Vader‘s run through WWE was marred by a variety of issues, and even though the star is a legend in the ring, one fellow WWE legend revealed many issues behind the scenes.
Speaking on the Something to Wrestle podcast (via WrestlingNews.co), WWE’s Bruce Prichard spoke about Vader’s first run in WWE.
“We got damaged goods, and he didn’t tell us till after he was signed,” Prichard said. After joining WWE in 1996, Vader debuted in the Royal Rumble. He then went on to beat Savio Vega in a match on WWE RAW. Afterwards, Vader immediately took time off to get shoulder surgery. According to Prichard, they knew Vader needed surgery and suggested to “make a splash” beforehand.
“And it was like, ‘Okay, well, you got to have the surgery anyway. So let’s go out, make a splash, and let’s, let’s do this and give a reason. Give you a debut. Give you an impactful debut, and then give a reason for you to go away,’” Prichard explained. “During that time, you’re trying to create a big monster baby face in Ahmed [Johnson], and he [Vader] didn’t look like the guy that would, that would do a lot of stuff. It was part of safety for Ahmed and safety for who he was working with.”
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