Speculation - Decide How the WWE's Spring Cleaning May Affect TNA...

[Kitten Cutter]

Here is a hypothetical situation for us bookers who either want to see change in TNA, or just to speculate.

The WWE is doing its usual spring cleaning after Wrestlemania, and a lot of mid-card talents will be getting their future endeavor well-wishin’ slips soon. This means that if TNA has any interest in them, and assuming they get released on April 4th (the day after WM) they will have to wait 90 days to appear, which means they would be able to sign and appear on the TV tapings on July 4th and 5th and beyond.

So, let’s put YOU as a member of TNA’s creative. (which seems to be a common thread but maybe we're all bored... ) Here’s what I’d like to read:

1. Name me 3 WWE talents that you’d bring into TNA. (any mid-card talent, which is pretty much anyone not named Cena, Orton, Undertaker, HHH, Mysterio, Edge, Del Rio, or The Miz.)

2. Name me 3 TNA talents that you would release to take their spot. (don’t worry about level of talent; it’s more a roster spot than money and contract)

3. Tell me what role they’d play for you (title feud, main event feud, mid-card feud, heardcore feud or some other type)

Don’t worry about renaming the wrestlers unless you really want to, and for the hardcore fans that says TNA is perfect as is and doesn’t need WWE talent: I get it, I understand your feelings, and you should know that this is PURE SPECULATION and is simply fun for other people. Please don’t reply with how perfect TNA is. We know, buddy.

As my examples:
I’d say Kofi Kingston, Jack Swagger and Yoshi Tatsu get released.

In TNA I’d cut Robbie E., Orlando Jordan, and Rob Terry.

Kofi Kingston would immediately be feuding for the X-division title at first as a huge fan favorite, then get a push toward the World Title as he hopefully grows up the way A.J. did.

Jack Swagger would have a main-event worthy feud with Kurt Angle right off the bat in several wrestling and All-American challenges as Angle would pass the torch.

Yoshi Tatsu would tag team with Okada and be a lower-card tag team.

Thoughts?

 

[Post]

I would add Christian, Ted DiBiase, and Justin Gabriel to TNA's roster.

Christian would be a perfect fit for the main event (WHC) role in TNA. He has already been to the top in TNA. He would be a nice addition to the picture. Plus, as a Christian fan, it would be nice to see him in the limelight and not being burried.

Ted DiBiase would be a perfect midcarder in TNA. I can see him competing for the TV championship or even joining a group like Fourtune.

Justin Gabriel would be a nice fit in the X division. He could spice it up and make for a pretty cool champion. I'm not a huge fan of his as a tag team guy (that is probably due to Heath Slater). I think the X division could help bring out his true personality.

I agree with eliminating Rob Terry. I would also axe Shark Boy and Tommy Dreamer.

 

[ABMorales787]

Evan Bourne is quick to come to mind. With the X Division as weak as it is and with the plans to revamp the division by July's Destination X PPV, a guy like Evan Bourne, a previous X Division competitor quickly comes to mind. Trent Barreta and Curt Hawkins could also fit that bill given their agility and heels are a must in any aspect of TNA right now.

 

[Rasha]

I was thinking that Chris Masters and JTG would make nice additions. TNA's tag division needs new blood, especially if they're ever going to let Robert Roode move on to bigger things as a singles competitor. I'd bring in Masters as an Immortal recruit and pair him with Rob Terry. Masters could do the talking and they'd be the new twin enforcers for the stable. They'd also bring a different physical element to the division. As for JTG, I'd simply go find wherever Shad Gaspard is and reform these two as a more mature, edgier version of Cryme Tyme. They could be like the new LAX.

For the third guy, I like Killjoy's idea of either Bourne or Barreta as new blood for the X-Division. I could totally see Bourne coming in and getting hyped as "the next AJ Styles" and eventually leading to a feud between those two.

Nobody really HAS to be fired to make room for either guy, but to make the OP happy I'll fire Kiyoshi, Orlando Jordan, and Shark Boy. That was easy.

