I was shocked and disappointed about the story of Hulk Hogan allegedly using several racial slurs, which was reported from many main stream media outlets. The comments, which include Hogan saying he's racist, stem from the sex tape that was secretly filmed of Hogan and the former wife of his friend, Bubba Clem. Clem has a notable radio career and when it was first leaked, many assumed it was some type of publicity stunt, but Hogan has been involved in a lawsuit with the Gawker website to prevent the entire tape from being released. The National Enquirer published the racist statements and have indicated that more quotes from Hogan will be released. Amid the fire storm of negative publicity, the WWE announced that they have terminated his contract and all mentions of him, including the Hall Of Fame biography, were removed from the website. Since the comments were published, additional video from past radio appearances have surfaced and Hogan uses several derogatory terms in the videos. Hulk has apologized to several media outlets and posted messages on Twitter to apologize to fans. Hulk Hogan is an icon in the wrestling world and he survived a wave of negative press a few years ago when he became known more for the tabloid circus that surrounded him than his run in sports entertainment, but what does Hogan do after this debacle?
To be honest, I wasn't going to speak on this subject because everyone will offer their opinion on it and it's obvious what the right answer is, but there's more to this story than just a stain on Hogan's career. Despite any political, religious, or other affiliation, it should be clear that we are all human and there are certain rights that everyone deserves, and it's sad that people are denied human rights in some parts of the world. I'm not going to try to convince anyone of anything, but we all bleed the same color and if you don't understand that then you don't have to continue reading this article. This is just my two cents, but I think everyone should be treated fairly and any type of prejudice is counter productive to making the world a better place. Judging someone without knowing anything about them is ridiculous and I hope that there's more equality in the world as society evolves during the next few years.
Terry Bollea became a global entertainer and one of biggest stars in the history of the business in the 80s during his initial run in the WWE. Hulk helped take the industry national and without question, the sport wouldn't be where it is today without the star power of Hulkamania. During his prime, Hogan set attendance records with Andre The Giant, merchandise records, and many of the early Wrestlemania events were promoted with him on the top of the card. Wrestling purists scoffed at Hogan's limited technical and purely entertainment style, but it can't be argued that Hogan could draw money anywhere for the WWE during his original run. As history tells us, with any wrestling boom, there are causalities and then an eventual decline before the business picks up again. Hogan's star power along with the WWE's better production, merchandising, and marketing gave them the edge over the NWA during the 80s boom. Jim Crockett Promotions spent themselves too far into debt and were forced to sell to Ted Turner, who renamed the promotion World Championship Wrestling. The steroid scandal of the early 90s led to a decline in business and Hogan actually testified during Vince McMahon's trail. Hogan was expected to be the main witness, but went on record to say that McMahon didn't distribute steroids, which led to an acquittal. Despite McMahon being acquitted of all charges, the damage was done to the image of the business and Hogan distanced himself from the industry when he left the WWE in 1993. Hogan's ego and refusal to put over other talents is well documented, and his exit from the WWE was one of many major examples in his career. Hulk didn't want to put Bret Hart over for the title and it led to a bizarre series of events that saw Hogan defeat Yokozuna at Wrestlemania to win the title again. Even for his departure at King of the Ring the same year, there was a goofy finish with a camera exploding in Hogan's eyes before Yoko pinned him so obviously, giving back to the business was never The Hulkster's top propriety.
After an attempt at a movie career that included "Mr. Nanny" flopped and the short lived "Thunder in Paradise" television series concluded, Hogan signed with WCW in 1994. Hulk became an immediate main event performer and won the WCW title in his debut for the company. However, the "Real American" character was stale and considered tacky as the sport evolved, and fans would boo Hogan at events. Despite the rejection, Hulk defeated a cast of cartoonish goons to maintain the top spot in WCW until Eric Bischoff signed The Outsiders in 1996. Hogan turned heel at Bash of The Beach and the New World Order was formed, which gave him a second run as a relevant star. However, it didn't take long for Hogan to utilize the "creative control" clause in WCW, which allowed him to refuse any storyline he didn't want to perform. Hulk won the title at Road Wild 1996 and kept it for eight months until he dropped it to Lex Luger on Nitro, but won the title back the same week at Road Wild in 1997. Even Goldberg's run to became one of the industry's top stars in less than a year was indirectly affected when Kevin Nash ended his undefeated streak, only to set up "the finger poker of doom," which is still mentioned as one of the reasons WCW went out of business. Hogan's refusal to step away from the main event spot led to an over exposure of the NWO and the group eventually became a stale act, which allowed the WWE to take the lead during the Monday Night Wars. In 2000, Hogan didn't want to put over Jeff Jarrett and used his political power to change the finish of the match. Jarrett laid down for Hogan and the referee counted the fall on live pay-per-view for the Hulkster's final WCW appearance. After the "match," Vince Russo cut the infamous "shoot promo" and the company shut down less than a year later. There were a variety of reasons that WCW went out of business and the blame can't be directed to one person, but Hogan certainly didn't help the situation.
