Hall of Famer on talks with Vince McMahon over WWE working with a rival promotion

Jeff Jarrett has opened up about sharing words with Vince McMahon about the possibility of WWE and TNA working together in the early days of TNA.

In a recent appearance on INSIGHT. with Chris Van Vliet, the former Intercontinental Champion was asked whether or not he had approached Vince McMahon about a potential partnership between WWE and TNA.

Jarrett, the founder of TNA, confirmed there had been brief talks on the subject. However, he said their discussion never got beyond the idea of whether or not there was a relationship to be had between the two companies. Jarrett said:

"In the early days I had conversations with Vince about TNA. We’re businessmen."

Jarrett continued, praising Vince McMahon for recognizing that the wellbeing of rival promotions was essential for the wrestling industry to flourish and thrive. Jarrett also mentioned Paul Heyman, whom McMahon had helped financially during his time in ECW. Jarrett explained:

"I tabled it, is there something? You know, we were tiny! But hey, is there a way to work together?... So, was there a relationship to be had, were the only conversations. And, candidly, we got going and it’s not like we said no, I came up with an idea that he said no to. Look, Vince has helped Paul Heyman. He’s helped promoters. Vince knows for the industry to be healthy, everybody needs to be healthy. So there just wasn’t anything that really came up that we could crystalize into saying let’s do this."

Jarrett also said there was never any truth to the rumors of animosity between himself and Vince McMahon over his exit from WWE in 1999.

Jeff Jarrett on Vince McMahon and his WWE exit

Jeff Jarrett in WWE (Credit: WWE)

In the same interview, Jeff Jarrett also discussed the events surrounding his exit from WWE in 1999, when the company accidentally let his contract expire.

Contrary to rumors, Jarrett shut down the notion he could ever have refused to drop the Intercontinental Championship to Chyna on his last night with the company. Jarrett said:

"Well, for one, he already paid me!... Like any promoter, he had to have a little faith in me, first and foremost," Jarrett said. "And, at the end of the day, he’s been around a lot longer than I have, so what if it didn’t go down? You’ve always got tomorrow's RAW to re-write it."

Jeff Jarrett is set to star in his own podcast, My World with Jeff Jarrett, on Westwood One and AdFreeShows.com