Eric Bischoff Reflects On Eddie Guerrero’s Death, His Unique Relationship With Eddie

In a recent edition of 83 Weeks, Eric Bischoff discussed Eddie Guerrero’s death, his unique relationship with him, and much more. You can read his comments below.

Eric Bischoff on learning about Eddie Guerrero’s death: “It was devastating, no doubt about it. It didn’t seem like it could be true when I first heard it initially, but then you think about the lifestyle, the challenges of being on the road, the enhancements people you use to deal with injuries and keep themselves in shape and things like that. And I hate to say it this way, but you’re shocked but not surprised. It doesn’t mitigate the sense of loss and sadness.”

On his unique relationship with Eddie: “Eddie and I had this unique relationship I guess. Eddie was an intense, passionate, and in some ways, a perfectionist. All of those qualities I think are necessary to become a top-level performer – if you’re not intense, if you’re not extremely passionate, it’s unlikely you’re ever gonna get as far as you dream about. Eddie had all of that. But the downside of that is, you have moments when perhaps you react to things maybe a little bit too much. I’m maybe not as intense or as passionate as Eddie was, but especially in WCW, I had some of those same qualities – whether they were good or bad, I had them. When you get two people like that together and the infamous story or the narrative was that I threw coffee on Eddie in a heated debate – not quite true, but it’s close. But then we could go out or see each other after the show and see each other in the hotel and give each other a big hug and it’s on with business. I miss that, and I miss Eddie. He was so passionate, and when I got to WWE, I remember one of the first nights I was there after the show. I got to the hotel and the hotel bar was right off the lobby, and I could see there was a bunch of WWE talent there. I stopped at the bar and Eddie invited me over to the table. Eddie and I talked openly in front of everybody, and he talked about how appreciative he was of the opportunities he got in WCW.

“There were certain situations Eddie found himself in where I went above and beyond what he expected at least in terms of taking care of him and making sure he didn’t have to worry about his income while he was rehabbing – when he got into a car wreck, specifically. His contract was just about up and we had been discussing a new contract, and Eddie was of the mind that I was gonna stop the renewal conversation and wait until he got healthy before we picked it back up again. I did the exact opposite – I executed the agreement we had before he got into the wreck. I’m not saying this to make myself sound like a good guy because there were times where I wasn’t such a good guy, but in this particular case, Eddie never forgot that and he made sure I never forgot that. He would thank me often…..I think that was Eddie’s way of recognizing that although we had a volatile relationship at times, it was a positive one that he was grateful for. It made me feel good. It’s difficult when you get into arguments with someone you have respect for and you like, but business is business. Sometimes those situations are really uncomfortable, and you hope that whoever it is you are dealing with looks at things in a bigger picture down the road, and Eddie did, and he was not afraid to express it……Eddie was a great guy, and I still miss him to this day.”

If using any of the above quotes, please credit 83 Weeks with an h/t to 411mania.com for the transcription.