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Photo Credit: WWE

JBL Recalls How He Was ‘Smartened Up’ To The 1996 ECW Invasion In WWE

Sometimes things in professional wrestling change on a dime, as was the case for JBL in his match against Savio Vega at WWF’s In Your House: Mind Games in 1996.

JBL discussed the night ECW invaded the WWF on a recent episode of Stories With Brisco And Bradshaw alongside co-host Gerald Brisco and special guest, former ECW and WWF star Blue Meanie.

“It was me and Savio Vegas in a Caribbean Strap Match and Bruce [Prichard] smartened up Savio to what was gonna happen. Sandman was gonna dump the beer on Savio and he said ‘grab the Cowboy [JBL] and don’t let him go over the rail’ because nobody smartened me up to this,” JBL explained. “Jack Lanza didn’t wanna take the risk and he turned to me and said ‘if anything happens, don’t go over the rail’ and I said ‘Jack, you wouldn’t tell me that if something wasn’t going to happen’ and he said ‘I’m just telling you, something might happen in the corner with Savio and just understand, if it does happen, it’s part of the show.’

“So, when we went out to the ring, Savio and I were on the wrong side of the ring and someone says that we have to go over there and right then and there I realized this is where the spot is about to happen. So, when Savio wrapped the rope around me, he didn’t know Jack smartened me up to it, so he said ‘stay here with me, let’s go back in the ring’ but the boys in the back just had gotten to guerrilla and they were just about to head out. Nobody else was smartened up to it,” JBL said.

The spot would see ECW legend Sandman seated in the front row and would spit in the face of Vega during an outside of the ring spot which ignited Gerald Brisco, not knowing the spot was planned, ready to ‘kick the crap’ out of current WWE producer Bruce Prichard.

“I did go out there, this was the night I really wanted to kick Bruce Prichard’s ass. You can ask him, he was scared, I was ready to kill him,” Brisco explained.

The trio also discussed WWE’s ECW revival and why it missed the mark; you can read their comments on the failed relaunch of the brand at this link.

If you use this transcript, credit WrestleZone and link back to this post. 

Related: JBL Praises Beth Phoenix’s ‘Understanding Of The Business’ On Commentary

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