Was Robert Roode Ready for the World Title?

[WWESycophantsCanBlowMe]

Roode has the look, he has the attitude, he has the in-ring skills, he has the "it" factor, he has it all in terms of what makes a great wrestler. Does that mean that Roode is ready to be the number one wrestler in the company? Unfortunately, no.

TNA did a wonderful job building him up and making us all anticipate the moment he wins the world title. That's why I'm absolutely furious over the results of his BFG match with Kurt Angle. I didn't like it. Not one bit. But I realize that it could have saved Roode's career.

Look at what happened to men like Jack Swagger. Jack was given the belt when he was not ready. Not close to it. Some WWE fans already pointed out that "at least WWE gave it a shot". Stop sugarcoating every crappy thing about the WWE. Christ. Yes, they did give him a shot. And look what happened. Swagger proved to be a crappy World Champion and that's hanging over his head like a dark cloud until this very day. I still like the guy, but that failed reign will always be used as ammo backstage. As a reason not to bet money on Swagger ever again.

Here's the thing - what if Roode won the belt and flopped? Yes, we would have LOVED to see him win. But what's next? He defends it against heels, maybe his partner James Storm. Has some cool matches, some nice storylines. And I'm being optimistic. That's all nice but I think we all expect more out of Roode. If you're going to let Kurt Angle lose to a guy who's fresh out of the tag team division, you better be sure that he'll take your company to a new level. Otherwise you're just stroking the fans' dicks and right now - with such a small audience, that's not a good idea. Such huge feel good moments, to me, need to be saved for when TNA is much, much bigger.

Roode never won a singles belt before winning the World Championship. He was literally plucked out of the tag division and thrown into the Main Event. I love the guy but maybe Roode should not be the guy to win it right now.

I don't want this to be another feel good reign where Roode won the belt for his family and then had this cheesy babyface run and dropped it to some heel. I don't know. Roode has it all, as a wrestler, but you need more when you're the champion and he knows it. Management knows it. That's why they'll eventually run back to Jeff Hardy and that's never a bad thing. Hardy's fuck up at Victory Road could prove to be his greatest storyline yet if handled wisely. Which it is thus far.

My hopes are that James Storm is the next in line for the World Title, he somehow beats Kurt Angle and wins the World Title. Roode turns heel out of jealousy and has a lenghty storyline with James, resulting in a heel Roode winning the belt months from now.

Either way, neither James nor Roode are really ready for the top spot. But how will you ever know if you don't put them there?

Your post is absolutely spot on! I like to use Shawn Michaels first run in 1996 as an example, it was very reminiscent of what we have seen with Roode's recent push, the boyhood dream etc etc. Michaels was great, but his first run was one of the cheesiest, most unexciting and mundane title runs I can remember! Playing up the childhood dream angle is fine, but when it's done to death it becomes wearisome, and guess what, TNA was doing the EXACT same thing with Roode! People who are outraged over Roode not winning should keep this in mind, there are only so many tears you can shed, and hugs and thank you's you can give before it all becomes tawdry and tiresome to the viewer. It happened to Michaels in 1996, and it was destined to happen to Roode if he had won. Hogan was right, the best position for Roode to be in when he takes the title, is as the bad-ass heel he was meant to be!!!!!!!

 

[TWJC: The Beginning]

cody rhode is a great wrestler so is randy orton

ortons biggest problem is he has wins over the whole roster basically wwe's need to have him beat the undertaker or grab some tna guys like samoa joe,aj styles or abyss for orton to be interesting to watch

id say roode is on that level so is james storm i havent seen crimson or gunner work a microphone but in the ring those two are getting there im not being a smark

im saying a tna that depends as hogan and hardy as their two top guys is going to fail

Orton isn't interesting to watch to YOU, but he still gets a top 5 pop no matter the show he's on, has a ton of merch sales, and a ton of signs made for him. he's very over and it's because he carries his charcter.

I don't think Crimson or Gunner are in the same universe as roode. They don't carry a character. They are just two bigger dudes with tatoos that do moves. They don't tell a story in the ring and they don't carry a character (or even have one that's relateable).

I agree with your last part whole heartedly.

