What does TNA need to do to make WWE legitimately concerned?

[Xero]

What rating (or possibly a type of action) do you think TNA would need to achieve for WWE to look at TNA and say "oh shit, we're in trouble"?

I'm thinking if TNA started doing a 2 and WWE's rating started to slump into the high 2s they'd really get their ass in gear.

Obviously completely hypothetical.

[glanville6]

I kind of thought 2 would be a good rating for TNA to start to make a move. But what action do they need to take? I don't know. I honestly don't think there is anything they can do to catch up.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again...TNA needed a huge start in ratings, and they did a 1. Going live this close to WrestleMania was a bad move. And I believe the NCAA final game is the Monday following Mania. So thats probably going to put them lower than a 1.

Of course you can say TNA needs to go younger...but all the established guys that could bring ratings are going to be WWE rejects, which some people don't think is a good idea...but I don't think stars that are made in TNA are going to bring ratings. Quite frankly, I think the only guy in TNA now that could bring ratings are Jeff Hardy. Sure, RVD is a good talent, and Sting, Hogan, Flair are legends- but I don't think people want to see them that much...and judging by the 1 rating they did, that looks to be proven. AJ Styles is a good wrestler, but he isn't a former WWE superstar, therefore he won't ever get the ratings TNA needs.

So MAYBE a current top WWE Superstar, which isn't likely to happen.

I'd love to see wrestlers jumping ship again. That could help. But time will tell, but TNA picked a bad time.

Sorry for the long post.

[ron the dial]

you should be sorry that it isn't longer, buddy.

[Lock Jaw]

They need to make sense.

[TheAdamEvansFan]

More people will defect.. it takes time.. They definetly need a bigger arena and more possibilities for fans to get backstage and to really sell the image of TNA.. I think they do a piss poor job of that right now as I was on the Monday Night Live showing at Universal ringside!

[TheZman]

They need to make sense.


AKA: They need to get rid of Vince Russo.

[Shadow]

AKA: They need to get rid of Vince Russo.

In a way most fitting for him.

[Xero]

In a horribly confusing worked-shoot?

[Dorkchop]

TNA's been pulling in 1 ratings for the past 5 years. Viewership hasn't really gone up in half a decade. Currently WWE doesn't have to do anything.

If TNA can consistently bring their ratings up to a 2 WWE would take some notice and up their product a little bit... Especially if Raw viewers are tuning into Impact instead.

No one is going to watch TNA for the Nasty Boys.

[abec]

If they want to be taken legitimately they need to change the name from TNA to something that doesn't sound so immature.

[Dorkchop]

If they want to be taken legitimately they need to change the name from TNA to something that doesn't sound so immature.

They should switch Impact and TNA around. Use Impact as their company name and TNA as their show name. Impact Wrestling something or just Impact Wrestling. Three words sound best in wrestling companies though. It might not be a good idea to change their name right now. It probably costs looooots of money and months or possibly a year to do.

[glanville6]

If they want to be taken legitimately they need to change the name from TNA to something that doesn't sound so immature.

The name really isn't the problem...but at the same time, the name doesn't fit. There is no Non Stop Action.

Plus changing the name takes away what little recognition they really have. It won't get the publicity WWE got from switching from WWF, which was only one off.

We know TNA is WCW...but can't be called that. And if TNA changed its name, the company would be more of a laughingstock than it already is.

[Mr. Nerfect]

I'm not exactly sure what sort of number TNA would have to gain, but if their rating was growing and the WWE's was shrinking, I think that alone would be enough to get the attention of the WWE, who I do believe already sweat TNA more than others think.

As for an action -- I think TNA would have to get themselves mainstream media attention for something. Basically, TNA would need to become a "buzz word" when the WWE is not. If TNA is being reported on TMZ and being talked about on sports or gossip shows, then they are going to be getting more attention than the WWE. This is something that would probably coincide with higher ratings and PPV buys, however.

Also, if TNA somehow managed to get John Cena and Randy Orton to sign with them (I don't know how), then I could imagine the WWE sweating themselves a little. But all this requires money. I know TNA has turned a profit, but they need to think about making tons of cash so they can upgrade their set, tour more often, and look like a more secure career choice. Do they still let people into the iMPACT! zone for free? This needs to change.