 

[neildittmar]

Three WWE talents I would bring into TNA, assuming they got their walking papers... I'll try to keep it realistic:

Zack Ryder - I'd change his look ever so slightly and mix him in with Robbie E. and Cookie with The Shore. By the timeframe of July, Robbie's role in the X division would probably be slowing down and TNA needs a solid heel tag-team. I don't think Gunner and Murphy can carry that banner quite yet, so The Shore would be a nice fill-in.

Yoshi Tatsu - I really, really like this guy and his stiffer style. If released, I would completely re-package him and give him a Great Muta style gimmick (face paint, simpler attire, and possibly the mist). Since Robbie E. would be leaving the X division in my scenario above, Tatsu could fill the void nicely. In fact, I think Yoshi could potentially do wonders for the division in the athleticism department... much more than Robbie E. could accomplish.

Tyler Reks - This guy has a fantastic look, but isn't allowed to be the dominating heel he could be due to some of the other players on the Smackdown roster. He's a big, imposing guy who can't be big or imposing. Upon the move to TNA, I would pretty much keep his current look and just let him steamroll over the lower end of the roster in impressive fashion. I might link him up to Immortal at some point, but feel that with the right direction he could survive on his own.

As for who I'd consider dumping from the TNA roster to make room?

1. Brian Kendrick - he has had about a year to do something in TNA and continues to flounder. I really like him, and thought his gimmick on Smackdown before he got cut was going somewhere. The "insane philosopher" he has had going forward just doesn't work for me. Interesting in theory, poor in execution. I'm not sure what's left for Kendrick in TNA to be quite honest. He just can't seem to get started, let alone elevate.

2. Jay Lethal - another perpetual false-starter from what I've seen. He gets an X division title run, a series of character development vignettes, and even the Ric Flair rub. All of this has essentially amounted to him being in the same place he was a year ago. Sans the "black machismo" gimmick of course that I thought was fairly entertaining.

3. Orlando Jordan - another one who has had his opportunity to shine and consistently comes up short. Unless he's willing to go "all in" with the bi-sexual gimmick, I just don't see him getting anyplace further. In my opinion, he wouldn't be missed.

 

[mat1992clarke]

nice and quick.

3 to TNA. Evan Bourne, Vladimir Kozlov and Skip Sheffield

3 gone from TNA. Robbie E, Tommy Dreamer and Shark Boy.

 

[Rampage Bentley]

1. Name me 3 WWE talents that you’d bring into TNA. (any mid-card talent, which is pretty much anyone not named Cena, Orton, Undertaker, HHH, Mysterio, Edge, Del Rio, or The Miz.)

I'm just going to go ahead and substitute Punk for Miz here, seeing as how even though he's WWE Champion, Miz is a total midcarder.

1. David Hart Smith
2. Drew McIntyre
3. Miz

2. Name me 3 TNA talents that you would release to take their spot. (don’t worry about level of talent; it’s more a roster spot than money and contract)?

1. Bully Ray
2. Jesse Neal
3. Shannon Moore

At first I didn't know exactly what you meant here, if the person replacing the fired wrestler would have their level of use, but then I realized TNA has no hierarchy and I figured it was just a literal spot on the roster.

3. Tell me what role they’d play for you (title feud, main event feud, mid-card feud, heardcore feud or some other type)?

1. David Hart Smith, I would rename "The Canadian Bulldog" Harry Smith, and play off his dad's legacy a little more than WWE does. I'd give him a nice run with the TV title and give him a bit of an undefeated Goldberg run with it (on a much smaller scale) and use it to eventually put him in the main event.

