How Will WWE respond to TNA?

[The Viper]

TNA has declared war on WWE by booking a 3 hour show for monday January 4th. Now rumor has it that the E will as well have a 3 hour raw that night. We all know more people will watch Raw (especially cuz the rumored guest host is none other then the FUCKING ROCK!) But do you think WWE will make any changes to their product to make more people tune in to Raw instead of TNA?

If so then what will these changes be? No more PG rating? More new feuds like Orton-Kingston and Cena-Sheamus? No more shitty guest hosts celebs that know absolutely nothing about wrestling? More wrestling on tv and less dumbass comedy skits with DX and Hornswoggle? No more hornswoggle in general?

Or will WWE not see this as a threat and just go on the way they are going now until TNA actually has a chance in competing with them?

Sadly im afraid WWE will stay the same for right now, BUT if anything does change i believe it will be the PG rating. Vince knows that us adults want to see some blood with our wrestling, and at this point the pg rating his proven to make WWE pretty stale, i believe if the PG rating was lifted and WWE went back to tv14 ratings would go up and WWE would be alot more interesting and exciting thus making more TNA fans go back to watch WWE and the loyal WWE fans want to continue watching.

Whats your opinion? will anything change in the WWE now? if so then what changes will be made? or will the WWE stay the same?

 

[Kaze Enigma]

Hmm well either way i see the debut of TNA programing against WWE as big big event and im sure that TNA will be ready for the challange.

On that note though i doubt the WWE will do anything too drastic to compete against them to begin with, TNA simply dont have the star power to do anything to threaten the WWE atm.

But either way it will be an incredible night.

 

[gtajoker01]

I agree I hope wwe does shape up and lose the pg rating because honestly i dont want to get stuck with watching tna. dont get me wrong tna has got great talent but i just dont like the direction they are going and same with wwe. My point is tna shouldnt get so arrogant because wwe could knock their lights out and fast.

 

[WWEFreak]

I think the E will start making changes because deep down vince is worry because he does have some competition. TNA is up and coming and vince knows if he doesnt destroy them now He's going to have trouble....

I say vince should send randy orton 2 TNA and rko hogan BOOM INVASION ANGLE WOOT!!

Cant wait... wats bigger Hogan debuting AGAIN in wrestling or for 1 NIGHT and 1NIGHT ONLY RAW's guess host will be Jabroni beating, pie eating, trail blazing eye brow raising, the most electrifying man in sports entertainment.... THE ROCK!!

 

[johnbragg]

In general, I don't expect changes to WWE programming.

January 4 is a special case--I"d be a little surprised to see Hornswoggle that night, the writing will be WWE at their best, etc. But the PG rating, SuperCena, and everything else that internet fans complain about is either something that Vince believes is the best way for his product to compete in 2010 against not just TNA but UFC, Bones, Halo 3, Hannah Montana, NBA, etc. or something that is very, very hard to pull off correctly.

But there are some business moves that WWE could make that would make it very, very difficult for TNA to operate profitably, and WWE has the cash to wait out a down period until either Spike or Panda throws in the towel and stops throwing more money in the pot.

Last posted in the TNA section in the Official Hulk Hogan thread:

It's practically spam at this point, since there are a bunch of other threads on this topic (Monday Night Wars, Hogan and Bischoff are Coming To TNA).

But here, once again, is the WWE Five Point Plan to Crush TNA Without Making Raw or Smackdown Any Better.

1. Spread the word in the lockerroom that WWE is at war. If a major star Crosses the Line, grudges will be held. You won't be coming back to a 6-month punishment on ECW or to join the Vince Kiss My Ass Club. You just won't be coming back.

2. Institute a lighter schedule for veteran main eventers. This a big reason that veteran stars consider TNA. It would also help sign RVD.

3. Talent raid on key TNA talent. Kurt Angle. Samoa Joe. Awesome Kong. Free Agent RVD. Angle is a free agent now, I believe. Joe and Kong will be free agents in 2010 or 2011. Those are keystone TNA players. Everyone else except STyles, who is locked up, is an interchangeable part.

4. Talent raid on TNA undercard talent. Anyone in TNA's contract is up, offer a WWE roster minimum contract. Just to inflate TNA's payroll to push them closer to going under.

