Hacksaw Jim Duggan on How His Character Was an Extension of His Personality, Why You Can’t Write Certain Wrestlers’ Promos

– The Wrestling Inc. Daily recently interviewed WWE Hall of Famer Hacksaw Jim Duggan. During the podcast interview, Jim Duggan addressed the argument of scripted wrestling promos vs. unscripted. According to Duggan, you can’t write promos for wrestlers like him or other Hall of Famers of his era, such as Ric Flair, Macho Man, and Junkyard Dog. Below are some highlights from WrestlingInc.com.

Duggan on why he’s probably not suited to be a coach at the WWE Performance Center: “[Laughs] are you ribbing brother? People ask me, ‘Hacksaw, what’s your favorite move?’ I go, ‘I kick and punch, I’m a brawler, I’m not a wrestler!’ I’m not even sure if that style would work nowadays. Back in my day you had a lot of kickass guys that wouldn’t leave their feet and then the pendulum went to the guys who were flying everywhere. Now I think it’s swinging back to the bigger men,.”

Hacksaw Jim Duggan on how he can’t be told how to write his promos or character: “You don’t write Flair, Macho Man, Junkyard Dog, Hacksaw Duggan. The character is an extension of my personality. That’s why most characters that are great are guys that are just an extension. Macho Man that you saw on TV is how Macho Man was. Jake is Jake. It’s who we are.”

Duggan on Ted DiBiase: “I’m older than Ted so he doesn’t rub it in at all [laughs]. I’ve known Ted for 40 years and he’s one of the best wrestlers in the world. Those second-generation guys are almost more polished – Ted DiBiase, Curt Hennig, Jake the Snake, Orton – guys that grew up in the business are just that much better. I was green as I broke into the business at 25 after football. I was green and didn’t know what I was doing. I learned an awful lot from DiBiase. Ted DiBiase may be the greatest technical wrestler in the sport but he can’t fight a lick. If you’re in the ring with Hacksaw then it’s a fight, tough guy. Hooooooo!”

His thoughts on the current wrestling landscape: “I don’t think the wrestlers themselves have a whole lot of say in the matter. I thought that early Bray Wyatt with [the original Wyatt Family] was great. I could see that kind of character back in our day. I don’t know how much creative control the talent has nowadays. But whatever works – a lot of people are critical of WWE – but they still have 100,000 at ‘Mania so someone’s watching.”