2. With Drew, I'd probably give him his own stable with guys like Douglass Williams, Desmond Wolfe, and Magnus.

2. Miz, while Miz is a complete midcarder in WWE, I could buy him in the main event of TNA. He'd be a great foil for Anderson and would love to see the two feud

 

[captainjack]

The Three WWE stars i'd bring in would be Tyson Kidd,Chavo Guerrero and Yoshi Tatsu to help rebuild the X Division and i would probably give Hector Guerrero a mentor role to Chavo much like he did with LAX.
As for the TNA talent i wouldnt mind losing would be Orlando Jordan as he just doesnt interest me. I also think that losing Tommy Dreamer as an onscreen character is a good idea and Shark boy as he would be surplus to requirement for the new X Division

 

[Th3Vip3rRK0]

LMAO at the idiots saying that Christian, Kofi Kingston, Ted DiBiase and Evan Bourne are gonna get released.

Christian is in a current feud with Del Rio which will continue after WrestleMania, so Christian isn't going no where.

Kofi Kingston is the Intercontinental Champion, and he isn't going anywhere either.

Evan Bourne just returned and WWE has big plans for him for WM and beyond, so he isnt going nowhere as well.

I doubt Ted DiBiase will be released and Jack Swagger wont be released either.

to be realistic on who gets the walking papers, these are the superstars who will likely get released and no one even gives a shit about:

1. Curt Hawkins - hasn't been seen on TV and is wasting space on the roster and why pay him to sit at home?

2. JTG - does nothing for the WWE, and will be released.

3. Trent Barreta

4. Darren Young - hasnt been seen on TV, and wont be around much longer

5. Michael Tarver

6. Primo - all he does is wrestle on a taped Superstars show and he is nothing without Carlito, so let him go.

7. Vladimir Kozlov - Kozlov sucks, and start pushing Santino seriously again and he can contend for the U.S. Title or something.

8. Yoshi Tatsu - Yoshi does nothing, and will never get a push so can him.

those are who I think will be released and there's no way in hell Christian, Swagger, Kofi, DiBiase, Bourne, etc. would be released.

I don't watch TNA, so I don't care if TNA releases people and replaces them with the above 8, but I'm sure those 8 are gonna get released after WM is over.

 

[MachoMadness1988]

This is not who I think are going to be released. More just people I would like to see in TNA if they were released from WWE...

Evan Bourne- He is perfect for the X Division.

Justin Gabriel- Another guy I think would be perfect for the XDivision right now, and I could see him transitioning from the XDivision to the other divisions maybe even the WHC picture eventually.

Jimmy and Jey Uso- I think these guys have a great look, and have done some cool things in the ring with the Hart Dynasty. They would definitely add to the Tag Team division.

The Hart Dynasty- I also like to see these guys in TNA's tag team division so that they could do some actual tag team wrestling. I really liked the short run these guys had with the WWE tag team championships. Both could go to other divisions too. Tyson would be great for the X-Division. DH Smith is a pretty big dude, and has a lot of potenital.

Gail Kim- Her work in TNA speaks for itself, and I want her back! She would be really great for the division right now.

Ted DiBiase- Now this one I really don't ever see being released due to his family name, but I think a run in TNA Wrestling would do this guy some good. He needs some life injected into his character! He has a lot of potenital.

Natalya She would be awsome in the Knockouts Division.

 

[Chess]

Ok then. I think I will try and pick some wrestlers that I actually think may be getting future endevoured rather than those who I would like to see return to TNA like Christian.

My TNA future endevoured would be:
1. Kyoshi - Didn't even know he was still their, but he has never and will never amount to anything.

2. Shannon Moore - This guy is just boring. Both bad on the Mic and in the ring and is only really in TNA as they wanted to ensure they signed Jeff Hardy (why they didn't get The Hurricane instead is beyond me)

3. Tommy Dreamer - While he may be a good business mind he is way past his prime and even in his prime he was not that entertaining or relevant. Maybe keep him as a road agent or something like Al Snow but keep him off my TV in any wrestling capacity.

I would also not mind getting rid of Amazing Red, Shark boy and Hulk Hogan.

The 3 signings from the WWE.

1. David Hart Smith - This guy has some very decent in ring skills as well as the size and wrestling family history. It should be pretty easy to build him as a legitimate Heavyweight contender and make him interesting to the fans by running stories about his family. I have no idea how he is on the mic as I have not seen him talk.