Terry Bollea was signed to the Turner company and had a guaranteed contract, which meant he was paid even after WCW shut down. Many of WCW's top stars had similar deals and most of them opted to stay home and get paid for the remainder of the contract, which is why the Invasion angle flopped. Similar to the previous boom, after the Attitude Era, business declined and to boost revenue, the WWE signed the original members of the NWO in 2002. Hulk did the job for The Rock in a memorable match at Wrestlemania XVIII, but would become dissatisfied with the creative team and left the company in 2003. After the premiere of the "Hogan Knows Best" reality show in 2005, Hogan returned to the spotlight and eventually the WWE. A match for Summer Slam with Shawn Micheals was booked and reportedly, Hogan didn't want to lose the match so HBK did the job on pay-per-view. The following year, Hogan feuded with Randy Orton and was booked to lose at Summer Slam, but again The Hulkster didn't want to put over younger talent so he conveniently had a knee injury that could've potentially prevented the match until the finish was changed.
In 2007, Bollea got divorced and he became a tabloid circus for the next few years. Nick Hogan was driving intoxicated and was involved in a very serious car accident, which critically injured a passenger in the car. Bollea became a regular on TMZ and he mentioned during an interview on the Howard Stern show in 2009 that he was in debt from the divorce settlement. Shortly after that, Hogan signed with TNA and it's been discussed many times, as he used Dixie Carter as a money mark, and used the promotion to financially rebound from debt. Hogan needed money and that was the only reason he signed with TNA. During his run in TNA, a sex tape surfaced online and it further damaged Hogan's public profile, which resulted in the lawsuit that was mentioned earlier. Despite almost four years under contract, Hogan didn't improve the ratings or attendance and he didn't really do anything to help TNA. That being said, you can't blame Hulk for taking the money that was offered and if anything, it proves that Dixie Carter is clueless.
It was announced in 2014 that Hogan would return to host Wrestlemania 30 and the WWE marketing machine restored him image. Finally, Hogan seemed to embrace his status as a legend and worked as an ambassador for the company instead of trying to get another main event run. However, the racist remarks that have surfaced could completely tarnish his legacy. One of the reasons that Bruno Sammartino and John Cena are considered heroes for their respective eras is that there's an authenticity to them. Sammartino really does try to respectfully represent the business, stands up for his beliefs, and appreciates the support of the fans. John Cena actually does try to be a role model and he does many charity events. The remarks that have surfaced from Hogan take away from his Hulkamania persona because it goes against everything that fans believe in to cheer for him. Obviously, pro wrestling is people portraying characters, but it certainly sours fans on cheering Hulk Hogan when they know that Terry Bollea made such ridiculous comments. The question is, how should the WWE handle this? As I said, there's no place for Hogan's remarks and it's completely understandable that the WWE doesn't want to promote him, but he has been featured on dozens of pay-per-views so it's not realistic to erase him. Hogan stepped on many careers to maintain his spot at the top and he rarely gave back to the business that made him a star so it's difficult to view him as a sympathetic figure that just said the wrong statement. Obviously, Hulk Hogan made a mistake and he will have to deal with the consequences, but if the reported comments actually represent his prejudice towards different groups of people then he deserves the consequences.
Tuesday, July 28, 2015
Friday, July 24, 2015
WWE Battleground Review
There were several rumors heading into the Battleground pay-per-view and the event provides some very intriguing scenarios leading to Summer Slam. The WWE has a conference call in a few weeks to inform stock holders and release the current number of Network subscribers, which seems to be the determining factor of the companies success for investors. While the Network puts the WWE to task to provide a continuously solid product to keep fans from cancelling, it could also lead to angles being rushed, which might be the case for Summer Slam next month.
