The legendary Sgt. Slaughter recently spoke with Bill Apter from Sportskeeda about a wide range of pro-wrestling-related topics, including when Vince McMahon called him up to invite him back to work for his eventual big feud with Hulk Hogan that headlined WrestleMania 7. Highlights from the interview can be found below.
How he didn’t work the first few WrestleManias due to issues with Vince McMahon:
I got the call from Vince McMahon, I watched WrestleMania 6 – [Hulk] Hogan and [The Ultimate] Warrior. And I had stopped watching the WWE at that point because I was so angry because they couldn’t work things out with Hasbro and I so I could be at WrestleMania 2, 3, and so on. I had to miss the first 6 WrestleManias, so it made me anti-WWE.
Recalls McMahon calling him to come back for Mania Seven:
I put a big P-U on that and sent it off to him. Two weeks later, I get a call on a Sunday afternoon. I’m watching a NASCAR race, kind of dozing off, ‘Hello?’ [As Vince,] ‘Sarge?’ ‘Yes?’ ‘Vince!’ Well, there’s only one Vince. There’s only one Sarge. He says, ‘I got your note. I appreciate the feedback on the production. Yeah, we’ve been working hard on it, and I appreciate someone like you seeing how well it’s going. You’re right, the match was a P-U. Are you ready to go back to work?’ I said, ‘Funny you should mention that you want to ask me.’ He said, ‘Well you’re done with Hasbro right?’ I said, ‘How would you know that?’ He said, ‘I’m Vince McMahon, that’s what I do.’
How McMahon wanted him to be the heel against Hogan:
When I went to Vince [McMahon’s] house and he had the completely opposite idea. He said ‘I want to put you and Hulk Hogan in the main event of WrestleMania 7 and sell out the Coliseum in L.A.’ I said ‘great’ and he asked ‘Are you on board?’ and I said I was. So I asked ‘How are we turning Hulk into a villain?’ and he said ‘Hulk? Not Hulk! You!’
