TNA Moves to Mondays Permanently?

[Schizophrenic]

Source: The Wrestling Observer Newsletter

A decision has been made by TNA and Spike TV to move TNA iMPACT! permanently to Monday nights, reports the The Wrestling Observer.

The second Monday night iMPACT! is scheduled to air on March 1 following the success of the first Monday iMPACT! on January 4.

The March 1 episode will air at 9:00 p.m. EST, but the official weekly timeslot has not been confirmed yet.

The likely taping schedule will be live on Mondays one week, then tape the following week's iMPACT! the next day on Tuesdays.

We will have to see what the time will look like, but I'm hoping for what I mentioned a few days ago where they go one for two hours with only the last hour going head to head with RAW. I am a huge TNA guy but I think this maybe a mistake if they go head to head with Vince, hour for hour. Hopefully they know what they are doing. Putting my faith in them.

 

[jccool420]

Its a good idea, because in that one hour of head to head... If the normal RAW viewer gets bored with what he is seeing or when raw goes to break, you can always flip over and see what's going on in TNA, plus its obvious that tna fans are loyal and would choose TnA over RAW as they did on the first live show...

Monday nights have always been the wrestling night and until they run Mondays on a full time basis, they will be looked at as minor league...

They can only gain fans that are fed up with RAW and only watch it because monday night is the wrestling night... The true TNA fans will always be there, they won't lose any ratings...

Only good would come from this...

 

[Kenny Powers]

You beat me to the punch. I heard different times like 8-10 pm and also 9-11 pm. It sounds like they are doing a live show every other week. I don't think TNA has anything to lose. 1.3 on Thursday is an improvement, but there is only so much you can do that night. Especially since those shows are taped.

TNA are letting their presence be known, without going toe to toe with WWE every Monday night. I hope they can continue their momentum.

 

[tna_fan_man]

i don't know if this is breaking news i heard hogan saying himself they're moving to Mondays. bischoff has the experience to make that happen. besides people will tune in to see what happens. plus tna fans will tune in just to stick it to Vince.

this is another big step i think is needed to compete with wwe.

 

[deadelviX]

the only thing that makes me nervous about this is that LIVE vs TAPED shows are never a great idea. you don't stay as invested in a taped show when you already know that if something MAJOR went down... you would've heard about it on the internet. It'd be a great idea if they had the money to go live every week.

either way though... throw me on the list of channel flippers. my dvr will get a workout!

 

[StopFantasyBooking]

This is the exact opposite of the right time to go head to head with WWE. They are coming to their best part of the year: Road to Wrestlemania.

I really hope TNA gets their butts in gear soon and put out a good product so that they will actually be a legitimate alternative to WWE instead of WWE-lite. It would be best for both companies to have some competition.

I'm pulling for TNA, but the past has not shown that they will do what's right in these situations. Please do well, TNA.

 

[Ambiguous Turd]

Well, this is the news I have been waiting to hear for about 5 years now when I began to absolutely get sick and tired of what WWE had to offer. Finally, once again, we are going to have some real competition back on Monday nights ... and I am absolutely psyched for it.

I checked out one other forum which is full of 97% WWE Universe Fans and they are already trashing TNA for the move and already saying how much Vince is going to slaughter them, and how TNA mine as well put the nail in the coffin. I beg to disagree ... strongly.

Vince lost fans because of a reason. They are absolutely pissed off at the garbage he's been offering these past couple years. He's lost a lot of viewers. And many of the viewers who stay simply watch out of default because there is no other competition. So they watch it, but they are anything but loyal.

Those are the two groups of fans that Impact are going to go after on Monday nights. Older fans and fans who are unhappy watching Raw who haven't been offered a choice.

It's either now or never for TNA, and I think the right people are on board to lead the ship.

There's only one more person I would like to see on board behind the scenes to steer the Creative direction, and that man is Paul Heyman. With Paul Heyman, Vince Russo, Eric Bischoff, and Hogan .... this program will offer something for everyone and kick Raw's ass in the Creativity department. The only question is whether adults who watch Raw can kick their obsession with WWE Brand Loyalty to give another product a chance that is trying to cater to their interests. So we will see.

