Arn Anderson On What Kept Buff Bagwell From Being A Main Eventer

On the latest episode of The ARN Show, Arn Anderson talked about the career of Buff Bagwell in WCW, what kept him back from breaking through and more. You can check out some highlights below:

On what kept Buff Bagwell from being a main eventer: “He was always figured in, but those top spots were few and far between. And you know, moving from a middle spot to a top spot wasn’t that easy. It wasn’t, because there was only room for a couple of guys there and you needed to pay your dues. You needed to earn your way there. If you would have just brought him in and won a few matches and then you all of a sudden put him with the top guys, the audience will not accept that. You have to earn that. And you said it too, even when you started talking about Bagwell. He came in from the school, right from the training center. And so he still needed a lot of a lot more ring time, a lot more and not — I don’t necessarily mean ring time, but just working angles, telling stories, getting in front of the mic, all that development that was going to take time for somebody like that, especially ahead of you. Like you said, when you have Steve Austin’s and Brian Pillman’s and some of these other guys getting that spot these days.”

On the challenges of facing Bagwell as a white meat babyface: “Well, it was oil in the water, yeah. And again, in those days — guys, there’s no way for me to make sense out of some of the things I was put in and some that occurred in those early days of WCW. And again, it was right at the three-year mark, right? Yeah. I’m still growing, still trying to figure things out. Things were changing. Bookers were constantly changing the front office, the company’s direction, and Bagwell and myself. That was just one of those. He and Scotty Riggs. Perfect together. Perfect. They looked perfect, and they gelled incredibly. Myself, you know, that thing that didn’t have a chance?”

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit The ARN Show with an h/t to 411mania.com for the transcription.