Rob Van Dam Recalls ECW Locker Room Being Split Into Groups Based on ‘Drug of Choice’

Rob Van Dam is pulling back the curtain on the backstage culture of Extreme Championship Wrestling, and his memories paint a vivid picture of just how wild that era truly was.

During a Q&A session on his YouTube channel, RVD was asked which ECW talents were known for embracing the party lifestyle. His answer reframed the entire question: it wasn’t really about who was partying, he explained, but rather which party they wanted to attend. According to Van Dam, the locker room naturally sorted itself into groups based on each person’s drug of choice.

The comment tracks with a lot of what has been documented about ECW’s run through the late 1990s and early 2000s. The promotion operated on the fringes of the wrestling industry — low budgets, grueling schedules, and a roster of performers who were largely pushed to their physical limits night after night in front of rabid crowds. Stories about the culture inside that locker room have circulated for years, and Van Dam — one of the most prominent stars the promotion ever produced — is one of the few figures from that era who speaks about it candidly and without apparent embarrassment.

Van Dam has always been relatively open about his own history with substance use, which lends some credibility to his perspective here. He’s not an outsider speculating; he was at the center of ECW during its hottest years and clearly had a front-row seat to how the social dynamics played out backstage.

The full Q&A is available on his YouTube channel for fans who want to hear the breakdown in his own words.