5. Counterprogram. Those discussions with SyFy? They're for a new WWE one-hour studio show at 8 p.m. Mondays, recaps and previews. Move Smackdown to Thursdays. Possibly throw one match onto that Monday show, with an X-division style belt and a champion exclusive to that show, just to screw TNA.

 

[DigitalNight]

I promise that I am not trying to start an online riot/war/syndicate, but I can sum things up in three simple words: "Business as Usual." I am a huge fan of a lot of the things TNA does, as well as a couple of the things that WWE does.

The gears will be in motion, but not to the eyes of the general public. We'll see things trickle in from time to time in the next 2-5 months from WWE about upcoming changes and ideas, but the "Corporate Crush" will happen after TNA's Slamiversary "Epics" or "Monday Impact" whatever it is called.

WWE is not daft to the 225K loss in Neilsen Ratings per Monday Night. They'll bring in more gimmicks and ideas in months time to counteract any TNA Plans. They Battled with a company that was born in the 70s. I think they can take their time on one that was built in the early 00's.

 

[TNA Sucks]

I don't think WWE will change anything. But we loyal WWE fans will be very lucky if it changes their rating to TV 14 or even PG-13!! WWE is a 4-year old show now and they don't get money because of them. Vince gets money we adults go to live events so we should be rewarded for that and Vince already knows that everyone wants a higher rating but apparently he doesn't care what we fans think. Nonetheless, I'm still a loyal WWE fan and will enjoy WWE every minute because TNA Sucks and is stealing WWE superstars and ideas to compete with WWE.

 

[Supersayin]

There is nothing new here, i was expecting Mcmahon to be a bitch. The guy is nothing but a cockblocker, he just bitches and moans, nothing else. Does he fear TNA that much that he has to counter a company which has been here for only 7 years for only one monday night. It's only one night only for Fuck sake, he should let TNA have the spotlight. They deserve, they have worked hard.

 

[LokiCobain1]

Dixie is almost as egotistical as Vince if she really thinks she has a chance with this. Of all weeks, you try to go up against The Rock? TNA is hyping the return of Hogan and Jarrett....even Hogan is nothing to the Rock, especially now. If WWE doesn't extend to a 3-hour special, TNA better have something absolutely insane happen for a continuous hour if they want to prevent every single viewer from jumping over. Jarrett would draw less than Verne Troyer as a guest host, and Hogan is just not the same. He's actually ruining his legacy with his bullsh*t. Suing over a toilet seat?

Anyway, ballsy move by TNA, and it's just a one time thing (for now) and I think the programs attract different viewers so the ratings shouldn't be very different from how they usually are. Most of the Cena-nation and kids who watch Raw aren't watching Spike and TNA, and a lot of the older generation who can't stand the direction WWE went, seem to prefer TNA. It's like if old ECW went up against today's WWE, it's just completely different fans and product (or at least was, damnit Dixie).

I just hope TNA tanks this one and keeps building, I think they're getting too far ahead of themselves.

 

[Rated_R_Superstar2010]

if the rock is the guest host then i would go three hours, not to match tna but just to give the rock more air time. but if rock or someother big wrestling name isnt hosting then stick with the normal show. on wrestlezone it said that the live tna from that monday will be replayed on thursday so im just going to stick to my usual schedule and watch raw on monday and tna on thursday. i'd must must rather watch the rock return for one night than see hulk hogan again. i mean hulk was great in his day and i have respect for the man its just ppl need to learn when their time is up. he's not the draw he once was and he really cant even wrestle anymore. he'll be a boost to tna but only because wwe didnt want him. i like tna and it is a good product but if any wrestler had to choose what company to be in they'd probly choose wwe

 

[Dragonslayer]

This indeed is a rather interesting turn of events... For on the one hand, it would be quite a success for TNA if WWE acknowledged their going live on Monday nights AT ALL. Since up to now, TNA definitely has spent more time pointing out that "this guy and that guy" came from WWE, whilst WWE, in tune with classic keyfabe, has never so much as hinted to the existence of TNA.

Plus, they put Christian, who was considered a major player in TNA, in ECW upon his return, just to make an example out of how little "value" his TNA stint added to his name compared to when he left. They put Christian back right where he had been before he left for TNA, and more or less completely ignored the fact that he was top tier champion in TNA for quite awhile.