Going head to head with Raw is only going to benefit TNA. They showed by doing it the first time, that they can maintain their base and then some, compared to what they do on Thursday nights. So TNA has everything to gain by this move and Raw has everything to lose.

And in the end, because of this move, we the fans will benefit with a far better product from both companies.

 

[bsager20018]

This is really good news for 'real' wrestling fans. Because in the original monday night war between WCW and WWE the winner was the fans. Talent switching shows (which was poorly attempted with the brand extension), surpises, better matches, and no stale product. Competition is healthy for any business. Can't wait for it to start all over again... WWE vs. TNA: The winner-The Fans!!!!

 

[JJYanks121]

While I think we all can agree that competition may indeed bring out the best in both companies (whatever that may be), the timing is not ideal. Raw ratings tend to rise on the road to Wrestlemania so you can fully expect those ratings to do just that and TNA to struggle the first few weeks. After Wrestlemania is where we'll start to be able to truly judge as it'll be weekly shows building towards "regular" PPVs so both companies will be in the same boat.

The thing I don't understand though, is that if the company was unsure of its direction enough to consider cancelling house shows for the time being, how is it that a week later they are so sure of it they they are ready to go head to head with a company doing triple their ratings on Monday nights? Seems contradicting I think.

Either way, dont' expect it to be much of a competition at first. In all honesty, it may take months, maybe a couple of years for that to truly happen. In order for that to be the case, TNA is going to have to really step up. Their booking has to go from awful to awesome and they'll need to find an identity. As usual, I will end by saying that even if TNA gets up to say, a 2.0 by the end of this year, if their PPVs still sell absolutely nothing and they are still doing Impact in the Impact Zone, they will not have accomplished much. This business is about putting asses in seats and selling PPVs. TV ratings don't tell that story. Let's see people actually want to pay to see their product and then we'll have a conversation.

 

[FromTheSouth]

I, personally, will not watch Raw live anymore. I will watch TNA. I believe it puts on a better show. I agree with JJ that it may take months or even years to put a significant dent into WWE's ratings, I do feel that Monday's being wrestling night in America will help TNA. Psychologically, Monday night makes you a real wrestling promotion (unless you're ROH).

 

[klunderbunker]

I think this is a bad idea.

In a few years or maybe even just one or two yes, but they'll have been under a new regime less than three months at this point. Their ratings are up .1 for three straight weeks and now they're ready to take on the absolute juggernaut that is Monday Night Raw? I don't think so. 1/4 was huge because it hadnt' been done before. It was a very impressive moment and night, but this is WAY too fast. It's a nice idea on paper, but I think this is going to be bad in reality.

 

[Schizophrenic]

Either way, dont' expect it to be much of a competition at first. In all honesty, it may take months, maybe a couple of years for that to truly happen. In order for that to be the case, TNA is going to have to really step up. Their booking has to go from awful to awesome and they'll need to find an identity. As usual, I will end by saying that even if TNA gets up to say, a 2.0 by the end of this year, if their PPVs still sell absolutely nothing and they are still doing Impact in the Impact Zone, they will not have accomplished much. This business is about putting asses in seats and selling PPVs. TV ratings don't tell that story. Let's see people actually want to pay to see their product and then we'll have a conversation.

Oh my god! You almost said something nice about TNA! I think I'm gonna cry. Joking with ya man. Anyway, I agree with ya on your points. I dont think anyone expects TNA to it the ratings of WWE around this time or in the immediate future. I see them doing it in a few months when they start to (as you say) find their identity and start picking up steam. However you know people who either want TNA to fail or the elitist Crew that takes up space in the Impact Zone are going to look at the ratings the first night and claim that TNA is dead in the water and is going nowehere fast because of their inability to wait and see what happens.

 

[prophefixz]

Well, this is the news I have been waiting to here for about 5 years now when I began to absolutely get sick and tired of what WWE had to offer. Finally, once again, we are going to have some real competition back on Monday nights ... and I am absolutely psyched for it.

