“Paul [Heyman] said, ‘Hey, we’re gonna take a little break,'” he added, “and usually, when that happens …” Just as Rhino didn’t have to complete that sentence to make his point, things were already in the works for his next move in the wrestling business.

“Bruce [Pritchard] had already called me,” he said. “I told him wait until after there’s nothing there [with ECW]. Him and Paul were good friends and I told him I’m not gonna take off until it’s final that they’re not coming back.”

Rhino would go down as the final ECW World Heavyweight Champion (at least in its original incarnation), defeating The Sandman and defending the belt on two occasions before the company closed up shop. He’d move on quickly to WWF after all, debuting on “WWE Raw” in March of 2001 and aligning himself with Edge and Christian. 

That affiliation led to a significant cameo in the much-heralded TLC match at WrestleMania X-Seven. Later, Rhino (now “Rhyno”) played a key role in the ECW side of the infamous “Invasion” angle and has enjoyed a lengthy career that goes on to this day with Impact Wrestling.

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit The Kurt Angle Show with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.