Wrestling's Fact or Fiction: The Year in Review
Submitted by Phantom Lord on Saturday, January 3, 2004 at 3:15 AM EST



Welcome back my friends to the show that never ends, it is I your Master of Ceremonies Phantom Lord and with me as always is LOP’s man who calls it right down the middle…Da Ref. This is the hottest column on the entire IWC as we welcome you to another edition of Wrestling’s Fact or Fiction. As I promised this would be a big edition of Fact or Fiction and I have delivered. Joining us this week are two legends of LOP. Please welcome Tito and Stanman. Along for the ride are two veterans of the LOP Message board. I am speaking of course about The current Reigning and Defending PWA Heavyweight Champion of the World Villiano 187 (Yes, He is a Model) and fellow main page columnist Dumass. Joining us this week as our six man or should I say woman is a great up and coming columnist on LopForums.com. Please Welcome Tinaali. Tina has a great column this week where she did the impossible. Land an interview with The Living Legend himself, Bruno Samartino. Well enough of the introduction.

ON TO THE FIRST QUESTION

Fact or Fiction: Making Goldberg champion helped the WWE

Tito: I say this is FACT. Goldberg became the first WCW Champion who mattered. Booker T, Scott Steiner, and Kevin Nash did not get props for being former WCW champs. Goldberg defied all odds and all backstage jealousy and came out as the WWE champion. Goldberg became a worthy enough face to actually beat Triple H for the world title, and his huge face pop at Summerslam proved that a babyface can get over on RAW, a show heavily dominated by Triple H. It gave hope to faces against Triple H, and it somewhat paved the way for Shawn Michaels to actually look like he has a chance against Triple H. In this respect, Bill Goldberg as WWE champion has helped the WWE, in addition to giving WCW guys some respectability in the WWE. It may open doors for other WCW stars to maybe come in?

Stanman: FACT. It was what the WWE did with his reign that made it disastrous. Giving him an injury angle to prevent him from wrestling during the first couple of weeks of his reign hurt his credibility. Making him the champion was the smartest thing the WWE has done in a while since it was fresh at the time. It was the politics and horrible creative writing that made his reign an average one, so to speak. It's a shame Goldberg was the one who kept the belt warm for Triple H once he came back from his honeymoon, since he was the only one whose credibility Triple H hadn't destroyed yet. Now going into the New Year, RAW doesn't look too good. Although it hasn't looked good for quite a while now.

Dumass: Goldberg was champion?! Where have I been?! FICTION. Goldberg's reign at the top of the hill didn't do much to the popularity of the WWE. All it did was show that certain wrestlers run the real show backstage with Triple H winning back the title in what, 4-5 weeks? I really hope the internet was happy that Goldberg was champion, but I'm sure they complained about it in some way, shape, or form because that's all they can do apparently. I hear no one really watched the PPV that Goldberg won the title in, so it squandered obviously to make Goldberg happy because, though his wrestling skills are that of a crippled horse and he has the mic ability as a mute in a debate, no one has the common sense and the balls to call him for what he is; a useless football player that overstayed his welcome in wrestling, except for the faceless "12 year olds" that occupy the message boards and write the columns. Goldberg as champion was awful. I didn't care to see him as champion because I knew in a few weeks time that I would see HHH with the title again. No, I didn't use politics and conservatively liberal bullshit to figure that one out; I used WWE logic. (Triple H)World Title - World Title + Goldberg(World Title) = X If X is not in favor of Triple H (their top wrestler), he will win the World Title again.
It's that simple. I don't need to resort to "rumors" and "gossip", I just resort to the common equation that I've been seeing all year. Simple Dumass-amonics.

Villiano: Considering he held the belt for only a few months makes this FICTION. His loss at Survivor Series to HHH shows that Goldberg held the title because HHH was injured, and no other reason. The show quality didn’t go up when Goldberg was champion, and the ratings didn’t spike too high either. Is this all Goldberg’s fault? No, but it didn’t help his chances to make a large contribution. Bill Goldberg could have had a huge effect on wrestling, but the way he was booked proves that people in power are afraid to let other people get over. Doing this hurt the WWE in my opinion.

Da Ref: I'll say FICTION but it's not really Goldberg's fault. The problem lies in how he was booked. Whether or not he's any good is irrelevant because as a worker, Hulk Hogan wasn't all that great and look what happened. With Goldberg, you had a recognizable face from WCW and someone that had been a major player in the business. When he was signed to WWE, he had a number of feuds against guys that were top tier or close to the top tier in the company. After that was done, he was put in a feud for the World Title. The problem was in what happened from there.Everyone was expecting Goldberg v. Helmsley for the World Title and when it was announced at a press conference for Summerslam, it created some fanfare. Yet, they dropped the ball when they changed that one-on-one match to an Elimination Chamber out of nowhere and included Shawn Michaels, a broken down Kevin Nash, and a not ready for the main event spot Randy Orton. That took whatever steam it had out because it was as if the company had given up on Goldberg as a main eventer without really trying.

So after Goldberg finally won the World Title atUnforgiven, his first "big feud" was against Mark Henry, a guy that no one has been able to do anything with. All the while, they ran the old school bounty angle, which could've worked towards helping build up Goldberg as well as others. Yet, it ended up going to Batista of Evolution which brings the whole thing back to Helmsley. If the bookers went another way, could it have helped the company? Well, it would've been more helpful than the way they went.

