Does TNA Really Need Jeff Hardy as Heavyweight Champion?

[MrAnderson123]

Jeff Hardy has been champion since he beat Austin Aries at Bound For Glory in a decent match.
But with TNA having tons of wrestlers that have quality matches every time they wrestle, does TNA really need Jeff on top?

I respect the fact he brings in new fans of wrestling, he is at the top for merch and everyone knows him. But I'm now getting bored of his title reign.
I enjoyed his reign when he was heel with Immortal. That may come as a shock as most of the IWC thought it was horrendous. But I thought he pulled it off well.
With his inner monolouges and whatnot, it's just getting stale.
With his title match against Chris Daneils coming up, I can see a feud coming up with these tow which I cannot wait for as Chris Daneils is a quality wrestler that has it all. The fact he hasn't been spotted by WWE is unreal, but that's wrestling for you.

So my question is:
Does TNA really need Jeff on top?

 

[ABMorales787]

Top merch seller, top face, biggest pops, musician, most popular, solid performer, yeah I'd say he fits pretty damn well as TNA World Champion. And I don't know where you got the idea that his match with Austin Aries was.... "decent". It was a very damn good match as have been most of Hardy's title defenses.

 

[It's Damn Real!]

Do they "need" him as champion? No, but they'd be pretty fuckin' stupid not to capitalize on his wild popularity by keeping him in the picture. As KJ just pointed out, the guy essentially leads every monetized category within the company by miles. He is a major, major attraction, and the type of performer people will pay to see.

I get not particularly liking Hardy for his past, or for his lackluster personality, but this is, dare I say, probably the best run as World Heavyweight Champion I've ever seen Hardy have. That includes the ones he had in WWE, too.

Sorry, but I don't see the issue here.

 

[fenderjapan]

They need him on top but, at the same time, can't afford to put so many eggs in the Jeff Hardy basket. Like it has been said before in this thread, he sells merch, draws, fans love him, he's recognizable, he's a big deal and TNA can utilize that. At the same time, its risky putting a lot behind a guy like Jeff, given his demons.

I think its ok to keep Jeff TNA World Champ as long as they continue to build stars and keep them waiting in the wings in case something happens. Which could be said for any World Champ, I suppose.

 

[It's Damn Real!]

They need him on top but, at the same time, can't afford to put so many eggs in the Jeff Hardy basket. Like it has been said before in this thread, he sells merch, draws, fans love him, he's recognizable, he's a big deal and TNA can utilize that. At the same time, its risky putting a lot behind a guy like Jeff, given his demons.

I think its ok to keep Jeff TNA World Champ as long as they continue to build stars and keep them waiting in the wings in case something happens. Which could be said for any World Champ, I suppose.

I don't see the risk, considering (a) this is the best we've seen Jeff Hardy perform in years, and (b) TNA have probably half a dozen, or more, perfectly capable main event performers who are absolutely championship material in the wings.

Let's just say Hardy flames out. He gets arrested, gets bombed on crack, whatever. Let's say he's fired tomorrow. You don't think you can pick up the slack with any selection from Aries, Roode, Storm, Ray and Daniels? Hell, you could even throw AJ Styles into that mix, if he wasn't on hiatus right now.

I get you will lose out on all the aforementioned major perks of having Hardy in place there, but my point is that you can still transition the championship to another star and not look like you're scrambling in the process.

 

[the_vipers_enigma]

Jeff Hardy is one of the most known wrestlers in the world. As some said before me he is top merchandise seller in the company so from that point of view TNA needs him as champion. But that's all there is. There is plenty of talent in TNA that deserves to be champion. In my opinion people like Samoa Joe, AJ Styles, Christopher Daniels, AA, Bobby Roode and James Storm deserve that belt more than him simply because they build the company. They put great matches every time unlike Hardy who has good matches only when he has to defend the strap. So in my opinion TNA does not need Hardy as champion but like I said it's my opinion. At the end the people at TNA are the ones who decide who should be champion.

 

[LODemolition]

Not at all. Storm and Roode's match at Bound for Glory should've been for the World Title. TNA sucks because it almost always relies on former WWE stars to carry the main event picture and/or championship. They're basically a modern day, lower budgeted WCW.

 

[SpecialFNK]

after the Hardy/Daniels match this Thursday I wouldn't expect that to start a feud, at least not right after anyway. TNA will be taping Impact in the UK, and Jeff Hardy isn't able to travel to the UK.

