The Number 6

[gd]

That is how many sides that TNA's ring has, which is different from all other major American promotions. Many people strongly dislike the fact that TNA's ring has 2 extra sides, calling it stupid, pointless, or uneccesary. However, I'm a big supporter of the 6 sided ring.

First of all, it just rolls of the tounge so nicely. Try saying 4 sided ring, it just doesn't have the same ring to it. Also, it's someting different from the WWE, and WCW for that matter. People are always complaining about how TNA is just a re-hash or WWE or WCW. They compare everything TNA doesn, from the Main Event Mafia to Feast of Fired to the other promotions.

The six sided ring give TNA something different that is it's own. That can only be a good thing. Furthermore, it really doesn't hurt or affect match quality at all.

What are your thoughts on the 6 sided ring? Should TNA change it? If so, to what?

 

[Jimmbo420]

I didn't like it at first, but I kind of like it now because it reminds me of the UFC octogon.

I still wonder if a 4 sided ring would look better in the iMPACT zone, but the 6 sided ring has grown on me.

It also leads to new names for old matches. For example instead of calling it a cage match they call it "the six sides of steel".

Really, it's just a ring so it doesn't really matter too much, but for what it's worth, I find it interesting and somewhat innovative.

 

[Oldschoolersrule]

I've been a fan of wrestling for a long time, and at first the 6 sided ring seemed kinda stupid, but as stated by others its grown on me. I do think that having 6 instead of 4 sides that it makes the ring itself look smaller in size.

I wonder what the actual wrestlers who use it think? Does the odd shape and smaller size affect their timing in moves? Are their any benifits to it as apposed to a 4 sided ring set up?

 

[Monkey_Mania]

I'm in love with the six sided ring. I genuinely love that TNA started using it. It gives them the chance to stand out a little bit, it makes everything more aesthetically pleasing to the eyes. Everything about it is just cool. It stands out, I really don't know how else to explain it. Sure, the four sided ring is old school to the core, and that's awesome, but the six sided ring is just cool as fuck.

 

[LitaTaker]

Well TNA really is a great wrestling company that is making a name for themselves with new innovative match types and the ring as well, it's something new and fresh (has been), and I like it. They've done the King of the Mountain, Steel Asylum, Six Sides of Steal, Lockdown PPV which WWE wants to basically "copy" by now doing a Hell in the Cell PPV for their main events and rumors about Breaking Point's main events being submission, etc. And you know you have a good idea when WWE is trying to do what you do. I really like this kind of ring because you get more angles into wrestling, I think that it helps distinguish them as something different and it's a good thing, you want to stand out.

 

[The Brain]

I hate the six sided ring. I very rarely (almost never) watch TNA and the six sided ring is part of the reason why. This looks very bush league to me. It looks too small. I guess if they want to be different it's a good idea, but I really don't care for it at all. I thought this would be a little fad and eventually they would go back to a normal ring. Obviously that is not the case. It looks like so far I'm the only one who doesn't like it so maybe I'm making to much of it. Maybe it shouldn't bother me so much, but for some reason it does. I've been watching wrestling since 1986 so maybe that has something to do with it. I know if WWE switched to the six sided ring I would absolutely HATE it.

 

[Mantaur Rodeo Clown]

The only problem I have with the six sided ring is that it seems a lot smaller. This could be just due to the illusion, with more turnbuckles being present, but the ring does seem smaller. There is less room it seems for the heavyweights to move around, and if you aren't familiar with it, some wrestlers look very awkward inside it. Like they don't know which direction to irish whip towards.

Im fine with the ring ropes themselves, and its great that they have struck out on their own. But maybe they could make the ring a tad bit bigger. It probably isnt even that small, just me nitpicking actually.

 

[Reddannihilation]

I like the six-sided ring, granted it's not one of the top reasons I watch TNA but the ring is interesting. Personally I think it assists in making the matches faster paced. Especially triple threats, four ways and tag matches. At the end of the day it's a wrestling ring and really doesn't matter that much but, it does help separate them from WWE and I think that's the most important thing for TNA at the moment.

 

[Spaceman Spif]

The only problem I have with the six sided ring is that it seems a lot smaller. This could be just due to the illusion, with more turnbuckles being present, but the ring does seem smaller. There is less room it seems for the heavyweights to move around, and if you aren't familiar with it, some wrestlers look very awkward inside it. Like they don't know which direction to irish whip towards.

Im fine with the ring ropes themselves, and its great that they have struck out on their own. But maybe they could make the ring a tad bit bigger. It probably isnt even that small, just me nitpicking actually.

I believe it is a little smaller, but more of an illusion. Yahoo answers say the standard WWE ring is 20x20 and that the TNA ring is 15x15 to opposite turnbuckles. So add in two more sides and the size nearly evens out.

I like it personally, gives TNA at least one true distinction from the WWE, and it gives the X-Divison more ropes and turnbuckles to bounce off of. So all in all I like it, but really I don't think it hurts the TNA in any way, nor does it really help it that much. It's not really a factor.

