How Scott Hall & Kevin Nash Indirectly Helped WWE Buy WCW
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- Vince McMahon's Lawsuit Against WCW Is Explained
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March 26, 2001, is embellished as one of the most important days in the history of professional wrestling. Vince McMahon popped up on WCW Nitro, the television program of his sworn rival, Ted Turner, and declared that he had acquired WCW.
In 1997, after the infamous Montreal Screwjob, many people were convinced that WWE was already dead. The last big star in Bret Hart left for WCW and McMahon’s own locker room was on the cusp of a riot and walk out but just a few short years later, McMahon won the war and as the ultimate sign of supremacy, he brought WCW and for McMahon, a measly 7 million was chump change.
RELATED: Did The Monday Night Wars Actually Hurt Wrestling In The Long Term?
Rumors of the sale of the company began to pick up prominence in October 2000. TBS had realized that the company was a sinking ship and that there was no saving WCW. A number of wrestling personalities began the process of setting up enough capital, including Eric Bischoff and Randy Savage, but McMahon was the one who made the purchase, despite being legitimately disliked by Ted Turner.
UPDATE: 2023/02/15 17:00 EST BY Waleed Shafi
Vince McMahon's Lawsuit Against WCW Is Explained
In 1996, WWE sued WCW alleging trademark infringement, slander and unfair competition. WCW went all out in implying that Hall and Nash were sent by Vince McMahon and WWE’s lawyer claimed that the presentation would lead to confusion among the public and lead people to believe that Vince McMahon had actually sent the two to destroy WCW from within.
This was breaking new ground for the WWE as they were usually the ones in control and able to throw their weight around, but with Ted Turner's enormous wealth at their command, WCW was ready for a long and drawn out legal battle with Vince McMahon and his infamous lawyer, Jerry McDevitt.
McMahon Emerged As The Supreme Victor
Apparently, a settlement negotiated just a year ago gave McMahon a certain right under particular circumstances. And said the settlement was the end result of a lawsuit between WCW and WWE, filed by the latter in response to the NWO storyline.
In 1996, WWE sued WCW and contended that the NWO storyline presented Kevin Nash and Scott Hall as employees of the WWE and asserted that WCW was guilty of defamation, slander, and trademark infringement. The company sought a restraining order to restrict the usage of Nash and Hall and the matter continued in the court of law.
Do note that this was before the infamous Bash at the Beach incident where Hogan turned heel and had WWE succeeded in getting the temporary restraining order, the NWO storyline would have never occurred. The implication that Vince McMahon was the perpetrator of the invasion did not help matters either as WCW continually referenced that Hall and Nash were sent by McMahon to sabotage the company, and the blackouts during the show were actually carried out by Vince McMahon and the WWE.
The Atlanta-based company was backed into a corner. At that point, they had already begun to enforce the idea that WWE was invading them and nixing the storyline was not an option but at the same time, every mention of Vince McMahon on air gave WWE more ammunition in the lawsuit.
McMahon struck at the perfect time and while WCW was well in the lead in the rating war, the executives surely had a few sleepless nights, especially in the days leading up to Bash at the Beach as one court order could have ruined the entire angle. Much props to the attorney of Vince McMahon as the guy had no problem explaining to the judge the intricacies of professional wrestling and character development that came along with the storyline.
RELATED: 10 Biggest Mistakes WCW Made With Kevin NashThe lawsuit dragged on for years while WWE did not get the restraining order, the settlement proved more than beneficial for the company. The two parties came together in 2000 and negotiated a settlement and according to the terms, Vince McMahon had the right to bid on the assets of the company if WCW was ever liquidated. In 2000, said contingency did not seem like too far-fetched as the company was bleeding green and had one foot in the corporate grave.
Vince McMahon's Lawsuit Against WCW Had Some Interesting Details
The next generation of superstars, namely, Scott Hall and Diesel too were on their way to WCW and while Vince McMahon was not able to outbid WCW when it came to their contracts, he was able to achieve a small victory in the court of law. Upon acquiring their contracts, WCW intended upon presenting Kevin Nash and Scott Hall as WWE employees out to get them and this is where WWE found their cause of action.
The company also sought an injunction to restrict the use of Scott Hall and Kevin Nash on WCW television and if the judge had granted this temporary injunction, the Outsiders' storyline would not have occurred as Nash and Hall would have been restricted from television altogether. This legal battle took place mere days before the Bash at the Beach 1996 PPV.
Judging by the writing of the complaint, it’s likely that Vince McMahon himself wrote the pleadings. Among the complaints of trademark infringement and slander, the complaint detailed the bitter history of WCW versus WWE, with the latter contending that the company in Atlanta copied everything that they did, leeched off of their superstars and continually trampled over their rights with devious designs.
Moreover, the complaint alleged that since its inception, WCW served as TBS’ vehicle to disparage and destroy WWE and the company cared little about its own promotion and well-being. In addition to praying for the injunction, WWE also sought the destruction of all footage pertaining to Nash and Hall. Indeed, it was an unusually aggressive legal complaint but surprisingly, the judge did not quash the complaint at first instance and the lawsuit between WWE and WCW continued for the next couple of years.
RELATED: 10 Things You Didn’t Know WWE Copied From WCWAfter this lawsuit, WCW toned down the implication that Vince McMahon and WWE itself was behind the arrival of Scott Hall and Kevin Nash and during an episode of Nitro, they admitted on-screen that WWE was not behind the take-over attempt. Fortunately for WCW, the court did not grant WWE the injunction it sought and so they were able to use Nash and Hall on television. The two companies carried on with the Monday Night Wars and the lawsuit remained open until the year 2000.
The Settlement Granted WWE Exclusive Rights
In the end, WCW went down as expected and as mentioned before, a number of potential buyers came forward in hopes of acquiring the company. Eric Bischoff was thought of as the leading man but at the last second of negotiations, his partners backed off, and the deal fell through. Vince McMahon then stepped up and probably outbid anyone else left on the table.
Even if WCW loathed Vince McMahon, they could not just reject his offer as the settlement was binding upon them. More importantly, TBS was just about done with professional wrestling in general and as soon as Vince McMahon slapped a few millions on the table, the executives probably thanked God as the company was worth even less.
Seriously, WCW lost $100 million dollars in one year. This was the reason why no television network wanted the promotion anywhere near their channels. Long story short, Kevin Nash and Scott Hall leaving for WCW set the wheels in motion and just a couple of years later, Vince McMahon brought WCW.
Turns out, that while WCW was winning on television, Vince McMahon was winning in the courtroom.
