5 Backstage stories about DX you need to know

#4 Rick Rude appeared on both WWE RAW and WCW Nitro on the same night

In later 1997, Rick Rude (who was affiliated with DX at the time), jumped ship from WWE to WCW, with the major reason for the same being that he was angry at what had happened in Montreal, at Survivor Series 1997. Rude wasn't happy at witnessing Vince and DX's treatment of Bret Hart at the event. He bagged a contract with WCW and appeared on Nitro on the November 17, 1997, edition.

Interestingly, Rude also appeared on WWE RAW on the same night,. This became possible because Rude had already taped his segment for WWE's flagship show six days ago while he was still a WWE employee. Rude made his surprise appearance on Nitro, sporting a mustache, and slammed Vince McMahon, Shawn Michaels, and DX, and proceeded to dub the company as a sinking ship.

Around an hour later, Rude was shown on WWE RAW, sporting a full beard. He passed away in 1999, at the age of 40, due to heart failure. Rude was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2017.

About the author

Abhilash Mendhe is a pro wrestling journalist at Sportskeeda with nearly five years of experience. He completed his MBA from the Symbiosis Institute of Telecom Management in 2016 and worked with multiple banking institutions, including Tech Mahindra. While he started writing WWE articles for Sportskeeda in 2019 as a hobby, it eventually became a significant part of his professional journey.

Abhilash checks his articles thrice before sending them to the editing team, ensuring his work is highly accurate and reliable.

He has interviewed prominent pro wrestling personalities like Noam Dar, Angry Miz Girl, Brendan Cobbina, and Jesse Lambert. Abhilash is a big fan of AEW star Orange Cassidy, as he believes the former International Champion’s on-screen gimmick of an extremely lazy guy resonates with him.

Given the opportunity to script WWE’s next big storyline, Abhilash would treat fans to the second installment of The Bloodline Civil War. He would book Roman Reigns to re-form The Bloodline with The Usos and Sami Zayn upon his comeback. The angle would see The Tribal Chief-led group go head-to-head with The Rock, Solo Sikoa, Tama Tonga, and Jacob Fatu in a blockbuster family feud.

When not reporting on pro wrestling, Abhilash likes to work out, go on walks, read, and explore new eateries.

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Edited by Zaid Khan