Rob Van Dam Discusses WWE, TNA, Hulk Hogan, ECW, More

Posted by Larry Csonka on 11.05.2009

RVD speaks…

Transcript credit: www.mondaynightmayhem.com

What better place for "Mr. Monday Night" to be on a Monday evening other than The Monday Night Mayhem Radio Network! "Mr. PPV" joined The Mosh, Blade, & "The Chairman Of The Board" Todd Vincent for his third appearance on the MNM airwaves. Rob thanked The Mayhem Crew for the chance to come back, as he is gearing up for a phenomenal overseas tour in November & December. For more information on where Rob is headed, log onto his official website (located at www.RobVanDam.com), along with his official MySpace page (located at www.MySpace.com/GoToRobVanDam.com.)

Since leaving World Wrestling Entertainment two years ago, rumors have continued to swirl that RVD Rob could be moving over to TNA...and those rumors kicked into high gear after he attended last month's Bound For Glory PPV in California (as a guest of Booker T) and met both Dixie Carter & Vince Russo. Now that Hulk Hogan has officially signed with TNA, how appealing is TNA to RVD? The question on the hearts & minds of fans across the globe was answered exclusively on The Mayhem. "With Hulk Hogan & Eric Bischoff now in TNA, it's a very interesting time in the wrestling business...and in a very positive way. I was at Bound For Glory saying hi to some friends. And part of that was 'Oh hi Dixie, nice to meet you.' We have talked on the phone...Same thing with Vince Russo. Now that Hogan & Bischoff are there, it's definitely putting a lot of energy on TNA, a lot of focus & eyes. Now if they can follow up with that, they could really, really grow." He went to add, "It's more appealing because they raised the stakes."

Many people in the wrestling industry are indeed skeptical about TNA's acquisition of "The Hulkster," with such superstars as The Honky Tonk Man saying Hogan joining the company very will could be "the end of TNA." Others have speculated that some of Hogan's long-time friends & colleagues (such as Brutus "The Barber" Beefacke & The Nasty Boys) could have jobs again in the business with Hogan in charge. RVD knows Hogan well (especially after having the opportunity to be a special guest trainer on last fall's "Hulk Hogan's Celebrity Championship Wrestling"), and was asked what can Hogan bring to the table at this time to TNA. "Hulk Hogan brings credibility & name recognition. A lot of people that don't watch wrestling & many haven't watched wrestling in five or ten years, they all know who Hulk Hogan is. He is a great representative of what wrestling can be. Should he have the book? I don't know. Just because you have one talent in the business, doesn't mean you have something else. I can't imagine myself having the book & being in charge. If they do allow Knobbs & Beefcake and those guys to come in, we can all say TNA wasn't that smart."

This month, The Monday Night Mayhem Radio Network will be looking back at the ten-year anniversary of one of professional wrestling's most-storied Pay-Per-Views, ECW's November To Remember '99 (which took place in the hometown of The Mayhem: Buffalo, NY), along with its place in wrestling history, & the impact it left on the business. Many fans from the original ECW remember that was Taz's last match with the company, and Taz's final feud in the company while being an active member of the roster was against RVD.

"The Chairman Of The Board" asked Rob about that night in Buffalo, what he remembers from the Pay-Per-View. "The night itself doesn't stand out in a lot of way in my mind. The match I remember had a lot of momentum. I had a lot of special feelings for Taz at the time, and we had a little history with me being on Team Sabu & him being on Team Taz. I don't remember the match that well, but I could pretty bet that RVD had a kick-ass match."

Mosh asked Rob about the legacy of November to Remember & how the fans will remember the event as a whole. "I think if nothing else since it had such a damn catchy title, I think the fans will always remember that. And if they were fortunate enough to be there live & be one of the fans that was part of that time period when we were all treated with these awesome extreme matches, then they will always remember it. Anytime you say November, you have remember in the back of your mind whether you say it enough."

A couple of new DVD's are in the pipeline from World Wrestling Entertainment ("The History Of The World Heavyweight Championship" & "Jeff Hardy: My Life, My Rules") with some RVD's best matches from years past being put on these upcoming DVD's. Rob was asked if the industry can get back to when there was five-star matches all the time & if there can be a rebirth of sorts.

"I would hope so, but I would understand if it went the other way too, because I had enough so I would understand when other people have had enough. I don't watch wrestling in fact I haven't watched it since 2001, so when I was in the WWE, I would record the show & fast-forward through it to my to critique it. It became about business to me, and I didn't want to watch other people work. I see what they are doing, and I'm not impressed with al ot of what I see on TV. I see people going through movements, but they have no sense of art & pro wrestling is an art."

He continued by adding: "Can we get the wrestling business fun with Hulk Hogan in TNA? I don't know but here's one thing, part of why it's not interesting to watch anymore is because it's so routine & mundane. Every match from the beginning to the end, have to be 'superstar vs. superstar.' They have to be treated like main events, they all have to go six or seven minutes, they have to back & forth all the time, and someone catches a fall. What happened to the jobber matches? Big John Studd would have a squash match with two or three guys, and then when he faced like Hulk Hogan, it meant something. But now every match, we have to see the babyface cry & sell, and the heel do his stuff, and the babyface make his big comeback. Every match? I don't enjoy that."

More goodness is contained in this exclusive interview with "The Whole F'n Show," including his candid comments & thoughts on Shane McMahon's departure from the WWE, what he would like to see more of in wrestling today, & a special "Get Well" message to the voice of World Wrestling Entertainment, Jim Ross. More is contained is this interview with the longest reigning ECW Television Champion of all time Rob Van Dam at www.mondaynightmayhem.com and visit www.robvandam.com as well!