After a successful run in Europe, Fit Finlay made his way to the United States to join WCW.
Finlay debuted in WCW in 1995 and kicked off a heated rivalry with William Regal, where matches were often mistaken for shoots as the two men stiffed each other with each strike. The feud is most famous for the parking lot brawl on Nitro and Finlay breaking Regal's nose.
Speaking to David Penzer on Sitting Ringside, Finlay recalled his matches with Regal and how the boys in the locker room thought there was real heat between them.
"If you're going to impress your peers or have them asking you a question when you're coming through the back like, 'What the heck, you guys have beef?' If they believe there is something going on or you have a bad attitude or you're stiff or whatever, if your peers believe it, everyone else is gonna believe it. We take it seriously. As you journey through (wrestling), you start off with nothing, you get very little pay, and you climb the ladder, but it brings seriousness. 'I have to do this job, I have to succeed, I have to climb the ladder' because it's the only way you go to bed. The business doesn't owe me anything, but we put in the effort and for the most part, it paid off. It wasn't a joke to us. This, to us, was real and a lifestyle," he said.
Unfortunately for Finlay, his feud with Regal was about the only highlight for him throughout his WCW run as the focus went elsewhere on television. Reflecting on his time in WCW, Finlay expressed some mutual frustration with how things went in the company.
"I was a little disillusioned because I wasn't wrestling every day or involved in everything. It was a culture shock. No matter where I went, I wrestled the same and to me, I didn't get over in WCW. I floundered there and I don't think anybody knew what to do with me. It was a short-lived thing and it didn't work. Scott Hall and those guys came over at the same time or shortly before me and it was overshadowed by those guys, and rightly so. It was a shock to me that I wasn't involved much and a little depressing. I just wanted to get in the ring and do my thing, not sit at home. Apart from that thing with Regal, I did a run with Goldberg when he first started and getting him ready. I felt like WCW didn't do me any favors and I didn't do them any favors," he stated.
Finlay would be moved to the hardcore division in WCW, which didn't exactly excite him. He said about the hardcore division, "I hated the hardcore stuff, it was a waste of my abilities. It felt like it was dumbed down a bit."
Finlay would remain with WCW until the company was purchased by WWE in 2001.
Elsewhere on the podcast, Finlay discussed how he helped progress the women's division in WWE. You can find his full comments by clicking here.
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