Bob Backlund Talks WWE Career, John Cena, Roddy Piper and More

Bob Backlund is one of the most recognizable and decorated wrestlers in the history of the industry, but even after his time in the ring has come and gone, he is still making a positive impact in people’s lives.

At 66 years old, Backlund is still spreading the messages that made him one of the most beloved wrestlers ever and has just released his autobiography, Backlund: From All-American Boy to Professional Wrestling's World Champion. The book tells the story of a man who came from humble beginnings to hold the world title for an astonishing 2,135 consecutive days.

Backlund recently spoke with Ring Rust Radio (quotes courtesy of the News of Delaware County's Joe Arcidiacono) about his induction into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2013, Rowdy Roddy Piper writing the foreword to his book, the comparisons to John Cena, his feud against Bret Hart and much more.

While many younger fans remember Backlund as the eccentric character who attacked Hart in the 1990s and won the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, the person he was portraying on television was spreading the right message, but doing it in a way that would rub fans the wrong way.

Backlund’s message always had positive undertones—despite how twisted his methods were during his run as a heel—and he revealed why, after refusing to be a villain during his first run in the WWE, he made the turn:

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I didn’t do that in that 80s because I refused to be bad. In the 90s, I went back and our world had changed a lot. People weren’t interested in an All-American boy hero. They were more interested in people that would disrespect their boss. I asked to be bad, but I was being bad by being good. I built up a luminous vocabulary so I could educate the masses. I was preaching being responsible for your own actions; don’t throw your garbage out the window of your car anymore because you’re defacing our country. I had a policy that you had to recite the presidents of the USA to me before you could get my signature. They hated me for that. That is what was driving me to be so intense. They all thought I was going to fall on my face, but I believe in every word that came out of my mouth and sometimes the truth hurts.

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In a lot of ways, the ethics and beliefs that Backlund became famous for have been adopted by Cena. The two men have been the wholesome faces of the brand that WWE has always looked for in a top star, and their messages of never giving up ring true still to this day.

With the dislike for Cena by many members of the WWE Universe, Backlund talked about the comparisons between his character in the 90s and the 15-time champion:

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There probably is a little bit because he talks about never giving up and I talk about never capitulating so they are basically the same thing. I understand that, sometimes people don’t want to hear about discipline, hard work, and going the extra mile.

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Besides all of the great messages about living a happy and healthy life, the advice to young people about staying focused and working hard or the incredible stories about Backlund’s life, the book also has a foreword written by recently deceased wrestling legend Roddy Piper.

Backlund spoke glowingly about his friend, their history together and his last interaction with him:

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I met Mr. Piper when he was a young person getting in the business in the Olympic theater in Los Angeles. He was just starting and I had the championship for a while. I was over in Japan and they had asked me to go over and have a match with Roddy for 59 minutes and 30 seconds. He says some great things about the match and my goal was to put him over and make him look like a champion. It was a pleasure to wrestle with him and he was very advanced for how little time he had in the business.

He credits me for helping him launch his career in the business and I was really proud of him to say that. He left a message on my phone about three weeks ago saying it was OK to use him as the foreword for the book. I listened to the message, the next day I deleted it and the next day he passed. I liked him a lot and had a lot of respect for him. I thought he would never leave this earth.

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One of the biggest takeaways from the book and the interview was that Backlund isn’t the man younger wrestling fans remember from WWE programming. He is an articulate man who stands up for what he believes in and still does his best to give back to the community that helped make him a top star for a long time.

The new autobiography takes wrestling fans through Backlund’s life, starting from his childhood and all the events that shaped who he is as a man, before taking the WWE Universe through his in-ring career from his unique perspective.

Add in the fact that Backlund is using his place in wrestling history to help teach people how showing respect and working hard can help you accomplish any goal, and the WWE Hall of Famer is proving his mettle is as strong as anyone's in the industry even after all these years.

For more wrestling talk, listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot topics or catch the latest episode in the player above (some language NSFW).