In a recent episode of his “My World” podcast, WWE Hall of Famer Jeff Jarrett shared his thoughts on the status of WCW in 2000.
Highlighted quotes from the podcast are available below:
Concerning the place of the Great American Bash in wrestling history, Jarrett stated, “The first kind of big show that was touring in my mind — and of course ‘Mania, or Rumble came later. But I guess ‘Mania maybe would be one. But right at the same time, because the WCW talent, the NWA talent was, we’ll call, a part of the territory. The Great American Bash always kind of had a sentimental value to it.”
Jarrett also talked about the condition of WCW during the period of the Great American Bash 2000. He said, “We had Stockholm syndrome. The culture and environment we were in meant we got paid. We showed up on Nitro and Thunder and pay-per-view, and the house shows were cut back at this point. And we just sort of thought, ‘Okay, how are we going to maximize this situation?’”
Regarding Hulk Hogan’s 2000 conflict with Billy Kidman, Jarrett commented, “Well at the time, I was mildly amused that I’m like, ‘Okay, Hulk’s doing this. What an opportunity for Billy; Billy will sell his a off.’ Billy Kidman, man, he’s a hell of a worker. He could fly all around. But as the story unfolded, it became clear that this potential were losing steam. It didn’t seem like this was going to benefit either wrestler.”
He continued, “Looking back now, it was because it was part of everything else we’ve discussed. The frequent title switches, the Booker T is GI Bro gimmick, and that stood out to me. The inconsistent storylines like Kanyon in a halo one month, back the next month, and Mike Awesome in the bus. The overall atmosphere of the product was a sad reflection of what it once had been. Like. I mean, it was so brutal because it never lived up to the potential. The Hogan/Kidman feud, like so many other things during this timeframe, man, it had some potential. Some folks had high hopes for it. But the reality is it disappointingly failed to meet expectations, like so many others.”
You can watch the full episode of his podcast below: