Kevin Nash Recalls Vince McMahon Idea Involving Mike Tyson Cost Him WWE Title In 1995
Kevin Nash was set to be WWE Champion for “years” until one conversation with Vince McMahon led to losing to Bret Hart.
Nash, wrestling under the name Diesel between 1993-1996, had been WWE Champion for just shy of a year when he stepped into the ring to battle Bret Hart at Survivor Series in 1995.
His reign as the main Champion began after defeating Bob Backlund in Madison Square Garden at a live event on November 26th 1994.
Over the coming months Nash had matches with Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, at WrestleMania 11, and King Mabel, with the company looking to keep the Title on the near 7 footer for a long time.
However, one meeting with Vince McMahon ended up leading to Bret Hart becoming WWE Champion for a third time.
Speaking on his Kliq This podcast, Big Daddy Cool shared what happened when Vince wanted Nash to put on boxing gloves and fight with Mike Tyson, and how this ended up with him losing to Hart at Survivor Series.
“He (Vince McMahon) had told me that I wasn’t going to lose the championship for years. No matter what, I wasn’t going to lose the championship for years. Then he starts telling me about this idea he had where I’m going to box Mike Tyson in Central Park and it’s for charity. He’s going on and on about this. I said to him, ‘Mike Tyson will knock me the f**k out. He could conceivably kill me.’”
“I’m a boxing fan. A big motherfu**er like me, he can put two or three fu**ing shots, he does the fu**ing old hook to the body, hook to the body, uppercut. Goodnight Irene. It’s not going to do me any favors.”
“I said, ‘I’m not fu**ing fighting him for less than five million dollars. We go back and forth. Then he clears his throat and says, ‘By the way, you’re going to drop the belt to Bret at Survivor Series.’ I said, ‘You fu**ing sat here for 45 minutes and told me this fu**ing horses*t about boxing Mike Tyson to fu**ing tell me that you want me to drop the fu**ing strap to Bret. Motherfu**er, you could have done that on a goddam telephone.’ Like, I don’t care. You can have it. Are you kidding me?”
A rematch between Bret Hart and Diesel (Nash) would take place in a steel cage match at In Your House 6, with Hart retaining after The Undertaker dragged Nash through the canvas and under the ring.
The Undertaker added Nash to his winning streak at WrestleMania 12, whilst in the main event Bret Hart lost the WWE Championship to Shawn Michaels.
Five Time WWE Champion Bret Hart has spoken out about what he feels is wrong with wrestling today, criticising bosses of both WWE and AEW.
Nash left WWE in 1996 to join WCW, and alongside Scott Hall and Hulk Hogan became the NWO, one of the greatest factions of all time.
Mike Tyson would join forces with WWE in the run to WrestleMania 14, and become the enforcer to the Shawn Michaels vs. “Stone Cold” Steve Austin Championship match.
H/t to Wrestlingnews.co