WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley has never been shy when it comes to voicing his opinion about the WWE product. Foley is always vocal on social media, at times completely ripping apart WWE’s creative approach to storylines.
Foley recently appeared as a guest on Sam Roberts Wrestling Podcast to discuss a number of topics including how Vince McMahon handles his colorful criticism and WWE’s culture of scripted promos.
“There was another time when I showed up on RAW in October 2014” Foley said. “I had a really good segment with Dean Ambrose and it was thought that I had heat with the company then. And during a meeting, the writing team was wondering what they might be able to do to make that segment special and Mr. McMahon said, ‘well, how about bringing Mick Foley in?’ And they said, ‘I thought he had heat with the company.’ Vince said, ‘I don’t give a damn if he has heat with the company. Can he make the segment better? Give him a call!'” Foley continued, “[Vince] is the best and deep down he respects my opinion.
“He says he doesn’t always agree with it. He respects that I have one and that I’m still passionate about it.”
Foley also spoke about how he got the job of replacing ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin on the WWE Network for the interview with Shane McMahon.
“Steve Austin had just had shoulder surgery and when I asked him if he was okay with it, he said, ‘hell yeah, kid. The last thing I want to do is to be walking through an airport with shoulder surgery. Go out there and have a hell of a show.'” Foley stated, “and I think [Chris] Jericho was actively on the roster and I think Mr. McMahon [and] Kevin Dunn thought that I had some background as a journalist and I was writing my books and thought that I had the respect of the boys and the respect of Shane. And we had the cell in common. If Vince gets an idea in his head, [or] a gut feeling that I’d be good in this interview, he just sticks with it.”
Foley commented on one of the reasons why talent today might enjoy their time off more than he and other superstars did back in his day:
“I think I went 10 years without listening to my wife because I was cutting promos in my head” Foley said. “The downside to today’s more structured WWE environment is that people aren’t thinking for themselves as much. The upside is maybe the guys might listen to their significant [others at home] and maybe leave it at work. It’s not a 24/7 thing where you’re escaping into an alternate reality. Your eyes are blinking. Your fingers are twitching. And my wife would go, like, ‘you’re cutting promos aren’t you?’ I’m like, ‘yeah, yeah.'”