However, as said, if WWE chooses to make a move BECAUSE of TNA going live, it is a win - albeit a very small one, and could come at a very high price - for TNA.

On the other hand, The Rock had been rumored as the guest host for that specific edition of RAW for quite a while, and I guess WWE will go through with this... because if they do, they can always claim they had The Rock planned to appear a long time before any news of Hogan & Bischoff signing with TNA or TNA going live and head to head with RAW had ever surfaced. Thus, they'd have a powerful weapon (arguable THE most powerful weapon available in professional wrestling at this particular point in time in The Rock) to counter TNA's every move and STILL make it look like they'd not have done out of the ordinary. In so far, it is not a good move for TNA to debut their live format on that particular date; because that is just playing straight into WWE's hands.

I just don't think that TNA is at that stage yet where they can truly challenge WWE at all (and it's questionable if they'll ever be unless they have financial backing similar to what WCW had when they made their revolutionary move back in the 90ies) - but no matter who they sign (and Hogan definitely is not the draw he used to be, there's just too much sh*t gone down around him recently, and he is - even regardless of all that - just too old to still make a real impact in the Impact Zone, except being another breakout obstacle for younger stars - and I'm saying that as someone who has always been a Hogan fan) - TNA can NOT go against The Rock. Because even if The Rock isn't the draw anymore he used to be, since he's been gone that long now, he still is more present and more credible in a wrestling role at this point than Hogan is, and he also fits better into the entire picture of today's wrestling scene. Hogan, ultimately is, and will always be, a product of the 1980ies (or, at best, of the mid/late 1990ies if you consider the nWo look, but I don't think that could be reproduced again, especially not since TNA had comparable angle in the Main Event Mafia rather recently anyway) and just does not really have a place anymore in today's wrestling scene. He still is a nice sideshow attraction, and for me, it'll always be great in a way to see the Red'n'Yellow come down the aisle, for whatever reason (since I just grew up with the fellow), but he is in no age or shape to be the center of attention of an entire company anymore. And unfortunately, we all know that Hogan really can't stand being anything else than the absolute focus of attention. So we'll see how that bold move plays out for TNA...

Personally, I think it is a little premature, and a decidedly bad point of time has been chosen for it (if indeed The Rock will host RAW); and thirdly, TNA's money might have been put on the wrong steed. Eric Bischoff may be a valuable asset, but Hogan will be more of a liability due to the immense cost his signing undoubtedly must've caused, and even more so because of his creative control that has to come with it.

I really hope the best for TNA, as a veritable challenger to WWE's title is desperately needed at this point in time... but I'm really not sure if this particular move is the best right now. I really hope it is, but at this point, I fear WWE just has the much stronger position. But I guess we'll see how it plays out soon enough, heh...

 

[LegendKiller716]

COME ON, WE ALL KNOW TNA DOES CRAP. THEY STEAL WWE SUPERSTARS AND LOVE WHEN A SUPERSTAR IS RELEASED SO THEY CAN STEAL HIM/HER AND DON'T HAVE TO WASTE TIME TRAINING HIM/HER. THAT'S WHY MORE THAN HALF OF TNA'S ROSTER IS WWE. TNA IS BULLSHIT AND FULL OF DRUNKARD SUPERSTARS.

Dude, would you please, shut the hell up. 95% of WWE wrestlers in TNA are wrestlers WWE stole from either WCW or ECW. Half of WWE's current roster are from WCW or ECW. And on top of that WWE even stole ECW's name.

Back on topic, TNA made 3 bad decisions here:

1.) Airing their first live show againt The Rock. Nobody is gonna miss The Rock for Hogan's debut

2.) They thought Hogan's name alone was enough to make them as good as WWE. The fact is if WWE thought any of TNA's "WWE roster" was a threat, they would not have released them. As for WWE's young guys TNA has become another trainig ground for WWE, they go to TNA reach their potentional, and then return to WWE. Christian and Tomko are good examples.

