Kevin Nash revealed that the planned Kliq storyline in WWE, which fans never got to see, fell apart because of his injury. On the recent episode of Kliq This, Nash explained that the 2002 reunion with Shawn Michaels was the perfect opportunity to finally execute a Kliq angle, but his torn quad derailed those plans.
Nash said, “That really messed things up because Shawn was back, and we might have involved Paul to pull off the Kliq angle at last. But I blew my leg out, and with Shawn back in the mix, it just didn’t happen.”
The nWo faction made their WWE debut at No Way Out in February 2002, featuring Nash, Scott Hall, and Hulk Hogan. However, Hogan quickly turned fan-favorite and left the group, and Hall was released in May. When Michaels came back on the June 3 episode of Raw, Nash welcomed him as the newest nWo member. At this point, the faction was down to Nash, Sean Waltman (X-Pac), Big Show, and Booker T. A week later, Michaels kicked Booker T out of the group. Triple H was also on the Raw roster at that time.
This lineup had three Kliq members in the same faction and show, with a fourth member nearby, while Hall, the fifth Kliq member, had already left WWE.
About a month after Michaels’ return, Nash tore his quadriceps during a multi-man tag match on Raw. It was his first match after recovering from a biceps tear earlier that year—he admitted returning three weeks sooner than advised. Nash recalled warning Vince McMahon about the risks of rushing back too soon and performing without proper clearance.
The injury effectively ended the nWo’s presence in WWE and sidelined Nash, who was 42 then, for about nine months. Nash has mentioned that seeing Triple H go through a similar quad injury and recovery in 2001 helped him manage his own healing process.
Because of Nash’s injury, Michaels replaced him in the SummerSlam main event against Triple H. After Triple H betrayed Michaels, the two clashed in an Unsanctioned Street Fight on August 25, 2002, at Nassau Coliseum. This marked Michaels’ first match after a four-year hiatus due to career-threatening back injuries and kicked off his remarkable second run that lasted until 2010.
Nash returned in 2003 and immediately entered a feud with Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship, teaming with Michaels and Booker T against Evolution along the way. His title shot at Judgment Day ended in a disqualification, and the rivalry concluded at Bad Blood in a Hell in a Cell match, which Triple H won.
Despite their efforts, Nash, Michaels, Triple H, Waltman, and Hall never collaborated in a WWE storyline as a complete unit. Their most memorable shared moment remains the infamous Madison Square Garden “curtain call” in May 1996, after which Nash and Hall left for WCW. All five Kliq members are now WWE Hall of Famers—Michaels, Hall, and Nash were inducted individually, while all five were honored as part of the D-Generation X and nWo group inductions in 2019 and 2020.
Fan Take: This revelation provides a fascinating “what could have been” scenario for wrestling fans, showing how injuries can dramatically alter the trajectory of storylines and careers. It highlights the fragility of opportunity in pro wrestling and underscores the importance of timing and health in shaping the sport’s history.
Source: wrestlingnews.co
