According to Alex Wright, WCW wrestlers sensed that the promotion was already in serious trouble long before its official closure.
In an interview with Bryan Asbury for the program Developmentally Speaking, which is hosted on the show’s official YouTube channel, Wright was asked if the eventual demise of WCW surprised him.
“Yeah, of course.”
Wright noted that wrestlers talked about the company’s issues backstage, and the decline was also evident in the televised product.
“Every time we had a show… we just see that the product get destroyed by booking.”
Wright was especially critical of directives issued by individuals he considered lacking substantial in‑ring experience.
“There were so many stupid calls, like we shouldn’t do this in the ring or you shouldn’t do that in the ring, and it came from people which never stood in the ring.”
Wright claimed that some of those decision‑makers lacked any understanding of how to construct a match.
He also recalled seeing attendance dwindling.
One production technique made the decline especially apparent to him.
“They had to switch around the fans to the opposite side of the hard cam just so the building looks full.”
For Wright, this was an unmistakable warning sign.
Wright’s remarks reflect his personal observations of WCW’s decline, not a definitive explanation for its failure.
WrestlingHeadlines has recently featured alternative perspectives, such as Kevin Nash’s claim that WCW’s biggest issues extended beyond booking, and his assertion that AOL Time Warner’s waning interest in wrestling was the decisive business factor.
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article, please credit Developmentally Speaking, with a h/t to Wrestling Headlines for the transcription.