Jim Ross Recalls Vader’s Matches With Mick Foley, Arrivals in WCW and WWE

– Jim Ross spoke with Post Wrestling for a new interview discussing Vader’s career and life after the legend’s passing was announced. Highlights are below:

On Vader’s introduction to WCW: “Leon was a big, rugged, physical guy. He worked very snug and when I saw the tape of him and Stan Hansen where Hansen popped Leon’s eye… I watched that whole match. Jim Cornette and I were on that (WCW) booking committee at that time. We were just fascinated and made a play for him.”

On the relationship between Mick Foley and Vader: “It always seemed that Leon had a real natural chemistry with Mick Foley, and I don’t know if that was because he was so darn amenable and easy to get along with, because Leon could be stubborn. For whatever reason, they had enough respect for one another and you could see that in their matches. They didn’t take any prisoners and it was a very aggressive style.”

On Vader’s arrival in WWE: “I was very excited to bring Leon to the WWF with the talent relations team. Leon was perceived as a ‘good get’. He was a big, rugged heel and easy to cast in any scenario. He had Cornette as his manager – that’s like Brock Lesnar having Paul Heyman, it was a match made in wrestling hell. It was great.”

On Vader’s weight becoming an issue at one point: “I remember sending Leon and Yokozuna to the Duke Weight Loss Clinic at Duke University in North Carolina. I got the first report and they had only been there a week and they had gained weight. We found out they were sneaking out at night and going to get chicken.”