Chris Jericho recently spoke about the difficult times he first attended WWE in 1999 with the “Monopoly Event.”
“People thought I came to WWE just for money, you know, or whatever it is, came to WWE. I got paid cuts from WCW to go to WWE. I didn’t care about the money.
For fans who may not know, it was a big moment in the “attitude era” that first appeared on Jericho’s WWE TV. He surprised everyone by interrupting the rock with the countdown clock, but behind the scenes people weren’t excited to meet him.
During “Monday Night War,” when WWE and WCW were fighting for evaluation, wrestlers who switched companies were often untrusted by their new colleagues. Jericho wasn’t the only one who dealt with this issue.
“I mean, Big Show had it too. When the Radical Ts came, it seemed you were coming to this army from the other troops, and you can trust that this guy is trying to stab you in the stuff behind you.
Currently Jericho works for AEW, and he often welcomes former WWE wrestlers. In contrast to today, the way talent was handled when switching companies in the late 90s appeared to have performed 180 people, and wrestlers and fans are equally excited about the talent between promotions.
If you use quotes from this article, please credit “Exclusive Event” and provide AH/T to Wrestling Inc. for transcription.