Tinaali:Making Goldberg champion helped the WWE I hate to say it but this is Fiction. It should have made an impact on WWE’s product. The reason why it didn’t is simple. Goldberg was forced to be a weak champion by the storyline he was in. Between having to sell the injury to his ankle and the constant beat downs by Evolution he never had a chance to do the title any justice. If he had been able to have a longer title run I do believe it could have helped but then the question becomes how much? At first I was upset when he lost the belt because I started to believe they were going to give him a decent run until I heard the news about his previous engagement in Japan. If he isn’t going to be able to defend the title for a while then it is only fair that it is given to someone else. With all the build-up for his debut though they really should have given him a better title run. You can’t build someone up to be this incredible monster and then have him trampled on during every show. Once again, this is a case of poor booking on the part of Vince & co. They should have maximized on their investment by letting Goldberg be the champion he could have been instead of turning yet another WCW superstar into HHH’s lackey.

Phantom: Making Goldberg the champion was a great idea, but how he was booked did nothing but hurt him so Fiction on this one. Goldberg is a monster yet he had to sell for Mark Henry? Mark Henry doesn’t even know a wristlock from a wristwatch. In the end all Goldberg ended up doing was putting Triple H over because lord knows no one has done that for him enough this year. I mean the poor guy has such a rough schedule of only tv tapings while films his part in Blade 3. Goldberg should be the World Champion right now. They could be building a nice feud with him and Kane but instead it looks like Goldberg has said Fuck the WWE and I can’t blame him.

Fact or Fiction: The Cruiserweight division was a disaster this year with repetitive and non-action-packed matches.

Tinaali: The Cruiserweight division was a disaster this year with repetitive and non-action-packed matches. Fact. What is sad about this is that of all the divisions, this is the last one that should be boring. There is so much talent in the CW division yet the wrestlers are either banished to Velocity/Heat or not allowed to do the high-flying moves that the CW Division is supposed to be about. Perfect example of this would be Ultimo. What the hell were they thinking when they signed this man if they had no intention of using him? A feud between Ultimo and Mysterio could have had fans jumping out of their seats. If the excuse for not using Ultimo is that he isn’t over with the fans then WWE has no one to blame but themselves. A wrestler has no chance of getting over if they are never given a chance to wrestle. As for Mysterio he couldn’t be any more over with the fans even with a limited move-set. Just imagine the excitement he could bring to the division if given a chance to be innovative in the ring. Another example is Hurricane. Yes his gimmick is silly but he is a solid wrestler yet every week one more of his moves has been stripped off of him. The CW Division is not meant to be kick, punch, and slam. If the WWE wasn’t so scared of the hosses looking bad they would realize what a goldmine they are sitting on. I can understand telling someone like Mysterio to tone it down during matches like the one with Brock. Obviously a man of Brock’s size isn’t capable of keeping up with a fast paced match so it makes sense to tell him to tone it down. However, when you have a cruiserweight vs. cruiserweight match telling them to slow down just makes their moves look too rehearsed. Their skill set is supposed to be fast paced. When you slow it down it takes all the excitement right out of the match.

Villiano: Pure FACT. The WWE had their chance to make the Cruiserweight division exciting with the additions of Ultimo Dragon, Spanky, Paul London, and Jimmy Yang, but the WWE dropped the ball. Vince asking his highflyers to change their style to a more mat based style made the division boring and dull. Why have a Cruiserweight division if you aren’t going to let them wrestle like cruiserweights? It’s the same as telling Albert and Big Show that they can’t use their best spots and have to replace them with highflying moves. It makes no sense.

Da Ref: I'll say FACT and once again, it's ranting on the booking. When the brand extension took place, one of the things talked about was how the Cruiserweight Division would get more exposure because a sizeable portion of the Smackdown roster was made up of cruiserweights. Since then, the brand saw a number of large men like Brock Lesnar, Nathan Jones, Matt Morgan, the Undertaker, and others get on board. Now, the emphasis is towards guys like this with most of the cruiserweights on that side have been used as jobbers or on Velocity. Plus, the matches weren't that exciting because the company has restricted the competitors to a style that doesn't really set them apart from the other wrestlers, which goes against what the Cruiserweight Division is all about.

Phantom: Do I need to even explain this one? Fact. They have the best crop of talent in the world for this kind of wrestling and what are they doing? Bumping for the BAH GAWD HOSS’S, jobbing in meaningless matches, and being told “You have to slow it down, wrestle more like The Undertaker and A-Train. Less is More”. They have Ultimo Dragon who is probably one of if not the best cruiser in the world and they have jobbed him out to the point where he wants to leave and go back to Japan because he realizes he’s nothing more then cannon fodder for the big guys. 2004 has started off right with a great match with Rey and Tajiri, but I can bet you that will be the last good cruiser match you see until Wrestlemania if your lucky.

Tito: This is very much agreed with, as I say FACT because nobody in the WWE was allowed to do anything special (to maybe steal the show from Vince McMahon and his stupid Hogan feuds), and secondly, the independent scene is wrestling the same match, over and over again. The WWE still has a major hard on for larger wrestlers, hence the demotion of cruiserweight wrestlers to Velocity and the disrespect to Ultimo Dragon. Bad year indeed, but it was more on the promoter's side of things due to not giving it attention or not trying to create new things within the divisions.