2. Tyson Kidd - Similar to David Hart Smith, Tyson Kidd has legitimate talent in the ring, he is both technically gifted as well as has some potential as a high flyer. I would put Kidd in the running for the X-Division title with maybe a tag team run with Bryan Kendrick.

3. Chavo Guerrero - This guy has it all - He is both great on the mic and exceptional in the ring. He has never been able to achieve what he deserved in the WWE so why not come and win a few mid card titles in TNA. I would put Chavo straight in the hunt for the TV title or whatever mid card title TNA decides to keep. I also wouldn't mind him joining forces with Hernandez and playing a major heel role.

I have to say I also like the two NXT rookies Brodus Clay and Johnny Curtis but we may have to wait a year or two before these guys are no more in WWE.

I personally would hate to see Evan Bourne, Yoshi, Boom Boom Kingston, Zack Ryder or any other of these average wrestlers that are in WWE. TNA should stick to signing people with good to great in ring abilities as well as guys who can talk on the mic.

 

[Post]

1. Name me 3 WWE talents that you’d bring into TNA. (any mid-card talent, which is pretty much anyone not named Cena, Orton, Undertaker, HHH, Mysterio, Edge, Del Rio, or The Miz.)

For Th3Vip3rRK0: Can you read?

"LMAO at the idiots saying that Christian, Kofi Kingston, Ted DiBiase and Evan Bourne are gonna get released."

Everyone you mentioned is a midcarder...plain and simple. Does WWE have bigger plans for them? Maybe. But not right now.



"I don't watch TNA, so I don't care if TNA releases people and replaces them with the above 8, but I'm sure those 8 are gonna get released after WM is over. "

Again, try reading. The OP said "1. Name me 3 WWE talents that you’d bring into TNA. (any mid-card talent, which is pretty much anyone not named Cena, Orton, Undertaker, HHH, Mysterio, Edge, Del Rio, or The Miz.)" Why bother making your, uh, 10th post, if you don't even watch TNA?



Th3Vip3rRK0=Gigantic Douche

 

[Kitten Cutter]

Nice ideas, everyone....keep it up!

I'm just going to go ahead and substitute Punk for Miz here, seeing as how even though he's WWE Champion, Miz is a total midcarder.

Not including CM Punk is a mistake of mine. I guess I didn't think of him as a main event guy, but he is, seeing as is main feuds have been top-of-the-card stuff. Wade Barrett is borderline but his role on Smackdown has been diminished.

At first I didn't know exactly what you meant here, if the person replacing the fired wrestler would have their level of use, but then I realized TNA has no hierarchy and I figured it was just a literal spot on the roster.

You're correct. It'd be hard to figure out which wrestler would replace who based on their level of use. It literally is removing a wrestler from one roster slot and putting another name there like a sports team.

1. David Hart Smith, I would rename "The Canadian Bulldog" Harry Smith, and play off his dad's legacy a little more than WWE does. I'd give him a nice run with the TV title and give him a bit of an undefeated Goldberg run with it (on a much smaller scale) and use it to eventually put him in the main event.

I like that idea a lot. Watch now...some WWE or TNA creative will read this and DH Smith will be lucky as hell.

those are who I think will be released and there's no way in hell Christian, Swagger, Kofi, DiBiase, Bourne, etc. would be released.

I don't watch TNA, so I don't care if TNA releases people and replaces them with the above 8, but I'm sure those 8 are gonna get released after WM is over.

We all have to excuse Th3Vip3rRK0. I'm guessing his porn collection ran out so he needs something to do, and coming to a forum of a show he doesn't watch to attempt to make fun of people he doesn't know is fun for him. He's a special little boy.

And for the record, I'm a HUGE fan of Kofi Kingston and would be devastated to see him released. I simply made an example for people to follow.

 

[Atheist Christian Fan]

I agree with Th3Vip3rRKO on one thing, realistically those guys wouldnt be released by the "E", and that includes Yoshi Tatsu because he is the sole guy bringing in the Asian market.

