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While World Championship Wrestling is missed in some ways, many of the past WCW performers have felt & gone on record that it was a better working environment as opposed to World Wrestling Entertainment. Some may argue that point, and that was the question raised to Lex. Which was a better work experience? "I guess I consider myself a WCW guy, because of time spent but also because of my relationship with Sting & some of the guys. But I always wanted to go to the WWE & succeed there, but I don’t think I ever reached my full potential there. But WCW is where I had most of my successes." Scott Hudson chimed in, asking Luger the one feud that he would have wanted to be in. "I had such a wonderful 15-year career. I worked with Ric Flair, and from day one, I got to work with the best in the business. I got to work with Hogan, Macho Man, Flair, Sting…I mean I could go on & on, Bret Hart. You name it, I got to work with all those guys. So I look back now, there’s not really anybody that I didn’t get to work with."
Hudson was an announcer in World Championship Wrestling during the time Lex was there, and Scott saw the way things were going in the last years of the company. "There was a mentality during the last two or three-year run in WCW, where there was no team concept. It didn’t seem like we were on the same team. It was every man & woman for themselves. And that came through in the product." Lex agreed with Scott, but added his sentiments. "At the time in the entertainment industry as a whole, that’s not unique back to the time at WCW. It’s a competitive industry in my opinion, and guys have always been that way, and I don’t know if it prevalent now, but it was throughout my career." Lex described a story of going to a AOL-Time Warner meeting in 1998 & how during a presentation discussing the Turner Networks, wrestling was not discussed once so back then, he saw the writing on the wall. "We were always the black sheep. Ratings were good, production weren’t super high, and it’s almost like they couldn’t get us off there. But once our ratings took a definitive dip, I felt that TBS & TNT really didn’t want wrestling anymore as part of their network strategy."
After the eventual sale of WCW to Vince McMahon, the ill-fated "Invasion" took place, but without the real household names of WCW like Sting, Goldberg, & Luger. The guys wanted to know if there were any plans for him to join the angle. "It wasn’t very close. I had to make a decision based on financials & my family. And I had over two years left on my contract for a very large sum of money. So to go over to Vince at the time without any guarantees would have been unfair to my family at the time…financially & for their security. Would I have loved to go the WWE & been given an opportunity? It would have been great. But at the time, it wasn’t a difficult decision."
Lex’s legacy was brought up, as a number of the things he has done inside the squared circle were overshadowed by what several things that transpired to Luger out of the ring. What does Lawrence Pfohl think about the legacy of "Lex Luger," as well as a possible future WWE Hall Of Fame induction? "I let other people make judgments on legacies…that’s up to them. I had a 15-year career that I’m very thankful for. I’m in life for a greater purpose…for his purpose, not mine. I’m not in it for accolades, but it would be a great honor & privilege for anything received and would be humbled for anything about the Hall Of Fame. Obviously, you would acknowledge it & be there if at all possible."
As a parting shot to The Mayhem Nation, the final question/topic for Lex was if has any regrets reflecting back on his time in the business, and if there was anything he would change if given the chance. "I think we all have regrets. If we could go back in time change some things, going back in my past I would. But one of my spiritual mentors told me, ‘Lex, your past is your past….It doesn’t mean it wasn’t there, but that bell has been rung, and you can’t ring it.’ I’ve dedicated my life to that now, cause I can’t change my past or change some of the bad decisions I have made…as tragic as some of them were."
More is contained is this near hour-long exclusive interview with "The Total Package," including the details behind The 1994 Royal Rumble in which he & Bret "Hitman" Hart won (and if there were any plans for a storyline between the two at that time leading into WrestleMania X), his memories of his former "Allied Powers" tag team partner "The British Bulldog" Davey Boy Smith (and if there was any legit heat between the two after Lex left the WWE for WCW), & the true story behind the incident in Florida Championship Wrestling involving the late Bruiser Brody (in which many believed that Luger received heat with Brody), & much more. One of the most eye-opening interviews in the seven+ year history of Monday Night Mayhem, which will have people talking for some time to come. "The Total Package" heard exclusively as part of "The Summer Of Mayhem 2009" on The Monday Night Mayhem Radio Network.
