Something About the X-Division Belt...

[Hulk Hogan's Brother]

When Hulk Hogan came to TNA in 2010, he did one very significant thing. On January 17th 2010 at TNA Genesis, he changed the structure of the ring by introducing the traditional four sided ring to replace the six sided ring that TNA had been using for a while. He explained this change by saying that the six sided ring had brought TNA this far but that it was the traditional four sided ring that would take them further. That is exactly what I think about TNA's X-Division belt.

The X-Division title as we all know had some special rules. There were no limits as far as weight classes go but there was a limit on the type of offense used. You needed to have an "extreme" sort of offense to be a part of this division. The problem was that the X-Division was such an important part of TNA that for a long time there was no other midcard title for a while and even now when there is a TV title, it is not given much attention. Therefore the TV title, in TNA, does not count for much. The X-Division title is the pseudo midcard title of the company. Why do I say pseudo? Because it has a midcard billing but the title itself does not incorporate all the midcard wrestlers!

A midcard title is supposed to act as a stepping stone for many a wrestler. What that means in TNA is that if you cannot perform high risk manouvres, you cannot have a midcard title which severely hinders the career of many a wrestler. The likes of Abyss( even though he was X-Div. champion for a while), Anderson, Morgan and Pope have suffered from this. Now, with there being a weight limit on the division, I believe that it just makes matters worse. It continues being featured more prominently on the programming than the TV title which means that talented midcarders who are not cruiserweights are left off television.

I may be alone in this but I believe that the X-division title serves no purpose. Niether did it's previous incarnation that did not involve weight classes. I believe that it should be scrapped and all it's performers should be allowed to compete for a midcard title with really no limits, in terms of offense, weight classes or anything else. Talented lightweights like Austin Aries will shine through no matter what and we will get to see them compete against someone other than lightweights and victories over such competitors will only make them look better. It will also help involve more heavyweight wrestlers who have nothing much to do into the midcard scene due to their being no limits for real this time and may help them rise.

I am not calling simply for a push for the TV title for one reason. The kind of legacy that the X-Division belt has in TNA means that the TV title will always be overshadowed by it's presence, which will lead to a similar situation to the one we have now eventually even if the TV title is pushed for a few months.

I believe that the only purpose the X-Division title can serve is for a PPV like Destination X. That could be TNA's version of King of The Ring or MITB. Rename the title as "King of the Extreme" or something and have something special attached to it, like a title shot. Let only wrestlers who can perform extreme manouvres be eligible for this sort of an event. That way, I feel TNA can both save it's legacy as well as move forward.

I know that the X-Division title was once unique for what it was but I did not like it much even then. Unique is not always the best option and that is something that the X-Division title embodies. A more "open" midcard scene would serve TNA better.

 

[Alex]

I do see what you mean. With the X-Division now having a weight class it is harder for certain wrestlers to go after a belt. But lets be honest, the X-Division was essentially a crusierweight division anyway, with the exception of Samoa Joe (and to a lesser extent Abyss and Doug Williams) there hasn't been any performers (to my knowledge) who were over the 230lb weight limit.

Yes the TV title should be used more prominetly as its been pretty much useless since its inception, with the exception of the belt being on AJ Styles (each time under a different name) it hasn't really been featured at all. I'd like a belt that guys like Morgan, Pope, Anderson and others can go after thats not the World title and this would be nice.

Even if the TV title isn't featured as a midcard belt, if there are really good storylines for these wrestlers to be involved in then a belt shouldn't matter to much.

 

[shattered dreams]

I like what they are doing with the X-division now. I think it saved the division and absolutely serves a purpose. I don't really think of it by the weight limits as much as the style. It is basically the ROH division and there certainly is a market for that niche. What is good about the weight limits is that what they really did was establish the division as its own subset of the roster. Now they can tell stories contained in that division without being tempted to throw a guy higher on the card in a story there for a month. It is doing a fair amount to establish new wrestlers on the roster. I don't think it hurts the midcard at TNA at all. I am not sure a title is really the answer to the midcard anyway. I sort of find a midcard singles title to be obsolete in the current state of wrestling anyway. The title is a story telling crutch and I think the stories are often better because they can't just throw a meaningless title into the mix in place of substance. IMO they specifically altered the X-division title so it would not be a pseudo midcard title, which was a smart move. There isn't a weight limit on the other titles so there is nothing stopping a guy from moving up at some point. Who knows, maybe Aries brings the TV title to relevance after his reign ends?

 

[three count bout]

I am not calling simply for a push for the TV title for one reason. The kind of legacy that the X-Division belt has in TNA means that the TV title will always be overshadowed by it's presence, which will lead to a similar situation to the one we have now eventually even if the TV title is pushed for a few months.
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I think this is the reason to Not change the X-Division belt. That legacy you referenced is rich and not easily erasable. The thing with these titles, is if you can't create interesting feuds and quality match ups which in turn make people want to tune in the belts are meaningless. I think the X-Div belt is finally starting to mean something and it certainly fits a role in the company as the "crusierweight" title.

Apparently the company isn't in a huge rush to have a dedicated Mid-Card title, even if it can work as a plateau to greater things. I wonder sometimes why they keep the TV title and they seem so adamant to not use it when guys like Morgan, Pope, Magnus, etc could actually do something with it.

Like SD said creative has to come up with something for those guys belts or not.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I'm glad to see that the X Division has finally gotten some life and relevance back into it. At the same time, I'm not wild about the weight limit aspect of it. The X Division mantra used to be "It's not about weight limits, it's about no limits" but now, in all honesty, it's a glorified cruiserweight division with a flashy name. And, this is just my opinion, I think it sends something of a negative message when it comes to smaller guys.

