Who is the Future of TNA?

[Rayne]

Jack Swagger? *ducks*

I don't think TNA is focused on the future right now. Do they have a vision for the future, a plan for where they'd like to be? If you run a business, you either do, or you aren't really running a business. But oftentimes what you'd like for the future falls prey to what you need in the now. TNA has a ratings problem, and people aren't going to tune in to see Magnus- lifelong mid-carder, sorry guys- take on Zema Ion in a main event. To get those 1.0s, they have to have their top guys at the top of the card fighting the top guys. Right now, there's precious little room for the ascendant mid-carder to get in serious feud against a Top Guy. If that doesn't sell and the ratings drop, there's no guarantee you can pull them back up again, and your advertisers are definitely going to hit you on that the next time your contract comes up with them.

TNA isn't going anywhere anytime soon, but I'm still not sure that they have a long-term future. Whoever the future of TNA is, I don't think he's performing for them right now.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

As of right now, the only guy that I think has shown consistent ability or potential is Magnus. Kenny King showed some good personality last night, so we'll just have to see how he does going further. As far as "young" guys who aren't hugely established in TNA as top guys, I think Magnus has shown the most consistent potential thus far.

None of the wrestlers TNA has featured in Gut Check have impressed me very much at all. Maybe that will change as time goes by but just based by what I've seen of them thus far, I don't see any of them as "the future".

Zema Ion is flat out boring in my opinion. To me, the guy's just another in a long line of spot monkeys in the history of the X Division. Some have mentioned Jesse Sorrensen and he'll definitely have to get some personality and some real character because he was as generic a babyface as I've seen when I last saw him. Crimson is someone that has a good look but, in my eyes, that's about it. I think the guy's pretty overrated. Jesse Godderz is someone that has a great look about him. I think it's too early to say much about anything as he's only really started. I can say that I"m not overly crazy about his current role as Tara's squeeze.

As IDR mentioned, a lot of the top guys in TNA are older and some are still young in the grand scheme of things in their mid to later 30s. As far as legitimately "young" guys that could be "the future", I don't think TNA has a lot going on right now. Like I said, Magnus is the only legit "young" guy I've seen in TNA that's shown consistent potential.

 

[Zeven_Zion]

What future? Most of the Main Eventers today will be able to perform well into their 30's and even early 40's. That's 5+ years from now. That's a future to me. Five years is a LONG time. Why worry about future Main Eventers now?

If we exclude the current ones, who happen to be "old" (since being 30 is apparently verging on retirement), guys like Zema, Sorenssen or any other young buck will replace the current crop of top stars no earlier than 2017 at the least.

Compare 2007 TNA to 2012 TNA and mark all the differences. A LOT happens in five years.

Plus, most of the current young guys will be long gone by then and new ones will come along. Stop worrying about the future so much, they've got problems in the present.

 

[Big Nick Dudley]

What future? Most of the Main Eventers today will be able to perform well into their 30's and even early 40's. That's 5+ years from now. That's a future to me. Five years is a LONG time. Why worry about future Main Eventers now?

If we exclude the current ones, who happen to be "old" (since being 30 is apparently verging on retirement), guys like Zema, Sorenssen or any other young buck will replace the current crop of top stars no earlier than 2017 at the least.

Compare 2007 TNA to 2012 TNA and mark all the differences. A LOT happens in five years.

Plus, most of the current young guys will be long gone by then and new ones will come along. Stop worrying about the future so much, they've got problems in the present.

I won't say much, because this was pretty much what I had in mind.

People do the same thing with WWE - what happens after Cena's gone? Who will be the top guy?

I don't mind hypothetical conversation or speculation, but most of these guys aren't ancient. TNA has more of an issue with that than WWE, but a lot of TNA's talented guys are relatively young (Roode, Aries, Storm).

When you're 30-35, you're young. You have ten or so years left. I don't have a ton of confidence in the really young guys in TNA (or WWE), but they have a lot of time to build them up and/or find new talent.

 

[Dirk]

Allow me to take a wild stab in the dark. What about Orton? He has 2 strikes with WWE and they aren't really using him. He's not #2 anymore, so when strike 3 hits, jump.

Orton is his real name, so he can keep it. If he uses Godsmack's "Voodoo", he can also keep a Viper-like gimmick. In TNA he'd be a big (albeit poorer) fish in a small pond.

 

[ヒュー　G.　レックション]

Two guys I just wanna contribute, I don't think anybody else has said them because right now they're both injured. The Pope! Total package undoubtedly in my eyes, he was on fire.

The second, more of an outside shot, Chris Sabin. I really think he could make it.

And shit, Hernandez is 39? Thought he was at least 4 years younger.

 

[waylon p]

As much as I would like to agree that Pope is the future of TNA, I gotta go with the evidence. TNA has never known what to do with this phenomenal talent. I do not expect that to suddenly change.

 

[6timehitta]

Can you blame TNA? When's tha last time you saw The Pope? Pope is a great character and a great talent, BUT, the guy's ALWAYS injured and I think that's what kept him back in WWE as Elijah Burke.

Now Pope has the capability to be a big player, but he's like Anderson, unreliable. What happened when Anderson had the strap? He got injured, albeit by a drug addicted Jeff Hardy, but injured nonetheless.

Someone I forgot to mention in my previous post was El Zorro from TNA's working relationship with AAA. Now I don't know what quite happened with the contract they were to have worked out, but he hasn't even sniffed a TNA Ring, and I for one think it's a shame.

Zorro was a great champion in AAA, and I think if he could speak fluent English, or perhaps get some1 like Konnan or JJ to "endorse" them and be the mouthpiece for him, I think he could do wonders for TNA.