[abec]

The name is a huge problem for new fans, its a terrible name that conveys a retarded image, I mean think about it, would you really brag that you watch TNA? Whats worse is it makes me think of Jeff Jarrett because that no talent ass clown probably came up with it. They don't have any recognition to lose, they already got rid of the shitty ring, make it into a huge story line, have paul heyman come in acting as if he just won the lottery and he's upset that his vision was recently destroyed, and he wants to take on those that would destroy it. There is plenty of ways to get people interested and behind the product, hell NWA would work, but i'm sure thats not on the cards.

The companies not going anywhere with all the part timers.

[Arnold HamNegger]

Move Impact to HBO and let the Beautiful People wrestle topless.

[Wishbone]

AKA: They need to get rid of Vince Russo.

:y:

[Wishbone]

Move Impact to HBO and let the Beautiful People wrestle topless.

this too:y:

[St. Jimmy]

buying all their airtime.

[Fignuts]

TNA just needs better writing. I agree with everything lance storm said in his recent commentary. Everytime I watch TNA, it feels like a huge, unorganized mess.

[Jay p fury]

TNA needs to go on the road, have only live tv shows, actually develop the talent they have as far as characters, stop waiting for the next wwe released star to make the "man", stop pushing their women's division as if it were SHIMMER, hire acting coaches, get rid of the cartoonish gimmicks, push for a better video game, try to acquire licensed music, do more to put their stars in a mainstream position, scale back the importance of the x-division belt (when is it gonna be the "big thing" & not "the next big thing"? it's been "next" since day 1), hire freddy prinze jr, fire bubba the love sponge, stop recycling old wwe gimmicks, stop trashing wwe on tv, stop trying to make vince sweat, stop promising real talented stars a push... only to have a wwe castaway squash them on tv, stop switching the plans in the middle of a heated feud, come up with a better style of cutting promos, stop letting hogan run shit ( he doesnt bring ratings like he use to), stop trying to make us fans believe eric young has anything more than potential, have longer matches, have fewer matches per show and last but not least...change up the goddamn main event picture from all wwe/wcw has-beens to a few select wwe guys and mostly TNA mid carders. the more they have wwe guys coming in and destroying TNA guys, the weaker TNA looks as a brand.

I know Im a big ass smark, but i feel if TNA just does 3 of these things, they will be neck and neck with wwe by the end of this year.

[FourFifty]

TNA just needs better writing. I agree with everything lance storm said in his recent commentary. Everytime I watch TNA, it feels like a huge, unorganized mess.

If you like Lance Storm's commentary then you should listen to Jim Cornette.

[The Pope]

They need to sign Teddy Hart and have him screwed by Matt Bently and Dixie Carter.

[Destor]

nothing short of bioterrorism

[ImpactPlayer365]

they just need to be edgy. have edgy segments that make sense, tie into good wrestling matches. They need to get rid of the old men thinking that them wrestling will make people watch tv, and use the relevant stars they have and just have some crazy writing to go along with it. they're on the right channel.

[Vastardikai]

TNA needs to go on the road, have only live tv shows, actually develop the talent they have as far as characters, stop waiting for the next wwe released star to make the "man", <s>stop pushing their women's division as if it were SHIMMER</s>, hire acting coaches, get rid of the cartoonish gimmicks, push for a better video game, try to acquire licensed music, <s>do more to put their stars in a mainstream position, scale back the importance of the x-division belt (when is it gonna be the "big thing" & not "the next big thing"? it's been "next" since day 1), hire freddy prinze jr</s>, fire bubba the love sponge, stop recycling old wwe gimmicks, stop trashing wwe on tv, stop trying to make vince sweat, stop promising real talented stars a push... only to have a wwe castaway squash them on tv, stop switching the plans in the middle of a heated feud, come up with a better style of cutting promos, stop letting hogan run shit ( he doesnt bring ratings like he use to), stop trying to make us fans believe eric young has anything more than potential, have longer matches, have fewer matches per show and last but not least...change up the goddamn main event picture from all wwe/wcw has-beens to a few select wwe guys and mostly TNA mid carders. the more they have wwe guys coming in and destroying TNA guys, the weaker TNA looks as a brand.

I would like to add that they should have a booker who understands how to book a COHERENT wrestling program. And do the one thing Hogan paid lip service to, but thus far hasn't done: Promote it as WRESTLING, and not be afraid of the term.