Jeff Hardy doesn't need to be champion. but I think some will factor in his contract and TNA wanting to keep him happy so that he will resign.
I don't see him losing the title anytime soon. there are others I think could be good/better.

Samoa Joe is someone I would love to see in the heavyweight title picture, but for some reason TNA hasn't used him there.
heel Bully is someone I wanted to see, but now that he is face he isn't as exciting for me.
the two guys I think would be great going back and forth for the title are Bobby Roode and James Storm. IMO the title hasn't been the same since Roode lost it to Aries. Roode was dominating as champion, then Aries was just a weak champion.
if Anderson is going to be Aces/Eights I wonder if he can get back into the title picture. having Anderson in the title picture with Taz doing the talking for Aces/Eights could make that group better than having Devon as the main guy.

 

[Cereal Killer]

To be honest, the only reason TNA gave him that championship was so he doesn't make that jump to the WWE. Before BFG, everyone wanted Bully Ray to face Aries for the title, then came those "Hardy going to WWE in 2013" rumors and then long story short; one thing led to another.

I guess if he did leave the company, it will lose a lot of money as Jeff is a major attraction and earns a lot for the company as IDR and KJ mentioned. A lot of the money in the market is earnt from Hardy's T-shirts, face paint, sleeves and other Hardy items in store.

Him being a champion isn't that bad as he finally gets his redemption after 2011's Victory Road incident. Also because of his terrific in-ring ability and communication with the crowd. However, they shouldn't keep him at the top for too long as I really do think Aries and Roode make better champions (I'm sure you agree). It's all because they haven't had their "turn" yet. Hardy has held the TNA championship 3 times now as well as his numerous world title wins in the WWE. Roode and Aries are also better on the mic and make themselves great world champions because of their talent, because they're breakout stars and also because they make themselves look dominant.

So him being world champion, it's OK but he can't exactly have that huge Cena reign. He's already confirmed that he's staying in TNA for several reasons in a recent interview. Even if he did make the move to the "E" or is planning on it, TNA can't keep him champion for ever (bribery). Fans want Roode, Aries, and James Storm as their world champions, among many others.

I say keep the title on him till Lockdown, so the fans don't grow tired of him and also, let Roode, Aries and the other younger stars carry the championship as they deserve their big breaks already, because of their experience and because of how long they've been in the company like James Storm (10 years). Hardy has already retrieved his redemption and like I said before, TNA can't keep the bribery act going on forever.

 

[fenderjapan]

I don't see the risk, considering (a) this is the best we've seen Jeff Hardy perform in years, and (b) TNA have probably half a dozen, or more, perfectly capable main event performers who are absolutely championship material in the wings.

Let's just say Hardy flames out. He gets arrested, gets bombed on crack, whatever. Let's say he's fired tomorrow. You don't think you can pick up the slack with any selection from Aries, Roode, Storm, Ray and Daniels? Hell, you could even throw AJ Styles into that mix, if he wasn't on hiatus right now.

I get you will lose out on all the aforementioned major perks of having Hardy in place there, but my point is that you can still transition the championship to another star and not look like you're scrambling in the process.

They have capable main event performers but not guys who draw like Hardy. You could put any of the guys you mentioned into that list but they won't draw like he does. Which is why it is important to get those guys to that place. Frankly, I'm not sure it is possible, but if it is it needs to happen because Jeff is getting old and getting slow, it won't last forever.

 

[Spinebreaker]

It's obviously a discussion worthy topic.

I've been bored of Hardy for about 2 years now. I'm tired of seeing his 4-move matches and his promo, Yes, 'promo', singular, where he comes out to chat to the creatures... TNA have usually had the sense to have someone interupt the guy before he has to do any entertaining.

I'm tired of 6 twists of Fate every match, tired of seeing Whisper in the Wind, Front Suplex and leg drop in the same order in the same corner of the ring, every match.

His matches have been decent recently, but he's been wrestling with people who are really, REALLY good in the ring.

However. Hardy's a recognised face in the business. He get's people on seats. He sells tickets, he sells mechandise...

Do TNA need Hardy as champ? No, but they benefit from him immensely.

 

[ghettodan]

Not at all. Storm and Roode's match at Bound for Glory should've been for the World Title. TNA sucks because it almost always relies on former WWE stars to carry the main event picture and/or championship. They're basically a modern day, lower budgeted WCW.

Wow you are so out of touch it isn't funny.

No former WWE guy has held the title since October of 2011 when Angle held it for 2 months.