 

[rokuma]

No, he wasn't ready to be champion. Look, I like Bobby Roode...I cheer for Bobby Roode and I think anybody would be better until Kurt Angle goes to rehab (have you SEEN him lately? He looks like a skinny Scott Hall...my wife swears he's on coke...and she helps rehab drug addicts)...but c'mon. He's an internet darling and that really doesn't matter much. It doesn't bring in the casual fan. Kurt Angle...that might bring in the casual fan. Sting? Jeff Hardy? Jarrett? Even RVD or Anderson? They'll bring in the casual fan...and all the fans complaining about the build-up for Roode...I can see that, but remember, Shawn Michaels didn't win his first WWF Title match. The first one I recall was against Hart at Survivor Series 92, then Diesel at WM 11, then he finally beat Bret at WM 12. Now, Roode lost by underhanded tactics, which I think was good...it keeps him credible in my eyes because Angle couldn't beat him clean. Does this keep him a contender and give him a case that he deserves another shot? Sure...I think it was the best business decision TNA could make. They could even stretch this feud out a few more months! Roode could have to "prove himself worthy" of a rematch and go through guys like Bully Ray, Gunner, Steiner, or even Flair (dare I say it? If anyone could get a guy over it's Flair) and then finally go over Angle. This wasn't bad for Roode's career...it just might be the best thing for him.

 

[randomguyri]

No, he wasn't ready to be champion. Look, I like Bobby Roode...I cheer for Bobby Roode and I think anybody would be better until Kurt Angle goes to rehab (have you SEEN him lately? He looks like a skinny Scott Hall...my wife swears he's on coke...and she helps rehab drug addicts)...but c'mon. He's an internet darling and that really doesn't matter much. It doesn't bring in the casual fan. Kurt Angle...that might bring in the casual fan. Sting? Jeff Hardy? Jarrett? Even RVD or Anderson? They'll bring in the casual fan...and all the fans complaining about the build-up for Roode...I can see that, but remember, Shawn Michaels didn't win his first WWF Title match. The first one I recall was against Hart at Survivor Series 92, then Diesel at WM 11, then he finally beat Bret at WM 12. Now, Roode lost by underhanded tactics, which I think was good...it keeps him credible in my eyes because Angle couldn't beat him clean. Does this keep him a contender and give him a case that he deserves another shot? Sure...I think it was the best business decision TNA could make. They could even stretch this feud out a few more months! Roode could have to "prove himself worthy" of a rematch and go through guys like Bully Ray, Gunner, Steiner, or even Flair (dare I say it? If anyone could get a guy over it's Flair) and then finally go over Angle. This wasn't bad for Roode's career...it just might be the best thing for him.

have you seen steiner wrestle lately his skills are below average these days

steiner like hogan has tons of charisma but age killed his body

i wouldnt put steiner in any matches especially with new guys you are trying to put over

 

[Lowdown]

Roode is capable of being the face of TNA as the champion. Did politics play a part in him not winning at BFG? I would say yes. But were these same questions raised when AJ won the title? Forget shoots or worked shoots, based on Roode's overall talent, in-ring and on the mic, he might make a good champion right now. IMO though, he could be even better if he were a heel champ. Like I mentioned on another post, he's not gonna be far away from the title picture. As far as TNA's roster goes, Roode would make a better champ than say Crimson or Samoa Joe. Imagine if they pushed Crimson to the title like WCW did Goldberg in '98. I'm sure most folks wouldn't stand or even fathom the thought. As far as the comments that Hogan made, I usually take stuff like that with a grain of salt. I learned that interviews with the majority of wrestlers aren't exactly the gospel truth.

 

[rokuma]

have you seen steiner wrestle lately his skills are below average these days

steiner like hogan has tons of charisma but age killed his body

i wouldnt put steiner in any matches especially with new guys you are trying to put over

Oh I agree. Steiner isn't the best...he hasn't been good since WCW ended...I was just saying that it would be a "path Roode could travel on" because he was allied with Angle in Immortal (hence taking on Angle's 'lackeys' to get back in contention)...plus Steiner is still a name and a former champ...would give Roode more credibility to the casual fan.

 

[randomguyri]

Oh I agree. Steiner isn't the best...he hasn't been good since WCW ended...I was just saying that it would be a "path Roode could travel on" because he was allied with Angle in Immortal (hence taking on Angle's 'lackeys' to get back in contention)...plus Steiner is still a name and a former champ...would give Roode more credibility to the casual fan.

steiner would make any wrestler look bad steiner cant even take a bump right these days

look todays superstars dont have half the charisma of steiner but steiner is a mess in the ring

 

[rokuma]

steiner would make any wrestler look bad steiner cant even take a bump right these days

look todays superstars dont have half the charisma of steiner but steiner is a mess in the ring

He doesn't really have to make him look good...he just needs to lose cleanly. And I agree, Steiner can't take a bump. I remember hearing a story on one of the message boards about how his back is so bad he can't even bend over to tie his shoe. Did anyone else hear that? It just surprised me after I heard that, that he could do the Frankensteiner

 

[SpecialFNK]

it would have/could have been a nice story for Roode to win the title at BFG after going through and winning the BFG series. but one could also say that no he is not/was not ready to be the number 1 guy in TNA.
prior to the BFG series, how many viewers on TV KNEW the name Bobby Roode? I bet not many. before the BFG series Bobby Roode was one half of Beer Money. the BFG series is what made Bobby Roode a name on TV. how long has been wrestling in singles? only really since the BFG series started, even when it started he was still wrestling tag team matches with James Storm. Roode is on the main event scene now as a singles wrestler and should remain there, but I don;t think he needs to be thee champion right now. I doubt Roode is just going to fall off the way Matt Morgan did after his championship matches earlier in the year.
Kurt Angle is still a great wrestler and a big name for viewers on TV.