[6-String King]

They need to tour. Step outside of Orlando Florida. And they need to have shows in bigger arenas. Even if they're giving away tickets like WCW did to fill up some of the high seats. Doing this will gain more interest nationwide. Plus it will make them look bigger on TV. Also they need to go live, every week. Not every other week.

[Brock]

THEY SHOULD SIGN JOHN CENA,HHH AND THE UNDERTAKER.. THEN VINCE WILL BE OBVIOUSLY SHOCK IF THAT HAPPENS... AHAHAH!


just kiding.. they should build new era of there own wrestlers.. because they will not be known if they just copy old wwe wrestlers..

and for the name? TNA IS OKAY.. JUST TNA WRESTLING.. AND THE NAME IS IMPACT.

[TheZman]

One thing would bring the ratings


Scott Steiner TNA World Champion

[Nicky Fives]

come within a 1.0 of Raw...... until then, WWE will still consider them another crap, indy promotion.

[Kane Knight]

TNA's been pulling in 1 ratings for the past 5 years. Viewership hasn't really gone up in half a decade. Currently WWE doesn't have to do anything.

If TNA can consistently bring their ratings up to a 2 WWE would take some notice and up their product a little bit... Especially if Raw viewers are tuning into Impact instead.

No one is going to watch TNA for the Nasty Boys.

A 1 rating on a Monday Night in prime time is better than a 1 rating on a Thursday Night in prime time.

A point in the Nielsen Ratings doesn't correlate to the number of people watching, but the share of people watching overall who are watching your show specifically. Monday is a hotter night for TV, which means more viewers, which means more people per point.

Having pointed that out, I'll move on.

WWE's been stuck around the low 3s for a while now. If TNA could manage to get to the point where they're around a 2 rating, that would certainly make them at least somewhat of a threat. So yeah, I agree.

The question is how they improve the ratings. Honestly, there's no single, easy solution. They need a tighter program with more to appeal to the general audience. They need things that makes anyone on the fence decide they'd rather watch TNA instead of WWE. They need a balance of names an excitement. They need something different, instead of "The TNA Screwjob."

[Swiss Ultimate]

Fill up a stadium, steal advertisers and create a superstar wrestler phenomenon equal to or greater than The Rock or Steve Austin.

[Gertner]

They could start by making people pay for tickets and tour so they can get rid of their front row douchebag ROH wannabe fans.
There's really nothing they can do to make the WWE sweat. WWE is such an established brand. People bring up WCW, but WCW already had a long time following with old NWA fans. TNA is such a friggen mess. They have a crowded roster with only 2 hours of TV time a week, wrestlers who don't appear or wrestle every week, too much stock in the X division which nobody cares about despite the claims of the IWC which represents such a small percentage. If u look at WCW, the cruiserweight division while complimenting the upper card, was never a focal point and can't be counted on to draw ratings.

[Gertner]

Oh and the whole "TNA should be more edgy" doesn't work today. Those fans watch MMA instead of wrestling because it's real. As much flack as the WWE gets for being pg, it's where the fanbase is. The Attitude era's fans have moved on to UFC and don't care about wrestling.

[Innovator]

-Fire Russo
-Remove their heads from their asses
-Move to 8 pm
-Cut the fat

[Innovator]

And thats just to make me get through one hour

[The Pope]

Fill up a stadium, steal advertisers and create a superstar wrestler phenomenon equal to or greater than The Rock or Steve Austin.

The Pope

[Kane Knight]

The Pope? Sharkboy's where it is, brother.

[Jordan]

Fill up a stadium, steal advertisers and create a superstar wrestler phenomenon equal to or greater than The Rock or Steve Austin.

:y:

[RVDmark]

They are doing what they need to do pretty much.

And starting before 'mania isnt neccessarilly a bad thing. There is going to be an adjustment period as they "find their feet", and despite doing poor numbers now, wresting in general gets a lot of promotion this time of year. It should mean that by the time mania is over and WWE tends to get very lazy just after mania. I.e. wrestlemania rematches all night for the next ppv. It shoud mean that by the time people are ready to change the channel to watch wrestling, TNA will be there ready to take them as viewers, they'll have had some practise at live production, and it has to be said, the production value has increased significantly since they first went head to head.

