Does TNA need a Wellness Policy?

[gd]

I've actually been meaning to make this thread for awhile and with the recent Angle new I think this is the right time. The WWE currently has a policy in which the first two strikes result in suspensions from the company and the third strike means that you are gone. TNA does not currently have any such policy in place.

Personally, I think they definetly need one. It would give definite guidlines as to when wrestlers would be suspended for testing positive for drugs and for how long, so that there would be no exceptions. Something like this would be especially useful for this whole Angle scenario.

The fact of the matter is there are likely a few TNA wrestlers (Terry, Sheik, Angle) who are on some sort of illegal drugs, whehter it be steroids, HGH, pain killers, or something else. It is not good for TNA's image to have rampant drug use througout the company. Not only does this give them a bad image, it also has the potential to bring the company down. If all of your top stars are addicted to drugs things can only get worse.

So, do you think TNA should have some type of Wellness Policy and if so, how should it work?

 

[Dexter]

I don't know, I've heard so many bad things about WWE's wellness policy mostly being used as an excuse to release the less desirables while the more established guys get away with whatever. Granted that's all IWC rumor and you have to take it for what it's worth, but if even a little of that is true, it shakes my faith in wellness policies in general.

Not saying that's what TNA would do if they had one, I'm just saying if they DID have one, I'd certainly hope it'd be done more fairly.

 

[gd]

My opinion is that it's better to have something than nothing at all. If they had one maybe some of the top guys would think twice before taking stuff that they no they shouldn't. Heck, maybe they'd even receive some punishment. The point is that TNA is a national atheltic organization, and pretty much every other organization similar to TNA has some type of drug policy.

 

[obiwansidisi]

Nope, and I’ll tell you why. Wrestling is fake… we all know this… we all love it. I could care less that “Wrestler A” was on steroids when he fought “Wrestler B”, because then you’re taking my fun away and putting it in the same category as whether or not Sosa and Bonds really hit those homeruns. Nash has f**kd up knees, we know this. How did he recover from surgery, by taking Flintstone vitamins? How did Hogan hang on all of these years? A steady diet of Gummy bears? No. They took drugs. There have been rumors for years about Steiner not being able to eat solid food from all of the drugs he’s taken. Trust me, years from now, when you’re telling your kids stories about the old days, you won’t be talking about the steroids… because it’s not a factor.

 

[yoshi_doce2006]

Yes. Without a doubt. When your top guy has a chance to go to jail on HGH use that should make something click. What if the guy on drugs snaps during a match and breaks his opponents neck. Kurt is talented enough and at times intense enough to do that if he loses it. What is more of a company killer than your top guy killing another performer? A Wellness policy would help prevent this from happening.

 

[The_Monarch8123]

You know damn well The WWE doesent really have a wellness program. If they did The son in law and Roidtista would of been busted over 5 times together at the least. TNA is better then WWE now in EVERY aspect of the business except financially of course, so yeah why not up The E 1 more and have a legit I said legit wellness program. Kurt really disapoints me with his past and pills I really thought he was actually 100% clean now and for like over a year now. Sigh...

 

[andymcg]

This IMO has kind of 2 options.

1 - Wrestling as someone said above isn’t real. Therefore steroids cant really be classed as cheating, so taken them should be fine is that’s what a certain wrestlers chooses to do. Its his life, his choice, just like some of us people choose to take a bit of dope or drink at the weekends. Its there life’s, they can do as they wish, as long as over abusing isn’t a fact.

2 - But then comes point 2, steroids can risk other peoples life’s due to things such as roid rage (E.G Chris Benoit). Also people may think if they use roids to become bigger they’ll have more chance of becoming a better wrestling star.

So IMO its 50/50, on one hand it isn’t really classed as cheating due to it being a scripted sport, but then other peoples life’s could be in danger.

Its pretty clear WWE Wellness policy is a lot of Bullcrap. HHH and Batista not on roids, but Kennedy and Umaga are ? Am pretty sure something isn't correct there.

To answer to the topic, im not to sure, on one hand it could be a good idea, but then on the other hand, there isn’t really one overly muscular guy (apart from steiner) in TNA so its kind of 50/50.

 

[TellMeWhy]

No TNA is not the WWE. They've never had a wrestler go on a killing spree. My point in saying that is that since Bonoit WWE has had something to prove to Congress other than that, I doubt it would be enforced so strictly.

TNA suspending wrestlers won't make sense. What they should do is sit there wrestlers down if there caught and try to find them help instead of humiliating them and giving them punihsment. Punishment doesn't help someone in need or with an addction!

 

[HBK-aholic]

I'm very surprised TNA doesn't have one actually, I think they definitely need one implemented. Sure, you can argue that it isn't really a competition so it doesn't matter, but it's not about that so much in my opinion. Wrestlers such as Guerrero and Benoit, for example have died, and the latter taken others with them. Steroids are arguably to blame, and I think every company like this should have a wellness policy to deter wrestlers from getting involved in them, and helping those who are already in trouble with them.

 

[gd]

Nope, and I’ll tell you why. Wrestling is fake… we all know this… we all love it. I could care less that “Wrestler A” was on steroids when he fought “Wrestler B”, because then you’re taking my fun away and putting it in the same category as whether or not Sosa and Bonds really hit those homeruns. Nash has f**kd up knees, we know this. How did he recover from surgery, by taking Flintstone vitamins? How did Hogan hang on all of these years? A steady diet of Gummy bears? No. They took drugs. There have been rumors for years about Steiner not being able to eat solid food from all of the drugs he’s taken. Trust me, years from now, when you’re telling your kids stories about the old days, you won’t be talking about the steroids… because it’s not a factor.