Stanman: On the contrary, the Cruiserweight division has gotten better. FICTION. With Rey Mysterio giving the division exposure with his popularity, the addition of Ultimo Dragon and a believable heel champion in Tajiri, the division can go places. Cruiserweight matches are never 'non-action-packed' as there is always something that makes you watch, unlike those main events featuring the Triple Hs and Undertakers. All the WWE has to do is expand the roster to have more wrestlers compete in the division to avoid matches pitting the same two wrestlers over and over again. If the WWE gives half as much attention to this division as they give the main eventers, the cruiserweights will skyrocket. Because unlike most of the main eventers, these folks have TALENT.

Dumass: FACT. Simple to understand, hard to comprehend. The Cruiserweight division hasn't been very good this year. Yeah, there may be some good matches, but the majority of them were the same stuff you and me have been seeing for years now. I'm sure someone will blame the awful "politics" of the WWE for "holding down" Cruiserweight wrestlers, but then, that person would be completely ignorant to the real point; Cruiserweight matches are boring when they do the same stuff you've seen them do for years. The old saying, "If it's not broke, don't fix it", only works for idiots who don't know how to upgrade, which is something the division is in a major need for. The only two exceptions this year to this rule are Jamie Noble, who completely made the Crusierweight division fun to watch due to his middle-paced style and making a terrific gimmick that was supposed to "hold" him down, and The Hurricane, who basically said, "Fuck this!" and started doing power moves until the management told him to stop; that's fucking balls right there.

I will give the WWE management some blame since they want the Crusiers to slow down and not pull off major moves because it will supposedly hurt the product. That is wrong to limit a wrestler just because they move faster and seem to work harder than the main eventers; yes that's wrong. But you know what, if the wrestlers can't work with what they have, then they aren't that good to begin with maybe. I know, I know. Rey and Tajiri are the "greatest" to some people and it's unfair that Ultimo Dragon "isn't getting no fuking Smackdown match", but guess what? Vince bought them because they wouldn't say no. If Ultimo is pissed because of the way he's being used, he shouldn't have said yes, especially when he knew what the WWE was all about the bigger men and Crusierweight wrestling is a side attraction. If Rey is pissed because he was jobbed off in his hometown, then he should realize that it isn't going to get any better. Fact of the matter is, the Crusierweight division isn't making any progress to better itself in the face of neglection. Want someone to notice you? Work harder and better than everyone else. That way, you either get what from your boss or you get a better deal from someone else; don't blame politics and have your fans fight your battles for you.

Fact or Fiction: There is too much hype on the internet about Wrestlemaina XX that it's hurting the product right now.

Phantom: Considering we’ve read everything from Flair vs. Steamboat to Hart vs. Angle to Austin vs. McMahon I would say Oh Hell Yeah this is a Fact. I mean you can never over hype a massive event, but for the price that they are charging for tickets and pay per view, I think the hype is going to have a damaging effect on it especially since a lot of people are going thinking a lot of old stars are coming back even though we know there is no chance in hell of that happening.

Da Ref: I'll lean more towards FICTION on this one. The problem is that this is supposed to be a HUGE Wrestlemania because it's the 20th Anniversary and it's being held in Madison Square Gardens, home of the first one. With all of that as well as the hyping of it since the last one, it has to be bigger than any other. Right now, they don't really have anything going into the show that will be a box office smash. Austin having a match at WM XX is in question. Who the Rock will face is in question. The right challengers for the two World Titles is in question. Based on a brief moment at Survivor Series, I thought they would've gone with WWE Champ Brock Lesnar versus World Champion Bill Goldberg, which would've been an appropriate match because you have the two top dogs of each "brand" against each other. That adds drama. Now, it looks like that won't happen. Sure, one of the brands will have their World Title challenger named at the Royal Rumble but what about the other? How do you come up with an opponent for a match of not only Wrestlemania quality but the quality for the 20th Anniversary of the event?

Stanman: Oh wow, FICTION! You can never over-hype Wrestlemania, let alone Wrestlemania XX. It's going to be a historic show as something memorable is bound to happen that night. You have the twentieth anniversary of the biggest spectacle in sports entertainment at Madison Square Garden. That is huge. It's the only thing that is making me watch the WWE right now. All this hype better knock some sense into the WWE writers to produce the best show they can. From the looks of it, this is their last chance to get out of this major slump.

Dumass: Fact, by the abundant columns on the IWC surface about what may or may not happen, I'd say that's a huge fact. You know what I think might happen at Wrestlemaina XX? I DON'T KNOW! It's way too early for columnists and message board dwellers to know anything that's going to happen several months from now. Why? Because the WWE books things on an hourly basis! They have the attention spans of a ADD kid looking at a wall. All this "Wrestlemaina Predictions" stuff to the internet columnist is called "lazy writing". They book a fantasy show that probably won't happen, no matter how good they are. If they were so terrific at it, then why aren't they giving the same attention to a Raw or Smackdown? Because it isn't the same thing? That's horseshit. In order to help a product, you must analyze all prospects of the said product. I don't care about "importance" of a certain event, I want care to all the shows, that way, it doesn't seem like one show can save the product. To give your thoughts and opinions on WMXX this early is stupid, especially when the "smart fans", you know the ones who know that Raw or Smackdown is written in half a day, are trying to make the WWE competant enough to plan this shit out months in advance. Morons.