I checked out one other forum which is full of 97% WWE Universe Fans and they are already trashing TNA for the move and already saying how much Vince is going to slaughter them, and how TNA mine as well put the nail in the coffin. I beg to disagree ... strongly.

Vince lost fans because of a reason. They are absolutely pissed off at the garbage he's been offering these past couple years. He's lost a lot of viewers. And many of the viewers who stay simply watch out of default because there is no other competition. So they watch it, but they are anything but loyal.

Those are the two groups of fans that Impact are going to go after on Monday nights. Older fans and fans who are unhappy watching Raw who haven't been offered a choice.

It's either now or never for TNA, and I think the right people are on board to lead the ship.

There's only one more person I would like to see on board behind the scenes to steer the Creative direction, and that man is Paul Heyman. With Paul Heyman, Vince Russo, Eric Bischoff, and Hogan .... this program will offer something for everyone and kick Raw's ass in the Creativity department. The only question is whether adults who watch Raw can kick their obsession with WWE Brand Loyalty to give another product a chance that is trying to cater to their interests. So we will see.

Going head to head with Raw is only going to benefit TNA. They showed by doing it the first time, that they can maintain their base and then some, compared to what they do on Thursday nights. So TNA has everything to gain by this move and Raw has everything to lose.

And in the end, because of this move, we the fans will benefit with a far better product from both companies.

I've watched wrestling for 18 years now and i can say i'm part of the "Watch raw as force of habit". Looking forward to the new "War" for one reason. WWE to actually improve. I watch both shows but out of no loyalty, raw edges it. If TNA can improve on storylines (Which they will with Bischoff there) get some old guys rumoured (Honky tonk man, savage) and with flair already there, they can surely help the current roster out big time. The reason i say this because no matter how much people slate hogan, he can sell. Incoporate some old school into TNA and mix Wrestling and promos and they are on a winning formula. The attitude era was about 50/50 promo wrestling, and from it i remember the promos more than the wrestling in most cases. Tna also has more creative freedom, and none of the repetitive and stale promos WWE have been offering for the last few years.

Lets hope they are strong enough to face a WWE onslaught when WWE DO notice them as a threat in the future. By onslaught, Look for austin or the rock to come back for more than just one night.

 

[JJYanks121]

Oh my god! You almost said something nice about TNA! I think I'm gonna cry. Joking with ya man. Anyway, I agree with ya on your points. I dont think anyone expects TNA to it the ratings of WWE around this time or in the immediate future. I see them doing it in a few months when they start to (as you say) find their identity and start picking up steam. However you know people who either want TNA to fail or the elitist Crew that takes up space in the Impact Zone are going to look at the ratings the first night and claim that TNA is dead in the water and is going nowehere fast because of their inability to wait and see what happens.

You know as well as I do that I am not a mark for anybody. I call it like I see it, and it's not as though I want anyone to fail. I love watching wrestling, and in my eyes, if I can watch 2 quality promotions on television, that's better than one. Of course, this new one has to become quality for that to happen, My feeling is that they have their work cut out for them. I haven't been overly impressed by their last few shows and I'm not liking the direction it's going (if there is a direction, it's hard to tell), but I'm not going to say they are dead or on life support. I'll wait and see, and the same way everyone criticizes everything they dont' like, I will continue to critique this move and the shows that are on. I said what I said because I didn't want anyone to get false hope and think it's going to be a true competition right away. Wrestling isn't that popular today (at least not compared to the late 90s) and the only way TNA will compete is to gain NEW viewers who don't currently watch wrestling. I dont' think they can swtich enough WWE viewers. Even if they do and NO ONE new is watching, you will be talking about 2 shows doing about a 2.5 which isn't great in any respect (I got that number by combining the 3.6 WWE is averaging and 1.3 TNA is averaging which equals 4.9 so i rounded up). I don't see Raw dipping that low which means TNA will have to get into the 3s which means they have to get new viewers. That means that through some form of advertising or whatnot, they'll need to find a new demographic or something. I'll be anxious to see what direction they go to try and accomplish this.

 

[mister_b1LL]

This is gonna be exciting. Finally a bailout in case RAW gets boring. I personally think that it will be more successful if iMPACT goes to Mondays at 8 PM so they can get that extra guaranteed hour of viewership.

