The Official TNA / Impact / GFW Discussion Thread

[cappyboy]

I pretty much agree with everything he wrote: Hardy is a waste and TNA needs a back-to-basics, nuts and bolts type of booker who can get away from the Crash TV a bit and get their roster in order.

 

I sincerely doubt it's Jim Ross per se, but someone like that would help.

 

WAIT!!

 

STOP THE DERN PRESSES!!

 

This is the same bloated buffoon who once went on live WCW television and declared Bruno Sammartino prematurely dead? I didn't think you could suddenly get a working brain this late in life.

[thommohawk]

 

Y'know when I said this...

 

 

 

..I was totally thinking of you

 

This is obviously not a work, or else the results at those tapings would've been different.

 

I just think they screwed up. However, I think you're right in that - no matter what - this is going to end up as part of a storyline. It's the Russo way.

 

Lol, snarky TNA fanboy ? Nah more like wrestling realist! Well it seems now that TNA are offering 6 months worth of free access to TNAondemand.com or whatever for the people who paid for Victory Road - so I guess that's the confirmation that it was legit and not worked. That being the case can I just say this - RETARDED MOVE to allow Hardy out there!! All they did was whizz on the audience and the people who ordered the PPV, alienated their wrestlers not least of which the icon Sting who they've only just re-signed, and they've made themselves a laughing stock for everyone else not that they weren't in the first place.

 

Even though ratings are up, I think TNA's best move is to go back to showcasing 'TNA GUYS' who are dependable and actually wrestling...cuts out a lot of artistic screw ups like this and Hogan's 'tsunami' blunder. I think if TNA keeps Hogan/Bischoff on board or on screen at least and carries on like this they're going to lose more fans in the long run than they'll gain because all they're doing is showcasing the people in charge are acting like idiots.

[juggaloninjalee]

Sting unveiled a new TNA Title. Looks like we are rid of the most hideous belt in wrestling history.

[Jaysin]

Sting unveiled a new TNA Title. Looks like we are rid of the most hideous belt in wrestling history.

 

The Miz is still holding it though?

[juggaloninjalee]

The Miz is still holding it though?

 

Haha yeah that one may be more hideous than the former Immortal belt.

[Jaysin]

Haha yeah that one may be more hideous than the former Immortal belt.

 

The there's always the US Spinner belt...ugh I just reminded myself of the level of hatred I have for that god awful thing.

[juggaloninjalee]

The there's always the US Spinner belt...ugh I just reminded myself of the level of hatred I have for that god awful thing.

 

Yeah I hate that belt too.

 

The only personalized belt I really liked was the Smoking Skull belt. It worked for Austin.

[Jaysin]

I liked the Rated R Spinner Belt a lot for some reason, its just the regular spinner belt that really irks me.

[Zeel1]

I liked the Rated R Spinner Belt a lot for some reason, its just the regular spinner belt that really irks me.

 

Ha, I thought I was the only one that remembered that. It was only around for like, what, a couple of weeks?

[Jaysin]

Ha, I thought I was the only one that remembered that. It was only around for like, what, a couple of weeks?

 

My friend bought a replica of it. Its awesome

[BHK1978]

Even though ratings are up, I think TNA's best move is to go back to showcasing 'TNA GUYS' who are dependable and actually wrestling...cuts out a lot of artistic screw ups like this and Hogan's 'tsunami' blunder. I think if TNA keeps Hogan/Bischoff on board or on screen at least and carries on like this they're going to lose more fans in the long run than they'll gain because all they're doing is showcasing the people in charge are acting like idiots.

 

I agree with this fully. I thought TNA was getting really good right before they made the Hogan announcement. The minute he joined, the promotion seemed to go down hill from there.

[20LEgend]

Signing Hulk was BS, I didn't care when he joined and now I just can't stand the guy. I think Eric Bischoff can be useful but Hulk Hogan turns up once a month, he is a prick.

[cappyboy]

I agree with this fully. I thought TNA was getting really good right before they made the Hogan announcement. The minute he joined, the promotion seemed to go down hill from there.

