It’s been over 20 years since the original ECW closed its doors, but Paul Heyman still remembers his time with the promotion very fondly. Speaking to Newsweek this week, the WWE Hall of Famer and former owner of ECW recalled his time leading the tribe of extreme.
“Every single day of it was just an honor and a blessing and a dream job.”
Heyman’s tenure with ECW turned the promotion from an Eastern-based territory to a violent, counterculture, cult-followed entity that was among the three biggest promotions in its heyday. In 2001, ECW closed its doors in the face of immense financial strain. Heyman would depart the company shortly before the company went under and would appear as a WWF commentator, replacing Jerry ‘The King’ Lawler.
These days, Heyman remains part of WWE and his influence has bolstered talent from CM Punk to Brock Lesnar to Roman Reigns. Speaking about what’s to come in wrestling, Heyman was optimistic about the future.
“An era more of continued transparency. Intelligent discussion of the product itself. Authenticity, in terms of the characters. And just great stories.”
Heyman hasn’t appeared on WWE TV since being attacked by Solo Sikoa’s Bloodline, though he was backstage at SummerSlam and was seen conversing with Roman Reigns. This has led fans to speculate that Heyman’s return is imminent, though Reigns was by his own on last week’s SmackDown. Stay tuned to SE Scoops for the latest on Paul Heyman as the ECW magnate continues to be am important figure in wrestling.