WWF vs WCW: Jeff Jarrett

[Ruthless-RKO]

Next in the series...

'The Chosen One'
Jeff Jarrett

Years in Promotions
WWF: 1993-1996, 1997-1999...
WCW: 1996-1997, 1999-2001...​

What would you say, looking at feuds, matches, impact created and accomplishments...Jeff Jarrett in WWF or WCW??

Lets break it down..

Feuds
WWF
Razor Ramon, The 1-2-3 Kid, Bob Holly, Shawn Michaels, Ahmed Johnson, Jerry Lawler, Barry Windham, Justin Bradshaw, Steve Blackmen, Ken Shamrock, X-Pac Goldust, Kane & X-Pac, D-Lo Brown, Chyna...

WCW
The Giant, Chris Benoit, Dean Malenko, Steve McMichael, Ric Flair, Chris Benoit, Dustin Rhodes, Sid Vicious, Diamond Dallas Page, David Arquette, Kevin Nash, Booker T...


Championships & Accomplishments
WWF
1-time NWA North American Heavyweight Championship
1-time WWF European Championship
6-time WWF Intercontinental Championship
1-time WWF Tag Team Championship w/ Owen Hart

WCW
3-time WCW United States Heavyweight Championship
4-time WCW World Heavyweight Championship

My Opinion
I'm going to have to break it down further to judge this one...WWF because his title runs meant more when he was their, whereas in WCW it was thrown around like a toy and also he was also involved in the David Arquette story as well, which was just low..although his European title run was pathetic, his 6- Intercocntintal title reigns wern't bad at all, 3 during his first stint and 3 during his second..When he moved to WCW for his second run, he was inbetween the time in WCW where they didn't have anything going for them and they were just being babies sitting around a table passing the world title to each other, that being said, I did enjoy his work in the ring and character much better in WCW..

What would you pick??

Please keep thread on topic, no mentioning TNA(there is no need), thank you!

 

[Reddannihilation]

edit: odd double post here.

 

[harrythem]

I'd go with WWF as well. Sure he reached the top of WCW but, sadly, it only proved that Stonecold was right to refuse to work with Jarrett. Loved him in WWF, even got a kick out of his woman hating character but, for me, nothing he ever does will be half as cool as J-E-Double F J-A-Double R-E-Double T. Man was golden with The Roadie.

Still don't get how, for quite some time, he managed to have the most amount of IC title reigns though, that was just...mental

 

[Reddannihilation]

the time in WCW where they didn't have anything going for them and they were just being babies sitting around a table passing the world title to each other...

First, lolwut?

Second, WCW. He was able to compete on a higher level and had all round better matches and better feuds. Jeff Jarett was one of the 4 horsemen in his first run with WCW, in his second he went from upper-midcard to main event and people can criticise WCW all they want but the wrestling Jarrett put forward was great. No shitty country music gimmick, no losing to Chyna, none of that bullshit.

 

[cnmasaki]

I'd have to go with WCW and here's why: his PERFORMANCE was better in WCW, even if his title runs mattered less, and they were spiraling the toilet. His work in WCW made me LOVE Jeff Jarrett, while his work in WWF made me respect him as a worker but be irritated with the lameness of his character.

In WCW he was given the opportunity to work some longer matches, show a little bit more diversity in his style, and really do the "yourself but bigger" kind of persona that is typically successful. I enjoyed his promos more, and despite the eventual overuse of the guitar, I felt it really worked for him. And his rivalry with Booker T was pretty awesome and elevated both of those guys to heights that I wouldn't have expected.

 

[It's Damn Real!]

WCW. Regardless of how you feel about the Bash at the Beach incident, or any number of his controversies, Jarrett was never bigger than he was in the WCW where he competed on a much higher level then he ever could have dreamed of with the WWF.

He was a member of the 4 Horsemen, for Christ's sake, he actually held a Heavyweight Championship there (numerous times), and when "rehashed stories" are brought up now, they always center around his days with WCW, not the WWF – wonder why? Maybe because no one cared about a guy with suspenders built into his tights then, and they sure as fuck don't now?

 

[Jack-Hammer]

It's a bit tricky. On one hand, Jeff Jarrett was a solid mid-card wrestler in the WWF and had a number of title runs while he was there. He did have a shitty gimmick as Double J but, to some degree, I kind of liked it. It was goofy but Jarrett made it work.

In WCW, Jarrett was elevated to main event status and did win the WCW World Heavyweight Championship four times. That in and of itself might convince people that he was better off in WCW. After all, everyone wants to be a main eventer right?

The more I think about it, the more I'm going with the WWF. Why? Because I think that the WWF had Jarrett and kept him, pretty much, where he should have been. I've always thought of Jeff Jarrett as a good, solid mid-card wrestler and I've never bought into him as a main eventer. Jarrett's first run in WCW was memorable only in the fact that he became part of the Four Horsemen, and was among the lamest members of the faction in its history. For all intents and purposes, Jarrett was still "Double J" in his first run in WCW. He behaved the same way, talked the same way, did the same strut. He just didn't have a cowboy hat. When he came back to WCW, they did try to go a different route with Jarrett. Jarrett just never convinced me that he was main event material. I didn't buy into him as a serious heel in the least, he just doesn't have that bad guy feel about him for me, and his runs as WCW World Heavyweight Champion were and still are the stuff of jokes. He was champ for a grand total of, what, 30 days I think? WCW was on its last leg, Both Nitro and Thunder were pretty much unwatchable. There was also Jarrett's involvement with Hulk Hogan and Vince Russo at Bash at the Beach in 2000. Jarrett may have been a main eventer and world champ in WCW, but he was a main eventer and world champ during a time when neither of those things really meant a damn. Jarrett was and is a mid-card wrestler pushed into spots that he just wasn't cut out for.