The message board goons aren't a cakewalk either. Every message board I go to, it's filled with "What will happen at Wrestlemaina XX????!!" I go inside because I can't resist calling people idiots and proving them wrong and the entire thread is filled with stupid remarks of "Bret HArt should com bak coz hes' the bests", "Hogan shoud be at Wrestlesmainia because hes Hoagn!", and my favorite, "Falir and Stremboat should fight each other because they had a great match that my dad was talking about because I asked him and he started saying that sTemaboat was great". No one should be wondering what's going to happen in several months because that's hurting Raw and Smackdown right now. I haven't given much thought to Wrestlemania XX because I know things can change and I might just be wrong if I give my predictions now; thus I will be called stupid, which is not something a columnist likes being called. But I'll give you a taste of my opinion what will happen. Wanna know what I think will happen at Wrestlemania XX? Too fucking bad, learn to grow some patience and wait for it come, bastards.

Tinaali: There is too much hype on the internet about Wrestlemania XX that it's
hurting the product right now. WrestleMania, what’s that? Is that something new they are having this year?
It’s the first I have heard about it. [/sarcasm] C’mon. Give me a break. Without a doubt, Fact. I know it’s the big 20th anniversary celebration but what they have done with this year’s WrestleMania is worse than seeing Christmas decorations in the stores before the kid’s have even had a chance to say “Trick or Treat.” We all know that WrestleMania is coming up in March. It does every year so it’s not like it is going to catch the fans off guard. They have been hyping it up since the day after WrestleMania XIX. The problem with shoving it down out throats every time we turn around is that they are making it harder and harder to live up to their own hype. What sucks is that if you aren’t already tired of hearing about it, chances are you will be soon enough. Now that we are down to the last three months before the big show I am willing to bet Michael Cole will be mentioning it at least as many times as he made military references when calling the matches in Baghdad. Was it just me or did that get on anyone else’s nerves too?

Tito: Disagreed. This is FICTION because Wrestlemania 20 at least has people talking. The WWE's current television product has nothing special to talk about, but a Wrestlemania 20 broadcast from Madison Square Garden IS something to talk about. What WWE wrestlers will come back? What great matches will be booked? Etc. The year 'round hype has been good for the WWE, and the internet rumors are only spiking interest that much more.

Villiano: I don’t think the hype about WM XX on the net has anything to do with the hurting product right now. The product is hurting because of the lackluster storylines and the poor booking on each show. Pushing wrestlers that noone cares about/or are tired of is hurting the product. On the last RAW of 2003 Vince and Linda both made comments that the WWE listens to their fans and does what the fans want. Their comments are just like this subject, it’s FICTION.

Fact of Fiction: The Brand Split in the WWE will be ended by the end of next year

Da Ref: FICTION. Vince is too stubborn to realize that things aren't working as much as he thought they were. He believes that he has created two separate "brands" that aren't like each other. Meanwhile, everyone else sees it's still WWE with WWE wrestlers on both WWE shows wrestling the same WWE style that has been with WWE since they were the WWF.

Dumass: It should have finished at the end of 2002. FICTION because God knows the WWE doesn't know when to quit.

Villiano: The WWE has way too much money and time invested into this and they won’t give up on it this early proving this is FICTION. Other than talent not being used correctly, the split has gone well. They’ve done a very good job of splitting the brands, but still showing the fans that all the wrestlers are still under the WWE banner. Ending the brand extension anytime in the near future just wouldn’t make any sense.

Tito: As much as I hate to admit it, this is FACT. Ratings and business will continue down a downward spiral and Vince McMahon will become paranoid. A simple short term solution would be to merge the rosters. It would create a small ratings bump and give fans some good match ups, namely the Smackdown roster guys against Triple H or Shawn Michaels. I say this will happen after another weak summer of wrestling for the WWE. Good short term solution, but bad in the long run, for the brand extension allows for guys like John Cena or even Randy Orton to get any airtime.

Stanman: That is a FACT. Although the WWE management is stubborn beyond belief, business is business. They will realize that this whole thing is a failure due to their ignorance and inability to hire good writers to make the split a success. And it will be a huge attempt to lure fans back to boost ratings and house show attendance, which has been sub-par for the past year or so.

Tinaali: The Brand Split in the WWE will be ended by the end of next year Fact. Actually I see this happening by the end of this year. The WWE needs to mix things up and the only way to do that is to end this ridiculous brand split. It looks like they are already considering this due to the
teasing of cross-brand matches. Look at Survivor Series. Granted Kane interfering in the match between the Undertaker and Vince may not have surprised the fans that read spoilers but since I don’t read them I was
pleasantly surprised. It seemed only natural that it would happen but the fact that there was interaction between the two brands did wonders for the match. What shocked me even more was when Brock was being interviewed and Goldberg stepped up to the mic. That was a golden moment for me since I have wanted a match between the two of them since they signed Goldberg. Hopefully we will be seeing more of this at WrestleMania XX. If they don’t have any cross-brand matches at WrestleMania I am going to be very disappointed. However, if they don’t want to end the split they do need to start a draft or have more of the free agent storylines such as with Matt Hardy. Right now they need to do something to spike the interest of fans again and I firmly believe this would be a step in the right direction.

