Column: The Hardcore Truth Report by Zach Fenell on 09/02/2008 at 04:19 PM
With the upcoming release of TNA’s first video game, “Impact!”, TNA Wrestling is going to be the talk of the town in the wrestling industry. Curiosity of how the game plays and whether it will match up to Raw vs. Smackdown are common talking points when it comes to “Impact!” Outside the video game world, people are talking about the departure of Gail Kim from TNA and the creative direction of Sting. Both topics intrigue me and I would like to spend this week of The Hardcore Truth exploring both subjects.
Gail Kim Departure From TNA
A few weeks ago in my column I mentioned how when the Knockouts division started up there was a danger that Gail Kim, ODB, and Awesome Kong would dominate the division leaving all the other females to look weak. At the time of writing the article I did not expect to be reading weeks later that Gail Kim would be leaving TNA for the WWE. Gail Kim embodied what the Knockouts division is all about; women WRESTLING! For goodness sake she was the first Knockouts champion, how could something like this happen?
According to various wrestling websites Kim’s decision to leave TNA for the WWE came down to money; while TNA cannot compete with the WWE when it comes to dollars, it seems TNA did not put in enough effort to resign the cornerstone of their Knockouts division. If the figures I’ve read online are true (less then $100,000 a year) the offer TNA gave Kim is insulting when considering what stars like Kurt Angle and Sting make. Yes, Spike TV is helping to pay their contracts but why can they not help pay Kim’s contract? Considering the Knockouts score the highest ratings and Gail was a pioneer of the division, TNA could have easily approached Spike TV and justified why Spike should help TNA resign Kim.
While I’m sad to see Gail Kim leave TNA, I am also disappointed in how she handled her final days with the company. Instead of letting TNA know of her intentions she did not say a word. In her last match Awesome Kong beat her but TNA could have put someone else over. Afterall, we already know Kong is a monster. Maybe a match with Taylor Wilde where Kim would lose and hand the torch to Wilde. Something that sticks to me from the newest Ric Flair DVD is when he talks about how Ole Anderson was upset Flair lost his last WWE match to Curt Henning before coming back to WCW. However I feel Flair did the right thing, when you are leaving a company you should elevate another wrestler on your way out. Vince McMahon shared the same sentiments thus the whole “Montreal Screw Job” situation. Bret Hart did not want to lose in Canada but at the same time it was his last night in the company and he should have been willing to put Shawn Michaels over. Gail Kim should have let TNA pick a knockout for her to put over.
Sting’s Direction
I have read and heard many people’s disapproval of Sting in TNA. It seems the anti-Sting people believe Sting is no longer valid in today’s wrestling industry. While ratings seem to support this theory, I still feel otherwise. Has Sting been used to his potential in TNA? Far from it! Outside of his feud with Abyss which helped establish Abyss as a credible main eventer, Sting’s time in TNA has been pretty forgettable. His 10 month feud with Jeff Jarrett served no real purpose. Besides Jarrett and Abyss the only other people Sting has had a proper built feud with are Christopher Daniels and Kurt Angle. The Daniels feud was a joke when it came to inside the six-sided ring. The Angle feud was alright and it delivered a dream match but ultimately it will not go down in the history of professional wrestling as anything special.
At first I was hesitate with the idea of Sting becoming a heel. Sting as a heel never really worked so I wondered why TNA would try it again. However after watching Sting’s promo last week I’m excited for Sting’s new direction. It seems Sting is now on a collision course to have matches with the likes of Samoa Joe and AJ Styles. This is how Sting should have been used in the first place; building the future of the business instead of hanging with the past (Scott Steiner, Jeff Jarrett, Kevin Nash) and present (Christian Cage, Kurt Angle) of the industry.
There are so many young talents that could have built credibility from being in a feud with Sting. When it comes to a wrestler’s credibility one core question presents itself- who has the wrestler defeated? Two young heels that could have been elevated by a proper program with a face Sting is Robert Roode and James Storm (before they formed a tag team). There is no doubt they would have benefited more out of a feud with Sting than AJ Styles and Samoa Joe will. AJ has done it all in TNA and his victories over Kurt Angle really silenced those who wouldn’t consider AJ a credible main eventer. Joe is the current TNA Heavyweight Champion and has defeated the likes of Kurt Angle and Booker T to be considered credible. Although they have already reached a credible point, AJ and Joe will still gain something from a feud with Sting as long as things are booked right. While not the ones who absolutely needed Sting to put them over it will still be nice to see Sting taking on the future of the business rather than the past and present.
With that said, I will bring today’s column to a close. To give me feedback click here!