 

Amen, my brudda. We may ot find the same things funny but we can certainly agree about the fall of 2009 in TNA. Had the company stayed on that course it had the potential to be really awesome right now. Would they be what they are always saying they are supposed to be? Probably not. But they'd be a lot closer to being the company in their delusions of grandeur than they are in reality.

[The Two]

So I watched the PPV last night and I've been turning the whole thing over in my head most of the day, and I've come to one simple conclusion: Jeff Hardy got high during the show; probably in the last half hour before he stepped through the curtain.

 

Quite simply, I don't believe TNA would knowingly allow Jeff to go out to the ring stoned. If he showed up wasted that afternoon, they would have pulled him from the card. If he got high at the start of the show, I still think they could have worked it and pulled him. That leaves the final half hour or so, after the agents have made their final checks and left the guy to get into character and psyched up for the match. At that point, Jeff decided to get wasted.

 

Even if you have less faith than I do, if you believe that they actually would allow Jeff to go to the ring high, if that were the case, you wouldn't need Bischoff to go out and "call an audible". They would just have told Sting before he went out there what to do. They'd have told him Jeff wasn't fit to work and to squash him. The fact that Bischoff had to go out, change the plans and give new instructions on camera is enough to tell you they had no warning.

 

If you watch the footage back, you can see during Sting's entrance the moment the referee speaks to Jeff and realises he's not fit to work, you see him throw up the X, you see him relay a message to the back via So Cal Val, you see him telling Sting that Jeff is away with the fairies and Sting's response ("Are you kidding me?"), you see the frustration on Sting's face, you see the look of disdain that Borash gives Jeff during his intro, it's all there.

 

You've actually got to give HUGE credit to Brian Hebner, he took charge of that situation, he made the call. He saw the look in Jeff's eyes, knew he wasn't good to go, and alerted the backstage area that something had to be done. It takes balls to do that, so kudos to him.

 

You also have to respect Sting's professionalism in ending the match quick while still protecting Jeff. With the exception of a very forceful hair pull to get him to do what needed to be done, he pulled his punches. I can't help feeling that if you pulled that crap against Undertaker, he would legitimately beat the hell out of you before ending it. Taker's not the only one who would, but he's the first that comes to mind. He wouldn't have been wrong to do that either.

 

So yeah, that's my take on it.

 

Jeff really should be fired for what he did, or at the very least given an ultimatum - long spell in rehab, or there's the door.

[Fantabulous]

Jeff really should be fired for what he did, or at the very least given an ultimatum - long spell in rehab, or there's the door.

If they want Jeff gone but don't have the stones to outright do it, then giving him that ultimatum would be the same thing. Jeff doesn't want help because he doesn't think he needs it. Remember, he quit a good mid six-figure role in the WWF back in 2002 rather than enter rehab. And whatever drug issues he has now are considerably worse. If TNA had any guts, any at all, they would have fired Hardy on the spot the moment he walked back through the curtain.

 

Jeff has shown up in a bad way before and his lifestyle makes it clear he won't stop his drug abuse. And why should be? Have TNA done anything to tell Jeff that his behaviour won't be tolerated? Yeah, they took their world title off of him. And put it right back on him a few weeks later. Any blame for this mess is all TNA's. They know what the score with Jeff is and have done absolutely nothing to tell Jeff that it has to stop.

[thommohawk]

I agree with this fully. I thought TNA was getting really good right before they made the Hogan announcement. The minute he joined, the promotion seemed to go down hill from there.

 

Well correct me if I'm wrong but wasn't TNA hitting somewhat of an apex just before Hogan came in ? Didn't they hold that epic 3-way dance between AJ/Joe/Daniels that was right up there as match of the year....the crowd that night were screaming 3 things; 1) screw hogan, and 2) this is awesome and 3) one guy loudly shouted 'this is what we want!!' - and to be fair, the fans cannot make it a whole lot clearer....and you have a talent roster and bookers who really aren't great at storytelling shall we say....but they're awesome at in ring action, surely then logistics would say focus on ring action with story backdrop as background noise rather than overshadow everything with mostly limited talkers and very limited bookers ?