I guess you are one of those guys who think someone like Robbie E should be the main event star because he has never been on WWE TV. Good luck with that

 

[kcoe24]

Wow you are so out of touch it isn't funny.

No former WWE guy has held the title since October of 2011 when Angle held it for 2 months.

I guess you are one of those guys who think someone like Robbie E should be the main event star because he has never been on WWE TV. Good luck with that

though i agree with you that he is out of touch with his hate: Jeff Hardy the current champ is a former wwe guy .

Now on to the topic asking does Jeff need to be champ is like asking if Cena does the answer is No he draws on his own and is even without the title is one of the top stars. But just like Cena why not he is your top guy, your top Merch seller obviously a large portion of your crowd wants to see him so why not make him the champ and the focus of the show. Are you more likely to want to watch your favorite guy in the undercard or the Main Event?

Does he need it no he sells no matter what hes doing but does it help him and the company out when the top guy is the champ yes.

 

[crippler]

Jeff Hardy does not need the title he will be where he is weather he is TNA Champion or not. TNA would be good with a guy like a Bully Ray, Storm, Roode or Aries as Champion However face Champions get boring after a while the faces are more entertaining as the guy chasing the heel champion.

 

[Darkseifer330]

It's nice seeing Hardy with the belt and all, but if he loses the belt, it wouldn't be of much loss. There are plenty other guys out there who can easily pick up the piece if so Hardy would drop the ball. Hardy puts on great matches and all but you have to admit his character is just "there". I liked Aries as the champ, hell I loved Roode's reign. Hardy doesn't need the belt, but he should at least stay in the main event.

 

[wrestlingfan]

I really don't get the gripe about Hardy's mic skills. Hardy isn't non-existant on the mic. He's at least good enough with the microphone to hold himself in the feud, and say a sentence to get the crowd popped up.

Other than that, Hardy is perfect for the World Champion. He's popular, He sells, and He puts on good matches. Right now he's probably TNA's best babyface (Ray's more of a tweener, along with Joe). And what other face will they have to hold the World Title? Sure they can do AJ but AJ's had his time in the sun, and Storm is a way better title chaser than holder.

 

[The Perfect Max]

I'll admit I'm not a die hard Jeff Hardy fan, but he is quite entertaining in the ring and since he has jumped ship to TNA, I've enjoyed him more, yet I much prefer WWE to TNA, but that is another story. Anyway, Jeff Hardy is one of those guys who doesn't necessarily need the TNA World Championship. Hardy is in his sixth world title reign overall, I believe, and even though this is less than some people, he doesn't need it. When he loses the title, it won't hurt him whatsoever, nor will it benefit him when he wins it again, which I think he will. He has a big enough fan base and a great skill in providing entertaining matches nearly every time that people will continue to love him no matter what. When he won the WWE Championship at Armageddon 2008, it did benefit him because he was at his most popular and seeing as he had never won the world title, it made perfect sense. Now, I think I'd prefer to see him continue in the main event, but not for the title. Other guys deserve it as well, but Jeff Hardy, whilst he is world title material, doesn't require the title to continue. Other guys are there and ready to carry TNA as it's World Champion. Jeff Hardy will serve as a veteran for the company who, like Shawn Michaels from 2002 to 2010, wasn't in the hunt very often for the title, but still provided the fans with the best entertainment and main event matches. OK, Jeff is no Shawn, but you get the jist.

 

[Limitless]

Here is my issue, while Jeff Hardy is a pretty good entertainer he does not need the world title. He is a top merchandise seller and a top draw and blah blah blah... but what happens when he leaves? They need to focus on there own talents who have been so loyal (Aj Styles, Roode, Daniels, Joe, Ect) because jeff is not going to be there forever and they need to build there future.

While it is good to capitalize on his reign and popularity... hopefully they make a feud that will help elevate someones career. Bobby Roode is TNA's Triple H, and they need to capitalize on that! he is just a natural in the ring.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

As far as "needing" Jeff Hardy, I'd say not. There's hardly anyone on the TNA roster that would be a huge blow to TNA if they were gone or if they weren't in the top spots.

However, the fact remains that Hardy is easily the top overall money maker for the company at this point. He's tremendously over with the fans, he's by far the biggest merchandise seller in the company and is probably the most overall popular wrestler on the roster. It'd be foolish from a business standpoint for TNA to not take advantage of those facts. A lot of people ask why Cena is still ultimately THE guy in WWE and it's for the same reasons that Jeff Hardy is in TNA.

