5 stars who switched over to WWE following the Invasion
Being the clever businessman that he is, Vince McMahon did not only buy out World Championship Wrestling and Extreme Championship Wrestling but even made the selling process marketable by introducing a storyline around it. The Invasion storyline featured many popular faces of these franchises, who were signed by McMahon following his acquisition. Here are five World Championship Wrestling wrestlers, who were signed by WWE.
Rob Van Dam: Icon who became a legend at WWE
Rob Van Dam was a part of Extreme Championship Wrestling and joined WWE after the buyout. He played a huge part in the Invasion storyline, attacking Kane and Jericho. He had an amazing run in the WWE during 2001-2007, winning many championships along the way, even defeating John Cena for the WWE title. His switch to WWE seems to have worked wonders for him.
Rey Mysterio: The most beloved luchador ever
When World Championship Wrestling was bought out by WWE, Rey did not join McMahon's promotion right away but fought in the independent circuit (Mexican) for a year. He eventually joined WWE in 2001. He had a successful career with WWE, winning numerous championships in his career. Mysterio's acrobatic moves were loved by the fans and he has never taken off his mask.
Raw is Jericho: Y2J comes to the WWE
Jericho may have switched to the WWE for personal reasons, but it was almost at the same time as the Invasion storyline and being the legend that he is, his presence in the WWE cannot be ignored. Y2J debuted in WWE in 1999, and his 'Y2J' gimmick was inspired from the Y2K bug at the turn of the century.
Booker T in WWE, now dig that!
Booker T was the World Heavyweight Champion during Invasion and he immediately joined WWE and started a feud with Stone Cold, attacking him between his matches. The two champions from the two rival companies had many popular segments. In one of these fights, Booker was attacked viciously by Stone Cold in a supermarket. He went on to achieve a lot at WWE as well.
When McMahon pulled off the impossible: Eric Bischoff on Raw
Okay, Eric Bischoff was no wrestler, but his debut in WWE is more shocking than any other. He was the voice of the World Championship Wrestling and used to trash WWE every night, and similarly did McMahon when he was commentating on Raw. It came as a shock to the wrestling world when Bischoff debuted as Raw's General manager and hugged Vince McMahon.
