WWE truly has no competition.

[The_RB_Brand]

Has anyone noticed how original WWE is, despite everything being PG & predictable & sometimes lame of half ass done. WWE still comes out on top these days w/ new original talents from the FCW / independent leagues. TNA how ever, that supposed threat to WWE doesn't even stand a chance & here's why. TNA surly is TV-14 witch is good. How ever almost half the TNA roster is old WWF/WWE/WCW/ECW talent. Guys who we all seen before. Sure the combination of the current TNA roster is nothing like we have seen on WWE, or WCW back in the day. How ever let me make one thing clear, TNA seems to have the style of WCW wrestling & old WWF attitude era script writing / character talent. It seems the more n more WWE moves on w/ the younger generation & new talent, TNA seems to collect WWE's old left over stars that have done all they could in WWE & that people kinda just didn't care for at one point or another. So the question is, we as wrestling fans love the TV-14 stuff yet at the same time we hate seeing the same people fight over n over again (not sayin that WWE doesnt do that, cause they do). How ever do you think TNA will ever get to the level as WWE is with their current rip off style of WCW / WWF Attitude era sprinkled w/ a little bit of new talent on top. Or do you think if TNA really wants to step up it's game they are going to do what WWE started to do in 2009 & pushing & introducing new talent & stars?

 

[Keith]

1. This so called great youth movement of WWE's, well the jury is still out for me, simply because with people like Swagger and Sheamus they simply rushed their push, and then messed them up, plus with Cena and Orton still be shoved down everyone's throats how are these guys really going to get over.

2. TNA will not ever get to WWE's level, or even compete with them, partly for the reason you just outlined. At one time when they were really on a high I could see that happening one day, but no more.

3. Excatley WWE has no serouis compeltion and thats been the problem for years now.

 

[Troy]

WWE has certainly realised they need new stars and have been pushing a whole host of new talent in the past year or two. Alberto Del Rio, The Miz, Jack Swagger, Kofi Kingston, Sheamus etc. have all been pushed to the top and have plenty of time left in WWE. Yes some of them have dropped back down the card but that happened with CM Punk and he is right back up the card again after a few months in the midcard. Plus with WrestleMania right around the corner it makes sense that the bankable stars like Cena, Orton, HHH, Undertaker and Edge are back in the top spots on the card. WWE will want to maximise buyrates and to do that you need your top stars. After WM more of the newer stars will be getting pushes into the mainevent. But looking at the card Alberto Del Rio and The Miz are newer talents and are in World title matches plus Swagger is involved in one of the highest profile feuds on RAW.

TNA won't become competition for WWE whilst they keep acting like a bush league company (Thanks to Chris Jericho for that name). They need to stop mentioning WWE on programming, stop pushing old stars in title feuds when they should be used to get the current talent over and then need to stop trying to be number one. TNA should aim to become a profitable business that grows each year, don't worry about what WWE are doing and definitely don't copy what they are doing.

WWE has suffered having no serious competition. WWE has been able to be lazy with their booking and it has shown that there is no real urgency or panic in making the product better especially five years ago. In the last twelve months I do think that the product has improved and WWE has realised that they need to do better since their earnings keep dropping. 2012 should be an awesome year for WWE, another year to build these newer talents and it should be a breakout year for the company once again.

 

[Keith]

1. Is it a good thing that all these newer guys are getting pushes? Yes it clearly makes things more interesting, but it still has to bo booked in the correct way, so I am not saying it is a good or a bad thing right now, I am just saying wait and see.

2. I really disagree with you on the ADR push, the guy only debuted last summer, and spent the first few months jobbing to Mysterio, it is too soon for him to be in the spot WWE have placed him in, and I have to ask you do you really think the way his rumble win was booked put him over strongly? Because I don't.

3. Swagger is being used as a corner man in the Lawler/Cole match, maybe it will have positive effect on his career maybe not, but considering he was world champion last year he must be disapointed with not being in a match on the biggest show of the year.

4. Guys like Swagger and Sheamus were just pushed to quickly, and it was just a gasture by WWE just to prove that they could, the idea of pushing someone is that you think it through, and considering to be ready, and then have a plan for them once they get into main events, this clearly wasn't the case with either of these two guys.

5. Of couse WWE still need to use their bankable stars around WM time, but the trouble is until you give the younger talent a go in main events, you are not going to know if they can draw big money. I have no problem with HHH against Undertaker, but I have a huge problem with Cena appearing in yet another main event, espically when it seems so predictable than he is going to win. Fact is Vince can't relie on the same names forever.

6. I agree with everything you said about TNA, and their problems in moving forward, I just about no faith left in that promotion.

 

[Troy]

2. I don't recall him jobbing to Mysterio I recall him beating and then injurying Mysterio followed by ADR injurying Christian. If he was a face then the Rumble win wouldn't have been booked well for him. But ADR is a heel and so the Rumble win was booked perfectly well, he outlasted the rest and the last little bit with Santino doesn't matter because ADR still won as the cocky heel and showed that he can get out of any situation and win. WWE has done a brilliant job with him and ADR himself has been fantastic and yes he is ready to be in the mainevent, he has already had title matches and this guy is an experienced performer and will bring it at WrestleMania.

3. At some stage it was looking doubtful that Swagger would even be on the card this year so it is a huge boost that he is involved in a high profile feud. Yes it is a step down from being champion last year but this can be the start of the return to the top for him.