 

[Dagger Dias]

Was Robert Roode ready for the world title?

It depends on what the question really means. Some people think he was ready for the world title, but not to be the face of the federation. Others think he was ready for both, and then there are those who feel is not ready for either. I personally think he was ready for a world title run, although I am unsure if he is ready to try being the face of the federation. He won the Bound For Glory series and therefore needed to win at Bound For Glory in order for TNA to have a reason to keep doing the series as an annual tradition. If he ends up not being ready to be the face of TNA then they could just take the title off him. It's that simple. Now, I'm not here to rant though. TNA likely still have big plans for Roode and I will wait to see what Roode does next before I do any ranting. They may be going somewhere with this.

If Bobby Roode wins later after being Robbed, will it be more or less gratifying

It will be a little bit less gratifying due to the fact that there is something to be said for winning your first world title at the main event of the biggest show of the year. Winning it at some random PPV no one cares about, or on just a regular episode of Impact will not have the (no pun intended) impact that winning at TNA's answer to Wrestlemania would have.

Was anyone else in the BFG series a more viable option?

Crimson was my pick from the beginning of the Bound For Glory series to win the whole thing and go on to win the title at the main event, while remaining undefeated the whole time. That didn't happen. It should have though. That would be the push of a lifetime for him.

 

[shooter_mcgavin]

It's really hard to say if was ready for the title or not. I guess it would not hurt to find out by giving him a run; but it would have been great to see him run with it.

Like I said in another thread were we sure that Batista, Bret Hart, Kurt Angle, and John Cena were ready to be World Champions when they got their first run?

Nope there was no certainty that they would succeed but it was a risk the WWE took ... and it paid off.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

Not if you're a believer of the gospel according to Hogan. In all honesty, I can't say that anyone in TNA has "it" if Robert Roode doesn't. As others have said, he has the look, he has the in-ring ability, he's very solid on the microphone, he's someone that's over with the fans and always gets a legit reaction from them, he's someone that long time TNA fans can and have rallied behind and he's one of the small handful of wrestlers that's kept tag team wrestling even slightly significant over the past 5 years.

Based on Hogan's comments, I'm guessing that Roode's ability to draw is one thing that might make Hogan think he's just not ready. Drawing in fans is, of course, a huge determining factor on who'll get the title I grant that. However, I've seen nothing whatsoever to suggest that Roode will pull in less fans than Styles, Anderson, Hardy, RVD, Angle or Sting. Truth be told, none of these guys have been particularly big draws since coming to TNA. They haven't taken TNA to that "next level" in terms of audience growth. I'm not suggesting that Roode would be the guy to break TNA through to said next level, but viewership isn't going to drop off to any degree. At worst realistically, TNA will draw the same low 1s and 1.4-1.5 million viewers they usually draw. Then again, maybe Roode would be that guy. After all, who would have expected Mark Henry to be a draw for SD! as WHC. Since he's had the title, WWE's blue brand has had an average audience of about 3.2 million each week.

Just because Hogan says that Roode isn't ready doesn't mean it's from God's mouth to your ear. I do believe, however, that either Jeff Hardy or James Storm will be your next champion. Why? Because it's what Hogan wants and feels should happen. Not that Storm doesn't deserve a shot at the title, he's extremely good too in my view, but it does make all the huge build up for Robert Roode and the BFG Series in and of itself seem like a missed opportunity.

 

[Notorious718]

In terms of drawing new viewers and increasing ratings, Roode probably was not ready. But then again, like you said TNA's rating have been hovering in roughly the same area for a long time. In terms of everything else such as overall in-ring technique, mic skills, a good look, and a genuine connection with the fans then yes, Roode is absolutely ready. He excels in putting on great matches and can work the mic and is very over with the audience. If Roode isn't ready to step up in be on the receiving end of the changing of the guard, then who is? Well if I had to pick anyone else who had taken part in the BFG Series, my obvious pick would be AJ Styles but for the sake of having new blood in the title picture it'd have to be James Storm who I expect to be heavily involved with what I'm assuming is a continuing feud between Angle and Roode. I hate to say it but I'm predicting a Beer Money breakup in the foreseeable future with either Roode or Storm winning the title and the other turning heel on the other out of jealousy.

 

[guru of wrestling]

Yes but Storm is better