 

That's why WWE has been on top for so long, Vince McMahon fundamentally knows what he's doing. More to the point he knows when and where to change tac and for the most part knows what not to do. That's why you next to never see WWE with serious fails and if you ever see workers act like Hardy they're usually fired very quickly!

 

But getting back to TNA, I feel booking has been more consistent since Hogan came in - certainly a lot more build and promotion - but I honestly felt they had a much better product before those guys came in and to be honest it seems like they had a much happier locker room as well. At least back then it was all about TNA and everyone pulling in the same direction. Now it's all about Hogan and Immortal. But the ratings are up....well ratings aren't everything....but the ratings are up!

 

@ The Two, I totally agree with everything you said there....makes a lot of sense.

[Jaysin]

Just read spoilers for the March 31st episode, which I usually don't read spoilers ahead of time. But the whole Jeff Hardy thing irritated me to the point where I didn't want to wait to figure out what happened.

 

Highlight below for what I'm excited about

Christopher Daniels comes back!

[Eisen-verse]

So, I just watched the infamous match and I have a few thoughts on the matter:

 

• Jeff Hardy looked like crap.
  
• It was crazy awkward throughout; from Sting's reaction, Hardy's condition, the Bischoff moment (calling and audible), and the way the match takes place.
  
• Did you see Hardy's collar-elbow-tie-up? I don't think he's a good enough actor to look that 'gone'.
  
• Sting looked pissed; as he should be. You can almost see it in his eyes: "I stuck around for this?"
  
• Bischoff did a good job of selling a punch; it seemed pretty real.
  

 

Is it a work? I have no idea. I mean, to be honest, I would expect something like this from TNA; knowing that they want to blur the lines with their product. That said, if it is a work, then they chose a terrible, terrible, time to do something of this manner. With that in mind, I think it's legit; then again what do I know for sure?

 

Will this kill TNA as some say it will? No. Sure, they handled this pretty badly thus far. In reality, they should have suspended him indefinitely after the PPV if this IS real; giving him an ultimatum to 'get clean' (go to rehab... again) or instantly be shown the door. By dragging this out, and by doing very little in the public forum, it's only hurting them more than helping. All in all though, I don't see it 'killing TNA' (as some claim it will).

 

To be honest, the culture of TNA needs to be re-developed. At this point, they appear to be, and sound to be, a complete mess backstage.

[Derek B]

So I watched the PPV last night and I've been turning the whole thing over in my head most of the day, and I've come to one simple conclusion: Jeff Hardy got high during the show; probably in the last half hour before he stepped through the curtain.

 

Quite simply, I don't believe TNA would knowingly allow Jeff to go out to the ring stoned. If he showed up wasted that afternoon, they would have pulled him from the card. If he got high at the start of the show, I still think they could have worked it and pulled him. That leaves the final half hour or so, after the agents have made their final checks and left the guy to get into character and psyched up for the match. At that point, Jeff decided to get wasted.

 

Even if you have less faith than I do, if you believe that they actually would allow Jeff to go to the ring high, if that were the case, you wouldn't need Bischoff to go out and "call an audible". They would just have told Sting before he went out there what to do. They'd have told him Jeff wasn't fit to work and to squash him. The fact that Bischoff had to go out, change the plans and give new instructions on camera is enough to tell you they had no warning.

 

If you watch the footage back, you can see during Sting's entrance the moment the referee speaks to Jeff and realises he's not fit to work, you see him throw up the X, you see him relay a message to the back via So Cal Val, you see him telling Sting that Jeff is away with the fairies and Sting's response ("Are you kidding me?"), you see the frustration on Sting's face, you see the look of disdain that Borash gives Jeff during his intro, it's all there.

 

You've actually got to give HUGE credit to Brian Hebner, he took charge of that situation, he made the call. He saw the look in Jeff's eyes, knew he wasn't good to go, and alerted the backstage area that something had to be done. It takes balls to do that, so kudos to him.

