Eric Bischoff On Gruesome Sid Vicious Injury At WCW Sin, Decision To Show Injury On Nitro, Shane Douglas In WCW

In a recent edition of 83 Weeks, Eric Bischoff discussed the gruesome Sid Vicious injury at WCW Sin, the decision to show the injury on Nitro, Shane Douglas in WCW, and much more. You can read his comments below.

Eric Bischoff on Shane Douglas in WCW: “Timing is everything, and I just don’t think the timing for Shane Douglas in WCW was optimal. I think if Shane would’ve come in two years sooner, I think things would’ve been a lot different. Shane was physically closer to his peak a couple of years before he got to WCW. I think he was on the downward trend in terms of his abilities in the ring. He had slowed down, gotten older, put on some weight. It happens as you get older. It’s just life. I think two or three or four years earlier, he was a different Shane Douglas in the ring.

“He was fluid, and he would remind you from time to time of a young Ric Flair or Ricky Steamboat. I’m not saying he was on their level, but he was that fluid, he was that capable. Here, he just looked like he had run out of gas and looked like he was relegated to hardcore matches for the rest of his life. I think if the timing would’ve been a little better for him, if WCW had been a little more stable – Shane came in during a pretty unstable time in WCW, which didn’t help him at all. It didn’t provide the best opportunity for Shane either. I like Shane, and thought a lot of him as a talent. I just think the timing was wrong for him in WCW.”

On Sid Vicious’s gruesome injury at WCW Sin and Road Warrior Animal as the mystery man in the main event: “It was hard to watch. I know Sid is a controversial talent in some respects with wrestling fans. I’ve always enjoyed Sid. I get along with Sid from the first time I ever met him. I flew up to his house in Mississippi, and we got along great. We still get along great. I enjoy seeing him when we’re out on the road. He was an amazing specimen of a human being. The match itself was really, really hard to watch. Creatively, I think they should have brought the mystery man out sooner. Having him come in as late as he did into this match – I tried hard to make sense out of it and excuses for it, but I can’t. It was just too weird to be entertaining. When it was revealed the way it was revealed – it got a great pop because it was Road Warrior Animal. The crowd is gonna react. But from a creative point of view, it was really, really not an effective way to use Animal in my opinion. This was a tough one to watch for me.”

On the decision to show the injury on Nitro: “Yeah because it was so gruesome. It was tough to watch. I wasn’t sure. You want to be real, and it’s something I’ve always noticed. Whenever a wrestler gets busted open or gets hurt in the ring, there’s always a need to show the post-injury surgery or to show the severity of the wound. The talent always likes to go backstage and when there’s a camera handy, show themselves getting stitched up. I guess that’s an effort to prove that what they do in the ring is physical and dangerous and real. I guess in some cases, it’s a good thing – maybe a necessary thing just to remind people we’re not pillow fighting. This is real stuff. But there’s a certain point where you have to draw the line with good taste, and with something as gruesome as this, it was a tough call. It really was.”

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