Phantom: I think it will, so Fact on this one. RAW is in need of new faces and Smackdown has no one to really feud with Brock Lesnar. It’s only a matter of time before they think of some bullshit way to end the feud. Make a unified champion once again. The easiest thing to do would be the unify the world heavyweight and tag team titles. The other belts can be defended on both shows. It would do wonders to break up the same old predictable finishes and matches for the titles. Plus John Cena need’s to be one RAW. Give him a live microphone and he’ll do to that what Austin did for flipping the bird.

Fact of Fiction: Hogan would have killed off NWA-TNA if the deal had went through and they signed Hogan

Dumass: You know that lyric in Hendrix's 'Voodoo Child', "I stand up next to a mountain, and I chop it down with the edge of my hand", that is the perfect description of Hogan. FACT. Realize that Hogan is the one person who truly believes he is completely perfect. He really believes that everything he does and all his ideas and stuff is completely reasonable and upright. In so many words, the guy is deluded. If the TNA deal had gone down, he would have destroyed the backstage morale and the on-screen workrate of the entire show probably in about one night. He would have been given the title probably in 2-3 weeks of his arrival and would be exactly who he was in his last stint in the WWE; living off the nostalgia and "old days". We, then, get another "shoot promo" from Vince "The Prince" Russo about Hogan is awful and blah blah blah, and BOOM!, recycled 1999 storylines, losing interest to everyone involved and, by May or June of 2004, NWA-TNA will go the way of the dodo and XWF; extinction.

Now, I've been a Hogan mark for a long time of my life, and yes, I do feel good when Hogan came out for his final run in the WWE and the crowd would continue cheering; that felt great to watch, but guess what? That's done, over, thrown away, and tossed out. I don't want to see Hogan anymore. I want to see something new. I know TNA is the recycling center of wrestling, turning former WCW and ECW junkyard waste into budding new wrestlers again, but that's not going to happen with Hogan, like it hasn't happened to the now-TNA-regular, Dusty Rhodes. I love Dusty as well, but that's because I only watch matches of his when he was worth watching; and the same goes for the "all-mighty" Hulkster. Truth of the matter is, NWA-TNA got lucky. They lucked out not bringing in the Orange Goblin to their side of the yard. All hatred aside for Hogan (yes, the internet made me hate him, though the "Finger Point of DOOM~!" didn't help either) and the fact that I'm not completely hooked up on NWA-TNA in the first place, I really don't want to see Hogan wrestle anymore and I don't want to see what could possibly be my next choice in wrestling selection be ruined by complete and profound stupidity of hiring Hulk Hogan.

Da Ref: Because the deal is still up in the air, I'll go with [b]FICTION[/b]. The one thing that the Jarretts are doing is going with a per show deal. Some guys have longer deals while some guys will get a certain amount of dates and then, it's up in the air as to whether or not both sides will continue their relationship. For all we know, the same could be said when it comes to Hogan. Having him come in to hype the major PPV and do some build up for the likely match against Jarrett could garner a lot more attention than what NWA-TNA is getting now. If everything went well for all parties involved, Hogan could continue with the company. If not, they cut their losses and go back to what they've been doing.

Phantom: I think this is a Fact. The Bound For Glory PPV is now hinging on whether Hulk Hogan can ever wrestle again. Never mind the fact they have the talent, action, and angles to fill a ppv. The only thing stopping them is if Hogan can wrestle and will he wrestle for them. Now I know I said having Hogan as NWA World Champion might be a good idea if he was allowed to go to Wrestlemania 20 to defend the title against Steve Austin. But the more I think about it, Hogan was never one to exactly defend a title. The 30 day clause to him ment 90 days because there were a lot of WCW PPV’s when he was champion that had tag matches that he wasn’t part of as the main event. The same would happen to TNA and in the long run ditching Hogan might be the best idea they have had.

Tinaali: Hogan would have killed off NWA-TNA if the deal had went through and they signed Hogan This is a topic that is very near and dear to my heart. With the exception of a few PPV’s I have been a loyal TNA fan since their very first show. This is one of those things that could have gone either way. Since I have to pick one I am going to say Fact even though I don’t think it would have
been the death of TNA. Let’s face it. Hogan is Hogan and his name does bring a certain amount of interest to a product. I guarantee that Hogan’s involvement with TNA would have generated temporary interest in TNA and may have even brought some new fans into the mix but at what cost? He doesn’t have the Midas touch anymore. He might be able to turn something to gold for a short bit but eventually you realize that it was only that cheap gold plated crap that you can find some crack head peddling down on the
street corner. In the long run I do believe he would have hurt TNA but eventually it would have recovered. Hogan isn’t the answer for them. The X-Division is. Sure it might take a bit longer to build a fan base up
without the cheap publicity stunts but in this case, slower is better. The word is out on TNA right now and the interest in the product is building fast. In the past four months since I have been posting here I have seen more and more people realizing that TNA does provide an outstanding alternative to the ever-declining WWE product. If they truly want to be the alternative to WWE then they need to do just that. You can’t provide an alternative by assimilating to the competition.

Stanman: FICTION. No way. Hogan would have boosted the NWA to a higher level with his star power. Now granted he doesn't have the wrestling talent, but he does have the entertainment value which compliments their brand of 'total non-stop action'. If Hogan knew his role and not become the top guy in the federation a la Jeff Jarrett, he could have helped the fed. When I say know his role, I mean wrestle mid-card and put over the young wrestlers like he was doing during his last stint in the WWE. If the NWA gave Hogan total control, then maybe I would think differently.