I'm not a huge Hardy guy. I like the guy okay but I'm just not nearly as into him as a lot of other people are. I'm not at all impressed with Hardy as a main eventer or World Champion. But that doesn't change the fact that Hardy is a significant money maker among a roster full of wrestlers that generate little to no money for the company.

 

[wrestlingfan]

Here is my issue, while Jeff Hardy is a pretty good entertainer he does not need the world title. He is a top merchandise seller and a top draw and blah blah blah... but what happens when he leaves? They need to focus on there own talents who have been so loyal (Aj Styles, Roode, Daniels, Joe, Ect) because jeff is not going to be there forever and they need to build there future.

While it is good to capitalize on his reign and popularity... hopefully they make a feud that will help elevate someones career. Bobby Roode is TNA's Triple H, and they need to capitalize on that! he is just a natural in the ring.

Jeff is 35. If he was leaving WWE for TNA, he would've did it when his contract expired just recently.

 

[JasonSilverTX]

To the poster who said that TNA gave Jeff the belt in order to keep him from signing with the E....mind if I get some of that crack your smoking?


While im not a huge supporter of Jeff Hardy, anyone who knows behind the scenes aspects of wrestling(you know buissiness aspects), or anyone who payed attention, can easily attribute Jeff holding that title as TNA doing the smart thing and MARKETING off of Jeffs drug issues. The entire show they gave leading up to Jeff getting the title was all about Jeffs fuck up, the made sure to make note of his fuck up and that he could potentially be gone and they even aired the dirty laundry the wrestlers had with him over what he did with Sting. TNA did the smart thing to gain watchers when they took the broken down guy with demons and had him fight and claw his way back up and show hed changed. Since all that shit went down, TNA showed everyone this broken drug abuser who was getting in better shape, slowly having better matches, and staying clean. Then when they got as far as they could with it, they put the belt on him and look at it from a political or buissiness stand point. You just took a guy known for his demons, and showed an entire world that you could turn him around, get him clean, and make him your lead guy.

Does TNA NEED Jeff as champion? No, he could EASILY fuck up and ruin all the building they have done around him and make TNA look like more of a joke than they already are. But..unless he does fuck up, TNA is easily able to use this as a sign to show they support people to say no to drugs and turn their lives around. Blah blah blah, that good old speech.

And as many others said, he leads merch sales, he has fans of his music, he has fans of his custom art, there ARE people who actually enjoy his matches and his promos or appearance. TNA doesnt NEED Jeff as champion, but in the mean time, they can use this guy with all this exposure to not only benefit them, but to have work ALL their other guys in title matches to help fans get attached to those workers through him.

 

[GameOver]

Simple answer, no they don't. Whether he's over his demons or not he's still an aquired taste and is not the "best in the world" Bobby Roode and Austin Aries are far better faces of the company, but they aren't fan favs so Jeff is the best of the lesser evil

Really the only other options at this point on the face side are Kurt "always injured and mindfudged" Angle and James Storm that they don't want to push beyond being in the main event.

Sure Jeff appeals to the kids but like Cena there's more then enough viewers that couldn't stand him aswell and you are losing any possible viewers by keeping him as the champion instead of someone actually entertaining "overall".

 

[waylon p]

I do not care about Jeff's checkered past. It does not bother (much) me that he is a spot monkey with a limited number of spots. It does not even bother me that TNA has multiple workers that would make better champs.

What I do care about is that having him in a long title run, for reasons including those above, devalues the title and everyone he retains it against. Hardy is simply not credible. This is probably due to the fact that they have not bothered to make him credible. his ascent to the world championship was too fast, and too easy. There should have been a long, long program of him beating all odds over and over again, only to get screwed out of his title win multiple times. This is how you make a face champion credible in light of his limitations and checkered past. Then you continue to make him beat all odds over and over again. You do NOT have him retain in normal singles matches without building large doubt that he can prevail. He is small and his "moveset" is, too. They are booking him as if he is a Kurt Angle or a Bruno Samartino or a Hulk Hogan in his prime. This is not appropriate, and I think it is too late to fix it now. This injury that will keep him out of England should be milked heavily. They should strip him of the title for not defending it, and give it to a credible heel champ with a stable of lackies who can keep him from regaining the title for a long time, so that when he wears the strap again, it will mean something. And make him put away his vanity belt, because it makes the real title seem insufficient.

