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

[PowerButchi]

Hogan talking down to the Impact Zone mutants when they went back to the correct and awesome 4 sides was one of the moments of 2010.

[IANdrewDiceClay]

Shit wrestling is shit wrestling whether its in a four sided ring, a six sided ring or an inflatable one. All this means is Impact will have the 200 authority figures, the heel stables and the Smackdown looking set only with two extra ring posts. If they want to be different, try starting with the format of the show instead of the ring.

 

Its funny though, only TNA could claim to try and be different to WWE by bringing back the six sided ring on the same day they announce the Hardy Boyz and the Dudleys are reforming.

Edited June 18, 2014 by IANdrewDiceClay

[ColinBollocks]

Good move getting Devon back. When he was TV Champion he was the finest midcarder in the US, having good little matches with all sorts.

[tiger_rick]

Shit wrestling is shit wrestling whether its in a four sided ring, a six sided ring or an inflatable one. All this means is Impact will have the 200 authority figures, the heel stables and the Smackdown looking set only with two extra ring posts. If they want to be different, try starting with the format of the show instead of the ring.

I'm not for one second claiming that 4 or 6 sides makes the difference to their success. But that's my point. They had a 6 sided ring. It was different. They changed it for no real reason. I said then I thought it was pointless and I still do. And that's been born out. It's made no difference to anything except they've lost one large visual identifier.

 

Bringing it back is horse bolted stuff. Agree wholly with your second point. However, I do think it's what they need. I'd find a couple of cheap gimmicks like the old Mike Sanders deal that allow them to bring in a different legend every week and also a recognisable free agent. Something that, for little outlay, gets people talking, checking out TNA (even if one segment on Youtube) and creates a bit of positivity.

 

At the same time they desperately need to push some fresh faces while people might be inclined to take a look. Last chance saloon time I think.

[garynysmon]

I'd find a couple of cheap gimmicks like the old Mike Sanders deal that allow them to bring in a different legend every week and also a recognisable free agent. Something that, for little outlay, gets people talking, checking out TNA (even if one segment on Youtube) and creates a bit of positivity.

 

That's an excellent point. The roster is thin at best, so its a way of bringing fresh new faces to the screen every week too.

 

Its funny though, only TNA could claim to try and be different to WWE by bringing back the six sided ring on the same day they announce the Hardy Boyz and the Dudleys are reforming.

 

Haven't the Dudley Boys been with TNA longer than their WWE run by now though?

Edited June 18, 2014 by garynysmon

[UK Kat Von D]

They might as well go back to six sides. The only people who really care are the ones asking for it back, so might as well give them what they want. I don't think I ever heard a "we want four sides" chant

[IANdrewDiceClay]

Haven't the Dudley Boys been with TNA longer than their WWE run by now though?

Yes, because they are ex-WWE wrestlers. If they weren't, they'd have probably been released on a cost-cutting measure by now. Tenure means nothing. When you think of the Dudleys, you think of those TLC matches or their ECW run. You dont think of the electric cage match and the time Bubba Ray got his lip caught in a fishing rod off Curry Man.

[UK Kat Von D]

That's a bit harsh on them, they have had a good run in TNA have deserved their spot. Other ex-WWE guys have come and gone, but those two always stuck around having good to great matches. They are also one of the few acts who haven't been destroyed by TNA by stupid booking

[tiger_rick]

That's a bit harsh on them, they have had a good run in TNA have deserved their spot. Other ex-WWE guys have come and gone, but those two always stuck around having good to great matches. They are also one of the few acts who haven't been destroyed by TNA by stupid booking

I agree with Ian. Bubba particularly has had a good time in TNA, established a good character and has enough talent not to be particularly stale. But I'll never think of them as Team 3D, only ever The Dudleys and their stuff in ECW and WWE is prominent in my mind. Apart maybe from the Hogan/Brooke angle, they've done nothing in TNA on that level.

[Slapnut]

Speaking of Bubba, Hulk seemed to rub off on him while they worked together:

 

Bully Ray visited the "Opie and Anthony" Radio show today. He was asked about his relationship with Brooke Hogan, and he revealed Brooke and him did in fact have an off-air relationship.

 

Bully also revealed that he is currently dating TNA Knockout Velvet Sky.

 

He also talked about how his current max bench is 495, and he claims his weight loss is all legit with no steroid use.

 

By far the most entertaining man in TNA.

[UK Kat Von D]

That's a bit harsh on them, they have had a good run in TNA have deserved their spot. Other ex-WWE guys have come and gone, but those two always stuck around having good to great matches. They are also one of the few acts who haven't been destroyed by TNA by stupid booking

I agree with Ian. Bubba particularly has had a good time in TNA, established a good character and has enough talent not to be particularly stale. But I'll never think of them as Team 3D, only ever The Dudleys and their stuff in ECW and WWE is prominent in my mind. Apart maybe from the Hogan/Brooke angle, they've done nothing in TNA on that level.

That wasn't the part I was disputing. They will always be the Dudleys to me too, it was the way Ian buried them to make the point I had issue with

[pryko]

I thought Velvet Sky was dating Chris Sabin?

[IANdrewDiceClay]

That wasn't the part I was disputing. They will always be the Dudleys to me too, it was the way Ian buried them to make the point I had issue with

I never buried them. Its fact. They would never have been pushed to the level they were without their previous experience in WWF and ECW. Especially when Bubba Ray Dudley was morbidly obese for the first 5 years of his TNA run.

[freaky]

They might as well go back to six sides. The only people who really care are the ones asking for it back, so might as well give them what they want. I don't think I ever heard a "we want four sides" chant

I remember some TNA wrestler - possibly AJ Styles - saying that they hated when the six sided ring was taken away and replaced with a regular one, but was more accommodating of it because it was much more comfortable to bump on. Apparently the hexagon setup doesn't really have much give, which must suck when you consider people were falling off cages and Ultimate X wires.

 

EDIT: In fact, Austin Aries tweeted a similar thing earlier:

 

So the people who don't wrestle are letting people who don't wrestle decide what I have to wrestle in? Great idea. My body, my vote. What's wrong with wrestling? Letting people who've never done it, and never put their bodies on the line, run the show. For those curious, I find [six sided rings] to be far less forgiving on the body and harder to maneuver around, especially on the top rope.

Edited June 18, 2014 by freaky

[UK Kat Von D]

That wasn't the part I was disputing. They will always be the Dudleys to me too, it was the way Ian buried them to make the point I had issue with

I never buried them. Its fact. They would never have been pushed to the level they were without their previous experience in WWF and ECW. Especially when Bubba Ray Dudley was morbidly obese for the first 5 years of his TNA run.

 

You summed up their TNA run with "You dont think of the electric cage match and the time Bubba Ray got his lip caught in a fishing rod off Curry Man." I just think thats a bit unfair. Yes they did get the job because of their previous employers and they will still always be the Dudleys, but their entire time in TNA wasn't spent chasing twinkies on fishing lines. Regardless of how they got there, they earned the right to stay around for so long

Edited June 18, 2014 by UK Kat Von D