Villiano: Hulk Hogan would have helped get NWA-TNA the television deal they so desperately need, so this is FICTION. The internet may not like Hogan, but the casual fans love him. People will pay money to see this guy just because he’s a legend. People still want to see hulk Hogan wrestle. NWA-TNA needed that deal to go through so they could get a shot at a television deal, now they have to get it by some other means.

Tito: I say this is FICTION only because the Jarretts are going to kill NWA-TNA anyway. Let's ignore Hogan and look at 2 guys they brought in: Lex Luger and Dusty Rhodes. I love Dusty, but Jesus, his prime and best wrestling days were long ago. Secondly, how desperate can you get to bring in Lex Luger, or all of the veterans out there? The Jarrett family books like the old Southern NWA promotions, and not in there prime years. It's like watching WCW Thunder all over again. Bringing in Hogan would have done nothing for business, but with the way things were going, he wouldn't hurt it much more than it already is.

Fact or Fiction: By the mid-2004, TNA will have a major TV deal to contend with the WWE.

Tito: Total FICTION. Until the Jarretts present a unique product, instead of a Vince Russo shock value show mixed with Southern wrasslin', this show will remain on Pay Per View until someone runs out of money. Another point is that the WWE has damaged all chances of any other federation getting a television deal. Does anybody remember the Parents Television Council (PTC)? They attacked the WWE's advertisers, making less advertisement dollars per WWE show. Wrestling shows are not as profitable as regular programming, even if the ratings are much higher. The WWE has muddied the waters for any promotion to get a television deal.

Da Ref: I'll say FICTION. The talks with WGN have not been reported as much as they were when everything started. So, it's hard to say that something will be put into place before the end of 2004.

Stanman: Nope. FICTION. Wrestling is a downward trend in the mainstream media. I seriously doubt any network would want to build a fed from scratch, seeing that the NWA does not have a huge fanbase to begin with. Unless, they can find an investor to help with their financial situation, like Ted Turner helped WCW, the WWE has nothing to worry about in terms of competition. It is a shame too, because I would like to see the WWE writers get off their asses and write some good shows for once.

Dumass: If they constantly keep bringing in people to "save" the buyrates every week, I don't think TNA is going to enough money to pay the wrestlers, no less get on TV. FICTION. I haven't watched TNA in about 4 months now. Am I missing the "the best wretling in the world"? No, that's still on the WWE Free TV. Am I missing my former favorite wrestlers coming back and kicking some ass? No, I remember when Vader made an appearance, lost, and didn't come back the next week. Newsflash NWA-TNA: One hit wonders and "pop up" stars do not go well when you are trying to gain crediblity to a federation. Dusty Rhodes may have drawn crowds in the 80s, but even his accent hasn't been pushed up with the times of 2004. Vader isn't going to bring ratings in because no one (and I mean no one) in the 2000-2003 crowd knows who Vader is, let alone why he's so damn important.

If the NWA wants to start making an actual run for a TV deal, they should start with getting some established 'NWA-TNA' stars. Guys who only work for NWA-TNA and no one else. Want to know what also is a good thing? House shows; they work wonders for the reaching of a TV deal because they actually give the crowd (who don't want to fork over 10$ a week) a chance to see these great wrestlers wrestle. Oh my God! What a fucking concept! Another thing they can do is stop with the "one hit wonder" signings. I don't care if D-Lo Brown was missused in the WWE, I don't care if he's doing great in TNA, he's a WWE-fired jobber to every'internet' and TV fan out there in TV Land. Raven can be the best wrestler you got, but the fans aren't going to really care since he's a former WWE jobber (though to Raven's defense, he has really stepped it up a notch; kudos to him). Stop hiring wrestlers left and right because that is soon going to eat up a lot of money.

Finally, don't rely on quick fixes. Do not come out one show and suddenly have a Vader or a Dusty Rhodes pop up and stick around for 3 weeks, or in Vader's case, one night. No matter what happens, that's not going to help your product at all. Why? Because there is no limit to who you can bring out. What if one week we get to see a Clockwork Orange Whateverthefuck Match with AJ Styles and Kamala the Ugandan Giant? Oh yes, people will rush to their PPV controls and shell out 10$ to see that.[/sarcasm] In the end, TNA may not get a TV deal by June of 2004. If they do, then they have a lot of changes to do in order for the fans to really give a shit about them. They need to start showing off their product in more places other than Nashville or wherever they are coming from because that's not where the rest of the country focuses their attention. They are not WCW and they do not have the all-profiting power of Billionaire Ted and his deep pockets; they better get their shit together and start acting like a real federation.

Villiano: TNA may get a television deal, but there’s no way in hell that NWA-TNA will be able to contend with the WWE in 2004. The WWE still has a major monopoly over the sport and will keep a tight grip on things for the next few years. Thinking that TNA can overtake the WWE this year is FICTION.

Phantom: I really want to say fact, but I know other wise since I know how television works. Supposedly TNA is about to sign a deal with WGN to broadcast Xplosion on Saturday Mornings. This is like them getting their own version of Wrestling Challenge or Superstars. While it will get them attention, it won’t do much since most of their audience (like people like me) are asleep at 10 in the morning on a Saturday. I’m gonna say Fiction on this one only because TNA is not ready to go head to head with Mt. McMahon. By 2005 they might be, but if they try to go National now I can safely say a lot of TNA’s roster will be offered a lot of money to come up north where they will be promptly squashed by the WWE’s good ol’ boy network.

