Rob Van Dam Recalls Disagreement With Vince Russo In TNA

Rob Van Dam has detailed an instant when he confronted Vince Russo over an idea that he disagreed with while both men were in TNA.

To this day Vince Russo is considered one of the most polarizing figures in modern wrestling history. He was an instrumental force in WWE’s creative process during the Attitude Era but was widely seen as disastrous when he became the head creative person in WCW between 1999 and 2001.

Russo’s “crash TV” approach to wrestling and his emphasis on more surreal and exaggerated elements have led to widespread criticism towards him from both wrestling fans and wrestling industry veterans.

And while many wrestling personalities have commented on Russo’s work before, another voice has been added to the discussion on Russo’s contributions in the form of Rob Van Dam.

On a recent episode of his 1 Of A Kind podcast, RVD discussed how Russo proposed a very bad idea to him and he had to confront Russo about why he didn’t like the idea at first.

“He came to me one time and told me he wanted to turn Jeff Hardy heel, and I thought that was the stupidest idea. I was like ‘Me and Jeff are the top babyfaces. We’re rocking the crowds. The fans are screaming for RVD and Jeff Hardy. I thought you wait till things are stagnant when you do that.’

He was like ‘Well, we’re kind of at that point,’ which is what I also heard about me also, much later from TNA-Impact. “But I was not for it, and I was like ‘I think that just sounds like you’re taking something that works and putting a spin on it. Why?’ And he said ‘Well, Jeff is really behind it. He’s really looking forward to it.’ And I was like ‘Really? Alright, well, s**t. Do what you have to do.'”

h/t WrestlingInc for the transcription

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