But none of this will happen, because Hardy knows he sells mad merch, and his ego is both large and fragile. TNA does not need Jeff wearing the title. They just need him happy, so they can rake in the bucks. Jeff is the one who feels he needs Jeff to have the title, and TNA needs to let him have what he needs to stick around.

 

[JasonSilverTX]

I do not care about Jeff's checkered past. It does not bother (much) me that he is a spot monkey with a limited number of spots. It does not even bother me that TNA has multiple workers that would make better champs.

What I do care about is that having him in a long title run, for reasons including those above, devalues the title and everyone he retains it against. Hardy is simply not credible. This is probably due to the fact that they have not bothered to make him credible. his ascent to the world championship was too fast, and too easy. There should have been a long, long program of him beating all odds over and over again, only to get screwed out of his title win multiple times. This is how you make a face champion credible in light of his limitations and checkered past. Then you continue to make him beat all odds over and over again. You do NOT have him retain in normal singles matches without building large doubt that he can prevail. He is small and his "moveset" is, too. They are booking him as if he is a Kurt Angle or a Bruno Samartino or a Hulk Hogan in his prime. This is not appropriate, and I think it is too late to fix it now. This injury that will keep him out of England should be milked heavily. They should strip him of the title for not defending it, and give it to a credible heel champ with a stable of lackies who can keep him from regaining the title for a long time, so that when he wears the strap again, it will mean something. And make him put away his vanity belt, because it makes the real title seem insufficient.

But none of this will happen, because Hardy knows he sells mad merch, and his ego is both large and fragile. TNA does not need Jeff wearing the title. They just need him happy, so they can rake in the bucks. Jeff is the one who feels he needs Jeff to have the title, and TNA needs to let him have what he needs to stick around.

You do know it took him almost a year to get the title..right?

From March 13 2011 up until - the pretaped September 8th show, Hardy was off TNA tv dealing with legal shit and rehabbing. After his return the ENTIRE progress of his time was spent showcasing his chase to rise back from the bottom. He gained a title shot and beat the champ by DQ causing Hardy not to get the belt and work for it again, he then got screwed several times in number one contender matches, time and time again causing him to have to keep trying for more matches. HARDY LOST A NUMBER ONE CONTINDERS match to RVD, He then tried for the tag titles unsuccessfully, he wrestled devon for the tv title to a no contest, he lost a number one continders match to Mr. Anderson, Hardy then entered the BFG Series tournament (this is 2012 now with Hardy still not become world champion and fighting his way back up the ladder against all comers often losing) Hardy WON the BFG series to become Number One Continder once again this time defying both an attack by aces and eight, a possible injury. Hardy then defended the Number 1 spot against Bully Ray the next night, Then on October 14th, Hardy FINALLY faces Austin Aries for the belt...


So im sort of lost on how making a storyline that lasted from March 2011 till October 2012 on a weekly show with ppvs added..was 'built too fast and too easy'. Maybe you just missed a few episode of TNA?

 

[The 1-2-3 Killam]

I've said it before and I'll say it again: every time I go back to disliking Jeff Hardy as World Champion, he pulls another 4-5 star match out of his ass on PPV. His title reign has been filled with quality matches. The recent main event at Genesis was good, but the ladder match with Austin Aries was probably my favorite.

As cool as it is that Christopher Daniels is in line for a title shot, I think handing it off to him at this point, with little-to-no story or drama between the two, is a bad idea. TNA has done great things with the World Heavyweight title in the last 18 months, and as much as I like Daniels, right now isn't the best time. If they wanted to make that a program going into Lockdown, than awesome! But don't just drop the belt in a one-off on Impact because they added some stipulation to a random match at Genesis.

Does TNA "need" Hardy as the Champion? No, I don't think so. We know he was a top merch seller in WWE, but I have yet to see facts and figures for TNA; wouldn't surprise me if he's up there though. I myself have a Jeff Hardy shirt from TNA, although it came in a brown bag special. It also came with a sick RVD shirt that I wear at least once a week, because it looks so cool. To the matter at hand though, i don't think TNA will fall in ratings or see a sales drop without Hardy. I think he's done great in the ring as Champion - still don't think he can cut a promo to save his life - and Roode and Aries have both carried their feuds on the mic, so it's worked out. Daniels might actually be a logical opponent for him next, but I do worry that he's a bit too similar to somebody like Austin Aries.

THAT BEING SAID, with TNA recording 4 weeks of Impact in the UK, and Hardy not being allowed to go on the tour, it is absolutely ridiculous that TNA could even think to film a month of television without the champion, should he indeed retain.