Shadows Over Hell
Dark Match Jobber
On December 31st 2012, the books were closing on the year 2012. The world had not ended 10 days earlier and TNA was wrapping up a year that I found to be disappointing because TNA didn’t make as huge of a stride in 2012 as I thought they would’ve. Once we welcomed in the New Year, TNA kicked off the 2013 year with a dud of an episode on 1/3/13 and the disappointment level for TNA rose within me. But after that disappointing first week a lot has changed. TNA is no longer doing the 12 ppvs a year format that proved to do more harm than good in recent years. It was something I have wanted them to do away with for a long time so that bit of news made me happy. Instead they are doing 4 ppvs a year while also having a lot of cheap little pre-taped one night only ppvs that given the right card could be one hell of a bargain. So the change in ppv format was a welcome one for me and many other TNA fans.
A few weeks go by and the onscreen product is coming around again so my excitement level is on the rise when it comes to TNA. Then TNA drops the huge news on us TNA fans that has us all delirious, TNA IS TAKING IMPACT ON THE ROAD. As someone who has despised the Impact Zone for years, this was the news I was waiting for. This was the news I prayed to God to make happen. (Ok not really but the phrase helps convey just how badly I wanted TNA to take Impact on the road) This was also an announcement that I never thought I’d ever see TNA actually give me, so this also caught me totally off-guard (Like the First Mets No-Hitter in team history, this news just fell from the sky one random day). Now part of me is curious as why TNA has chosen 2013 to do this so I decided to write a list of reasons why I think TNA has chosen to do this now. (Instead of doing it in bullet points, I will do it in mini-paragraphs with the reason being in the sub-headline)
TNA Got Additional Funds From a New Investor Or TNA Finally Convinced Spike TV To Pick Up The Road Tab
This is probably the most likely answer but it’s also the most boring one so let’s not spend too much time on this. Dixie and company have always been hesitant about doing this so someone had to step in and alleviate the financial burden on Dixie Carter that taking Impact on the road would bring her. Spike TV is a huge believer in TNA (it seems) so maybe Dixie and company finally got Spike to open up their checkbook and fund TNA’s road endeavor.
TNA Has An Ace In The Hole That Will All But Ensure Road Success
I know this is something Bigdawg and a few others have been saying around the site. Logic dictates that TNA has to have something big planned for the first LIVE Road Taping that will get wrestling fans talking and entice the fans to open up their wallets and come to Impact tapings. If memory serves me right TNA employee Eric Bischoff believes in this theory as he got Lex Luger to debut on the first LIVE Nitro one day after Luger did a WWF house show. That gave WCW instant momentum when they began their Live Nitro era. However I don’t think Goldberg is that guy. If this was 2005, I’d be inclined to think Goldberg would be a great draw for TNA to bring in to get fans talking TNA and helping TNA fill arenas nationwide but in 2013 I don’t think Goldberg would make that big of a difference. Also for it to be Goldberg, he’d have to be the heel who is the president of the Aces and Eights. If you watched WCW in 2000, heel Goldberg just doesn’t work.
Now the only two names that can fit the description of being brought in to get fans talking and perhaps get the ball rolling on ticket sales is Dave Batista (or Bautista in TNA) because he is a big name and can instantly make the Aces and Eights group more intimidating. The other guy is an interesting one as he won’t necessarily help put asses in the seats but his arrival will signal that “You never know what TNA will give you at a TNA Impact taping” and that is Shane Mcmahon (he’d also fit in with the first reason as well). Could you imagine at Lockdown or at the first LIVE road Impact Shane “bleeping” Mcmahon shows up or to use a TNA phrase “Crosses the Line” and comes to TNA. Hell how cool would it be if TNA has both Ba(u)tista and Shane Mcmahon debut on the first LIVE Impact on the road.
The WWE Is Vulnerable and It’s Time To Attack
This is not about overtaking WWE; it’s just simply trying to sway more fans over from WWE to TNA. After WM and all the legends leave for an extended hiatus (which in some people’s minds is the best way to book them) the WWE will be very thin in the star power/box office draw department. John Cena is entering his 9th year as WWE’s Hogan/Austin (He can’t touch either man in terms of box office success but rather this comparison is made due to how WWE books him) so his star power isn’t what it once was. Randy Orton’s stock has plummeted from being the number 2 guy in WWE to maybe the 4th or 5th guy. CM Punk no matter how great he is hasn’t really translated into real box office success (Think of him like Shawn Michaels, a great wrestler in all facets of pro wrestling but never that much of a draw). It’s scary to look at the WWE’s roster today and compare it to what it was just a few years back. At WM 25, the WWE had The Undertaker, Shawn Michaels, Jeff Hardy, HHH, John Cena, Edge, Rey Mysterio, Randy Orton, JBL, Chris Jericho all on the roster wrestling fulltime (and Batista was about to return the next night from an injury) Today all that’s left is Cena, Orton and Mysterio (kinda) who wrestle for the company full-time. They’ve brought back Jericho, Lesnar and Rock to inflate the WM and Summerslam numbers to try and off-set the fact the full-time roster can’t bring in strong numbers the rest of the year.
