot by current talent and used his friend and fellow WWE Hall Of Famer Shawn Michaels as an example of how high-flying should be used:
[Shawn] Michaels would do the flip off the top rope, but he would go up and just say, ‘Catch me. Get a hand on me.’ You didn’t know where the f*ck he was going.
But this fu*cking shit of it being a six-man tag and a guy gets stopped and the other four guys are outside fighting and a guy ends up on the top rope and just happens to [flip] onto the other four guys, bye. I’m gone.”
Kevin Nash Explains His Refusal To Put Over The Ultimate Warrior
Kevin Nash has revealed a personal request from Vince McMahon that he once refused.
Nash sensationally departed WWE to return to WCW in a big-money, industry changing deal in 1996 and spent a number of months on the losing end of bouts before his exit from the company.
One man who Nash refused to lose to, however, was The Ultimate Warrior.
H/T: Fightful for the above transcription.