"Is Vince really a mark of wrestling?": Former WWE Writer Reflects on His Experiences with Vince McMahon

Since its establishment more than forty years ago, WWE has had it's fair share of controversies. Vince McMahon himself has faced a number of lawsuits throughout the years, with some even dating back to the late 80s. As time has passed, we have learned more and more about the true nature of the industry and how horrible things used to be.

However, you only properly understand someone once you have first-hand encounters with them. Former WWE writer Vince Russo talked about his interactions with McMahon in an interview that aired on Sportskeeda's WrestleBinge. He disclosed that McMahon's house was devoid of any wrestling memorabilia. Russo, who has been to McMahon's house many times, noted that in the areas he saw, there were no traces of McMahon's wrestling career, no title belts, and no posters.



Noting that it reflects McMahon's worldview, Russo thought this absence was notable. He clarified that neither he nor McMahon want to mix their personal and professional life together, preferring to concentrate on their future objectives rather than on their past successes. As per Russo, McMahon is not so much a fervent wrestling enthusiast as he is a business visionary who is motivated by WWE's prosperity instead of a profound affection for the sport of wrestling.

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Russo shared: “Vince is like me, though. Like, great artists, craftsmen, masters—dare I say? I will say it! No, I don’t dare—we are masters of what we do. You need space away from it. If you’re surrounded by it, you kind of live within the accolades, and you just can’t sit there and reminisce, because guys like us—we’re driven. What’s next? It’s not about what has been done but what is still left to do.”




Russo further added: “Is Vince really a mark for wrestling, or is he a mark for running a successful business? Chris, I think it’s more that than anything—making the business bigger for the business. I don’t—I just think he was born into wrestling. I really believe that. I don’t think Vince is this over-the-top, huge wrestling mark. I believe he was a huge mark for his company, the WWE, and its success.”

Russo also mentioned that during his time working for McMahon, he had to update him on events in other wrestling promotions like WCW and ECW, as McMahon was largely unaware of anything outside WWE. “I know he didn’t have a clue about New Japan—he didn’t, Chris. He knew nothing about wrestling outside of his company.”

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