Interview Recaps With Roddy Piper & Shane Douglas On NHB
Submitted by Chris Walters on Monday, June 23, 2003 at 2:23 PM EST



Thanks to the people over at the No Holds Barred Radio Show for sending in the following:

ROWDY RODDY PIPER ON NO HOLDS BARRED

This past week Rowdy Roddy Piper joined the No Holds Barred radio show to talk about a bunch of different issues in addition to promoting some of his upcoming NY appearances. NHB aims to bring you the biggest names in the wrestling business week in week out and if you'd like to hear the show in your area, log on to www.noholdsbarredwrestling.com and fill out the petition on the main page and then e-mail it to nhbfeedback@yahoo.com. Now on to the highlights from our interview with "Hot Rod" himself, "Rowdy" Roddy Piper.

Roddy opened up by talking about his return to the WWE. He said it's a growing experience and while he's been under a certain degree of scrutiny throughout his career, the only way you have the right to kick up some dirt is by going back and facing the music and showing everyone you haven't wavered in your position. He said today's superstars are far more athletic and superior and while the new style is not what he's used to, he has been very happy with the WWE's efforts to clean up the product.

We joked with Roddy about the guarantee he gave us last time he joined us prior to joining the WWE where he said if he ever returned to the WWE he'd run down the aisle and put the "F" back on. He mentioned that he hasn't told anyone but he'd like to go out before the show at MSG and start mingling with the crowd and interracting with the fans in an improvisation setting and while it may be best served for him to pull the stunt when cameras are not rolling, he may also have to suck it up and do it when they are because he's getting older and he may not have many more chances to do so. He finished the statement by saying that he will do it eventually but the timing has to be right when doing so.

Roddy expressed a great deal of excitement regarding his return to Madison Square Garden this week. He said that many fans know that he is an independent spirit and that's something they like about him. He said MSG is a place where legends are created and where concepts are developed and he can't wait to return.

Speaking of his return to MSG, Roddy joked that he's considering setting up a tent since he will be in the building on Tuesday for Smackdown and then later in the week on Friday, Saturday and Sunday for the International Sci-Fi and Fantasy Creators Convention. He also put over his appearance at Baley's in Staten Island on Wednesday where he said he will conduct a LIVE Piper's Pit segment.

He confirmed that Tom and Bruce Pritchard had a lot to do with him returning to the WWE. He said that both of them have been great to him during his entire career and he trusts both of them completely. He noted that they went to bat for him and convinced management that he could still draw money and he didn't want to be labeled a coward for turning down the opportunity when both of them had stuck their necks out for him.

Roddy said he will be in the ring for the Smackdown tapings on Tuesday against Eddie Guerrero and he joked that he has been around so long because he's actually worked against Eddie's grandfather Hector. He joked about the segment with Eddie and Tajiri 2 weeks ago and in a light hearted fashion sent Eddie the following message "Eddie, I'm going to kick your ass this week at the garden".

He commented that Piper's Pit has sucked since it was brought back. He said the first one he did with Vince went great because they both were able to improvise. He said after that, the segment has been too structured and he's made it known that he needs to be able to be himself and the current setup is not his style. He said there are a lot of control issues going on behind the scenes and it's very difficult for him to operate in that kind of format. He said he has a lot of different Piper's Pit segments in his head and he hopes to use them more on the house shows and feels that if they go over then maybe Vince McMahon will alter his thinking that just because something is old doesn't mean that it's useless. Roddy closed the statement by saying he doesn't like the way he's being presented and feels it's a fight he isn't winning however he won't quit because that's not his style.

He said management was solely responsible for pairing him with Sean O'Haire. He said that people backstage felt that by putting O'Haire with him it would help Sean progress better by learning from Roddy however "Hot Rod" disagrees. Roddy said he doesn't mind being with Sean but he feels O'Haire needs to be given the chance to talk more. He feels O'Haire needs to be able to do his own thing because he's already talented and can cut a great promo and the problem with his character is that he hasn't been in situations where his character and his ability can shine thru. He said that nobody in creative has intentionally tried to hold Sean back and he has been trying very hard to get Sean to the next level. Roddy ended the statement by saying Sean O'Haire does not need to become the next Bob Orton because they are very different talents.

Roddy said he has no regrets regarding the Vince Russo controversy that took place during his brief NWA TNA stint. He said he feels he was a huge help because after the segment took place Russo had less of a role on camera in TNA. He said Russo was never supposed to come to the ring that night during his segment and feels that if a guy like Vince is the best they have to offer then it's a crying shame because he tore him apart in just 5 minutes. Roddy said that he feels like he rid the wrestling business of an evil for a short period and as far as the comments about Owen were concerned, he said Bret and the rest of the Hart family know how much he loved him.

