This rebranding has not been without its faults. When I search "Global Force Wrestling" on google I get the old, now defunct website instead of the newly branded replacement for TNA IMPACT wrestling. This isn't good and is a show of poor media planning (seriously, their online presence may be the weakest part of GFW's game as it all looks like something someone could have churned out from angelfire back in the day). However, in terms of clearing up the longstanding confusion over the name of the company and improving the standing of the company within the world, GFW is already showing promise.
GFW is to the point where they have stars from the TNA era who have been solidified as big names outside of (or in spite of) WWE. Ethan Carter the 3rd, Abyss, Bobby Lashley, Moose, the LAX faction, and, hell, Rockstar Spud are some of the strongest acts the company has ever built up on their own so having them all on the roster at the same time is a big deal. Plus with Eddie Edwards (charisma issues aside) now being one of the most decorated champions in all of wrestling despite never being in the WWE this is a huge boost to their image as well.
For the first time in ages, even with the loss of major names like AJ Styles, Bobby Roode, and others, GFW has a group of guys who might still seem fresh to a new potential audience and look, on the surface at least, like an honest to goodness alternative to the WWE. They have a core of veterans who have found a way to make themselves marketable outside of the WWE and who may actually make comparable (or greater) money to what the WWE would be willing to offer. The surge in popularity of indy wrestling is bolstering wrestling as a whole which is helping a promotion like GFW, who does have a television deal, gain more momentum as well.
GFW also has a lot of sleepers who could easily become major players. They just took a big chance on one, Eli Drake, by making him their world champion and that can only help them create completely fresh big moments moving forward. James Storm has, in all his years, never had the trigger pulled on him and one big run out of the Cowboy could easily put butts in seats, especially in southern markets. Then you have guys who have shown potential in the past like Chris Adonis, Kingston, Sonjay Dutt, and Marshe Rockett who just need to find their groove (or to be consistently treated like big deals) to step into prominence as well.
This isn't even mentioning the women's division, currently fronted by the biggest breakout star not in WWE, Sienna, and including some other newer faces with potential as well as some of the strongest veterans of the past like Angelina Love and ODB. Someone has clearly taken the time to look at what worked in the past, who would add the greatest benefit to the future of GFW, and done their best to build a roster with them.
Sure, there are still a lot of other names on the roster who are complete unknowns and that makes them look more akin to NXT than to a major promotion but this at least gives them greater odds of finding another breakout star in an unlikely talent. I think GFW no longer has blinders on, they realize they need to rebuild or perish which is what they have been doing over the past two years. There have been some difficult setbacks but they are operating more within their budget and making decisions more appropriate for their current size.
This is a stark contrast to the doom and gloom of a few years ago where most people (including myself) were ready to see the company fold so that the talent could go bolster the rosters of more competent promotions. GFW isn't perfect but they are doing more things right than their doing wrong right now and that alone will start moving them in a better direction.
GFW is to the point where they have stars from the TNA era who have been solidified as big names outside of (or in spite of) WWE. Ethan Carter the 3rd, Abyss, Bobby Lashley, Moose, the LAX faction, and, hell, Rockstar Spud are some of the strongest acts the company has ever built up on their own so having them all on the roster at the same time is a big deal. Plus with Eddie Edwards (charisma issues aside) now being one of the most decorated champions in all of wrestling despite never being in the WWE this is a huge boost to their image as well.
For the first time in ages, even with the loss of major names like AJ Styles, Bobby Roode, and others, GFW has a group of guys who might still seem fresh to a new potential audience and look, on the surface at least, like an honest to goodness alternative to the WWE. They have a core of veterans who have found a way to make themselves marketable outside of the WWE and who may actually make comparable (or greater) money to what the WWE would be willing to offer. The surge in popularity of indy wrestling is bolstering wrestling as a whole which is helping a promotion like GFW, who does have a television deal, gain more momentum as well.
GFW also has a lot of sleepers who could easily become major players. They just took a big chance on one, Eli Drake, by making him their world champion and that can only help them create completely fresh big moments moving forward. James Storm has, in all his years, never had the trigger pulled on him and one big run out of the Cowboy could easily put butts in seats, especially in southern markets. Then you have guys who have shown potential in the past like Chris Adonis, Kingston, Sonjay Dutt, and Marshe Rockett who just need to find their groove (or to be consistently treated like big deals) to step into prominence as well.
This isn't even mentioning the women's division, currently fronted by the biggest breakout star not in WWE, Sienna, and including some other newer faces with potential as well as some of the strongest veterans of the past like Angelina Love and ODB. Someone has clearly taken the time to look at what worked in the past, who would add the greatest benefit to the future of GFW, and done their best to build a roster with them.
Sure, there are still a lot of other names on the roster who are complete unknowns and that makes them look more akin to NXT than to a major promotion but this at least gives them greater odds of finding another breakout star in an unlikely talent. I think GFW no longer has blinders on, they realize they need to rebuild or perish which is what they have been doing over the past two years. There have been some difficult setbacks but they are operating more within their budget and making decisions more appropriate for their current size.
This is a stark contrast to the doom and gloom of a few years ago where most people (including myself) were ready to see the company fold so that the talent could go bolster the rosters of more competent promotions. GFW isn't perfect but they are doing more things right than their doing wrong right now and that alone will start moving them in a better direction.
