Triple H and Vince McMahon have undoubtedly heard many complaints over the years from WWE Superstars who want more television time. In 2014, however, the higher-ups received an interesting request from a Hall of Famer who felt “disgusted” by his own performances.
Brian James, also known as Road Dogg, returned to in-ring action alongside his New Age Outlaws tag team partner Billy Gunn ahead of WrestleMania 30. The two men won the WWE Tag Team Championship before going their separate ways three months later.
Speaking on Sportskeeda’s “The Wrestling Outlaws” show, James recalled how he asked Triple H and Vince McMahon to stop booking him. At the time, the veteran felt he could not keep up with his opponents in the ring.
“Once we dropped them [the tag titles] to The Usos, they were still booking us,” James said. “I went to Hunter and Vince both and said, ‘I can’t do this anymore.’ I felt like I was slowing people down in the ring. I can’t think of another word: it disgusted me. It was like, ‘Oh God, don’t be that, don’t do that, don’t be that guy.’” [3:42-4:08]
In the video above, James speaks to former WWE writer Vince Russo about possible reasons why veteran wrestlers cannot stay away from the ring.
Brian James explains how he chased his dream in WWE
Performing as Road Dogg, Brian James won six WWE Tag Team Championships with Billy Gunn. The D-Generation X members are widely viewed as one of the most entertaining tag teams of all time.
Looking ahead, the former SmackDown lead writer clarified that he has no plans to step back into the ring.
“I chased a dream,” James continued. “I don’t know if there’s such a thing as legacy in professional wrestling, let’s be honest with each other. But do people remember me? Will people remember me? Yeah, I chased a dream and I grabbed it and I got to do it on a big level, so mission accomplished. Now I don’t want to do that anymore.” [4:17-4:36]
James’ contributions to the wrestling business were recognized in 2019 when he joined the WWE Hall of Fame. D-Generation X stablemates Billy Gunn, Chyna, Sean Waltman, Shawn Michaels, and Triple H were also inducted in the same Hall of Fame class.
What are your memories of The New Age Outlaws? Let us know in the comments section.
Please credit Sportskeeda’s “The Wrestling Outlaws” and embed the video if you use quotes from this article.