Jim Cornette’s latest comments about Vince Russo didn’t go unanswered. After Dark Side of the Ring revisited Russo’s WCW run, Russo fired back by defending his booking decisions and explaining why he believes Cornette has spent years holding a grudge against him.
While speaking on The Coach and Bro Show, Vince Russo first joked that if the producers of Dark Side of the Ring wanted to bring him back for another episode, they’d have to pay a lot more this time around.
“Let me let the writers and producers at Dark Side of the Ring know, because you guys are championing this series, bro. Next time you wanna use me, just know that my price has doubled, bro, next time you want me on that show. Actually, tripled!”
Russo then addressed the episode’s focus on him “desecrating” the WCW World Championship by putting the title on himself in 2000. He argued that anyone upset over that booking is treating wrestling championships as though they’re real instead of recognizing they’re storytelling tools.
“The headline is how Vince Russo desecrated the WCW World Title. So Jim Cornette has established, like the other marks out there, that he believes wrestling is real. He believes I desecrated the WCW Title because I put it on myself after getting speared through a cage by Goldberg. Thus, he believes that the title in professional wrestling is real.
Bro, listen, all due respect to whoever you are out there, as a writer, if I have to sit here and literally tell you that the title is nothing more than a prop to help with storylines and angles, to push certain people, etc., if I have to sit here and tell you that, bro, then you’re literally an absolute mark and one of the people that have convinced themselves that wrestling is real, when you are gonna get upset over who wins the title.”
From there, Russo turned his attention directly to Cornette’s career. While giving him credit as one of wrestling’s best managers and promo guys, Russo argued that Cornette struggled behind the scenes and claimed he’d been fired from multiple promotions, unlike himself.
“I challenge anyone out there to look at the Jim Cornette resume and the Vince Russo resume. There is no doubting, back in the ’70s into the ’80s, Cornette was a great heel character. Cornette, the way his mind and his mouth worked together, there’s no one who can cut a promo like Cornette.
But look at Cornette’s resume after his managerial days. Bro, the guy has been fired from every wrestling promotion he ever worked for. I’ve been fired by none. Every promotion I left, I left on my own. I was never fired from any company. This guy has been fired from WCW, to TNA, to OVW. I think the last was ROH. He’s been fired so many times I’ve lost count.”
Russo said the biggest difference between them is that he evolved as wrestling changed while Cornette never did. He believes that’s why Vince McMahon and Dixie Carter chose him for creative roles, and why Cornette has blamed him ever since.
“Why? Because he can’t work with other people. Jim never changed with the times. As the wrestling business was evolving, Jim could not evolve. That’s why Vince McMahon and Dixie Carter chose me over Cornette. That’s why he made it a personal attack on me.
So when we fall short, here’s the first thing you do: you look in the mirror. What did I do wrong? What can I learn from this experience? You have those kind of people that grow. But then you have Jim Cornette people. When Vince and Dixie chose me, Jim looks in the mirror and is like, ‘Oh, it’s Vince Russo’s fault. I didn’t bring it upon myself. It’s Russo’s fault.’”
Russo and Cornette have been taking shots at each other for years, so another round was probably inevitable once Dark Side of the Ring put Russo’s WCW run back under the microscope. If nothing else, it’s clear neither man has any interest in burying the hatchet anytime soon.
Whose side are you on in the Vince Russo vs. Jim Cornette debate? Let us know in the comments below.
This transcript was produced exclusively for Ringside News from the original recording. Republishing the transcription in full is prohibited. When using excerpts, provide prominent credit and a link to this article.
