Should WWE depush or "demote" guys who fail Wellness?

[KingofOldSchool]

Okay, with the whole Regal thing and before that, Jeff Hardy, I brought up someplace else that first and second time offenders should be demoted. For instance...

Jeff Hardy got suspended right before Wrestlemania, when he came back a few weeks ago he should have showed up on Smackdown. Which is seen as a step down from Raw, so he is basically stuck on Smackdown until the company deems he deserves to be moved back to Raw.

And then let's say Finlay gets busted, he gets demoted to ECW. And then someone like Mike Knox gets busted and taken off the ECW roster and is moved to FCW.

I got to thinking this because me and someone else was getting into an argument over Jeff Hardy and his push. I feel he should be stuck facing Charlie Haas and Snitsky every week for the next few months, while the other guy insists he should be put back into the position he was at before he got suspended. Since in his eyes it would be stupid not to push someone as over as Hardy is regardless if he's been busted twice in the last 6 months. And that it only says the wrestler will be suspended for 30 or 60 days and not 30 or 60 days plus loss of push.

So what do you think? Should Wellness violators be depush/demoted or should they be allowed to retain the push they had before the suspension?

[Road Warrior]

It's a good idea, but they couldn't do it with Hardy. He's getting the loudest pop of anyone, and it would be bad business. I guess they could of done something like that with him and Regal "demoting him for disrespecting him" but nevermind now.

[KingofOldSchool]

It's a good idea, but they couldn't do it with Hardy. He's getting the loudest pop of anyone, and it would be bad business. I guess they could of done something like that with him and Regal "demoting him for disrespecting him" but nevermind now.

Yeah, but if they do it to one guy, they should do it to everyone. That's the same as saying "Oh well we'll test Chris Masters for steroids, but not Batista since he's over."

[Road Warrior]

Yeah, but if they do it to one guy, they should do it to everyone. That's the same as saying "Oh well we'll test Chris Masters for steroids, but not Batista since he's over."
Sure, if your going to test one person than yeah, test everyone. But I honestly don't think they should be testing for roids anyway. I know it's supposedly this "huge epidemic" but it's really blown out of proportion. If wrestling is "entertament" and not a legimate athletic competition it shouldn't matter if you're taking "performance enhancing drugs".

[Kane Knight]

I voted "second offense," because there needs to be some sort of longer standing repercussion. The problem is, it won't be distributed evenly in reality.

They need to remain hard on drugs, even if only in appearance.

[Kane Knight]

It's a good idea, but they couldn't do it with Hardy. He's getting the loudest pop of anyone, and it would be bad business. I guess they could of done something like that with him and Regal "demoting him for disrespecting him" but nevermind now.

Just to point out, on a third offense, they'll fire Hardy, regardless of how over he is. They have to. The Wellness Policy is under scrutiny, and they can't just arbitrarily ignore it if it's made public.

Of course, if they conceal his next offense.

So at this point, does it matter how big his pops are? How much more will they lose if they continue to push him and are forced to fire him?

[Rammsteinmad]

I think they should be depushed after their second violation. However, it does depend on the persons push and how WWE go about doing it.

If it is someone who is mad over, then it'll be stupid not to push them when they get back. However, if they're that over, why suspend them at all? Can't they just give their wrestlers fine or deduct some money from their pay or summit?

[Road Warrior]

It's just under scrutiny from senators with hidden agendas who have nothing better to do than worry about the WWE wellness policy but, that's a different subject all together. I understand that, but they could easily conceal wellness policy violations if they wanted to. I honestly think they just used Hardy as a scapegoat to get the gov. off their back. Now that he's "violated" twice I seriously doubt that his results would be made public by them again.

[Destor]

I think it should be a finacial hit for the wrestlers and not a spot thing. It makes more sense for the company to make money off the guy then to hold him down just because he fucked up. Make him work harder and get paid less. Dunno.