 

[Klown_Karnage]

In my opinion, the six sides vs. four sides doesn't make a ton of difference in the singles matches excepting among those who tend to do a lot of rope and post work. For the cruserweights, I think it adds, just slightly, a little more possibility for match complexity, which is good in my opinion.

Where I think the six sides score over the four sides really is in terms of tag-matches, the more the better. It gives each team a bit more in terms of where they can come from and what they can do behind the ref's back (which is more important or at least more often exploited on TNA than WWE.) All in all, the six sided ring is more fitting to TNA than WWE.

 

[The Gribbler]

It makes no difference whatsoever. So far as the look goes I think its kinda cool, but who really gives a shit?

Apart from a passing 'Oh thats cool' who will dwell on it? If the WWE and TNA were producing television of equal quality would the six sided ring make any difference?

I seriously doubt it.

Just my Opinion

 

[The Dewbliners]

I actually enjoy the six sided ring. Like TNA first promoted it as, not only does it give more angles to come from, but because the ropes are closer, it allows for more spring, more impact if you will.

Take a guy like AJ Styles. In a WWE ring, his spots wouldn't have the same snap (if that's the right word), that they do in the six sides. Conversely, however, it doesn't seem like somebody like Undertaker would be entirely comfortable.

I think it just comes down to workers style, to where the difference comes in.

 

[stryfe604]

Anyone remember "No Holds Barred" with Hogan and Zeus? That's the first glimpse I ever had of the six sided ring. And being a kid I fell in love with it then, not much changed since then.

 

[SavageTaker]

You made a good point about how some of the same people who say TNA are just like the WWE or how WCW are also the same people who complain about the six-sided ring. The ring makes the show look different than any other wrestling show on TV. It’s just something that people can use to tell them apart from any other current or former company.

As far as how I feel about the ring, I actually like it. But honestly though, I don’t care how many sides a ring has or how many turnbuckles it has, as long as the wrestling going on in the ring is good then I’m fine with it. What I watch wrestling for is to be entertained so if the wrestlers can do that in a 6 sided ring then I am completely fine with that.

Now, if a lot of the wrestlers didn’t know what the hell they were doing and weren’t able to have entertaining matches, then yes I would have a problem with the ring and I would think they should change it. But that isn’t the case here so that’s irrelevant.

 

[z99zazn]

If you're watching TNA for the first time, you are definitely going to notice the difference in the rings, and that is either going to get people to think, "Wow, this is pretty cool what they're doing here", or "Why in the fuck are there 6 sides to this ring?". I'd say its a good way to get people to differentiate their product from the WWE's or WCW's.

Personally though, I don't give it much thought when watching a TNA match. But I can see a lot of people liking it about TNA since it is so different, and a lot of "Old School Fans" not liking it. I don't think the ring makes much of a difference in overall popularity of TNA.

 

[SinCityBlitz]

I hate the six sided ring. I very rarely (almost never) watch TNA and the six sided ring is part of the reason why. This looks very bush league to me. It looks too small. I guess if they want to be different it's a good idea, but I really don't care for it at all. I thought this would be a little fad and eventually they would go back to a normal ring. Obviously that is not the case. It looks like so far I'm the only one who doesn't like it so maybe I'm making to much of it. Maybe it shouldn't bother me so much, but for some reason it does. I've been watching wrestling since 1986 so maybe that has something to do with it. I know if WWE switched to the six sided ring I would absolutely HATE it.

I couldn't agree more. Every time I try and give it another shot it just doesn't work. Plus it seems to interrupt the flow of the match.

 

[robbo316]

Shouldn't it be more about the product, than the shape of the ring? I suppose I could be called "old-school", as I was introduced to the wrestling biz back in the mid 1970's, but I really dont care about the shape of the ring, it could be a enneacontagon for all I care.

 

[The Gribbler]

Smack on Robbo, who gives a crap what shape the ring is - As long as TNA can dish up some good action it wont matter.

 

[Louie Lips]

I like the 6 sided ring. It sounds better. It is more original. Although it does make the ring look a little smaller (does anybody know the dimensions?), I like the fact that there are more ropes and more corners. It adds a lot more depth to the match, as more corner and rope spots can make a match more interesting, and gives the X division, and all of TNA's high-flyers more room to work.

 

[Ambiguous Turd]

I am probably one of the biggest opponents of the 6-sided ring on this forum. I can be ridiculed all you want with this, but one of TNA's bigger problems is its image in the eyes of the public. The public simply does not look at the organization as "mainstream". I firmly believe the 6 sided ring is one of the bigger things that is holding TNA back from growing more mainstream.

I hear the other side's argument that the ring gives TNA a unique identity, and I agree with that. However, I feel that in the eyes of the general fanbase, it is a negative identity and not a positive one. And that is because the ring itself looks amateurish and very minor league. That is simply the impression it gives off to a casual fan. It just does not look like a mainstream pro wrestling organization with a ring that looks like that.

I strongly wish TNA would ditch that ring, and get a more traditional 4-sided one.