3.) They are RE-AIRING on Thursday. If you want to pull fans away from RAW yo cant re-air the show. I was planning on flipping between the two shows, but now I wont even tune into TNA on Monday because I can tune in Thursday

 

[DexVendetta88]

Now this is an opportunity for TNA to really go head-to-head with the WWE on a night where the WWE has made their mark over the years. WWE should know better not to brush them off and ignore them on that night. In other words, if the WWE wants to counter TNA on January 4th they should at least have a guest host who knows the business in and out. I'm already hearing reports of The Rock hosting it, so if they're true then they already got one thing accomplished. Speaking of The Rock, another way the WWE can counter is to have The Rock wrestle on that night if he's the guest host because no one has seen him wrestle in years, and it would be a treat especially for younger fans who hasn't seen him in action yet. Other than that they should at least book several championship matches for that night (with guaranteed title changes), and several interpromotional matches. The PG rating on the other hand can hinder the way things go, so the WWE is really taking a risk here since TNA doesn't necessarily cater to a younger crowd. But if TNA fucks up by repeating history cough*Fingerpoke of Doom*cough, then the WWE won't have to do much about it.

 

[rdlevy1215]

The best thing WWE can do is have The People's Champ guest host and have him put himself in a match against Cena for the WWE Title ... and have RAW be 3 hours and TV-14 DLSV .... or at least how SD used to be, TV-PG DLSV .... and obviously a 3 hour Raw is in order...

 

[twiztid_lestat]

I dont truely know how they can respond.

They need to shake things up a bit and be fresh, They have to assume people DONT watch their show, So start out with some new fueds and GREAT promos, and little to know Hogan.

I have one name that should be the highlight from now on, Like he used to be.

AJ STYLES

This man is ready for this type of shine, Be live all the time and be new. Do not show off too many hokey storylines, Try to compete and be the alternative.

Have the X-division be the centerpoint again as well.

And do NOT, I repeat, Do NOT over saturate the show with too much old Wwe talent. This will make it look dated, and just flat out like the retirement home for the leftovers of WWE.

 

[Kenny Powers]

I don't think WWE will change anything. But we loyal WWE fans will be very lucky if it changes their rating to TV 14 or even PG-13!! WWE is a 4-year old show now and they don't get money because of them. Vince gets money we adults go to live events so we should be rewarded for that and Vince already knows that everyone wants a higher rating but apparently he doesn't care what we fans think. Nonetheless, I'm still a loyal WWE fan and will enjoy WWE every minute because TNA Sucks and is stealing WWE superstars and ideas to compete with WWE.

Nice statement Mr.Shareholder. Maybe you can stop drinking the WWE kool aid long enough to realize that TNA is nothing but good news for WWE. It may give them competition and God forbid... a better product. As far as the TV 14 thing goes, keep dreaming. As long as Linda McMahon is running for office, there is no way Vince is going to tarnish his or her image now.

As far as The Rock goes, I seriously doubt he will even be there. He has a full schedule and so does Austin. I could be wrong though, anything could happen. But who can WWE get if The Rock and Austin are unavailable?? Hogan? no he is in TNA... I know.. how about Nick Lachey or The Godfather?

WWE is a four year old show that gets money because of who now???
Do you have any idea what in the bloody hell you are talking about? Vince doesn't give a damn about the PG rating or your blind loyalty to WWE. As long as he makes money that is all that counts right? despite how bad and stale the product is.

Anyways, lets hope that WWE and TNA will produce more quality shows. WWE has been on a role lately, except for Verne Troyer. I think January 4th we are all in for a treat from both WWE and TNA. Even though TNA "steals" all the WWE ideas and Superstars.

 

[WunNightStan619]

Listen...yall gotta understand something. Vince McMahon's only concern is making money. As long as he is rackin in dough, he could care less about TNA. He doesnt, never has nor will he prolly ever will give two squirts of piss about TNA. This whole PG rating, is making him money. As long as TNA is not taking money outta Vince's pocket, he is going to act as if they dont exist. Especially since Mrs. McMahon is running for public office, Vince isnt doing anything to potentially jeapordize that. He is not going to "fire back" and if he does, it'll be a 3 hour special on Raw with The Rock as the guest host. But wun thing he isnt going to waste his time doing is going tit for tat with TNA. He's got better things to do...What he NEEDS to focus on is that create team, but das another subject for another board

Btw can anywun tell me what is the point behind the special guest host? I mean i can understand the PG rating and all, but can somewun please tell me what the point is behind the guest host?

 

[TheHBK]

I don't think the WWE will change drastically over the next few years, as long as TNA doesn't poach a huge star from them. but the point remains, when you hear the word wrestling, you think WWE not TNA. And that won't change for years/ever

 

[HHHDiedForOurSins]

I don't really think WWE will be losing any sleep over this trying to think of ways to respond.