So realistically, the people who I would bring in out of the people that could get fired would be...

1. Tyson Kidd, it seems as the WWE has no real plans for him, I'd bring him in to star in the X Division.
2. Trent Baretta, X Division prospect.
3. Primo, WWE doesn't seem to care much about the Puerto Rican fan base, and TNA could be a place where he could display his talent in the ring, You could break Hernandez away from immortal and have them start a new Latino stable.

I would fire.

Originally I thought Gunner and Murphy, but they are green so I'll give them time to prove themselves.

1. Rob Terry, man does this guy suck.
2. Robbie E., Doesn't seem to fit into any direction that I would want take the company. I'd keep cookie and figure some sort of gimmick change
3. Magnus, see Rob Terry.

To the OP, great thread topic.

 

[TNA cross the line]

I would release:

Orlando Jordan - just a waste of TV time and holding EY from away the x-division.

Kiyoshi - i could be wrong but i havnt seen him on tv in 2011.

Tommy Dreamer - Should have stayed in wwe.

I would sign :

Evan Bourne - Great X-division addition would love to see him in ultimate X.

Gail Kim - Pioneer of the Knockout division she needs to return home and fued with mickie, angelina, ODB 'i hope shes back for good'
and Madison

The Instant Classic Christian Cage - Should have never left TNA in the first place. I would love to see him fued with Jeff Hardy Or MR Anderson Imagine the promos between Anderson and Cage sounds epic to me.

 

[ray kidman]

anyone the wwe gets rid of would be nice for tna but i would love to layla cross the line i think she could be a star is she was by her self

 

[Zeven_Zion]

Out: Brian Kendrick, D-Von, Bubba, Kiyoshi, Okato, Foley, OJ, Dreamer

In: Matt Sydal, Tyson Kidd, Trent Berreta.

Realistically, I can see those three leave and they'd all be great additions to the X-Division.

I would also LOVE it if I see Trent and Croft (The Dudebusters) in TNA. These guys are hilarious, entertaining and they're not bad in the ring. Great tag team, I was hoping WWE would give them something to run with.

People who most likely won't get released but I'd love to see in TNA are Dolph Ziggler and John Morrisson. WWE buried Ziggler so bad, and Morrisson is wasting his time, they'll never appreciate him.

 

[UltimateHitman]

Interesting thread. I will stick to the OP's limit of 3, but there are plenty of TNA roster spots I would open up...

I will try to keep this as realistic as possible...

Bourne just came back and looks like he's going to be getting a push, so he's out of the question btw.

I would bring in Primo, Croft and Baretta. If I'm allowed to bring the tag team (Croft/Baretta) in as one choice, I would also bring in JTG.

Primo would be an addition to the X-Division, obviously. Croft/Baretta would be a tag team pick. And JTG would be a singles competitor, probably given a chance to vie for the TV title. I think a face JTG vs. a heel Pope could be a good program.

Who would I release? I'm going to go a little more in-depth for this one, because I would also arrange things around. I would get rid of Hogan, Jeff Hardy, and Jarrett.

Hogan and Jarrett would free up all kinds of money, and they certainly aren't doing TNA any favors. I would also get rid of Russo, but it said wrestlers, so I picked 3 of them. Plus, there are plenty of other talents to fit into storylines. I don't care about their names, there are people that could handle the main event. Simply put, they are expendable in my TNA.

Hardy would be the guy I "made an example of". Don't bring the drug charges and dumb shit here, it won't be tolerated. Flair would be given a chance to toe the line, work in the back and cut an occasional promo, or he'd go out the door too. If it was a case of unbridled passion of being in the ring, maybe once or twice a year. Not every week. As a matter of fact, now that I think about it, I would probably use him on the announce team and make it a 3 person team. I'd use him similar to Lawler where he'd get involved once in a while but not regularly. Yeah, that'd be perfect. Flair would be my TNA's Lawler.

