WWE to TNA to WWE

[EGfan4life]

R-Truth-Wasn't that big in WWE, back in the old days when he was K-Kwik. He was your typical, rowdy new tag team with the Road Dogg then that got axed, leaving nothing for K-Kwik, so he was released. After he was released he went to TNA and became a huge star. Came back to WWE, hasn't even won a title yet.

Christian-Was a pretty big guy during his first run with WWE. Numerous tag titles and other titles. He was the loveable heel (like Jericho.) After he left WWE, he went to TNA and did the same thing R-Truth did. Won the big one. Came back and was re-located to Extremely Cautious Wrestling. So what he won the ECW title. So has everybody else. Geez. When will he get his freaking shot?

Jeff Hardy-Okay he's the exception. Jeff Hardy has always been over with the crowd, no matter who he worked for. His first stint in WWE included many innovative matches. He left, was the same old crazy Jeff Hardy. Came back and became HUGE. His mic skills still sucked ass but he put on great matches with Orton and Punk. Now he left again.

The question is, why did Jeff Hardy rise to stardom, while Christian and R-Truth got buried after coming back?

 

[BOSS Productions]

Well First of Jeff Hardy has not won a single belt in TNA so he was misused.
Jeff Hardy rose to stardom for several reasons he is young,really over with the fans,proved he does not need rehabilitation and a good wrestler.However you have to look at the facts also it took Jeff Hardy 2 extra years to win the big one and Christian well just returned not to long ago, so give it time Christian was never big with Vince but he is popular so he will get the World Title Eventually.R-Truth on the other well he is pretty old and did not accomplsih anything on his first run in WWE and well Vince thinks he is a terrible wrestler as I heard on the main WrestleZone site and he will most likely stay a mid carder for the rest of his career.
In Simple Words
Jeff Hardy-Young,Talented,Very Popular and Waited 2 years before being put in the Main Event Picture
Christian-Face Of ECW,Very Popular,Talented and will be pushed eventually just give him time.
R-Truth-Very Popular,Decent Wrestler and May move up to upper mid card but do not expect anything like a World Title reign.

 

[JimmyLeviathan]

I'll specifically comment on Christian here because I don't see enough of R-Truth to be able to make any sort of judgement.

Anyone who thinks Christian will be a world champion any time soon is kidding themselves. In case anyone hasn't noticed, Vince McMahon has a fetish for champions who are 6 foot 6 and ripped to shreds, Christian is neither. There are notable exceptions like CM Punk and Jeff Hardy but they became champions because they were over period. Christian may be over with the Internet fans but he certainly isn't over with the children, at least not as much as Jeff Hardy or Punk.

Christian as a face does not work and I've always maintained that opinion. His wrestling style works far better when he is portraying a heel. If anyone needs proof then go no further than Wrestlemania XX and the match he had with Y2J. This match isn't leaps and bounds above what Christian is doing today but it looks a thousand times better because he was a heel and it suited him in the ring. The little nuances that Christian adds to his style when he's a heel (the tantrums, the gestures etc.), that he just can't do as a face, are what get him over (or under the skin, rather) with the crowd.

If you want Christian to be a champion then he has got to go back to being the Creepy Little Bastard and a foil for a mega face like John Cena. I personally would love to see Christian feud with John Cena for the title because his promos on Cena circa 2005/2006 were pure gold. However, it looks for the moment as if Christian is going to act as a trainer of sorts, along with William Regal, to up and coming talent on ECW, which is a respectable enough role within the company.

Don't expect him to do anything more than trade the ECW title back and forth with Regal and put over younger wrestlers until Edge returns for a possible feud/reuniting. And certainly don't expect face Christian to ever be champion - it just wouldn't work.

 

[oldschool123]

The reason that Jeff Hardy is the one who did so well is because he is the only one who has the "it" factor. Even if you don't like him on the mic or think his character sucks you can't deny that he is/was from a pure wrestling standpoint probably the most entertaining to watch because he always goes/went all out and put on a show.

I don't understand why it seems everybody thinks Christian should be either WWE or World Heavyweight Champion. I guess he is kindof funny but hes not that entertaining in the ring. He wouldn't be believeable as champion either, hes built like a toothpick. ECW is the best place for him, if he was on Raw or Smackdown! he would be contending for the US/ Intercontinental title at best.

 

[Prolific]

I'll specifically comment on Christian here because I don't see enough of R-Truth to be able to make any sort of judgement.