This will be the first Raw of the decade, so I assume they already had big plans for it anyway. Even if The Rock isn't hosting that night, I expect all the big stars from the 3 brands to be on the show. With Cena, Undertaker, DX, Jericho, Orton, Batista, Rey, Punk and the rest all one one show and probably in high profile matches (by free TV standards), TNA just won't be able to compete with that kind of star power, Hogan or no Hogan.

 

[NSL]

WWE has already shown their hand. They're going to three hours for the night, and will most likely have The Rock hosting. It's what you'd expect from Vince. TNA is under the impression that Hulk Hogan will be enough of a draw to overcome whatever it is that WWE throws at them, and since that's pretty crazy, having The Rock host should be enough.

With this only being a one week thing (for now), I wouldn't expect mucg else to be changed. Maybe a cage match main event, or a huge Cena/Undertaker showdown, but that'd be it.

 

[InterestingDrug]

In the end, I think Vince does nothing. No changes to the length of the show. No change to the product. No change to the programming. No change to the show rating.

By doing "something", Vince immediately admits that TNA is a threat to his product. He has too much pride to do something like that. He has The Rock. That's enough for huge huge ratings on RAW. Why change it? He wont need to.

The PG rating will not change. This is something WWE pledges to their shareholders. The rating is bigger than just a decision by Vince.

 

[jrocc4dub]

why would wwe even worry about tna? until they pull a rating thats higher than 1.1 and i mean in the 2's or 3's, they won't change a damn thing. vince has no reason to. i hope tna can compete and force wwe to make some changes to the product, but really, it wont happen. after the novelty of hogan showing up wears off, tna goes back to being what they are now, a distant second to wwe. it's going to take more than a sixty year old hogan to elevate the company to being able to compete with the wwe. until then, why would wwe change? While we would all enjoy something less stale and more adult oriented, it wont happen til tna takes money out of vinces pockets. look how long it took him to change when wcw was kickin the shit out of them. and let's all be honest, tna doesn't really have the guns to go to war with wwe. not yet anyway. probably not for years if ever.

 

[Supersayin]

In the end, I think Vince does nothing. No changes to the length of the show. No change to the product. No change to the programming. No change to the show rating.

By doing "something", Vince immediately admits that TNA is a threat to his product. He has too much pride to do something like that. He has The Rock. That's enough for huge huge ratings on RAW. Why change it? He wont need to.

The PG rating will not change. This is something WWE pledges to their shareholders. The rating is bigger than just a decision by Vince.

WE HAVE A WINNER. But do you know what else would be funny, if The Rock tells WWE to go and screw themselves and he ain't hosting RAW. I think The Rock would be sensible if he doesnt host raw that night because i think he would actually want to see TNA vs WWE on that monday night and not be part of it. He can always come back the week after.

 

[EnglishControlWwe]

I think the WWE should have a three hour show to combat TNA. It should include all three brands and set up feuds for Royal Rumble/Elimination Chamber/WrestleMania. The WWE need something different. Instead of just a random three hour broadcast, it should see the return of the King of the Ring.

Its the perfect time for Superstars to 'Breakthrough' and if used correctly could push every in the tournament and those qualifying for it.

The Monday before, Raw should have two matches for superstars to qualify, they would then face each other in the first round of the tournament. The Tuesday before, ECW should also have two matches for superstars to qualify, they would then face each other in the first round of the tournament. The Friday before (1st 2010), SmackDown should have two matches for superstars to qualify, they would then face each other in the first round of the tournament. On the same Friday, every champion should be there to celebrate the new year. The champions should have a match of some kind and face the winner of a tri-branded last chane battle royal (Royal Rumble preview).

It is also good to have the 'King' of the Ring tournament just a few weeks before the 'Royal' Rumble. It is the perfect time to push superstars and establish feuds.

 

[Chess]

I have to say that although I love TNA and do not watch WWE anymore apart from a few PPV's. If the Rock is to host RAW I would have to watch that over anything TNA can put on. The Rock is a Legend, Hogan has never been and never will be as entertaining in or out of the ring as the Rock.

After this one night spectacular and when everything returns to normal I will return to watching TNA. I just pray the Rock cancels until another night so new fans can witness what TNA is all about.