I would put Bubba and D-Von behind the scenes in charge of polishing the tag teams. They don't need to be on-screen anymore. Bubba goes in the ring for an emotional promo, crying, saying he was just jealous of D-Von and he understands he should not be forgiven. D-Von comes out, says he'll stand by his sons' decisions and tells them to come to the ring and asks if they can forgive Bubba. They do, so D-Von does, end of storyline. Give them a nice, legendary tag team retirement send-off and to the back you go.

Foley and Dreamer could fill in for the creative side of things. With Russo gone, until I could get Heyman or hire a couple of tv guys to round out the team, they would fill that spot. I'm sure I could find a couple others to add to it, but Foley and Dreamer would be the top 2, any debates would be decided by me. I'm running the joint after all.

Bischoff would have the option to stay or to go. He actually showed he could be affective in WWE as long as he wasn't the guy in charge. His company and business contacts would prove beneficial. I'd still give him the option because I wouldn't want him to be there if he didn't want to be, especially w/his buds gone. It would be his choice.

There are other roster cuts I would make wrestler-wise, but those would be the top 3. I would keep Matt Hardy because he still shows some desire. Sure he's battling his weight thing and isn't what he used to be, but his dedication still seems intact in-ring, for the most part.

Shark Boy, Eric Young, and OJ stay because, frankly, I find their comedy useful. You need somebody like that, they are already in those roles, so why not? Shark Boy would be comedic, but would still come across as legit (as much as possible) ala Santino. Sorry, just got a soft spot for Shark Boy 24:7. Oh, shell yeah.

Samoa Joe, Pope, AJ, Kaz, Beer Money, Anderson, Morgan (with some in-ring offense polishing. His punches look worse than Arquette's), Hernandez, all would be doing upper ME stuff.

RVD and Matt Hardy would be giving the mid-card credibility. Crimson would be my "Ultimate Warrior", meaning a nice, quick push to the TV title and see how the fans responded.

That's all I'm going to write. I don't want to go into detail about how I would utilize my whole roster, but the X-Division would definitely get back into the spotlight and I would look towards building up my tag team division too. I wouldn't get rid of my drama/storyline stuff, but they would compliment each other. Some kind of program/story for basically every match w/out getting too convoluted.

Oh, and I'd grant Sting an immediate release and tell him to get the hell over to WWE already and do us all proud by ushering in a new era of "Little Stingers" and finally getting a run there. I wouldn't be worried in the slightest about the boost in ratings because people would still be tuning into my show. Guaranteed. (And we all know TNA hasn't guaranteed anything before, now don't we? )


Edit: After thinking about it, I might keep Hogan on and find another talent to remove. It would depend on Hogan. He, like Bischoff, would be given a choice. In light of his personal predicaments he would have a choice to see if he could secure a Legends contract w/WWE, or if he stayed, he would be given a role as charity/promotional figurehead. That is, he would get paid to humble himself and make public appearances, grant wishes for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, do benefit work, etc. etc. He would be given the chance to find out that sometimes giving back to the fans is just as good as getting the paycheck provided, ultimately, by them. He could be the figurehead in regards to these kinds of things. Or, he could walk away and ask Vince for a Legends contract. Again, like Bischoff, totally up to him.

And add Kendrick to my list of Shark Boy, EY, and OJ. I love his comedy schtick. He stays too.

 

[GrandSword]

TNA's style is kind of the medium size guys world. Morgan is really only their big man, so to keep with the theme, I would love to see:

1/ Dolph Ziggler - he would be able to shed the horrible name and go all out.

2/ John Morrison - yeah he's getting a big push in WWE but his style fits in TNA very well

3/ Tyler Reks - he is a beast and would be very different from the talent they have. Even though I said it was the land of the mid-size wrestlers, it needs more than one big man like Morgan.


who to drop from TNA...

Robbie E, Tommy Dreamer, Mr Anderson, Hulk Hogan, Eic Bischoff, Matt hardy, Ink Inc., Crimson, Mick Foley, Ric Flair, and Jay Lethal.

Who I would push...

Magnus and the Motor City Machine Guns to high mid card. Samoa Joe and the Pope to main event.