"It had nothing to do with the booking" - Vince Russo on what really killed WCW

Former WCW head writer Vince Russo has commented on what led to the downfall of the promotion.

World Championship Wrestling was WWE's biggest competitor until Vince McMahon purchased it in the early 2000s. During his tenure, Russo made controversial booking decisions like putting the WCW Championship on David Arquette and himself. Many believe these angles could have been a factor in the promotion's collapse.

During his interaction with Wrestling Buddy, Vince Russo revealed what led to WCW's downfall. He believes that it had nothing to do with the booking or the wrestlers, as the higher-ups weren't interested in carrying out professional wrestling anymore.

"Bro when the AOL/Time Warner merger happened, they didn't want to be in the wrestling business. I mean it's that simple. It had nothing to do with the show, it had nothing to do with the booking, it had nothing to do with any of that," Russo said. "The decision was made that when that merger was made, they no longer wanted to be in the wrestling business and that was pretty clear to us when we were working there. So it had nothing to do with talent or a person or a wrestling decision." (1:21:42-1:22:26)

You can check out this week's SmackDown results here.

Vince Russo claims that Vince McMahon "worked" the USA Network

WWE is still the top wrestling company in the world, and it has the biggest audience in the entire industry. The company's longest-running TV show, Monday Night RAW, has been airing live on USA Network for years.

Vince Russo, the head writer of WWE (then WWF) during the Attitude Era, believes that Vince McMahon "worked" the TV network, but they didn't terminate the deal due to the promotion's popularity.

"Pro-wrestlers, including Vince McMahon, they're the best workers in the world. Vince has worked the network because it was much different when I was there. When I was there, Bonnie Hammer was the President of USA Network. Bonnie Hammer brought great ideas and insight to the table. She knew television. I listened a lot to Bonnie and I learned a lot from Bonnie," said Vince Russo.

WWE's three biggest television shows, RAW, SmackDown, and NXT, have all aired on USA Network at some point. Speaking of the red brand, Vince McMahon made a special announcement during this week's episode. You can read about that here.

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If you use quotes from this article, please credit Wrestle Buddy and give H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.