Anyone who thinks Christian will be a world champion any time soon is kidding themselves. In case anyone hasn't noticed, Vince McMahon has a fetish for champions who are 6 foot 6 and ripped to shreds, Christian is neither. There are notable exceptions like CM Punk and Jeff Hardy but they became champions because they were over period. Christian may be over with the Internet fans but he certainly isn't over with the children, at least not as much as Jeff Hardy or Punk.

Christian as a face does not work and I've always maintained that opinion. His wrestling style works far better when he is portraying a heel. If anyone needs proof then go no further than Wrestlemania XX and the match he had with Y2J. This match isn't leaps and bounds above what Christian is doing today but it looks a thousand times better because he was a heel and it suited him in the ring. The little nuances that Christian adds to his style when he's a heel (the tantrums, the gestures etc.), that he just can't do as a face, are what get him over (or under the skin, rather) with the crowd.

If you want Christian to be a champion then he has got to go back to being the Creepy Little Bastard and a foil for a mega face like John Cena. I personally would love to see Christian feud with John Cena for the title because his promos on Cena circa 2005/2006 were pure gold. However, it looks for the moment as if Christian is going to act as a trainer of sorts, along with William Regal, to up and coming talent on ECW, which is a respectable enough role within the company.

Don't expect him to do anything more than trade the ECW title back and forth with Regal and put over younger wrestlers until Edge returns for a possible feud/reuniting. And certainly don't expect face Christian to ever be champion - it just wouldn't work.

Umm... I'm going to have to respectfully disagree with you on this one. I like Christian as both a heel and a face, and I think that Christian is definitely more over as a face. As a heel, he was either drowning in the sea of midcard (IC title fueds w/Booker, UnAmericans (terrible), affiliation w/Tomko), or getting fed to Goldberg (which was the last notable thing he did before his contract expired). He was a good heel, don't get me wrong, but he didn't get a chance to really show his ability as a good wrestler as much as he is (and will continue to) vs. Swagger, Dreamer, and Regal, and Koslov.

Christian has more potential as a face to ascend up the ladder than he would a heel. He would be capped by the heels waiting in line ahead of him (Raw: Orton (assuming that Cena will be champ soon), Swagger, Show, Carlito, Miz; Smackdown: Punk (assuming that Taker will be champ soon), Ziggler, Jericho). As a face, he would most likely surpass the midcard faces and be involved in a main event caliber fued, because he is WAY over right now.

Just something to think about...

 

[f_roEDGE]

I think people who go to TNA, then come back, realize that as much as they love wrestling, they also love popularity. TNA cannot give them the recognition they feel they need. To be honest, alot of younger fans knew more about Hornswoggle than Ron Killings/K-Kwik/R Truth. It's unfortunate.

 

[finoj05]

Goldberg left WWE in April of 2004, Christian's contract expired in November of 2005. Christian was feuding with Cena, then got switched to Smackdown before his contract expired.

Though, to be truthful, I think Christian is World Championship material. He IS over with the fans right now. He is a BETTER heel, but he is still a very good face.

 

[Prolific]

R-Truth-Wasn't that big in WWE, back in the old days when he was K-Kwik. He was your typical, rowdy new tag team with the Road Dogg then that got axed, leaving nothing for K-Kwik, so he was released. After he was released he went to TNA and became a huge star. Came back to WWE, hasn't even won a title yet.

Christian-Was a pretty big guy during his first run with WWE. Numerous tag titles and other titles. He was the loveable heel (like Jericho.) After he left WWE, he went to TNA and did the same thing R-Truth did. Won the big one. Came back and was re-located to Extremely Cautious Wrestling. So what he won the ECW title. So has everybody else. Geez. When will he get his freaking shot?

Jeff Hardy-Okay he's the exception. Jeff Hardy has always been over with the crowd, no matter who he worked for. His first stint in WWE included many innovative matches. He left, won the belt in TNA, was the same old crazy Jeff Hardy. Came back and became HUGE. His mic skills still sucked ass but he put on great matches with Orton and Punk. Now he left again.

The question is, why did Jeff Hardy rise to stardom, while Christian and R-Truth got buried after coming back?

Good thread.
From your examples, it seems like Vince realized that he lost assets instead of liabilities when he released them (or let their contract expire). When all three of them because more over on TNA than WWE, he seemingly saw that he can make bigger stars out of the three because the stage is more grand in the "E".

Christian and Hardy speak for themselves, but I would even argue that Killings is more over now than he's ever been hands down. He has been doing his "What's Up" spiel for years now, and the WWE fans accept it way more than the TNA fans, because it is two different types of audiences. That's why in TNA, right before and right after the 3LK gimmick, he wasn't a concrete heel or face. He was either one or the other on alternate weeks, or just a flat out tweener (which usually means that creative has NO DIRECTION for you; Jamie Noble, anyone?).