The show opened with Randy Otron vs. Sheamus and it was a decent match, but nothing too spectacular. Battleground took place in Orton's hometown of St. Louis, MO and that's probably why he won the match, but it almost downgrades Sheamus, who won the Money in the Bank contract last month. Sheamus winning the shot at the title seemed like a random choice to begin with and he hasn't really been given a push or a meaningful storyline to build upon it. Jobbing on PPV doesn't exactly set the stage for Sheamus to cash in and enter the main event picture again. Orton, who still has star power, seems to have plateaued in his career, in terms of popularity and there doesn't seem to be a lot the WWE can do from a booking prospective because he already wrestled most of the roster. The tag title match followed and it was another decent match, but nothing that hasn't been seen on Raw recently. That being said, it's good to see the focus on the tag division and most of teams involved are entertaining. While somewhat limited in the ring, Titus O'Neil has done well in recent months and Xavier Woods is entertaining for The New Day.
When Bray Wyatt began the feud with Roman Reigns, I assumed that it was another example of Wyatt being used to get someone else over, but surprisingly, he won the match with the assistance of Luke Harper.Wyatt's promo skills and character have kept him strong, despite the lack of push, but at some point, he should get some wins, considering that in some ways, he was used as a glorified enhancement talent. Wyatt is one of the most over competitors on the WWE roster and he has the in ring ability to be a main event star, but he needs to be booked in a position to elevate his name value. There are rumors that Sting will return to join Ambrose and Reigns to wrestle the Wyatt Family, which is somewhat of a random pairing, but the Sting's involvement could boost everyone else in the match, which is smart booking. It's a good decision to have Harper realign himself with Wyatt, mostly because he hasn't been established outside of the Wyatt family and it really adds to the gimmick.
The US title match was solid, but not quite on par with the two previous Owens/Cena matches and the finish caused some debate on Twitter. While the feud with John Cena put Kevin Owens on the map to the main stream audience, Owens tapping out seems somewhat counter productive, but it doesn't exactly halt his momentum depending on what he does next on Raw. The danger is there have been certain competitors with potential that were derailed after a feud with Cena, such as The Nexus storyline was eventually just used to feed him opponents. Rusev is probably the most recent example because he hasn't done a lot since Wrestlemania, but hopefully the WWE will book Owens in a decent feud because he has the skills to be a star for the WWE.
The triple threat match was solid and the recent introduction of the NXT women provides something fresh to Raw. The key to this seems to be mixing the NXT divas into the woman's division on Raw without some of them getting lost in the shuffle, which could be the case with nine diva involved in the storyline. The current NXT woman's champion, Sasha Banks has all the skills to be a major star for the WWE and it will be interesting to see how she's booked in the next few months. Becky Lynch is solid in the ring and will be a solid addition to the Raw roster if she's given the chance to showcase her skills. Charlotte won the match at the pay-per-view and she will probably get more of an initial push because she's Ric Flair's daughter, which is somewhat understandable. While she's athletic, Charlotte isn't exactly as polished in the ring as the other NXT divas and it might take a few months for her to become established on Raw.
The WWE title match was what most fans expected it to be, Lesnar suplexed Rollins out of his shoes and for his role, Rollins took good bumps to make the challenger look strong, which was pivotal to the finish. As mentioned earlier, the WWE Network puts the pressure on the company to deliver a solid product that will keep a significant portion of the audience subscribed to the service, but the return of The Undertaker might be an example of the WWE rushing an angle to spike numbers prior to the report to share holders. The Undertaker/Lesnar rematch deserves a Wrestlemania match, which could be where it eventually ends up, but at this point, it seems like the WWE rushed it, considering Lesnar had just turned babyface before the match with Rollins. The finish worked well because there was logic with The Undertaker getting revenge for Paul Heyman bragging about the streak and it also allowed Rollins to keep the title without Lesnar actually losing the match. It amazes me that some fans complained on Twitter that the WWE tried to book The Undertaker as a heel, which wasn't the case. In some rare cases, there are certain matches that have enough star power and anticipation that there doesn't necessarily need to be a heel/babyface dynamic. The storyline is already in place, Paul Heyman bragged about Lesnar ending the streak and The Undertaker returned to avenge the loss. It sets the stage to be promoted as an epic clash of two of the biggest stars on the WWE roster and the stare down at Battleground, as well as the brawl on Raw proved that the match doesn't need Lesnar to turn heel to make it work. It was also key for The Undertaker to mentioned in the promo on Raw that every streak eventually comes to an end because it allows for there to be a progression in his career instead of the end of the streak being considered the unofficial end of his WWE run. It's been said many times, in terms of longevity and being relevant, The Undertaker is in a league of his own and anyone that complains about the Brock Lesnar/Undertaker rematch is probably looking for something to criticized with the product.
