DDP getting a bang from WWF days
By JON WALDMAN -- For SLAM! Wrestling
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Diamond Dallas Page and his wife Kimberly
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Diamond Dallas Page is riding a wave of excitement as
he begins his tenure in the World Wrestling
Federation.
Page, a former multiple World Championship Wrestling
title holder, was one of several wrestlers whose
contracts were bought out from Time Warner/AOL after
the company sold WCW to WWFE earlier in the year.
The choice for Page to join the WWF was an easy one.
"I wanted to be part of it," he said. "I couldn't have
made a better choice."
Page was one of the first WCW wrestlers to appear on
WWF television, revealing himself as the stalker of Undertaker's
wife. Page was excited when he heard that he
would be revealed as the stalker. "I was floored," he
said, adding that unmasking himself on WWF RAW is WAR
was "one of the best moments of my career."
Working with the Undertaker and his wife Sarah upon entering
the WWF has been an enjoyable experience for Page. He
describes the Undertaker as having, "this presense
about him" while Sarah is "a natural at what she
does."
Page's own wife, Kimberly, has yet to appear in the
WWF, however. Kimberly was an active participant in
WCW as both a manager and as part of the "Nitro
Girls". DDP does not expect his wife to be a
part of the WWF, as the women play a more physical
part in the Connecticut-based federation. "I don't
really see that, but in wrestling you never know," he
said.
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Diamond Dallas Page drives Greg Valentine, Jimmy Hart and the Honkytonk Man to the ring at WrestleMania VI in Toronto in 1990.
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While Page is wrestling for the first time in the WWF,
it is not the first time he worked with the
organization. At
Wrestlemania VI in Toronto, DDP was
the driver of a 1962 pink Cadillac (his own car) that
drove 'Rhythym and Blues',
Greg 'The Hammer' Valentine
and the
Honkytonk Man, to the ring for a
performance. The opportunity came from
Pat Patterson,
who wanted to use Page's car as part of the entrance.
Page saw an opportunity to get is name into wrestling
circles, and took it, seeing it as, "another cog in
the wheel to get to your destination."
Page began his career as a manger in the now defunct
AWA as the manager of Pat Tanaka and
Paul Diamond. It
wasn't long before Page found himself with a spot in
WCW, originally as a manager of the Fabulous
Freebirds, then the "Diamond Studd" (Scott Hall).
Soon, however, Page found himself in the wrestling
ring. After teaming with "Vinnie Vegas" (Kevin Nash),
Page entered singles competition, and he won his first
title belt, the WCW TV title, on September 17, 1995.
Page would add several other championships to his
collection, including holding the WCW championship on
three occasions.
Now entering the twilight of his career, Page sees
himself being active in the ring for two more years,
but realizes his time as a pro wrestler could end at
any moment. "Every match could be my last match," he
said.
After he hangs up his boots, Page would like to
continue his work as a motivational speaker, as well
as make a move to being behind the commenting table.
"I would love to be a colour commentator down the
line," he said.
"That was my original dream."
