Kevin Nash didn’t feel welcomed by top WWE stars when he returned after WCW stint

Big Daddy Cool wasn’t a popular man in 2002, it seems (Photo: WWE)

WWE legend Kevin Nash has admitted his return from WCW in 2002 wasn’t exactly met with open arms.

The two-time Hall of Famer came back into the fold as part of Vince McMahon’s own take on the nWo a couple of months after the company had acquired World Championship Wrestling and put its competition out of business.

From 1996 to 2001, Nash had been a huge part of the rival promotion after jumping ship and earning a bigger payday when his contract expired.

He played a big role in its charge against WWE during the infamous Monday Night War, and he admitted there weren’t many people backstage glad to see him back with ‘Hollywood’ Hulk Hogan and Scott Hall.

‘Nobody wanted us, number one,’ he told ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin during their recent Broken Skull Session interview on the WWE Network.

Austin noted he didn’t feel any kind of sense of ‘welcoming’ or ‘synergy’ for his old friend, and the former world champion compared the situation to the American Civil War.

‘We’re basically the Confederate generals,’ Nash laughed. ‘It’s like when the Civil War was over, I don’t remember Grant saying, “You know Lee, I got a spot for you! We just aren’t going to hang you, we’re gonna give you a slow death.” ‘

Indeed, Big Daddy Cool initially turned down an offer to sign with WWE when his WCW contract officially expired, although he admitted he knew by playing hard to get, he’d land a better offer.

‘When [Vince] turned around and said, “[If anyone’s gonna kill my creation, I’m gonna do it. Me and the nWo]”, I had not at that point agreed to come in,’ he said, reflecting on McMahon’s infamous promo on Raw.

‘Hulk did, Scott did and he just thought I was going to. Shane [McMahon] called me first. I talked to Shane, I said, “I’m not interested in coming back”. He said, “Why?” I said, “Well I got lied to on a payday”.

‘I just called him on it, got off the phone, hung up and my wife said, “What are you doing?! Did you tell them you’re not going back?” I said, “By noon tomorrow there’ll be a knock on a door, there’ll be a FedEx.” ‘

More: US TV news

Of course, Nash did return but by 2004 he’d left again, this time to join TNA Wrestling, where he stayed until 2011.

He’s made occasional WWE appearances over the years, most famously a decade ago when he returned as Diesel for the 2011 Royal Rumble, and feuded with CM Punk and later Triple H for much of the year.

He also returned in the 2014 Royal Rumble, and at WrestleMania 31 the following year he, Hall and Hogan came out to help WCW legend Sting in his bout with Triple H when D-Generation X members Billy Gunn, Road Dogg, Shawn Michaels and X-Pac got involved.

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