The show opened with Randy Otron vs. Sheamus and it was a decent match, but nothing too spectacular. Battleground took place in Orton's hometown of St. Louis, MO and that's probably why he won the match, but it almost downgrades Sheamus, who won the Money in the Bank contract last month. Sheamus winning the shot at the title seemed like a random choice to begin with and he hasn't really been given a push or a meaningful storyline to build upon it. Jobbing on PPV doesn't exactly set the stage for Sheamus to cash in and enter the main event picture again. Orton, who still has star power, seems to have plateaued in his career, in terms of popularity and there doesn't seem to be a lot the WWE can do from a booking prospective because he already wrestled most of the roster. The tag title match followed and it was another decent match, but nothing that hasn't been seen on Raw recently. That being said, it's good to see the focus on the tag division and most of teams involved are entertaining. While somewhat limited in the ring, Titus O'Neil has done well in recent months and Xavier Woods is entertaining for The New Day.
When Bray Wyatt began the feud with Roman Reigns, I assumed that it was another example of Wyatt being used to get someone else over, but surprisingly, he won the match with the assistance of Luke Harper.Wyatt's promo skills and character have kept him strong, despite the lack of push, but at some point, he should get some wins, considering that in some ways, he was used as a glorified enhancement talent. Wyatt is one of the most over competitors on the WWE roster and he has the in ring ability to be a main event star, but he needs to be booked in a position to elevate his name value. There are rumors that Sting will return to join Ambrose and Reigns to wrestle the Wyatt Family, which is somewhat of a random pairing, but the Sting's involvement could boost everyone else in the match, which is smart booking. It's a good decision to have Harper realign himself with Wyatt, mostly because he hasn't been established outside of the Wyatt family and it really adds to the gimmick.
The US title match was solid, but not quite on par with the two previous Owens/Cena matches and the finish caused some debate on Twitter. While the feud with John Cena put Kevin Owens on the map to the main stream audience, Owens tapping out seems somewhat counter productive, but it doesn't exactly halt his momentum depending on what he does next on Raw. The danger is there have been certain competitors with potential that were derailed after a feud with Cena, such as The Nexus storyline was eventually just used to feed him opponents. Rusev is probably the most recent example because he hasn't done a lot since Wrestlemania, but hopefully the WWE will book Owens in a decent feud because he has the skills to be a star for the WWE.
The triple threat match was solid and the recent introduction of the NXT women provides something fresh to Raw. The key to this seems to be mixing the NXT divas into the woman's division on Raw without some of them getting lost in the shuffle, which could be the case with nine diva involved in the storyline. The current NXT woman's champion, Sasha Banks has all the skills to be a major star for the WWE and it will be interesting to see how she's booked in the next few months. Becky Lynch is solid in the ring and will be a solid addition to the Raw roster if she's given the chance to showcase her skills. Charlotte won the match at the pay-per-view and she will probably get more of an initial push because she's Ric Flair's daughter, which is somewhat understandable. While she's athletic, Charlotte isn't exactly as polished in the ring as the other NXT divas and it might take a few months for her to become established on Raw.