They should also be sure of where they want to go by then.

I think its a good move tbh. Pus Spike seems to be behind them in that they arent that worried about ratings yet. Spike seems prepared to give them some time to get results.

A it needs is for Raw to get lazy 2 or 3 weeks in a row (which has happened a lot in recent years) and peope wil start to change the channel, and inevitibly som eof those people will keep watching.

It takes time to see things happen, Vince hasnt understood that in years, he changes his mind every 30 seconds (so it is reported, aso, figure of speach). Just ook at how many anges or ideas have been simpy dropped. never to be seen again. Don't cryme time stil have a tag title shot owed to them?

Not saying in the sightest that TNA are perfect, there is still too much Hogan for my liking but each to their own. At least he seems to take a back seat to Abyss, however insincere it comes accross.

One thing I loved about TNA this week, I haven't seen a dragon suplex pin in years. The wresting is just better to watch on TNA.

[Heyman]

What rating (or possibly a type of action) do you think TNA would need to achieve for WWE to look at TNA and say "oh shit, we're in trouble"?

I'm thinking if TNA started doing a 2 and WWE's rating started to slump into the high 2s they'd really get their ass in gear.

Obviously completely hypothetical.

It's tough to say. To be honest, I don't think TNA has much of a chance against the WWE.....unless they signed someone like The Rock even if The Rock didn't wrestle (not going to happen by the way). If TNA pushed new stars, got rid of most of the old guard, and targetted a different demographic than the WWE (i.e. a mature audience for instance), then perhaps they can do something.

In terms of actual RATINGS? I think once TNA is exactly 2/3's between NXT and Smackdown in terms of ratings (not sure what the exact # will be), the WWE can start taking TNA more seriously.

[KayfabeMan]

They are doing what they need to do right now.

And also, WWE is legitimately concerned and interested in what TNA is doing.

[Vox Populi]

The overall booking of Impact needs to have Russo's stench removed from it.

Moving to an 8 o'clock start time would make sense for obvious reasons.

Properly promoting the content of episodes of Impact on television in the 6 days and 22 hours between programs would be a huge step in the right direction.

More wrestling, less talk. They've got an extremely capable roster, this 15-20 minutes of wrestling per week is an inexplicable flaw.

The "Knockout Division" is and has been their biggest ratings draw for several reasons. Promote it as such, and enhance the image of TNA as "THE destination for women's wrestling on Monday nights" or what have you.

Thei tag team division trumps the WWE's. Granted, that's got quite a bit to do with the WWE just not caring to develop a legit tag division, but it couldn't hurt TNA to somehow hammer home this advantage.

Don't forget about the X Division. Dance with who brought you.

Use the elder statesmen to truly develop and put over new talent.

Less Bischoff, Hogan, Foley, Jarrett and Bubba The Love Sponge skits.

No more Brooke Hogan in an acting role. EVER.

[abec]

Sign Jim Ross and have him show up after wrestlemania.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Am I the only one who thinks that TNA would benefit from a second show? Like a SmackDown! to iMPACT!'s RAW? The characters and such we get on TNA are actually pretty interesting, but everything feels rushed, and proper wrestling is neglected. If you space things out between two shows, then you can theoretically increase the length of the matches and such.

Just avoid the WWE's whole "certain stars only appear here" thing. Don't make wrestlers exclusive to one show. Have a talent floating around like Raven moved back to do commentary, and that frees up a roster space. This would also increase the chance people have of turning onto a piece of TNA programming. From there, you can actually implement a lot of the creative changes -- which do need to happen.

TNA's best chance of getting the WWE's attention, is not to put forward the same product with older names, but to see where their weaknesses are counteract those. The Knockouts, for example, do really well in TNA. In the WWE, Diva segments are low-rated and are buffers between bigger matches on PPV. The WWE works a safer style, so naturally the X-Division is a good counter to that. The WWE have seven championships to focus on, whereas TNA have five -- so actually build them up to mean something.

Instead of bringing in these big names for the main event scene, maybe let Kurt Angle, Rob Van Dam and Jeff Hardy help out in the X-Division? It suits their styles, and Angle has actually gone on the record saying he would love to work in that division. Having these credible main event guys lower on the card also rises the stock of your guys actually in the main event, like AJ Styles and The Pope.