The WWE is in a rebuilding mode and rightfully so. They are hoping to ride Cena and have Brock/Rock off-set their problems at the major ppvs while they work to establish some new guys the rest of the year. The best time to make a move on the competition is when they are at their most vulnerable and right now the WWE has never been as vulnerable as it is right now in like 16-17 years. Again this is not about overtaking WWE; it’s about getting more people to jump from watching and spending money on WWE’s product to watching and spending money on TNA’s product. Going on the road at this moment, might just be the right time to reel in some fans that are a part of the “WWE Universe” right now.
This Is The Last Thing On Sting’s To-Do List Before Retiring
We all know how tight Steve Borden is with Dixie Carter. We all know that the reason why Steve Borden returned to wrestling at the end of 2005 was to help TNA grow and get TNA to the next level (Yeah I just quoted Hogan, sue me). Steve Borden has given TNA a lot in the last 8 years and TNA going on the road might’ve been the last thing on Sting’s to-do list before retiring with a clear conscious. Not to mention hyping up that this is the last year in the career “The Icon” Sting might be one hell of a marketing tool to get wrestling fans to come and see TNA Impact Live and in person. This whole taping Impact on the road might just be one big going away present for "The Icon" Sting.
It Was Just Simply Now Or Never
Maybe just maybe TNA officials realized that sooner or later they have to leave the Impact Zone and decided to just do it now. There is no Ace in the Hole and there is no additional funds coming in to pay for this. TNA has been in that Orlando soundstage for 8 years and it was obvious to everyone who watches Pro Wrestling that TNA outgrew that place. TNA officials have seen that they have a strong crop of talent from the lesser known members of the roster led by Robert Roode, Austin Aries and Bully Ray. They also saw the writing on the wall that Hogan, Sting, Angle and Hardy’s time in wrestling is nearing a close and realized that they have to give this a shot while they still have some top flight legends/draws on the roster to go along with a strong group of lesser known names. Chris Jericho stated WCW’s formula for success in the late 90s was that the big names got the wrestling fans into the arena and the lesser known talent got the fans to stick with the promotion. TNA has the right mix on the roster to put Jericho’s theory to the test.
We all know to succeed in business you have to take some big risks and going on the road without any assurances is a huge risk but its one TNA had to make. Hopefully they do have their ducks in a row to make this work.
One Last Observation
It appears that TNA is trying to make the state of Texas one of their strongholds in the US. Given the fact Texas is one of the bigger states in the country; I definitely think it’s a sound idea. Slammivarsary X was a rousing success in Texas; Lockdown appears like it will be a success in Texas and the Impact Taping in Texas will probably be a success as well. Now that Impact is on the road, they need a few towns/states where they know that no matter what they will get a good sized crowd. If they can get Texas to become a TNA state, it would a great thing for TNA.
TNA Fan4Life.
A few weeks go by and the onscreen product is coming around again so my excitement level is on the rise when it comes to TNA. Then TNA drops the huge news on us TNA fans that has us all delirious, TNA IS TAKING IMPACT ON THE ROAD. As someone who has despised the Impact Zone for years, this was the news I was waiting for. This was the news I prayed to God to make happen. (Ok not really but the phrase helps convey just how badly I wanted TNA to take Impact on the road) This was also an announcement that I never thought I’d ever see TNA actually give me, so this also caught me totally off-guard (Like the First Mets No-Hitter in team history, this news just fell from the sky one random day). Now part of me is curious as why TNA has chosen 2013 to do this so I decided to write a list of reasons why I think TNA has chosen to do this now. (Instead of doing it in bullet points, I will do it in mini-paragraphs with the reason being in the sub-headline)
TNA Got Additional Funds From a New Investor Or TNA Finally Convinced Spike TV To Pick Up The Road Tab
This is probably the most likely answer but it’s also the most boring one so let’s not spend too much time on this. Dixie and company have always been hesitant about doing this so someone had to step in and alleviate the financial burden on Dixie Carter that taking Impact on the road would bring her. Spike TV is a huge believer in TNA (it seems) so maybe Dixie and company finally got Spike to open up their checkbook and fund TNA’s road endeavor.
TNA Has An Ace In The Hole That Will All But Ensure Road Success
I know this is something Bigdawg and a few others have been saying around the site. Logic dictates that TNA has to have something big planned for the first LIVE Road Taping that will get wrestling fans talking and entice the fans to open up their wallets and come to Impact tapings. If memory serves me right TNA employee Eric Bischoff believes in this theory as he got Lex Luger to debut on the first LIVE Nitro one day after Luger did a WWF house show. That gave WCW instant momentum when they began their Live Nitro era. However I don’t think Goldberg is that guy. If this was 2005, I’d be inclined to think Goldberg would be a great draw for TNA to bring in to get fans talking TNA and helping TNA fill arenas nationwide but in 2013 I don’t think Goldberg would make that big of a difference. Also for it to be Goldberg, he’d have to be the heel who is the president of the Aces and Eights. If you watched WCW in 2000, heel Goldberg just doesn’t work.