I'm gonna feel like a little kid bouncing between Nitro and RAW all over again!!!

 

[The Roid Rage]

I can't tell you how excited I am to hear this. I have been waiting a long time for a new company to come up and challenge the WWE for a while now. TNA going head to head on Monday nights will hopefully get the creative juices flowing within the WWE. I have grown tired of a lot of the bullshit they have put out there like many of you, but stuck with them regardless. If it bothered me enough I would just stop watching altogether but luckily they have had stuff here and there that kept me interested, now let's see if they can really turn it up.

I don't think TNA really knows what they are getting themselves into here. WWE has more resources period, to create a better show. If they happen to light a fire under Vince's ass they could find themselves up the creek without a paddle. either way it's exciting, a new Monday Night War. This is what the fans have been waiting for, what TNA has been built to do, and the battle that WWE must endure and rise to the challenge of if they are going to stay on top.

A lot of folks are saying it will take a long time before we see anything big happening. I would say we already are, it's happening right now. It may take a little bit for TNA to become a big ratings threat, but the ground work is being laid for that one already. I think the excitement from it will get things going a lot quicker than most of us are expecting. WCW came out of nowhere, nobody expected that, this is highly anticipated and expected so I don't think it's going to be the gradual climb that people are foreseeing.

I think that because of everything leading up to this we are going to see a rapid rise for TNA, and I can't wait. It might just be my excitement getting to me but I really think think TNA is about to go big. The real question is "How will WWE respond?" And that my friends is almost more interesting than the situation itself.

 

[Blade]

This is what we've all been waiting for since 2002. The Monday Night Wars were a golden age in pro wrestling because the two biggest companies were constantly pushing each other to the limits. And Now, at the start of a new decade we get the MNW 2. Sure, TNA don't have the money that WCW had. But they have Hogan and Bischoff, the 2 things that made WCW a force to be reckoned with 15 years ago. They have the power to do well.

In my opinion, they still have to improve to be able to become a legit threat to WWE. What they put on now is inconsistent, it's hit and miss, especially the PPV's. But if they can somehow take themselves to the next level of quality while putting on consistently good programming they can start to take away some viewers from Raw, whether it's within 6 months or 3 years from now. Hell, most wrestling fans nowadays only watch Raw on Mondays out of habit so them having an alternate will be a big thing.

And hopefully this can have a good impact (excuse the pun) on the industry, like the first Monday Night Wars did. Maybe this can get the audience genuinely deciding which show to watch on Monday nights rather than the robotic wrestling cycle we do each week. Honestly... There's a chance TNA might even win the war. Mcmahon's ego might not be able to handle TNA as a legit threat. He's been number 1 for over a decade now, so he might be at the point where he believes he's untouchable so he doesn't go for the edgy exciting programming that won him the first monday night wars. That's what TNA needs to target, that's the market they need to exploit, the audience who want that kind of programming. And while Hogan, too, has a big ego, it's still not quite as huge as Vince's. So yeah, I think TNA truly has a good chance and doing well during this.

Here's to the next few years for wrestling programming!

 

[Harrison101]

This. Is. Awesome. (Sorry for the lame chant joke)

But seriously, this is the best thing TNA can do right now as a contender to the WWE. Why? Because it gives viewers a choice, for the first time since the turn of the last decade, to choose between what they want to watch. And no doubt, people will flick channels to see what's happening. (I know I sort of did when TNA went live January 4th)

Overall, we the fans are the real winners of this. Yes TNA need to improve, but this should be the incentive to do just that. Now I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one waiting for March 1st.

 

[Derf]

I'm currently addicted to RAW. Not ECW or Smackdown, not TNA, but RAW. With the very limited cable options I have, as well as my work schedule, RAW is now, and will remain, the only show I can watch.

HOWEVER, if I ever got Spike TV again, I can see myself easily switching shows. And having the first hour of three hours of wrestling gives them a HUGE advantage. They got a full hour to build towards a main event uninterupted by WWE, and when that ME comes around, they have the already build hype, PLUS that ME will be going against the halfway ME of RAW, which is never overly special.