 

You also have to respect Sting's professionalism in ending the match quick while still protecting Jeff. With the exception of a very forceful hair pull to get him to do what needed to be done, he pulled his punches. I can't help feeling that if you pulled that crap against Undertaker, he would legitimately beat the hell out of you before ending it. Taker's not the only one who would, but he's the first that comes to mind. He wouldn't have been wrong to do that either.

 

So yeah, that's my take on it.

 

Jeff really should be fired for what he did, or at the very least given an ultimatum - long spell in rehab, or there's the door.

 

Just quoting this because this is really our shared conclusions and I wanted to add one thing...

 

With the WWE clearly not about to try to sign Jeff and TNA now in a position where they should do something, this is the perfect time to make a very public statement about Jeff Hardy and drug use in pro wrestling. TNA needs to tell Jeff Hardy "go to rehab (care of WWE) or you will never be allowed to wrestle again", making it very clear that any promoter who books him without Jeff going through rehab first will be blacklisted. If TNA really tries to strongarm Jeff into doing what is best for him, I would hope Jeff would realise he has a problem and get the help he needs. While at the same time doing as much as possible to ensure that Jeff can't just go lower down the foodchain until he ends up truly in the gutter. It's just not a slope I want to see him going down, but can see him sliding further and further down if someone doesn't intervene on his behalf.

[Fleisch]

In any other employment if you turned up in the state Jeff was in, you'd be fired on the spot so why is he still employed? TNA don't need him, there are plenty of people more talented than Jeff on the roster. I think TNA need to just say "we tried... we failed. New chapter".

[juggaloninjalee]

If TNA cuts Jeff Hardy nothing bad will happen to TNA. Nobody can argue that they did the wrong thing by firing him. The worst that will happen is some indy promotion out of the Carolinas would bring in Jeff Hardy for some shows.

 

The things I would do.

 

Sting is a professional let him carry the belt for awhile.

 

Let AJ build some credibility again and let Fortune be your main stable that gets maybe 8 minutes of angle time a week and a couple matches each week.

 

Let Mr. Anderson and or RVD turn heel. RVD could be mad that he is the deserving champion but hasn't gotten his shot since being stripped. RVD then begins a rampage using chairs for his Van Daminator and such again. Mr. Anderson just makes a better heel than face so that's why I would turn him.

 

I would make the X-Division title be a reputable title again. Start most Impacts with an X-Division match and end the 1st hour with another X-Division match possibly for the title. My X-Division would be Doug Williams, Frankie Kazarian, Amazing Red, Christopher Daniels, Generation Me, MCMG, and Ink Inc.

 

Once people become pretty dominant in the X-Division they would be in the TV title picture. I would almost always have this belt on someone who can wrestle really well. A person who could put on good matches with X-Division guys and slow brawlers. Doug Williams would fit this position. I'd even consider letting Jeff Jarrett, Kurt Angle, or Mr. Anderson hold this spot for short periods of time.

 

My world title picture would eventually be Sting, AJ Styles, Samoa Joe (with a monster build up.), Kurt Angle, and Jeff Jarrett (wouldn't allow him to win it though).

[Eisen-verse]

Just quoting this because this is really our shared conclusions and I wanted to add one thing...

 

With the WWE clearly not about to try to sign Jeff and TNA now in a position where they should do something, this is the perfect time to make a very public statement about Jeff Hardy and drug use in pro wrestling. TNA needs to tell Jeff Hardy "go to rehab (care of WWE) or you will never be allowed to wrestle again", making it very clear that any promoter who books him without Jeff going through rehab first will be blacklisted. If TNA really tries to strongarm Jeff into doing what is best for him, I would hope Jeff would realise he has a problem and get the help he needs. While at the same time doing as much as possible to ensure that Jeff can't just go lower down the foodchain until he ends up truly in the gutter. It's just not a slope I want to see him going down, but can see him sliding further and further down if someone doesn't intervene on his behalf.

 

110% agree with you, Derek B. It's the perfect time to send a strong message to Hardy, and the rest of the industry, about how something like this simply won't be tolerated.