 

[Judah's Lion]

"The more I think about it, the more I'm going with the WWF. Why? Because I think that the WWF had Jarrett and kept him, pretty much, where he should have been. I've always thought of Jeff Jarrett as a good, solid mid-card wrestler and I've never bought into him as a main eventer."

"When he came back to WCW, they did try to go a different route with Jarrett. Jarrett just never convinced me that he was main event material. I didn't buy into him as a serious heel in the least, he just doesn't have that bad guy feel about him for me."


This entirely sums it up for me. Jarrett was a main event guy in WCW and unquestionably the WCW was at its worst during this time. Now this is certainly not Jarrett's fault. He was just playing the hand that was dealt to him and I get that.

His character was much improved in WCW than it was in the WWF, but it still wasn't meant for the main event. I still believe that if he continued with his mid-card feud with Buff Bagwell upon his return to WCW, it would have been much more convincing. The rise to the top was just not credible. So, with that in mind, I'm gonna have to stick with the WWF on this one. They kept him in the right place, which is a solid mid-card worker. The fact that his 6 IC Title reigns were not topped until years later by Chris Jericho speaks highly of his work ethic and credibility in the mid-card. That's where he should have stayed too.

 

[King Blitzkonic]

I always did like Jarrett (and for more than Debra!) and the OP forgot a feud that was supposed to happen but didn't materialize: with Jesse James (aka Road Dogg aka BG James). But I digress. JJ was most definitely better with WWF. The edgy "don't piss me off" persona was perfect for him and the attitude era. Besides, as mentioned, his 4 WCW WHC reigns really didn't mean much, especially the laying down incident and the David Arquette fiasco (the latter of which also ruined a lot of credibility for DDP). I'm sure that Jarrett could easily have hacked it in the WWF main event scene given the better booking situation.

 

[nutt]

Jarrett left for WCW because of past tensions between his father and Steve Austin. Jerry Jarrett was well known for being prudent with payouts in the CWA and USWA, and Steve Austin refused to do work a program with Jarrett in 1999.

The original plan was for the WWF to have Jarrett cost Austin the WWF Title at Fully Loaded to Triple H, setting up Austin vs. Jarrett. The Rock would have faced the Undertaker at Fully Loaded in a #1 contender's match, with Rock going over in a "return match" from King of the Ring (which was a WWF Title match), and the strap match that happened at Fully Loaded would have been a WWF Title Match at SummerSlam 1999. But, Austin refused to job to HHH at the time, or have Jarrett be apart in his run so the WWF went with what we seen on TV.

This kinda set off Vince Russo a little bit, and pretty much made up his mind to go to WCW. Jarrett was going to be his main heel in WCW, in which he was horribly booked at times. JJ's run in WCW was a flop. He couldn't draw as WCW champion, which is how you are looked at when you are the top guy in the company (or brand).

With that said, his WWF run was better than his WCW run.

 

[johnbragg]

I have to go with WCW, just because he was the heavyweight champion and one of the top guys in the promotion along with Scott Steiner and Booker T. The fact that they were the top guys had a lot to do with the promotion failing, but that was Jarrett's moment of glory.

Jarrett was okay in WWF, and probably would have become a world champion through attrition in 2004-06, around the time that Benoit, Guerrero and JBL did. He would have been a mainstay like Big Show or Kane or Mark Henry.

Much as I dislike Jarrett in TNA, I'd rank his TNA role above his WWF roles. In TNA he's King of the Mountain, even if the Mountain isn't much, at least it's his. In WWF he's just another guy.

 

[Mannic]

i loved his "chosen one" slap nuts thing he did in WcW he was much more mean vicious there only thing i can even honestly remember him for in WWF is that HORRIBLE blinking outfit with those giant glasses with the JJ flashing


the reason most ppl dont like him in WCW is the way he was booked he had the attitude and given that same thing in WWE i think he could have been champ there as well if it was done properly

and why not throw the TNA in the mix as well? when TNA first started when it was NWA TNA when each week was the 9 dollar 2 hour ppv style show i thought he did excellent there... top of his game

now a days hes a pretty big joke id rather see the crappy WWF version then the TNA version of now

 

[Money Inc.]

WWF....

not even close if you ask me..

People can sit here and say well he was higher at his time in WCW. Let's be honest, every one of Jeff Jarretts world title reigns whether be in WCW or TNA are undeserved. Now, I think his WWF IC title reigns were deserved because this was the point where he was most over in his career. The fans absolutely hated him and he was brilliant in promos.

He went to WCW and adopted the "Chosen One" gimmick. Decided to buy out a guitar store, just so he would never run out of guitars because he broke 2-3 an Nitro.

 

[FuzzyDunlop]

His WWF run was better.

He only got his spot in the WCW based on his good friendship with Vince Russo. Yeah,he won the World title in the WCW but to quote Mike Graham, "He broke 6,000 guitars that year and never drew a dime"