The WWE title match was what most fans expected it to be, Lesnar suplexed Rollins out of his shoes and for his role, Rollins took good bumps to make the challenger look strong, which was pivotal to the finish. As mentioned earlier, the WWE Network puts the pressure on the company to deliver a solid product that will keep a significant portion of the audience subscribed to the service, but the return of The Undertaker might be an example of the WWE rushing an angle to spike numbers prior to the report to share holders. The Undertaker/Lesnar rematch deserves a Wrestlemania match, which could be where it eventually ends up, but at this point, it seems like the WWE rushed it, considering Lesnar had just turned babyface before the match with Rollins. The finish worked well because there was logic with The Undertaker getting revenge for Paul Heyman bragging about the streak and it also allowed Rollins to keep the title without Lesnar actually losing the match. It amazes me that some fans complained on Twitter that the WWE tried to book The Undertaker as a heel, which wasn't the case. In some rare cases, there are certain matches that have enough star power and anticipation that there doesn't necessarily need to be a heel/babyface dynamic. The storyline is already in place, Paul Heyman bragged about Lesnar ending the streak and The Undertaker returned to avenge the loss. It sets the stage to be promoted as an epic clash of two of the biggest stars on the WWE roster and the stare down at Battleground, as well as the brawl on Raw proved that the match doesn't need Lesnar to turn heel to make it work. It was also key for The Undertaker to mentioned in the promo on Raw that every streak eventually comes to an end because it allows for there to be a progression in his career instead of the end of the streak being considered the unofficial end of his WWE run. It's been said many times, in terms of longevity and being relevant, The Undertaker is in a league of his own and anyone that complains about the Brock Lesnar/Undertaker rematch is probably looking for something to criticized with the product.
Friday, July 17, 2015
The NXT brand
The wrestling business has certainly provided many
interesting scenarios so far this year with Lucha Underground gaining
notoriety, Global Force running a live event tour, and Ring Of Honor's national
television deal on Destination American, but the NXT brand has arguably had the
most buzz during the past six months. The WWE Network specials have received
rave reviews, there are sell outs on a regular basis for live events, and NXT
merchandise has sold well. The continued success of the NXT brand using many
performers that initially became stars on the independent scene has prompted many
to ask, is NXT trying take over the independent promotions?
The NXT brand was built to be an alternative to the Raw or
Smackdown product and it's an extremely smart business strategy. First of all,
the entire WWE Network is built around providing content and more specifically,
original content because despite every PPV in history being available on the
subscription service, the original Network numbers show that nostalgic events
only draw a certain number of subscribers. It's also important to note that the
older events and much of the entire network caters to the diehard fan base, and
many of that group of fans collected events through tape/DVD trading before the
network was launched. Technology allows most of those original recordings to be
transferred to different formats so again, original content will be the key to
success for the Network.
That being said, despite the tremendous success of the NXT brand thus far, it's not perfect and it's almost comical that some fans will praise NXT in an attempt to downgrade the main roster or criticize WWE booking. While WWE booking is shaky at times, do the smart marks realize NXT is a WWE product and they are paying to watch it? Does Vince McMahon care why you pay $9.99? No, as long as smart marks subscribe to the network, it doesn't matter if they claim NXT is "better" than Raw. However, comparing Raw to NXT is apples to oranges in many ways because NXT is only an hour show and you can get more mileage from a product that isn't over exposed or stale, which is sometimes the case for a three hour show. The other aspect to consider if the advertisement revenue that is generated during a Raw broadcast and the lack of commercials allow NXT more flexibility for booking matches, but Raw makes major money with sponsorships so again, it's an apples to oranges comparison.
So, is the WWE trying to take over the independent scene? it's possible that NXT running a tour schedule could affect independent promotions, but the WWE is trying to expand revenue stream and I doubt they are directly trying to put smaller companies out of business. If anything, NXT is an example of the independent groups providing a platform for stars to be discovered and the WWE knows that it's important to have somewhat of a feeder system outside of the WWE. It's obvious smaller promotions aren't a threat to the WWE and several independent organizations, such as ROH and PWG have been mentioned on WWE.com so it's doubtful the WWE is trying to damage smaller companies. It's been reported recently that ROH World champion, Jay Lethal and Adam Cole could be on the WWE's radar. If WWE would sign either competitor, it would take some star power from the ROH roster, but there's a tremendous amount of talent on the independent scene so ROH would be in no danger. Speaking of the talented star, Lethal is great in the ring, but seems to lack somewhat on the mic, which could hinder his progress in the WWE. Adam Cole seems to have all the skills to be successful on the main stage and in some ways, he could be the next Shawn Micheals. Regardless, the two would be a great addition to the NXT roster and if you haven't seem them, I would recommend watching ROH on Destination America. The bottom line is, despite the corporate image the WWE has and the perception of some of the internet fans, the WWE isn't trying to shut down the independent companies, but rather expand their own product. The expansion of the NXT brand has certainly provided some interesting scenarios on Raw and the WWE network so it seems like it's a good decision for the WWE to continue to book a diverse product.
Saturday, July 11, 2015
Will Conor McGregor be the UFC's next top star?
