Eric Bischoff Talks WWE Release In Latest Podcast

Former-Executive Director of WWE SmackDown Eric Bischoff explained his recent firing on the latest episode of 83 Weeks. Bischoff was released from WWE last week, after ratings for WWE SmackDown on Fox dropped by 1.4 million viewers in two weeks.

Without going into specifics, Bischoff explained that he was grateful for the opportunity.

Transcription via Robert Gunier at Wrestling INC.

I was really grateful for the opportunity to work for WWE and it was an opportunity. It didn’t work out the way I wanted it to work out and it clearly didn’t work out the way Vince McMahon wanted it to work out but it happens. I’m not taking any of it personally; professionally, I’m taking a hard look at it and thinking it through.

“But more than anything, I am grateful for the opportunity. Part of the reason that I am is because I had a chance to work with a great team of people – the writing staff on SmackDown in particular, as well as some of the writers on RAW. They are a very talented and unbelievably hard-working and dedicated group of people. Just to have the opportunity to work with people like that in of itself was worth the experiment.”

Bischoff also said that he never expected the job to be long-term, however he didn’t think it would be quite as short-term as it was. He went on to explain that he didn’t necessarily fit into WWE’s “very defined culture.”

“I didn’t come here thinking that I would be working for the WWE for 5 or 10 years. I looked it as a relatively short term opportunity, meaning 2 to 3 years. I didn’t think it was going to be quite this short term but sometimes that happens. WWE is a great company with a very defined culture and process, and I necessarily didn’t fit into it and that is just the way it is. I’m not sad, I’m not disappointed, or angry – I’m not any of those things. I am just looking forward to the next opportunity wherever and whenever that may be, and digging the idea of packing up the truck and heading back into Wyoming, so all in all, I’m very positive. I have nothing but great things to say about the people at WWE and the company as a whole. It is an amazing company. I’ve said this even before I went back there, from the production team and everybody I came into contact with is not only incredibly talented but hardworking and extremely dedicated to the work that they do, so I was grateful and am grateful to have been part of the opportunity to have been a part of it even for a short time.”