The WWF and the WCW may soon be one big, happy family.
The World Wrestling Federation confirmed yesterday that is looking to buy the floundering World Championship Wrestling.
“We are holding discussions with AOL Time Warner about the possibility of acquiring the WCW,” said WWF spokesman Gary Davis.
Davis went on to say that the acquisition “fits with our strategic initiaves.”
In January, AOL Time Warner agreed to sell the money-losing WCW to the privately held Fusient Media Ventures.
But the deal headed south once newly appointed Turner Broadcasting chief Jamie Kellner entered the picture.
As one of his first moves, Kellner took the WCW off the air as of March 26. TNT’s “WCW Nitro” and TBS’ “WCW Thunder” were canceled.
Turner execs said their decision to pull the plug on wrestling was a no-brainer. They claim wrestling clashes with the upscale audience that TBS and TNT are looking to attract through original series suc as TNT’s “Bull,” and TBS’s “Seinfeld” and “Friends” reruns.
As part of Fusient’s original deal, the Turner networks agreed to continue airing the ailing wrestling show.
But with Turner’s about-face, Fusient is now rethinking the deal. Insiders say the company could hold on to the WCW and find a new distribution partner. Or it could drop the deal and let rival WWF score.
Once recognized as the most popular TV wrestling brand, the WCW has been pinned by the leading WWF. Often dubbed “Wheel Chair Wrestling” by its fans because of its aging wrestling stars, the operation is said to have lost more than $80 million last year.