[Vastardikai]

Yes. You are the only one who thinks that.

I mean, shit, TNA can't even make IMPACT! a coherent show. What do you think having two shows will change?

I'm usually with you on stuff, Noidster, but not here.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Yes. You are the only one who thinks that.

I mean, shit, TNA can't even make IMPACT! a coherent show. What do you think having two shows will change?

I'm usually with you on stuff, Noidster, but not here.

Well, that's exactly it. I feel that having two shows would lead to a more coherent product. Instead of six hours of programming poured into two hours, you can have six crammed into four. :shifty:

[Vastardikai]

No, they'd try to cram 18 hours into 4.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Well, I would hope not.

[Volare]

Get God a contract, and then HBK will come over.

[KayfabeMan]

They should get Cornette and Jim Mitchell back.

Two of the best talents in this business, ever.

[The Mackem]

To be honest there was not a lot I disliked about Impact. The main problem at the moment is that they seem to be at the begining of a reboot so it feels like they are having to establish a lot of people. I think the ratings will improve as they gain continuity and a clear sense of what is happening. If they concentrate on what they want to achieve from the top down, the ratings will look after themselves.

Of what I didn't really like;

Why are the Nasty Boys taking up air time? Against the Dudleys? What's the point? Does Brother Runt really bring much to the table? There's only room for one old looking, not bothered about ageing Outsider and at this point I would take Nash over Hall. Not really bothered about Hall and Syxx Pac. Shannon Moore and the X title, damn, just damn. They have so many X division wrestlers who have busted a gut with the company and they elevate an ex-WWE jobber. I know he has a look but think it's a waste of what they already have. Hardy, wasted time?

I think Destination X will be a good PPV. I'm interested to see how they build on the aftermath of it because it seems like they have set it up for a lot to happen.

[Mr. Nerfect]

Shannon Moore is a steady hand that could help the X-Division, or the tag division if they signed Gregory Helms; but I don't like the way they are pushing him as a "star." In all his years in the business, he hasn't really held a major singles championship at all. He and Kazarian should never have swapped places. Moore would be fine in the Ladder Match with Brian Kendrick, Daniels and Amazing Red.

[The Mackem]

Yeah it would at least make it feel like he had earned a shot. Also what has happened to TNA's other title (the new one), did it get mentioned on Impact?

[The Mackem]

Global championship, that's it.

[Perry Saturn]

In a way most fitting for him.


have him lose a contract on a pole match

[Damian Rey]

To be honest there was not a lot I disliked about Impact. The main problem at the moment is that they seem to be at the begining of a reboot so it feels like they are having to establish a lot of people. I think the ratings will improve as they gain continuity and a clear sense of what is happening. If they concentrate on what they want to achieve from the top down, the ratings will look after themselves.

Of what I didn't really like;

Why are the Nasty Boys taking up air time? Against the Dudleys? What's the point? Does Brother Runt really bring much to the table? There's only room for one old looking, not bothered about ageing Outsider and at this point I would take Nash over Hall. Not really bothered about Hall and Syxx Pac. Shannon Moore and the X title, damn, just damn. They have so many X division wrestlers who have busted a gut with the company and they elevate an ex-WWE jobber. I know he has a look but think it's a waste of what they already have. Hardy, wasted time?

I think Destination X will be a good PPV. I'm interested to see how they build on the aftermath of it because it seems like they have set it up for a lot to happen.

You make a lot of good points that i agree with. I'm actually watching the west coast replay of Monday's Impact and I disagree with people who've said AJ Styles is in the wrong role. Sure, it's the Impact Zone, but at the same time, he's drawing heat in said venue, and he's only going to get more and more comfortable with the new role.

The Nasties v. Team 3D is on now, and honestly, neither team needs to be taking up payroll. They're dead weight. 3D is no longer relevant and has hung on way too long, and the Nasties...well...enough said.

I'll have a better opinion in a few hours.

[tjmidnight420]

They need to realize that Hogan is not a booker... Bischoff had one good idea, and it centered around Hogan... Not even gonna get into the whole Russo thing, just get rid of him... I can dig on some of the older guys on the roster like Foley, Angle, and Booker, but any older than that and they're just wasting time... if we wanted WCW they'd still be around.