Now the only two names that can fit the description of being brought in to get fans talking and perhaps get the ball rolling on ticket sales is Dave Batista (or Bautista in TNA) because he is a big name and can instantly make the Aces and Eights group more intimidating. The other guy is an interesting one as he won’t necessarily help put asses in the seats but his arrival will signal that “You never know what TNA will give you at a TNA Impact taping” and that is Shane Mcmahon (he’d also fit in with the first reason as well). Could you imagine at Lockdown or at the first LIVE road Impact Shane “bleeping” Mcmahon shows up or to use a TNA phrase “Crosses the Line” and comes to TNA. Hell how cool would it be if TNA has both Ba(u)tista and Shane Mcmahon debut on the first LIVE Impact on the road.
The WWE Is Vulnerable and It’s Time To Attack
This is not about overtaking WWE; it’s just simply trying to sway more fans over from WWE to TNA. After WM and all the legends leave for an extended hiatus (which in some people’s minds is the best way to book them) the WWE will be very thin in the star power/box office draw department. John Cena is entering his 9th year as WWE’s Hogan/Austin (He can’t touch either man in terms of box office success but rather this comparison is made due to how WWE books him) so his star power isn’t what it once was. Randy Orton’s stock has plummeted from being the number 2 guy in WWE to maybe the 4th or 5th guy. CM Punk no matter how great he is hasn’t really translated into real box office success (Think of him like Shawn Michaels, a great wrestler in all facets of pro wrestling but never that much of a draw). It’s scary to look at the WWE’s roster today and compare it to what it was just a few years back. At WM 25, the WWE had The Undertaker, Shawn Michaels, Jeff Hardy, HHH, John Cena, Edge, Rey Mysterio, Randy Orton, JBL, Chris Jericho all on the roster wrestling fulltime (and Batista was about to return the next night from an injury) Today all that’s left is Cena, Orton and Mysterio (kinda) who wrestle for the company full-time. They’ve brought back Jericho, Lesnar and Rock to inflate the WM and Summerslam numbers to try and off-set the fact the full-time roster can’t bring in strong numbers the rest of the year.
The WWE is in a rebuilding mode and rightfully so. They are hoping to ride Cena and have Brock/Rock off-set their problems at the major ppvs while they work to establish some new guys the rest of the year. The best time to make a move on the competition is when they are at their most vulnerable and right now the WWE has never been as vulnerable as it is right now in like 16-17 years. Again this is not about overtaking WWE; it’s about getting more people to jump from watching and spending money on WWE’s product to watching and spending money on TNA’s product. Going on the road at this moment, might just be the right time to reel in some fans that are a part of the “WWE Universe” right now.
This Is The Last Thing On Sting’s To-Do List Before Retiring
We all know how tight Steve Borden is with Dixie Carter. We all know that the reason why Steve Borden returned to wrestling at the end of 2005 was to help TNA grow and get TNA to the next level (Yeah I just quoted Hogan, sue me). Steve Borden has given TNA a lot in the last 8 years and TNA going on the road might’ve been the last thing on Sting’s to-do list before retiring with a clear conscious. Not to mention hyping up that this is the last year in the career “The Icon” Sting might be one hell of a marketing tool to get wrestling fans to come and see TNA Impact Live and in person. This whole taping Impact on the road might just be one big going away present for "The Icon" Sting.
It Was Just Simply Now Or Never
Maybe just maybe TNA officials realized that sooner or later they have to leave the Impact Zone and decided to just do it now. There is no Ace in the Hole and there is no additional funds coming in to pay for this. TNA has been in that Orlando soundstage for 8 years and it was obvious to everyone who watches Pro Wrestling that TNA outgrew that place. TNA officials have seen that they have a strong crop of talent from the lesser known members of the roster led by Robert Roode, Austin Aries and Bully Ray. They also saw the writing on the wall that Hogan, Sting, Angle and Hardy’s time in wrestling is nearing a close and realized that they have to give this a shot while they still have some top flight legends/draws on the roster to go along with a strong group of lesser known names. Chris Jericho stated WCW’s formula for success in the late 90s was that the big names got the wrestling fans into the arena and the lesser known talent got the fans to stick with the promotion. TNA has the right mix on the roster to put Jericho’s theory to the test.
We all know to succeed in business you have to take some big risks and going on the road without any assurances is a huge risk but its one TNA had to make. Hopefully they do have their ducks in a row to make this work.
One Last Observation
It appears that TNA is trying to make the state of Texas one of their strongholds in the US. Given the fact Texas is one of the bigger states in the country; I definitely think it’s a sound idea. Slammivarsary X was a rousing success in Texas; Lockdown appears like it will be a success in Texas and the Impact Taping in Texas will probably be a success as well. Now that Impact is on the road, they need a few towns/states where they know that no matter what they will get a good sized crowd. If they can get Texas to become a TNA state, it would a great thing for TNA.
TNA Fan4Life.