[Hive]

Just quoting this because this is really our shared conclusions and I wanted to add one thing...

 

With the WWE clearly not about to try to sign Jeff and TNA now in a position where they should do something, this is the perfect time to make a very public statement about Jeff Hardy and drug use in pro wrestling. TNA needs to tell Jeff Hardy "go to rehab (care of WWE) or you will never be allowed to wrestle again", making it very clear that any promoter who books him without Jeff going through rehab first will be blacklisted. If TNA really tries to strongarm Jeff into doing what is best for him, I would hope Jeff would realise he has a problem and get the help he needs. While at the same time doing as much as possible to ensure that Jeff can't just go lower down the foodchain until he ends up truly in the gutter. It's just not a slope I want to see him going down, but can see him sliding further and further down if someone doesn't intervene on his behalf.

 

You really believe TNA should prevent Hardy from working elsewhere? I see legal troubles for TNA if they seriously tried something like that. And why should they? If Hardy wants to **** up his life, that's really no business of theirs - as long as he's not ****ing it up on their time and money.

[eayragt]

In any other employment if you turned up in the state Jeff was in, you'd be fired on the spot so why is he still employed? TNA don't need him, there are plenty of people more talented than Jeff on the roster. I think TNA need to just say "we tried... we failed. New chapter".

 

I was thinkig about this and... TNA might not be able to sack him.

 

If I turned up to work high, I could be sacked, easy. I think my contract covers drugs, but if not there's the all encompassing gross misconduct.

 

However, TNA probably has some drug rules, even if they're lax at enforcing them. Rules and punishments. Whatever Jeff took could well be under those rules. And the punishment for doing those drugs? Not being sacked, that's for sure.

 

Now, you could argue the gross misconduct issue again, but if there are specific drug rules and punishments, it could become a grey issue. The last thing they want is to get involved in a legal argument, where Jeff can say what he's been getting up to backstage with RVD with the full knowledge of some senior management at TNA without being punished (that's pure speculation, of course). At the end of the day you'd probably have to pay him off in some way, and I'm sure Jeff's got a very nice contract that doens't make it attractive. At the end of the day, perhaps TNA think a month off and then bring him back as a hated loner is the best option.

 

Some may consider that irresponsible by TNA, but if they've already been irresponsible, sometimes it's hard to stop.

[Derek B]

110% agree with you, Derek B. It's the perfect time to send a strong message to Hardy, and the rest of the industry, about how something like this simply won't be tolerated.

 

You really believe TNA should prevent Hardy from working elsewhere? I see legal troubles for TNA if they seriously tried something like that. And why should they? If Hardy wants to **** up his life, that's really no business of theirs - as long as he's not ****ing it up on their time and money.

 

Jeff clearly is doing it on TNA's time and money, so it is their business. While he's under a TNA contract he has to play by TNA's rules, and if he doesn't do that then TNA should use their connections to other promotions to stop Jeff Hardy from putting his own life and the life of his opponents in danger. Pro wrestling is a dangerous business based on trust, and if Jeff (or anyone else for that matter) is capable of getting himself into such a state that he is a danger to themselves or others then absolutely he should be prevented from being put into that position.

 

The way TNA has their talent contracted means that their workers do indy dates through them... in Jeff's case that means he won't be working dates elsewhere while under TNA contract without going through rehab. And if Jeff leaves then that means that any promotion/promoter using Jeff Hardy won't get any TNA talent ever again.

 

With WWE clearly not going to touch Jeff Hardy after this incident that means that TNA can really pressure Jeff Hardy to clean up his act. If it was any other job he'd be fired on the spot for what he did, with him being let go (or walking away) from his previous job for drug issues too he'd have no way of getting a reference for a future job. WWE has an open door policy for the rehab line on any current or former talent... the combined efforts of TNA and WWE might actually be able to save Jeff Hardy from himself and prevent a tragedy from occurring somewhere down the line.

 

I don't want to see Jeff Hardy go down the same path as a Jake Roberts or a Scott Hall... if TNA have to play hardball with Jeff to prevent that, and I feel they'd have to, then so be it.