Tonight's UFC 189 event will take place from the MGM Grand in Las
Vegas, Nevada as the highlight of the organization's international fight
week, which features a variety of events and adds an extra hype for the
card, but it hasn't been without its share of controversy. The current
Featherweight champion, Jose Aldo was scheduled to defend his title
against rising star, Conor McGregor, but the Brazilian sustained a rib
injury, which derailed plans. It's a bizarre situation, as UFC doctors
diagnosed Aldo with bruised ribs and he was medical cleared to fight,
but the champion's own physician determined he had broken ribs, leading
Aldo to cancel the bout. After the anticipated contest was scrapped,
there was some criticism toward Aldo, but he attempted to silence those
detractors when he posted images of an X-ray of his rib online to show
the extent of the injury. This would suggest that the UFC medical staff
misdiagnosed Aldo, but the outspoken UFC President, Dana White responded
and claims that the images Aldo provided were from an old injury, and
the champion didn't think he could make weight with bruised ribs so he
decided not to fight. Anyone that suggests that the UFC didn't disclose
the injury in an attempt to keep the fight on the card is extremely
misguided and the UFC wouldn't risk the liability for an injury. It's
certainly a murky situation for all involved, but the bottom line is,
Aldo wasn't going to fight so with less than two weeks before the
pay-per-view, the UFC announced Chad Mendes as a replacement for an
intern title fight.
Conor McGregor, who is 5-0 in the UFC, is being promoted as the promotion's next top star and he seems to have the mics skill, as well as the ability in the cage to become extremely marketable. The charismatic Dublin native, is somewhat similar to retired middleweight Chael Sonnon, in terms of talking to hype a fight, but McGregor actually has the skills to live up to the hype. With an overall record of 17-2, McGregor brings a dynamic style and excellent striking to the octagon, and in the process, generated a buzz for the Featherweight division that hasn't been seen in the UFC. As a company, the UFC could definitely use another main stream star, as many of the top draws from years prior have retired or been tainted with a scandal. Jon Jones, who was thought to be the future of the sport a few years ago, was arrested on hit and run charges in April, which prompted the UFC to strip him of the Light Heavyweight title. He was also suspended indefinitely and some have speculated that he might not fight again. Anderson Silva, who is considered the most dominate fighter in the history of the UFC, tested positive for steroids after a fight in January. Both Brock Lesnar and George St. Pierre retired a few years ago so obviously, the UFC is looking for the next main stream star. Outside of Rhonda Rousey, who generates main stream publicity for the UFC? That's not to say that the UFC doesn't have a great roster because the talent is certainly there, but from a business prospective, the company needs another main stream draw for the box office.
Conor McGregor could be the next marketable star for the company, but the Aldo cancellation puts him in a tough spot because in some ways, he has nothing to gain if he wins, as he will still have to fight Aldo in a unification bout. Chad Mendes, who took the fight on short notice, essentially has nothing to lose because if he's defeated, it's the McGregor win many fans expected, but if he wins, he gets a rematch with Aldo. Mendes has a record of 17-2 with his only losses being the Aldo fights and he's a tough test for McGregor, considering he has an extensive wrestling background, which is an area where Mcgregor hasn't really been tested so far in his UFC career. Mendes is a legitimate threat to McGregor's path to the title, but who wins at UFC 189?
In my opinion, the grappling aspect will be the main key and could determine the fight. While Mendes has powerful punches, McGregor has the striking advantage and could use it to finish the fight in the early rounds. However, if Mendes gets a take down, he could control the fight and use the cardio advantage to win a decision. I will pick Conor McGregor to get the win, but anything is possible so it should be an entertaining fight. This is definitely not an easy fight for McGregor, but if he's victorious, it sets the stage for the Aldo fight, which translates to major major for the UFC and the potential for their next main stream star.