I've been a Killings supporter for a while now, and he definitely should thank TNA for pulling him out of the abyss of nowhere and making him a World Champion. Though he probably won't be a World Champion in the WWE (unless he gets drafted to ECW, and I believe that he would be a decent champion there), if anyone watches Smackdown, they will realize that though he is almost 40, he is having the time of his life and is WAY over with the crowd.

 

[EGfan4life]

Christian is champion would actually be a little predictable. I'd like R-Truth to get a chance and be that Mysterio or Benoit type of guy. You know, the guy nobody expected to win, and what happened in those matches? The underdogs won. I love R-Truth to death because no matter how many matches he loses, he still comes out with the enthusiasm of a 10 year old. He still puts on good matches, despite Vince dicking him out of title opportunities. R-Truth would make a good champ simply because he can wrestle and talk on the mic, instead of stale ass guys like Randy Orton. And on that note, What's upppp!!!!!?!?!?

 

[jrocc4dub]

I hate jeff hardy. However he does have the it factor that the other two don't really have in my opinion. Christian was awesome in his first wwe singles run. The clb stuff was great. For him to ever have a chance at one of the main wwe titles he needs to turn and become the plotting smart ass character he was before. R truth never really seemed like he made it big in tna. He was champ before they were even on spike. I might be wrong about that. But, he's probably done better in his second run with wwe than i expected. He seems to be over with the crowd and is a decent mid carder. Just can't see him main eventing or ever even being close to that level in wwe.So, out of those three hardy got over more cuz he does all the crazy spots, girls love the dude, and even though his promos consist of him yelling a couple words and were basically shit, has the ability to connect with the majority of fans. Having HHH put you over helps out too.

 

[The Poodle]

if he was on Raw or Smackdown! he would be contending for the US/ Intercontinental title at best.

So what? Maybe he would be competing for those titles. But let's look at who else had to compete for those titles in order to thrust themselves into the big time. This is just a small, sample list:

Brett Hart
HBK
HHH
The Rock
Stone Cold
The Ultimate Warrior
Randy Savage
John Cena
Jeff Hardy
Edge
Benoit
Eddie Guerrero
CM Punk


The point is, that only recently has the IC/US titles been seen as an insignificant title. It used to be the stepping stone to the World Title. Pretty much only Hogan and Flair avoided that route. There are even big time hall of fame wrestlers who never held the big one, and were only IC champs, like Mr. Perfect, Roddy Piper, Ravishing Rick Rude, Tito Santana. The title has a purpose, and the fact that people belittle it and say that certain wrestlers can only hold that title is the reason that it is inconsequential today.

 

[samboisdead]

Well R Truth is horrible. I honestly dont no why WWE rehired him. I love Christian and think he is one of the best wrestlers in the world today. I do not however think he is main event material. Honestly you dont ever have to be a world champion or in the main event to be a great wrestler. Someone has to carry the mid card not everyone can close the show. Listen guys Ricky Steamboat never won a WWE world title granted he did it in WCW but WCW at that time was not much bigger than TNA is now unless you lived in the South.

 

[dvayne]

Bottom line is the push all depends on us the fans. Christian and Jeff Hardy's careers have been pretty similar for the last decade but the reason Jeff got there and Christian didn't is because the fans reactions.

Vince was smart enough to realize that with the amount of merchandise Jeff sold and the crowd reaction that it would be smart from a business point of view to give Jeff his boost to main event status. Sadly Christian does not have that following

Christian is wonderful on the mic and very skilled in the ring but I think he is better served as a heel. He cuts amazing promos and could get everyone to hate him. Hopefully after this draft ECW will have enough talent to let Christian jump to Smackdown to reach uppermidcard status and start challenging for the heavyweight championship by the end of 2010

R Truth is a career midcarder. His gimmick didn't get him over with Roaddogg and the only reason he made it in TNA was because

1 He is a former WWE guy
2 Big Fish little pond he is very skilled but putting him up to some of the wrestlers they had then anyone could have made the jump to TNA and became champion.

Off topic Jeff Hardy's push reminds me of Rey Mysterio's ( believe even if Eddie were still around Rey would have made it to a championship reign maybe not as quick but he would have got there) They couldn't deny the fan base and merchandise sales alone would make it worth it to put a title on them (it couldn't be any worse than David Arquette)