We closed the interview by asking Roddy if he feels it's time for Bret Hart and the WWE to sit down and work things out for a proper farewell. Roddy said that in his own personal opinion, there is a lot of baggage Bret will have to deal with and a return can bring back a lot of bad memories. He questioned how much a man can take as Bret has went thru a lot of tough times during his life. He said he visited with him recently and told him he doesn't need to come back because he has nothing left to prove yet if he decided to come back it would have to be based on Bret's decision and if he did decide to return he'd be right behind him supporting his decision. Roddy also feels that it would be great for the fans but said that the backstage structure would be another issue Bret would have to overcome.

To hear the interview with "Rowdy" Roddy Piper log on to www.noholdsbarredwrestling.com. The No Holds Barred radio show is hosted by Jason Barrett and George "The Animal" Farmer and airs every Sunday night on 101.5 WPDH in parts of NY, NJ, CT and PA.


SHANE DOUGLAS ON NO HOLDS BARRED

This past week Shane Douglas joined the No Holds Barred radio show to talk about a bunch of different issues and the highlights from the interview are listed below. NHB aims to bring you the biggest names in the wrestling business week in week out and if you'd like to hear the show in your area, we ask for you to show your support by logging on to www.noholdsbarredwrestling.com and filling out the petition on the main page and then sending it back via e-mail to nhbfeedback@yahoo.com. Now on to the recap

Shane opened up the interview by saying is thrilled to be a part of the NWA product right now. He says the NWA reminded him of how much passion he has for this business and had become disenchanted with the business while watching the WWE product over the past 6 months. He added that he took the drive to Nashville and saw TNA first hand and after seeing there presentation he knew he wanted to give it a shot.

He talked about the NWA 1 year anniversary show and what a success it was. He joked with us about being a pumpkin and hitting the bed at 9:30pm on the night of the 1 year anniversary party but said he sucked it up and is glad he did attend the after party show because it allowed him the opportunity to meet the executives from Panda Energy as well as have a lengthy conversation with Jerry Jarrett.

He feels NWA TNA is ready to leap full throttle and become a real force in the industry and thinks that veterans like himself and Raven can help the young talent become bigger stars. He credits Ricky Steamboat for teaching him, Steve Austin and Brian Pillman how to be main eventers and how to lead a locker room.

Shane said he has only spoken to XPW executives once over the last 7 months. He wants nothing to do with any legal issues XPW is involved in and he joked about never buying a Playboy magazine. His feeling was simple "Why look at a chick you can never have." He also joked that he could never make enough money in the pron industry based on what god gave him.

He said the situation is up in the air right now with XPW and during their last conversation he made it clear that he is ready to re-visit the situation when they are ready to get serious again about the wrestling portion of business.

He feels that a lot of pressure is off his shoulders now since he only has to concentrate on his character backstage. He said being a writer/booker can be extremely difficult because you're not only worrying about your own segment but you have to think for everyone in the locker room. He finished his statement by saying he has no problems backstage in TNA with any of the boys he had made decisions for during his XPW stint.

Shane was openyl critical about the WWE "Boring" storyline last week involving Stone Cold Steve Austin and Lance Storm. He added that he would never allow someone to put him in the same situation and he was embarassed watching the segment on TV as he didn't feel it added anything to the program. He said that if Lance Storm sucks and doesn't get over it's got everything to do with Vince McMahon, HHH, Steve Austin and Stephanie McMahon because Lance is a tremendous talent and should be used better then he is.

He talked about his friendship with Vince Russo. He feels even though they have different views on the business he respects Russo a great deal. Russo stood by him in WCW when Kevin Sullivan was trying to push him out and he will always be grateful to him for his support.

Shane surprised us by saying that he is pleased that the WWE has acquired ECW's assetts. The reason for him being happy with the decision is because Shane owns the rights to the Franchise and Triple Threat trademarks. He said that Vince McMahon is a smart business man and he will know what to do with the ECW assetts where as Paul Heyman didn't. Shane finished by saying that the only one who will benefit from the money made off the ECW footage is his son Connor and he will fight to the highest court in the land to protect his son's future. He said he's not looking to squeeze every last dime out of Vince McMahon but he does want a fair quantity of what he's owed from ECW and if they can't agree to do business then Vince may as well put a big black hole in the middle of the tapes which contain his character.

On a possible WWE return Shane said he is a business man and he would never rule anything out. He said say however that the Dean Douglas character would never return nor would he kiss anyone's ass or scratch any chalkboards.

To hear the interview with "The Franchise" Shane Douglas log on to www.noholdsbarredwrestling.com. The No Holds Barred radio show is hosted by Jason Barrett and George "The Animal" Farmer and airs every Sunday night on 101.5 WPDH in parts of NY, NJ, CT and PA.

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