Wrestling may be fake, but the people who participate in it our real. Kurt Angle is a real person who is breaking the law and messing up his life with drugs, but his employer could care less. It doesn't matter if wrestling is fake, steroids shouldn't paly a facotr at this point in time. Especially with all of the focus of the issue today, you'd think people would be discouraged from taking them. It certainly is a factor and a is something TNA should look to fix as soon as possible.

 

[T2KFreeker]

Nope, and I’ll tell you why. Wrestling is fake… we all know this… we all love it. I could care less that “Wrestler A” was on steroids when he fought “Wrestler B”, because then you’re taking my fun away and putting it in the same category as whether or not Sosa and Bonds really hit those homeruns. Nash has f**kd up knees, we know this. How did he recover from surgery, by taking Flintstone vitamins? How did Hogan hang on all of these years? A steady diet of Gummy bears? No. They took drugs. There have been rumors for years about Steiner not being able to eat solid food from all of the drugs he’s taken. Trust me, years from now, when you’re telling your kids stories about the old days, you won’t be talking about the steroids… because it’s not a factor.

Wow, spoken like a true fan who has NEVER set foot in the ring. You may not care, but when you are in the ring and you realize that the person you are in the ring with is impaired, that's a scary moment and it adds a very unpredictable side to the match, and this is not good. It increases the chance of serious imjury as well as the moment where your "opponent" loses control and ends up really going off because he or she, just decides he's not happy with something. You may be naive enough to believe what you wrote above, but it shows that you know nothing about the inner workings of the industry form even an independent league level. Hopefully your job is working with Nuclear materials and the guy you handle these things with is drunk and you get to feel what it's like to be uncertain about what's going to happen even though you have a guideline as to what is supposed to happen.

Now, onto the question; as to TNA not having a wellness policy, I believe it is necessary these days. To many wrestlers have died over the last few years and most of it could have been prevented if something had been done. Sadly, with some people it will never work. Scott Hall comes to mind, but notice Hall is no longer in the big leagues these days. You just can't help some people but if you even prevent one incident then it is working.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

TNA needs a wellness policy. Now, I'm not saying that the WWE's is as great as they claim it is, but then again I don't buy most of the negative rumors some post about it either. It's better to have something than nothing, it's just a shame that it took a double murder/suicide for the WWE to open its eyes. Now, the smart thing for TNA to do would be to adopt something BEFORE something such as the Benoit tragedy possibly rears its head within TNA.

Yeah, wrestling is fake and I sort of agree with the whole philosophy about steroid use not being cheating and all that. But, the federal government doesn't necessarily share those views, at least from a legal standpoint. Now steroids are illegal and whether anyone thinks that it's not really any big deal if wrestlers or any other athlete use them, Johnny Law does. Now, while I'm only speculating about this part, it's possible that an investigation could be launched against TNA much as one was done to the WWE.

Also, a wellness policy isn't just about steroids, it's about illegal drugs in general. Now me, while I personally think it's not necessarily up to TNA to police the conduct of its wrestlers, it's a different story when it comes to drugs. This shit can ruin lives, no matter what personal philosophy one might have about them. That can't be disputed. And, from a business standpoint, it could be disasterous for TNA. So TNA would be very wise to start one up and, who knows, a tragedy in the making could one day be prevented. Maybe someone'll wind up gettin' some help they need, a failed policy could be that last little push that pushes them in the right direction.

As to how it should work, I think the WWE does, at least on the surface, have a fair way of going about it. One violation, you're suspended for 30 days. After all, you could ask the wrestler after said failed test if he or she has been doing whatever they've been doing for long and they could just simply tell a big one and say no and you might not really be able to prove otherwise. If they fail a second one, suspend them for 60 days and send them to rehab. If they refuse, then tell them to hit the bricks. A third violation should result in an automatic termination.

 

[SavageTaker]

Some people seem to think that all the Wellness Policy tests for is steroids when in fact it tests for many things. If I remember correctly, a wrestler who goes by the name of MVP had his life saved because of the Wellness Policy. He had Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome and he could have died from that, but thanks to the Wellness Policy it was detected just in time and his live was saved. So WWE doesn’t just test for steroids and other illegal drugs but it also tests for other things to make sure their wrestlers are healthy.

So yes TNA should have some sort of Wellness Policy because it’s proven that it can save the lives of some of their wrestlers. Also, if a wrestler is getting caught with drugs in their system multiple times then they can get them the help they might need whether it’s rehab or something else. This is one of the things WWE really deserves praise for because it shows that they are willing to give help to any wrestler who needs it, whether they are a past wrestler or a current one. I think TNA could do the same thing and it would work for them too.

Congress has come down hard on pro-wrestling because of the use of illegal drugs and with TNA not having some type of testing done; it doesn’t help wrestling as a whole. They may not be the number one company in the world but they can still help pro-wrestling be seen in a better light if they add some type of Wellness Policy.

So I do think they should get a Wellness Policy because of some of the reason others and I stated and many others which haven’t even be said. It may cost them some money but in the long-run it’s a great thing for them as a company and for pro-wrestling as a whole.