Conor McGregor, who is 5-0 in the UFC, is being promoted as the promotion's next top star and he seems to have the mics skill, as well as the ability in the cage to become extremely marketable. The charismatic Dublin native, is somewhat similar to retired middleweight Chael Sonnon, in terms of talking to hype a fight, but McGregor actually has the skills to live up to the hype. With an overall record of 17-2, McGregor brings a dynamic style and excellent striking to the octagon, and in the process, generated a buzz for the Featherweight division that hasn't been seen in the UFC. As a company, the UFC could definitely use another main stream star, as many of the top draws from years prior have retired or been tainted with a scandal. Jon Jones, who was thought to be the future of the sport a few years ago, was arrested on hit and run charges in April, which prompted the UFC to strip him of the Light Heavyweight title. He was also suspended indefinitely and some have speculated that he might not fight again. Anderson Silva, who is considered the most dominate fighter in the history of the UFC, tested positive for steroids after a fight in January. Both Brock Lesnar and George St. Pierre retired a few years ago so obviously, the UFC is looking for the next main stream star. Outside of Rhonda Rousey, who generates main stream publicity for the UFC? That's not to say that the UFC doesn't have a great roster because the talent is certainly there, but from a business prospective, the company needs another main stream draw for the box office.
Conor McGregor could be the next marketable star for the company, but the Aldo cancellation puts him in a tough spot because in some ways, he has nothing to gain if he wins, as he will still have to fight Aldo in a unification bout. Chad Mendes, who took the fight on short notice, essentially has nothing to lose because if he's defeated, it's the McGregor win many fans expected, but if he wins, he gets a rematch with Aldo. Mendes has a record of 17-2 with his only losses being the Aldo fights and he's a tough test for McGregor, considering he has an extensive wrestling background, which is an area where Mcgregor hasn't really been tested so far in his UFC career. Mendes is a legitimate threat to McGregor's path to the title, but who wins at UFC 189?
In my opinion, the grappling aspect will be the main key and could determine the fight. While Mendes has powerful punches, McGregor has the striking advantage and could use it to finish the fight in the early rounds. However, if Mendes gets a take down, he could control the fight and use the cardio advantage to win a decision. I will pick Conor McGregor to get the win, but anything is possible so it should be an entertaining fight. This is definitely not an easy fight for McGregor, but if he's victorious, it sets the stage for the Aldo fight, which translates to major major for the UFC and the potential for their next main stream star.
Sunday, July 5, 2015
Will there be a TNA/GFW Merger?
Social media was a buzz prior to Impact Wrestling airing on Destination America a few weeks ago, as the news that TNA founder, Jeff Jarrett returned to the company and he won the King Of The Mountain match at Slammiversary. Jarrett made his exit from the company a year and a half ago, but is there more to this return than an attempt to boost viewership? Since his departure from TNA, Jarrett launched the Global Force Wrestling promotion, which started running shows last month and has TV tapings scheduled for this month. While Jarrett has tried to build another promotion using talent from a variety of companies, Impact Wrestling had a series of struggles and there continues to be speculation about the stability of the organization. Spike TV decided not to renew the TNA TV deal and the promotion signed with the smaller Destination America network, which garners about half the viewers for the show than on Spike because of less TV clearance. Reports persist that talent and production staff aren't getting paid on time and Taz cited it as one of the reasons he left the company.
Jeff Jarrett hyped a major announcement for Global Force and there are rumors of a potential TNA/GFW merger, which might be the best option for both of them. I've said it before and I will say it again, TNA might be too damaged of a brand to rebuild, and there's still a stigma towards it. Further more, they've also tried to cut costs everywhere possible, including taping several weeks of TV during events, limiting pay-per-view events, and deciding not to renew some contracts. Obviously, the company has some financial struggles and Dixie Carter might be more open to a buyout than in years prior. It was said many times before, but the TNA initials have a double meaning and quite frankly, they actually limit some of the marketability of the organization so it might be more beneficial to promote the Global Force name in terms of advertisements.
Assuming there's more to Jarrett's appearance than just a publicity stunt, the Global Force philosophy could work well for a co-promoted group, considering talent from several promotions could generate buzz for the product. Usually, exclusive talent is necessary to build a national brand and lack of exclusiveness could have hindered TNA's progress during their early years, but at this point, the WWE has a strangle hold on the top spot. However, if a working agreement would allow talent from different organizations to wrestle for a GFW/TNA merger, it might create an alternative and establish a brand, which is something TNA has struggled to set up during most of its history. Specifically, Global Force has worked with New Japan and if those stars get more exposure on Impact, it could benefit each promotion in a variety of way.
