Impact wrestling thread - It's a Don West tribute thread now!

[Vamp]

I'm not sure he has got that much to offer. He's not Bryan or Punk. He could probably slot into a position where he has decent matches with people but he's hardly the only one who could do that. AJ's bland as fuck in TNA but he offers them a lot more than he offers the WWE really.

[d-d-d-dAz]

Would he shiiiiite ever surpass developmental entirely. If he came in, like I said earlier, he'd have to be humble as fuck, cap in hand, touch his toes and offer himself up to Triple H. Then, maybe, he'd get 6 months/a year in the performance centre (though, it'd be counterintuitive to stick him on NXT TV) as opposed to the obligatory 18 months to 2 years.

 

If he could handle that, then I think he could get a good few years out of the WWE as a midcard enhancement talent. He'd do a good job of putting people over, having good TV matches. I definitely see something like that for him.

 

He's 36 sure, and not a star like RVD where age becomes not an issue, but he's a young 36. He looks younger and more full of life than Ryback for sure. And, hey, they promote Christian heavily and he looks 136.

Edited August 23, 2013 by d-d-d-dAz

[IANdrewDiceClay]

Would he shiiiiite ever surpass developmental entirely.

He probably would. He's been smart with his money and isn't a mark for WWE. He may not have leverage, but he's not going to surrender under their mercy if he was to sign with them. So for them to get him to sign a deal, he'd probably have a guarantee that he wont be messing about on NXT for months. Like Sin Cara did. Daniel Bryan only did developmental for a month to get used to the ring as well. AJ Styles is still one of the best wrestlers in the world. He's as good as anyone on a good night. If anyone was going to go straight onto the main roster, it would probably be someone as good as him. He'd be better than almost anyone on the WWE roster if he signed with them. His matches last year were insanely good.

 

He isn't going anywhere anyway, so its all hypothetical.

Edited August 23, 2013 by IANdrewDiceClay

[d-d-d-dAz]

I don't see it.

 

I don't think they'd have him show up on NXT, but I think they'd want him to dedicate some time behind closed doors working with 'good hands' to whip him into shape. His position on the card would be so wildly different were he to come to WWE, that his style would have to change no end.

 

Not that it matters, he's blatantly staying put.

[UK Kat Von D]

You seem weirdly dismissive of a guy who most wrestlers talk highly of. If someone like Roode saw that, he would be would only go to WWE as a last resort. WWE would be shooting themselves in the foot for future potential signings. AJ is good enough to debut on smack down next week. The best thing to do would be run a series of video packages and actually judge where the crowd want him to slot in. If he gets a Wyatt style buzz then give him a decent push from the off and if he gets a Los Matadors reaction just stick him in a role that suits him

[d-d-d-dAz]

It's not dismissive to say that he's good enough to be a mid-card level enhancement talent, who might ultimately be able to take someone like Christians position on the card. That puts him in the top 5% of wrestlers in the world, maybe higher. That's being generous if anything.

 

You'd have to be fucking bonkers to think he could be a main eventer in WWE the way things stand.

[IANdrewDiceClay]

You'd have to be fucking bonkers to think he could be a main eventer in WWE the way things stand.

The way things stand is two of the wrestlers he broke in with are current main eventers. I'd say he more than fits in.

 

He's far and above "mid level enhancement talent". It seems like you haven't really watched him, the way you describe him.

Edited August 23, 2013 by IANdrewDiceClay

[d-d-d-dAz]

He fits in if we take the hypothetical route, and say that at age 27/28 he took the developmental contract and worked his way through the machine.

 

I'm not saying that talent wise alone he doesn't have that in him.

 

I'm saying that at 36, without any significant star value to speak of and 11 years being pushed as the face of TNA, he won't now be able to walk in and get to the main event of WWE. Does anyone think he can?

[IANdrewDiceClay]

If they brought him in (which they wont) they would probably have to justify bringing him in by pushing him. Because Styles isn't coming in on the same money as Evan Bourne or Tyson Kidd. To get someone of his standing in the current scene to sign a contract, they'd have to bring him in on Sin Cara money and give him the big vignette treatment. And he'd get over far more than Sin Cara would.

Edited August 23, 2013 by IANdrewDiceClay

[d-d-d-dAz]

I agree. But Sin Cara is so far below the rank of 'mid-card enhancement', and nowhere near taking a 'Christian' position on the card. He's a jobber with a crooked finger.

 

AJ would fit in nicely in and around the mid card, winning US titles or IC titles, but ultimately putting over people they really think have 'it' and could make money in the future. He could even fit in nicely even having a swing at the WHC in a non-main event capacity. Like Christian. Sin Caras nowhere near that level.

 

I don't think I'm selling him short at all.

 

You yourself listed all his downsides a page or so back. With all that going him against him, could he really ask for more than what I suggest?

[IANdrewDiceClay]

Sin Cara was brought in to be their next huge star, though. They didn't plan this mess he turned into. They expected him to be main eventing house shows and selling millions of dollars a year worth of merchandise by now.

 

As far as what he makes in TNA, its a much sweeter deal than in WWE for their midcard wrestlers. In WWE, half of that money the wrestlers make go towards actually surviving. TNA don't travel around the country like the WWE wrestlers do. He isn't spending thousands a week on rental cars, hotels and all kinds of other stuff that WWE demand you pay for. In a lot of cases, he's back in his bed by 3 in the morning for a house show.

Edited August 23, 2013 by IANdrewDiceClay

[air_raid]

WWE would do well signing Styles.

They're skint and are gambling that, as his expiry date gets closer, AJ will cave and accept a low offer rather than take his chances on the Indy scene and/or WWE developmental.

 

Cue lots of discussion about something that isn't going to happen either way.

 

He isn't going anywhere anyway, so its all hypothetical.

 

Bingo. Styles has repeatedly said he has no interest in the WWE road schedule and TNA's schedule suits him so he's not away from home that much. Now more than ever, with three lads between the ages of 8 and 4 to spend time with and in the early evening of his career, it doesn't appeal to him. If TNA went tits up or cut him, he'd either work indy dates every extended weekend so he can still spend half the week at home, or if he wasn't making enough doing that he'd do something else for a living.

[d-d-d-dAz]

Hypothetical discussions are fun.

 

But, yeah, I can't see him leaving. Even on reduced terms I think he'd prefer the TNA deal.

[UK Kat Von D]

Yeah I dont think he would leave, but if he did then Daz would be made to look stupid when he was proven wrong.

[garynysmon]

WWE has historically been a bit iffy on dealing with ideas/wrestlers that weren't their own, so can see why some think he'd be given the Wildcat Chris Harris treatment. But as pointed out earlier, they'd be mad to hold him back.

 

On the flipside, I can't really blame TNA for offering him a lower deal. There are a myriad of financial reasons why, but also I don't think losing him would be the fatal blow it would have been a few years ago. Apart from the lone wolf gimmick which was wound up far too early, his act has been rather samey for the last 10 years really.

It would be the loss of a TNA 'original' that would sting the most, rather than his individual act.