[Mercury Bullet]

I would have it as:

1st Offense = 30 Day Suspension, removal from current storyline, and a couple notches down the card depending on where you were in the first place (i.e. Main Eventer like Randy Orton starts midcarding, Midcarder starts curtain jerking)

2nd Offense = 90 Day Suspension, removal from current storyline, no major storyline work for one month upon return, no title opportunities for three months upon return, progressive rebuilding starting from the bottom of the card. Additionally, if 2nd Offense is within 12 months of the 1st Offense, automatic termination.

3rd = Automatic Termination.



WWE really needs to be hard asses on the drug policy right now to rebuild whatever image they had in the first place.

[Road Warrior]

I don't see senators worried about wellness policies that are associated with real world jobs that effect everyday life, only the one's that are publicized and can help get them re-elected.:mad:

[Rammsteinmad]

It's a sad state that this time 10 years ago, WWF would have mocked and rebeled against such things as "Drug Policies".

[Xero]

They had one around the time of the first steroid scandal, didn't they?

[Kane Knight]

It's just under scrutiny from senators with hidden agendas who have nothing better to do than worry about the WWE wellness policy but, that's a different subject all together. I understand that, but they could easily conceal wellness policy violations if they wanted to. I honestly think they just used Hardy as a scapegoat to get the gov. off their back. Now that he's "violated" twice I seriously doubt that his results would be made public by them again.

"Hidden Agendas."

Man, people will make up anything when it affects the TV they watch.

Yeah. You know why Congress got involved?

WWE lied to its shareholders. they committed fraud. At least three people died because of it, too. I know that's probably inconvenient, but it's true. WWE also can't afford to "cover up" anything. They're no longer doing the testing in-house. That wasn't Congress, that was the shareholders, FTR. Apparently, they don't like being lied to and deceived. Go figure.

Not to mention that what they've done, and what you suggest they could do entails potential felonies.

Ah well. What's fraud, felony, and loss of life? Damn youse, federal government, for sticking your nose in exactly the sort of place a reasonable person would want youse!

[NoJabbaNoBogRoll]

Regal was the only reason I started watching Raw again, so I imagine I'll tune out for 6 months.

Whether anyone else thinks the same way I do, will decide how good their drug policy is for business.

[Kane Knight]

Assuming anyone gives a shit about ratings.

I guarantee you, Vince will miss a few fans more than a few shareholders only when shareholders buy in free and fans pay to watch Raw.

[El Fangel]

Fired on second positive testing, If they wanted to keep their jobs I doubt they would do anything to mess it up if they know they will get fired if they get tested, which they will.

[XL]

I've given this a little bit of thought after watching The Hardy Boys DVD. Matt is your consumate professional that bleeds wrestling and works his balls off in the ring. Jeff is a guy that has had a "couldn't care less" attitude over the years and has been caught by the Wellness Policy TWICE since his return.

In a perfect world Matt and Jeff would switch brands as a 'Thanks for your hard work over the last year' for Matt and a demotion for Jeff. Obviously, wrestling (and perhaps WWE moreso) is not a perfect world.

In closing I wouldn't mind seeing them depushed / jobbed / switched to a different brand if it taught anyone a lesson. It seems that these Wellness catches happen just as someone is on the cusp of breaking out as a bonefide star.

Ken Kennedy was right of the back of winning MitB and was being built solidly until he mouthed off about wrestlers on drugs / steriods then got caught himself (although his injury / misdiagnosis didn't help).

Jeff Hardy was just squeezing into a ME position and was no doubt due to win MitB and push for a run with the title later in the year, then...

Now, Regal, has doen VERY little for the last few years, then wins KotR and starts to get a push to the main event (& some major heel heat), then...

[Kane Knight]

Fired on second positive testing, If they wanted to keep their jobs I doubt they would do anything to mess it up if they know they will get fired if they get tested, which they will.

They may be getting mixed messages in all this, though. After all, Trips is still around.

Also, you're talking about addicts. Ever try reasoning with an addict? If not, try it on Destor.