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Posted By	Discussion Topic: New Talent signed for WCW
TeenWeek what's a status?	posted on 05-31-2001 @ 12:28 PM
O&A Board Regular Registered: Oct. 00	by Dave Scherer Updated: 5/31/2001 10:51:38 AM Numerous sources are telling us that Buff Bagwell has signed a multi-year contract with the WWF to wrestle for WCW. Bagwell, whose old deal with AOL Time Warner originally expired in March of this year, signed a two-month extension in order to work through what turned out to be AOL's last WCW PPV. After Bagwell's AOL contract expired this month, he was free to sign with the WWF and has reportedly done so. There is concern from some people in the WWF about signing Buff, given that he was often troublesome during his time in WCW, but there are others in the company who feel that since they are now the only game in town, wrestlers that had acted badly in the past will realize that they only get one shot and will be on their best behavior in the new WCW. As Bob reported on the Newsline last night, Booker T has accepted a buyout from AOL for his contract and is expected to sign a deal very soon with the WWF to work in WCW as well. Sources are also telling us that Diamond Dallas Page is also working towards getting a buyout from AOL so that he can also go to WCW. I don't know what figure Booker was bought out at, but earlier this week, a few people told me that AOL was offering fifty cents on the dollar for the deals. There are also unconfirmed reports that the WWF has signed Rob Van Dam to work for WCW. Given the public courting Jim Ross has done with Tommy Dreamer, it would not surprise me to see him end up there either. The WWF has been pushing for weeks to sign top talent from the old WCW. They realize that in order for the company to work as a separate entity, and in any invasion angle down the road, they need to have identifiable stars in the company to go along with the mid-card talent that they already have under contract. The WWF would still like to sign Bill Goldberg, Sting, Scott Steiner and Ric Flair, but at the moment, none of them reportedly would even consider taking 50 cents on the dollar buyouts on their big money deals, and really, I can't blame them. Goldberg would literally give up millions to do so. Sting is said to have little or no interest in working for the new WCW and has made, and banked, a lot of money over his career. Steiner, who also has a lucrative deal, still has not fully recovered from the foot injury he suffered near the end of AOL's WCW, so it would make no sense for him to take a buyout at this time anyway. In Flair's case, he is also making far more money from AOL than the WWF would reasonably be expected to pay him. Since he is nearing the end of his stellar career, he has to be prudent financially in the choices he makes. With all of these variables in place, the WWF has had to go in other directions to get top name talent for WCW. The WWF still does not have a television outlet on which to air WCW. There is growing concern within the WWF that they may not be able to get an additional slot for the show and may have to cannibalize one of their existing programs and make it a WCW show.

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