4. Sheamus was pushed quickly but he had had a great run on ECW and that momentum continued on RAW. When someone is hot you don't wait another year before giving them a title shot you take advantage of that heat and strike while the iron is hot. Swagger was in WWE for at least 18 months before he won the WHC. Yes he won the ECW championship but I don't count that as a world title. Again he was one that started strongly and built up a lot of momentum as a heel on ECW. In wrestling you have to alter your plans weekly depending on how each star is getting over. These two were having brilliant runs as heels and it was the right time for them to win the titles.

5. Cena is their biggest star it would be crazy if he wasn't in the mainevent. If he wasn't someone should have booked Vince in an asylum because it would have been an insane decision. Cena can help build new stars and The Miz wouldn't have been able to sell a WM mainevent against someone like Morrison, you need someone like Cena to balance the mainevent out and make it a sellable mainevent.

 

[Keith]

1. Well you have watched more WWE TV than me in the last year, so I will have to take your word on how ADR was pushed, but I seem to remember it took him a long time to even wrestle his first match, and then he lost at least two times to Mysterio back to back, anyway I still think its soon!

2. Fair enough like I said we will see what they do with it.

3. Well this debate is a none starter because I have never been a Sheamus fan, so IMO Hot and Sheamus don't belong in the same setence.

4. When did you sudderly become a Cena fan Troy? You been bemoarning him being in the main events just as much as the rest of us. If they wanted a big name to help sell the main event why not use someone like Undertaker or HHH.

 

[Deezy]

Because Undertaker and Triple H are already having their own program right now.

If you are not watching, why even talk about it, if you are not informed on the product?

 

[Keith]

Yes, but I was just useing an exmple, and Taker and HHH are in a programme with each other which has only just started so there is no reason why one of them could not have been put in a program with Miz, its not as if their feud has been going on for months.

 

[Troy]

I am not a Cena fan but I can see the logic in using him in a WrestleMania main event. He will draw as many buys as anyone else on the show and it would be a waste of money not having him high up the card. So I many not like seeing him in yet another title match BUT I can understand why it was done.

Also their feud does stretch back a fair way. I can remember soon after The Miz won the US title he started calling out Cena and had a match against him (I think it was on PPV I am not 100% sure on that). They had their match and Cena squashed him and so this is all revenge by The Miz that a year ago he wasn't good enough but now he is better than Cena.

 

[Keith]

Yes, but you know full well there is little chance of Cena doing the job to Miz, also it would just be a better match if Taker or someone like that was involved, this match is likely to stink. I wouldn't have as much of a problem with it if it wasn't the main event, IMO the Rumble winner should always be in the main event, but thats a different argument of couse.

 

[EffectsofRaven]

Only reason WWE doesn't have any "competition" so to speak is because some company couldn't book themselves out of a paper bag and the other one hasn't got a major TV deal... Now I'm not being a mark here but RoH's product is the most surperior product out there at this very moment and if they had bigger and better TV deal they could quite frankly give WWE challenge and certainly wipe the floor with TNA.

 

[Keith]

I don't disagree with a word you say, only then it would be a test of ROH's star power to see if they could connect with a large audeince, like WWE has, but you are correct in pointing out it would certainly give them more of a fighting chance. I guess the good thing is that at least ROH has been successful in creating an alterntive for fans who have had enough of TNA and WWE, as well as becoming a strong breeding ground for the future of the biz.

Thing is the late 90's when the monday night wars were really at their peak was the most exciting time for me as a wrestling fan, there was just so many talking point, and the work rate and excitment of the matches, PPV and TV shows were awesome and I find it quite depressing than we are unlikely to get that back any time soon. Another thing is that back when WWF was loseing the ratings battle to WCW there was the chance than if things got too bad than they could be out of busisness one day, and it was partly that threat which drove them on. That fear is no longer there anymore, no matter what happens they are secure as muti-billion dollar company, and that just adds to their comfort zone. Of couse they would like more people to be watching the product, buying the PPV etc, but in the long run it is not going to make that much difference to them.

 

[EffectsofRaven]

I think RoH has been the alternative since day one in terms of their product, regardless... TNA had it going at one point, there 2005 to 2006 circa would most defiently have challenged Vince McMahon to a degree, the same applies for RoH's 2005 Circa in particular, the cellar performances the talent put on a weekly basis for both companies is obvious.

WWE itself has never been on the back foot for years, so if a company like RoH challenged WWE's product, it be completely different to TNA's challenge... The far superior matches RoH offers, etc would most likely force Vince to up his product to compete with RoH... TNA just offers shit in terms of what they're gonna do which is different... RoH, well we know what RoH can offer and what it does offer.

 

[Keith]

I would say that ROH has been good since day one, I don't know if it was a outstanding anterltive since day one, like just about every company it has its up and downs. There was a spell a few years back where the product had become a bit questionable, but it has come back quite strong recently despite the blow of losing its TV deal.

 

[EffectsofRaven]

I believe the lost of Gabe and the fact Adam Pearce was booking certainly caused some awfully shocking bookings...

RoH's current problem is the fact they released their two top heels to order to keep guys like Grizzly Redwood, that Mike Bannett... Which certainly has hurt their product without a shadow of a doubt... >.<.