Hacksaw Jim Duggan Reflects On Being First Royal Rumble Winner, His Famous 2×4

Hacksaw Jim Duggan recently spoke with ToonieBet and discussed a variety of topics including being the first ever Royal Rumble winner, his famous 2×4, Lex Luger walking again, and more. Highlights of his comments are below.

On being the first ever Royal Rumble winner: “When I won the Royal Rumble, nobody was more surprised in that building than me! I was going down the list and realised I was winning it and couldn’t believe my eyes. I called my wife and told her: ‘I’m winning this, honey!’ It’s obviously the biggest feather in my cap, for sure! I was never the champion, I was the drummer and never the lead singer. But one thing I do remember is being in New York and my dad driving me to Madison Square Garden and seeing my name outside the stadium: Hacksaw Jim Duggan vs Andre The Giant. It was the dream of a lifetime selling out the Garden, and he beat the hell out of me! I worked with him a lot but sometimes when he beat me, he would put his feet on the ropes.”

On his famous 2×4: “I carry a two-by-four. What do you think my favourite move is? I am a brawler and not a wrestler, so that stuff comes over better in a house show than it does on TV. Back in the old days, it was real and people would spit at me, hit me, and abuse me while I was walking in. I remember sitting in West Texas with bruises and loogies all over me, rethinking my career. I remember Bruiser Brody walking in and telling me that if I do carry something to the ring, carry something I can use, and just by look I had a piece of wood — and that is how the two-by-four came about. You always got to stick with what brought you to the dance, and that was mine.”

On Lex Luger walking again: “It’s great to see Lex walking again. I didn’t know Lex very well but Jake Roberts and I were very close — he was a groomsman at my wedding around 37 years ago. But then he got into heavy drugs and we didn’t speak for ten or so years. DDP changed him and is now helping Lex, Buff Bagwell, Butterbean — the boxer. I saw him at Hulk’s funeral and had a great chat with him but he has helped a lot of guys out.”