Tinaali: By the mid-2004, TNA will have a major TV deal to contend with the WWE. Fiction. As much as I love them I do not think they are ready for a major TV deal yet. There is still a lot of improvement needing done before they can pull in enough ratings to keep a major cable station interested in carrying their product from week to week. If they try and make the move too soon they are setting themselves up for failure and once it is done on a national level, there is no way to save face. Right now they are on the right track. Their deal with WGN is perfect for them. TNA is still in the grassroots phase and they need to build their fan base up a bit more before trying to go head to head with WWE. I do see great things happening for them this year. Mid-2004 is way too soon but at the rate they are going expect to
see a major deal on the table for them by mid-2005.

Who will be the breakout star of 2004

Tinaali: With so many to choose from this is a hard question to answer. For the WWE Cena is the hottest thing going but I would consider 2003 to be his breakout year so instead I am going to go with Little Johnny. Just kidding… Seriously though, for the WWE I have to go with a tag team as opposed to a singles wrestler. Paul London and Brian Kenderick aka Spanky. Although I almost always forget to watch Velocity, I hear that the fans are going nuts for these two. What I have witnessed by these two is that they have great chemistry as well as good in-ring ability. Sounds like the recipe for success to me. Eventually Vince has to give us what we want right? Yeah, even though we are little kids that want candy for every meal I think he will see that sometimes giving us candy isn’t a bad thing. Expect to see more of these two soon.

As for TNA… I hate to see any of them become a breakout star but that is purely for selfish reasons since breaking out would mean being picked up by the WWE. If there is one person who could make it there, it there it would have to be Christopher Daniels. As long as he could keep his Fallen Angel gimmick I think he could do quite well as a cruiserweight. As for what show, I think he would fit in quite well on Smackdown. If he doesn’t leave TNA for the WWE, expect this man to have the Heavyweight Title by mid-year. One way or another, great things are in store for the Fallen Angel this year. He is definitely on the ones to watch list.

Tito: I personally believe Edge will come back on a roll. He's had a year to think about his career, and see the WWE from a different perspective. He remembers how he lost the political game on the way out (being blamed for not getting Albert over as a main eventer). He'll be a fresh face that everyone will want to welcome back and he'll hopefully get some respect from the WWE in 2004.

Phantom: In the WWE I think it will be John Cena. He’s going to have the same kind of year in 1997 that Austin had leading up to his run in 1998. I think they made a huge mistake not giving him the US Title in front of the troops in Iraq but even still he is probably the most over guy on all of Smackdown. He can do no wrong. For NWA-TNA I’m gonna say it’s Abyss Sure guys like Chris Sabin, Christopher Daniels, and C.M. Punk are tipped for greatness, but in the end Abyss is probably the best big man since Kane when he first debuted in the fall of 1997. I believe Abyss will be the NWA World Champion at some point this year and he would be a great choice. Watch his match with A.J. Styles. If anyone from the WWE is reading, that is how you book a Big Man vs. Small Man match. Abyss has the look, talent, and moves to pull it off. I think he is going to be the break out star of 2004 for TNA.

Stanman: NOBODY! With the politics going on backstage in both RAW and Smackdown, the current top guys will be holding their place at the top tier, the underappreciated workers will still be underappreciated and the undeserving wrestlers will get the pushes. Come on, you all should know the WWE by now. Who has been the breakout star of this past year? Absolutely no one! It's going to remain that way for the year 2004 as well. It's quite sad, really.

Da Ref: Even though he started breaking out this year, I have to go with an easy choice and say JOHN CENA. For WWE, this guy has been pure gold. The company spent a lot of their time pushing Randy Orton as the next Rock because both are third generation wrestlers. They started him out as the ultra-babyface with very little personality and then turned him heel to try and capture lightning in a jar. Yet, on Smackdown, you had this guy who was a total babyface from OVW making his debut in a match against Kurt Angle followed by a feud here and there with very little response from the crowd. He goes heel and adopts a rap gimmick. He gets on the mic and shows he can work a crowd. What happens? The fans start cheering for him and it's almost as if the company has no choice but to make this guy a face. Fortunately, his gimmick manages to carry over very well from heel to face with little damage to what the fans liked about him. THAT sounds more like the evolution of Rocky Maivia than Randy Orton.

Villiano: The WWE has a gold mine sitting on Smackdown, and 2004 will be the greatest year of his career. I’m talking about Chris Benoit. The guy’s being built for a giant push for the main event at Wrestlemania XX against Brock Lesnar, where he will win his first WWE Championship. Benoit will hold that belt for most of the rest of 2004, if not all of it, and cement himself as one of the most talented WWE Champions of all time.

Dumass: My pick is a tie between Chris Benoit and CM Punk.

CM Punk has been conquering alot in the indy scenes, he's been making the TNA alot of fun to watch, and his fued with Raven in late 2003 has been giving alot of praise his way. The kid can do no wrong and he is quickly getting noticed. I saw him live once and I knew this kid would be big someday. The matches he's had in the past are nothing like he's having in TNA and hopefully he can win some hearts. One thing I do not advise for him is to not jump when Vince starts to call. Do not go the way of alot of the other recent indys greats are doing (IE: Spanky, Paul London) and sign with Vince right off the bat. Develop more with the fans and try getting some more training in. Go for the best in TNA and demand it. I want a wrestler who will fight for his spot and I know CM can be that one young saving grace that TNA and pro wrestling needs to get into some people's heads and pockets.