Over the past few years, there've been a lot more wrestlers on the smaller side making it to top companies like TNA & WWE. A lot of the best young talent to come up in the past several years, or who have really stepped up their game and made it to the next level, have been guys 220 pounds or less. Whenever I think of a "special division" only for wrestlers that are in a certain weight range, it sends a message that maybe these guys just can't hang with the "big guys". That's not necessarily true of course but perception is reality when it comes to pro wrestling and the perception, to me and probably others as well, is that maybe these "little guys" don't have what it takes.

I know that, for the most part, the X Division has always been a cruiserweight division but that didn't mean that larger guys couldn't pass through it, which a few did every so often. The TV title means absolutely nothing, it's pretty much a joke, which means that winning that title from Eric Young means nothing and won't do much of anything for anyone else's career. In the X Division, you can't be heavier than 220 pounds to be part of it. Couple those two things together and it puts some pretty frustrating limits on TNA's mid-card scene as a whole.

 

[Hulk Hogan's Brother]

I like what they are doing with the X-division now. I think it saved the division and absolutely serves a purpose. I don't really think of it by the weight limits as much as the style. It is basically the ROH division and there certainly is a market for that niche. What is good about the weight limits is that what they really did was establish the division as its own subset of the roster. Now they can tell stories contained in that division without being tempted to throw a guy higher on the card in a story there for a month. It is doing a fair amount to establish new wrestlers on the roster. I don't think it hurts the midcard at TNA at all. I am not sure a title is really the answer to the midcard anyway. I sort of find a midcard singles title to be obsolete in the current state of wrestling anyway. The title is a story telling crutch and I think the stories are often better because they can't just throw a meaningless title into the mix in place of substance. IMO they specifically altered the X-division title so it would not be a pseudo midcard title, which was a smart move. There isn't a weight limit on the other titles so there is nothing stopping a guy from moving up at some point. Who knows, maybe Aries brings the TV title to relevance after his reign ends?

The midcard title may be a crutch but it is a convenient crutch to lean on. Especially when you cannot create a story for every single performer. Tell me what is Anderson or Abyss doing right now. They are both pretty useful talents but because of their inability to compete for the X-Division title, they have to wait until there is some vacancy in the heavyweight title scene. A midcard title could have meant both of them and many more being on the show. That is why I am not a huge fan of the X-division scene as it is now. Sure Shelley and Aries are great talents but I do not believe that the likes of Zema Ion or Mike Haskins are better than the likes of Anderson and Pope who are left out jusst because there is nothing for them to compete for.

And the X-Division title still functions as the pseudo midcard title because there is simply no other midcard title of any relevance. The problem is not a whole lot of the cruiserweights are deserving enough to move up the card and thereby it's a bit of a failed investment.

I think this is the reason to Not change the X-Division belt. That legacy you referenced is rich and not easily erasable. The thing with these titles, is if you can't create interesting feuds and quality match ups which in turn make people want to tune in the belts are meaningless. I think the X-Div belt is finally starting to mean something and it certainly fits a role in the company as the "crusierweight" title.

You know what else had a rich legacy? The six sided ring. But, it was what made TNA look like a small company. You will never see the bigger companies try and attract attention with special features on a regular basis. They did not become big that way. They became big because of great storylines based around traditional features.

That is what the X-Division is to TNA. A loved novelty feature which in the opinion of many sets it apart but what it really does is make it the same as a dozen indy companies out there.

I am not saying that the X-Division should be done away with overnight. Maybe they can have a unification bout for the TV title and the X-Division title. Have a heel holding the TV title win the match. TNA fans will hate that guy and it might also give the heel a push.

I'm glad to see that the X Division has finally gotten some life and relevance back into it. At the same time, I'm not wild about the weight limit aspect of it. The X Division mantra used to be "It's not about weight limits, it's about no limits" but now, in all honesty, it's a glorified cruiserweight division with a flashy name. And, this is just my opinion, I think it sends something of a negative message when it comes to smaller guys.

See, even when they did say that it was about no limits, they were placing a limit. It meant that only the wrestlers who could do insane stuff could participate and since the X-Division title was pretty much the midcard title of TNA that meant that only certain types of wrestlers got the push. Now, it's even worse for the reasons that you just stated about small guys being good enough only to compete with their likes. So, I never liked it.

 

[GrandSword]

What I got out of this thread is that many fans just want all companies to be the same.

You've got to have a mid card title, you've got to have something for the upper mid card to fight for, I don't like the X Division, I never liked the X Division, it's all too different from what it "should be". The X Division title is a pseudo mid card title, because the TV title is a joke and not everyone can wrestle for it due to the weight limits.....


I think TNA is an alternative to WWE or any other company for a verirty of reasons. One of them being the X Division. Jarrett when he first put it together said that he wants these guys to be like a computer game, like a featherweight classess in boxing where (unlike the Heavyweights where one punch ends the fight), you've got two guys or soemtimes more, going hell for leather hitting their opponents a heap of times with everything they've got to get the win.

In the lighter boxing or MMA weights, because they don't have the heavyweight power behind them they can hit a guy multiple times and he wont fall. Many people talk about the non-selling, spot monkey way the X Division works... but who gives a flying crap it is super entratining, it brings fans to their feet and is always a great opener to a show to get the crowd pumped up...

That's what it's purpose was and due to the at the time of it's prominence it had amazing talents like Styles, Daniels, Joe, Sabin, Low Ki, Red and Lynn just stealing the show every night. These guys have moved on from it now and the Division is slowly trying to build itself back up with the likes of Veterans like Aries and Kash and helping them build up the younger guys.

The X Division is something that made TNA different on the National and International scene and now with Aries steering the ship it is the best positionit has been at in years.

I don't agree with the weight limits being imposed on it, it's typical Bischoff stuff, but hey, thanks to Aries, it currently doesn't really matter now does it...