wrestling / News

Eric Bischoff Recalls Claiming He Was Busy to Get Out of Conference Call in TNA, How Much Authority He Had

July 20, 2019 | Posted by Jeremy Thomas
Hulk Hogan Eric Bischoff TNA Image Credit: Impact Wrestling

– During the most recent 83 Weeks, Eric Bischoff discussed his run in TNA and remembered pretending he was busy to get out of being on a conference call. Bischoff was asked by Conrad Thompson if he was at his most well-rounded and grounded as he comes onto his Executive Director job on Smackdown, and discussed how his current job doesn’t compare to what role he had in TNA, where he didn’t have nor want any real power or decision-making ability.

Highlights from the discussion are below, along with the full podcast:

On his level of responsibility in TNA: “TNA, I can’t really count that [as a place I had control]. It was just kind of a one-off situation more than anything else. I wasn’t involved in corporate at all. I wasn’t involved in any decision-making, I really didn’t interface with anybody. In fact, I made it a point not to … And again, put this in context. My contract was basically as a consultant. I wasn’t required to be in the office, I wasn’t required to take part in any conference calls. I wasn’t involved, or required, or asked to be involved in any of the decision, or certainly nothing financial, but any of the operational elements of TNA. That was just not my thing. I was just there to look at the formats, try to make as much sense out of them as I possibly could. I couldn’t hire, I couldn’t fire. I had no authority over anybody or anything other than the influence I had creatively. And that basically was, either people agreed with it or they didn’t. I didn’t have creative control of anything, I wasn’t anybody’s boss. Just to put that in the context. But nonetheless, because I am who I am, during that period of time once I kind of got into it, I got into it.”

On getting out of a management conference call: “And I’ll never forget, Dixie called me one day. She goes, ‘Well, we have our weekly conference call with Janice Carter, and Janice wants you on that call.’ And it just rubbed me the wrong way. And I said, ‘Nah, I’ve got something to do today.’ I didn’t, but I just didn’t want to get involved in it. I didn’t want to interface with management at TNA. So that’s a separate one-off kind of a situation.”

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit 83 Weeks with a h/t to 411mania.com for the transcription.