Sid Vicious is one of the many wrestling legends to have worked for both the WWE and WCW promotions, having been part of the heated Monday Night Wars in the mid '90s.
Former WCW executive producer Eric Bischoff built up the company by handing out big dollars to many of WWF's top talents - including Kevin Nash, Hulk Hogan and Scott Hall. Sid Vicious worked back and forth between both promotions during the '90s, but it turns out he missed out on a major opportunity to make bank.
In a recent interview on Prime Time with Sean Mooney, (h/t WrestlingInc.com) Vicious detailed the biggest mistake he made in his pro wrestling career. He talked about a time where he got on the phone and set up a meeting with WWF chairman Vince McMahon - who said he would give Sid Vicious what he wanted.
Vicious requested that he could have "Hogan's spot," in which McMahon agreed - while suggesting WrestleMania could help him pocket more cash than what he made in one calendar year at WCW.
However, WCW knew about this and offered Sid Vicious $750,000 guaranteed. He explained how the rest went down:
"By the time I got home, WCW has gotten wind of this somehow and now they've offered me $750,000, guaranteed. So I thought, 'F--- Vince McMahon, I'm signing that thing tomorrow morning.'
So, this is probably the biggest mistake of my life. I'm leaving, the phone rings and it's Vince McMahon ... he said, 'Are you going to sign that [WCW] contract?' and I said, 'Yes, I am. I didn't call because I didn't want to put you in the middle and play that middle game. I didn't think it was fair. Mr. McMahon this is more money that I can ever dream of and I'm going to sign the deal.'
He says, 'Sid. You're never going to get this opportunity again.' So, I made my mind up to f------ take that chance. And it was a big mistake, I never made that kind of money [in WWE]. I made $150,000 for WrestleMania. I made good money, I don't think I made $750,000. Still, it was a big mistake, when I look back on it, it was the only real mistake I made in the business."
Sid did get his chances - headlining WrestleManias VIII and 13 against Hogan and The Undertaker, respectively. The opportunity to headline on the Grandest Stage of Them All is a dream for many superstars, but Sid Vicious managed to do so twice.
But back in the '90s, money talked a lot for WWE superstars, which is what led to the likes of Hall and Nash leaving WWF for WCW - even Bret Hart as well. As such, headlining WrestleMania twice wasn't enough to fulfill Sid's satisfaction.
That being said, it's still hard to blame somebody for passing up $750,000 back then - which is well over a million dollars today. But Vicious' legacy in WWE is set, thanks to McMahon allowing him to headline two major shows.