Road Dogg Was Scared By Run As WWF Hardcore Champion: 'I Didn't Think I Could Do It'

When Brian "Road Dogg" James held the WWE Hardcore Championship, he was terrified.

"It was my only singles run that was any run at all and it was very short-lived," James explained on his "Oh...You Didn't Know" podcast. "It probably went on too long but I think it was entertaining."

According to the WWE Hall of Famer, his success alongside Billy Gunn as the New Age Outlaws had made him complacent.

"I was scared to do it," James explained. "I ended up really liking where I was at and what I was doing."

James was so adamant that he didn't want to be a singles wrestler, that he reportedly asked Vince McMahon not to split up the tag team, not believing he'd be as good without Gunn by his side.

"There might've been tears shed," James said. "And by might've been, I mean I cried."

James felt like he needed Gunn, noting that he liked being the first man out of the curtain but hated the idea of standing in front of the crowd alone.

"It scared the crap out of me," James confessed. "It scared me to death that I was gonna have to do this on my own."

Adding to James's inner turmoil was the knowledge that a singles run would be a great idea for his tag team partner, but he didn't have the same confidence in himself.

"I knew it was gonna be good for Billy because I knew what they had planned for him," James explained, "and I knew what he looked like."

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Oh...You Didn't Know" with an h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.