TNA, as much as I might disagree with some of the things crossing from backstage to ringside, has got my attention. And things will only grow from here.

However, I still feel that in this day in age, WWE will eventually beat TNA. It won't be a slaughter like some people say, more of a wrestling match between guys like Randy orton and Kofi Kingston. it'll be entertaining, but you KNOW who's going to win, like it or not.

 

[latinoheat8979]

As a lifelong wrestling fan this is great news! We finally get the Monday Night Wars Part 2! I know a lot of fans have different opinions on this. Some feel TNA has no chance and that's it's too soon, some feel that this will force WWE put to on a better show and not the same old crap they've given us thus giving us a choice, some feel TNA will push edgier storylines (aka WWE Attitude era) to gain more viewers, some feel RAW will still dominate and TNA wouldn't be a real threat. At the end of the day who will win? We will the fans because we know both companies will do whatever it takes to dominate the ratings war. Hopefully this will lead into another "wrestling boom period".

 

[The_Hooded_One]

This is Great News!!! I mean wow! Wrestling needs this and needed a change so bad and now thankfully it will happen. Im not a fan of 1 week live then taped "cycle repeats" but it's damn sure better then what were been given. Fuck Raw asides from a special guest host and a once in a while good match with HBK/Kofi/Miz/Swagger and a few others Raw is total garbage that just happens to be a bad habit for me. TNA has to quote The Briscoes "Manned Up" since the awesome build up for BFG last year. Yeah theres been a few bs moves like having a jobber Orlando Jordon go over Wrestlers that are superior to him but it's been great for the most part. I will thank Hogan "for now" I will never trust Hogan but im trying hard to give him the benefit of the doubt. Please stick it to WWE TNA! Consistency has been a major Achilles heel for TNA, hopefully this will help.

 

[Mitch Henessey]

Well I must say it's about damn time. Maybe there's a chance TNA will catch WWE in the ratings as this progresses, and then hopefully, due to competition, this will cause Raw to put on a better show because after the Orton/HHH storyline last year, Raw was pretty abysmal for all of 2009.

I must say I thought I would never live to see another wrestling promotion go head to with Vince. This is going to be interesting, and I can't wait to see how all of this will unfold.

 

[hotfoz]

Personally, I love the idea of them going head to head, but what TNA needs to do if they are going to be successful, is to refrain from the constant WWE bashing they did on 1/4. I thought the wrestling was excellent, and I love the action on Impact, but I found myself turning away, even during the Angle/Styles match, because I couldn't stand Tenay and Taz constantly saying how I couldn't find better wrestling on TV at that moment. True, but it gets annoying listening to them harp on it. They just need to call the action, not bash the competition.

 

[EStreet]

purely because Monday Night (at least growing up as a kid in the Attitude Era) was Wrestling!...Raw/Nitro, switching back and forth, and now with Tivo people can easily watch both and not miss anything.

While there is a large fan base that watches all the nights of wrestling (Raw, ECW, TNA, Smackdown)..I would guess a bulk of fans tune in just to Raw..now with another program on they may watch TNA as well whereas they didnt watch thursday night because it was not "wrestling on TV night"

good move from that standpoint..lets see if the live production gets better and if taped Impacts are of far less excitement (week to week)

 

[Mitch Henessey]

Personally, I love the idea of them going head to head, but what TNA needs to do if they are going to be successful, is to refrain from the constant WWE bashing they did on 1/4. I thought the wrestling was excellent, and I love the action on Impact, but I found myself turning away, even during the Angle/Styles match, because I couldn't stand Tenay and Taz constantly saying how I couldn't find better wrestling on TV at that moment. True, but it gets annoying listening to them harp on it. They just need to call the action, not bash the competition.

I understand what you're saying, but you have to remember, no matter how much we all like TNA, they still are the #2 wrestling company. So it's not unusual for there to be some mud-slinging on TNA's behalf. They're trying to get some attention,turn heads,and get people talking. Although, I will agree with you, Tenay and Tazz do go over board at times with constant verbal jabs.