Vinces problem with Randy Savage?

It's weird that this, of all things, has remained such a mystery in the wrestling business in light of how much dirt doesn't stay quiet. Even Savage's peers seem undecided on the true reason.

Roddy Piper says it's because Savage slapped McMahon at a bar one time, but nobody else has confirmed that (and Piper, while he means well, has sometimes remembered details of his own career wrong, so I'm not sure I trust him on this one 100%).

Bret Hart says that before he (Bret) left for WCW, he heard Savage called up Vince McMahon at an ungodly hour, drunk, and chewed him out over the phone. Bret said he asked Savage about that when he got to WCW and Savage seemed stunned, and said nothing of the sort ever happened.

Whatever it was, it happened a long time after Savage left the WWF for WCW, because for years Vince McMahon claimed Savage left on good terms and was openly talking about how he would be welcomed back at any time. Then at some point in the past 10-13 years or so, something changed Vince's mind.

I'll mention the Stephanie rumor too, since it's a popular one, but I personally don't believe it at all.

I heard Savage and Vince were in contract talks around 95/96 to come back to WWF, and as said Vince told Savage he was always welcome back. Around the same time Vince said Hogan would never be welcomed back.

The only reason the Stephanie (or any woman important to Vince) rumor sounds true is that whatever happened would have to be big for Vince to welcome Hogan back time and time again while he continued to shun Savage.

wasn't stephanie like, 14 at the time? i mean, i know randy missed elizabeth, but jeeze..

That's what I figured it was. Either Savage said something to someone in WCW about Stephanie or Linda and it got back to Vince and he was pissed.

This was filmed in late 2000. This completely blows a hole in the Stephanie theory simply because Randy wouldn't have said he wants to go back to the WWF if he had been busted bangin the boss' daughter.

You're 100% right about Nailz. You don't assault the boss over a payout, sue him for attempted sexual assault, give wild testimony against him in his steroid trial, and get welcomed back!

Benoit was posthumously banned but still occasionally pops up in the background on a DVD or WWE Classics on Demand video. Chyna's probably not banned per se, but might as well be, because I'm sure bringing her back would be awkward to the point where it is never considered for longer than one second.

Keep in mind, too, that the level of stardom makes a difference. If Vince McMahon knows a wrestler would be good for business, he's more willing to turn the other cheek than he would for, say, a midcarder like Nailz that virtually nobody misses.

First, let me say that Hogan held up Vince more times before going on than anyone else (multiple shoots will talk about this). He also threatened to quit dozens of times over his career to get what he wanted. One of the stories I've been told about the Summer Slam thing was that Warrior was talking to Hogan and felt he should get the same pay as him. Hogan told him to tell that to Vince, Warrior then asked for the pay increase, Vince was pissed, talked to Hogan and Hogan said "I'd fire him". Stuff like this falls in line with things I've heard about Hogan helping to blackball Savage over the years as well. Is that how it really happened? Only a few know for sure.

The drug thing was completely bogus. Warrior and Davey Boy were scapegoats to get heat off McMahon's back. I know the Self-Destruction of the Ultimate Warrior dvd will try and make you believe otherwise, but 95% of that dvd is revisionist history and untruths.

Vince is almost always willing to bring guys back that were moneymakers, which is why the Savage issue is so mysterious. But, he is also known to hold some grudges as well, with this being one of them. We'll probably never know the true story, or which rumor is possibly the truth.

I don't believe the Stephanie rumors for a second. If it were true, I'm not sure Vince would have kept it so secret (even as a father trying to keep the perception of your daughter's purity), Savage would have had charges pressed against him, and he wouldn't have worked anywhere in the business again.

The rest of the rumors just don't seem to be major enough to cause a grudge for the rest of their lives, but, Vince does have one of the biggest egos on the planet, so a certain shot to that one way or another (no matter how minor it may seem) could have caused it, I suppose.

i doubt it...at best,you'll get a gloss-over... " Sadly,Randy never again performed in WWE due to some irreconcilable differences."

something like that...

yeah,honestly i never heard of Hogan doing that before...

not saying it's untrue,just saying it's the first i've heard of it....political maneuvering? sure....refusing to job out? definitely....changing finishes and/or angles to suit him? Yes! but i never heard of him holding up a match until he got his money before...