During promos on Impact, Jarrett mentioned Global Force several times and there are reports of a potential invasion angle. If a merger is actually on the table, the invasion angle could be taken to another level if the "winning" organization would take over the promotion but a lot of that would depend on the type of deal that's offered for a merger. That's the other side of the whole situation, while a merger would rejuvenate the Impact brand and give Global Force publicity, there are several examples of co-promoted mishaps. The NWA/AWA Super Clash events of the late 80s and Pro Wrestling USA promotion were a good concept on paper, but the promoters couldn't agree on the booking, which is why a merger would probably be a better option than a co-promotion. Since the PPV, several stars have left TNA and a few of them have already signed with GFW, including Bobby Roode and Magnus, but could that be the start of an angle?
In my opinion, a merger would be the better option for both promotions, as it provides a spark for the organization and it would be a fresh start for Impact under the Global Force banner. It would give fans a new product featuring some of the TNA stars without the TNA stigma and the Impact time slot would give the organization distribution. That being said, I doubt it will happen because of the many political and business hurdles that are involved in the situation. If there's an actual invasion angle, hopefully there's more to it than just a few months of run ins and matches because it probably wouldn't benefit either company. Basically, an invasion angle would have to do more than just give GFW a few mentions of TV and increase the ratings for a few weeks for TNA because when the angle concludes, each promotion could be in the same spot they were before the invasion. For example, Global Force has TV tapings scheduled for this month, but currently doesn't have a TV deal so if GFW gets exposure on Impact, it might help them get a time slot. If a GFW angle on Impact doesn't help them become more established, what's the point of the storyline? It's certainly an interesting scenario with a variety of ways to proceed and hopefully, it benefits each promotion.
Jeff Jarrett hyped a major announcement for Global Force and there are rumors of a potential TNA/GFW merger, which might be the best option for both of them. I've said it before and I will say it again, TNA might be too damaged of a brand to rebuild, and there's still a stigma towards it. Further more, they've also tried to cut costs everywhere possible, including taping several weeks of TV during events, limiting pay-per-view events, and deciding not to renew some contracts. Obviously, the company has some financial struggles and Dixie Carter might be more open to a buyout than in years prior. It was said many times before, but the TNA initials have a double meaning and quite frankly, they actually limit some of the marketability of the organization so it might be more beneficial to promote the Global Force name in terms of advertisements.
Assuming there's more to Jarrett's appearance than just a publicity stunt, the Global Force philosophy could work well for a co-promoted group, considering talent from several promotions could generate buzz for the product. Usually, exclusive talent is necessary to build a national brand and lack of exclusiveness could have hindered TNA's progress during their early years, but at this point, the WWE has a strangle hold on the top spot. However, if a working agreement would allow talent from different organizations to wrestle for a GFW/TNA merger, it might create an alternative and establish a brand, which is something TNA has struggled to set up during most of its history. Specifically, Global Force has worked with New Japan and if those stars get more exposure on Impact, it could benefit each promotion in a variety of way.
During promos on Impact, Jarrett mentioned Global Force several times and there are reports of a potential invasion angle. If a merger is actually on the table, the invasion angle could be taken to another level if the "winning" organization would take over the promotion but a lot of that would depend on the type of deal that's offered for a merger. That's the other side of the whole situation, while a merger would rejuvenate the Impact brand and give Global Force publicity, there are several examples of co-promoted mishaps. The NWA/AWA Super Clash events of the late 80s and Pro Wrestling USA promotion were a good concept on paper, but the promoters couldn't agree on the booking, which is why a merger would probably be a better option than a co-promotion. Since the PPV, several stars have left TNA and a few of them have already signed with GFW, including Bobby Roode and Magnus, but could that be the start of an angle?
In my opinion, a merger would be the better option for both promotions, as it provides a spark for the organization and it would be a fresh start for Impact under the Global Force banner. It would give fans a new product featuring some of the TNA stars without the TNA stigma and the Impact time slot would give the organization distribution. That being said, I doubt it will happen because of the many political and business hurdles that are involved in the situation. If there's an actual invasion angle, hopefully there's more to it than just a few months of run ins and matches because it probably wouldn't benefit either company. Basically, an invasion angle would have to do more than just give GFW a few mentions of TV and increase the ratings for a few weeks for TNA because when the angle concludes, each promotion could be in the same spot they were before the invasion. For example, Global Force has TV tapings scheduled for this month, but currently doesn't have a TV deal so if GFW gets exposure on Impact, it might help them get a time slot. If a GFW angle on Impact doesn't help them become more established, what's the point of the storyline? It's certainly an interesting scenario with a variety of ways to proceed and hopefully, it benefits each promotion.
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