Now, Chris Benoit. I remember when that guy was finally able to showcase his talents on American mainstay television. I was completely awed in seeing him. That was 10 years ago and in ECW. Now it's 2004 and the WWE. This will be the year of Benoit if he's given a chance to shine. Giving the title shot at Royal Rumble to Hardcore Holly isn't one of the best ways to do that; but I'm sure someone with the right intentions (WAKE THE FUCK UP PAUL AND REPRESENT THIS MAN!!!) will be more than happy to led him in the right direction. His unique ability of being able to light the crowd on fire as easily as you flick a lightswitch (yet no one will pay to see him main event) is amazing. His entire movelist of above impact moves makes him dangerous. He can make anyone (and I mean anyone) look like a million dollar savings bond. Now is the time for Benoit to be the champion. Now is the time for Benoit to follow the trail that alot of fans and wrestlers think he should have had years ago. This is the year of Chris Benoit.

Closing Thoughts

Tinaali: As far as wrestling is concerned I can’t say that I am sad to see this year
pass. There is nothing more refreshing than being able to put a less than stellar year behind and start out with a clean slate again. I have high hopes for 2004 as far as wrestling is concerned. Less McMahons and more Cruiserweights. More TNA and no more Why, Why, Why from Jimmy Hart. Less Lawler & JR and more Tazz & Cole. Those are just a few of my wishes for the coming year. On a worldwide note I want to see less of our soldiers dying and more of them coming home. I have to say that watching Smackdown in Baghdad almost moved me to tears a few times during the show. It wasn’t Santa getting knocked down or tears of boredom from watching Rhyno either. The fact that there are families here in the US watching the show for glimpses of their loved ones should move even the coldest of hearts. Seeing signs that say “I
Love You Rachael” or “I Miss You Mom” choked me up so much that I had to leave the room at one point. Granted we see signs similar to this week in and week out but the fact that this was one of our soldiers few ways of making contact with loved ones at home was heart wrenching to me. At the end when the man in charge of the USO shows was telling Vince how he hoped they would come back next year, I just couldn’t help but say a little prayer that somehow it won’t be necessary to do this again next Christmas. Let’s all
hope that next year the world will be a safer place. I want to wish you all out there in cyberland best wishes for a safe and happy New Year. Thanks for reading.

Villiano: 2003 was a mighty interesting year for the WWE. I didn’t say good, I said interesting. RAW had a total of 2 title changes for an entire year. Makes you want to watch their shows since they are so unpredictable. 2003 was the year of the cruiserweight on Smackdown. Too bad A-Train and the other fat hosses forgot to read the memo and wasted all of the cruiserweights camera time and ate all the food backstage. Nothing sticks out in my mind as a positive in 2003, and I am an optimist, so I think 2004 will be a better year for the WWE.

Phantom: What can I say about 2003 that I haven’t said all ready at some point. Wrestling wise is was half and half. Half was good and Half totally sucked ass. I’m dreading 2004 because a lot could happen both in Wrestling and Life it self. I truly am worried about what I’ll be typing one year from now in this column. Who died. Who didn’t do this. Why did this happen. For the time being lets just all hope it’s a good and safe year for everyone involved.

Da Ref: To close things out, let me just say this. If 2003 is any indication of what we can look forward to in 2004, the business in the States is screwed. Why? Because nothing has changed whatsoever for the better. On RAW, there's no new main eventers. On Smackdown, it's back to the 80's with the idea of "Big Men Equal Money." With NWA-TNA, they're still trying to get their foothold after a year and a half in existence. MLW took a step back and has to try and get back in the race. ROH had Jeff Hardy screw up a match for them. I know that the Georgia indy scene is even more screwed up than ever. I guess the only saving grace of this year is that XPW has finally been taken out back and put to sleep.

Stanman: The year 2003 has been quite a weird one, I'll tell you that. The WWE has had better days with their creative staff. Changes need to happen within WWE management in order to produce a profitable product once again. Until that happens, we will be seeing the S.O.S. over and over again. The funny thing is, I don't see any changes happening soon. Which leads me to..

For those of you who read my column, Stanman's Wrestling AfterThoughts, you all know how hard it is for me to write about a product that REFUSES to improve itself. I used to write a column every week back when I first started, but recently I have been pumping one column once every month, IF I'm lucky. Motivation is a key factor for my writing and for the past few months, I had very little. On that note, I am officially retiring from column writing. Yeah, that's right, I'm announcing it here on Fact or Fiction, the hottest column on the internet. Props to Phantom Lord for letting me do this.

Thank you to all who provided me with feedback and suggestions as it is *greatly* appreciated. And a big shout out to all the Vogies who helped me get me to where I am today (you know who you are). I'm the last of the breed, so to speak.

I will still be around LOP as a news reporter and for the Column Of The Month submissions. Speaking of which, go visit the LOP Columns Forum. I cannot stress how good the talent is there. Unbelievable.

What a way to end the year, eh? With a final SWAT.

Take care and Happy New Year!
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