WWE boss Vince McMahon has revealed he was nearly the victim of a wild plot to murder him by rival promoters in the world of pro wrestling.
The 76-year-old sports entertainment tycoon has made a name for himself after acquiring WWE – formerly WWF – from his dad, transforming it into the multi-billion dollar phenomenon it is today.
Earlier on in his global success, McMahon revealed during a recent interview with The Pat McAfee Show that those at the helm of other wrestling businesses weren’t too into him ‘invading’ their turf.
So much so that they allegedly put a hit on him in a bid to stop him from dominating the world of pro wrestling promotion.
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The plot was apparently revealed by his friend and colleague Jim Ross, who had been working elsewhere in the industry before joining WWE as a commentator and analyst.
Former wrestler-turned-promotor Bill Watts, who ran the Mid-South promotion, was chatting with a number of other National Wrestling Alliance territories at a conference where they discussed what to do ‘about this kid’ – the kid being McMahon, Metro reports.
Speaking on the podcast, McMahon said, ‘I don’t know how many rivers I’m supposed to be at the bottom of. Death threats are what they are.
‘I always felt like if you can knock off the president of the United States, I’m easy to get to. I’ve never had a bodyguard or any of that stuff.
'In those days it was like, from their standpoint, when you invaded their territory, it was like… there were so many people who threatened me, that I told one of them, 'If you want to take credit for it, you better get me quick'.'
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Despite his nonchalant attitude, Ross told him about a murder plot he overheard while in the cubicle of a public toilet – although he didn’t tell McMahon about it until five years later.
McMahon explained, ‘So, they’re meeting in terms of what can they possibly do. So now, Jim is not part of the meeting, but Jim is now in the men’s room. And he’s in the men’s room in the stall taking care of business.
‘In walks four of the most prominent promoters. And they’re talking about how they’re gonna off me. 'This guy knows this guy, I know I can do this, this guy did this, it was really impressive' – they all know people. So they’re all talking about who was gonna off me.
‘So imagine Jim Ross, he doesn’t give a sh*t about Vince McMahon [as he wasn’t working for WWE at the time]. He’s thinking about himself. He’s on the throne. He hears this and thinks he’s gonna be an accessory to murder.
‘He takes one foot, puts it on the seat. Takes the other one, puts it on the seat, so now they can’t see his feet below the stall. And, of course Mother Nature is calling at the same time.
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‘So finally he waited for them to finish off, who was gonna kill me, and all that kinda crap. But that’s just one of those things.’
Although Ross worked for Mid-South Wrestling in the early 80s, he eventually went over to WWE, making his first appearance for the promotion at WrestleMania IX in 1993 – so it seems at some point down the line he decided to share this little anecdote with his pal.
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Topics: Sport
