High Road/Low Road 10.09.09: Batista on Smackdown
Posted by Sat & Chad Nevett on 10.09.2009
Will Batista's move to Smackdown bring a much needed freshness to both wrestler and brand, or will it be a damaging failure? We need your views, so let us know what you think.
Welcome back to the High Road/Low Road!
A brief explanation of the column: Sat takes the High Road (positive view) on angles, gimmicks, and other wrestling related "stuff" while Uncletrunx takes the Low Road (negative view).
Results for Matt Morgan: Main Event Player
High Road: 54%
Low Road: 43%
Both Roads: 04%
Batista To SmackDown
High Road:
Batista needed to come to SmackDown because SmackDown had lost one of their top baby face when Jeff Hardy decided to take some time off. That would have left SmackDown with two top baby faces in the Undertaker and Rey Mysterio. They need another baby face and Batista supplies that.
Low Road:
I'm not convinced that they need another face like Batista. Undertaker is on limited appearances, so whoever they brought in needs to be able to do quite a bit of the work for the brand, to take the pressure off Rey. It seems that Batista will also be on a reduced schedule. What Smackdown needs is a top face who can work the vast majority of the shows rather than a limited schedule. Having two of the top stars on the show on part time deals will not help the brand.
High Road:
We have all seen the rumors about the Undertaker having serious hip surgery. I think the WWE believes that he is not going to be able to keep wrestling at a high pace and I think it made sense for them to bring Batista to SmackDown. Now I know what all of you are thinking and that is why replace one broken down wrestler with another broken down wrestler? I would agree with this, but this time the rumors are that Batista is only going to be wrestling for TV and Pay Per View. This makes it less likely that he will be injured.
Low Road:
That's exactly what I'm wondering. Why put one of the more broken down guys on there when there are uninjured faces who could work on Smackdown instead? What we get is two guys who will either have to work reduced schedules or risk career shortening / ending injury. Neither helps the brand.
High Road:
On RAW, Batista was eventually going to get involved in the WWE Title picture and it was going to give us a few more months of some combination of Orton/HHH/Batista/Cena. On SmackDown, I think that Batista as a better lineup of opponents on SmackDown than he would had on RAW.
Low Road:
Using that logic and with Undertaker as the champion on Smackdown, it gives us a title match which we saw played out not so long ago. As an alternative, Batista will have someone like Punk or Jericho to face, which may be interesting if Batista doesn't run over them like a freight train; unfortunately, that is a big "if".
High Road:
One of the things I was looking forward to on RAW was Cena/Batista II. I think it worked out for the best because now they will get a chance to meet at WrestleMania and it will definitely be something worthy of a WrestleMania.
Low Road:
If this is to happen at Wrestlemania, one of them will have to turn heel. I don't see that happening, especially if they have moved Batista to Smackdown specifically for him to be a top face. As such, Wrestlemania worthy match or not, I don't think you will see it next April.
High Road:
I look at Batista's latest run on RAW and it was pretty forgettable. He had that one great match with Cena and he won the WWE Title for about a day and was then injured. This return to SmackDown should be helpful to him because he had a good run on his first arrival to SmackDown.
Low Road:
Assuming this run is not also cut short by a similar injury. With his record, I think the fact that he is on Smackdown rather than RAW is no guarantee at all that his run will be good. What is more relevant is his recent record; this, as you suggest, is forgettable.
High Road:
I am interested in seeing two feuds with Batista on SmackDown. I am interested in seeing Batista have an extensive feud with CM Punk and Chris Jericho. I would also like to see Batista versus Dolph Ziggler. Basically, SmackDown gives Batista a nice lineup of opponents.
Low Road:
It does, but can you see him putting them over in an extended feud? Certainly not the likes of Ziggler. If he is indeed wrestling a part time schedule, this cannot be of benefit to anyone. In short, I see no benefit to adding a part time, broken down wrestler in a top face position to Smackdown; it will do more harm than good to the brand unless he is there to put over the younger talent, something I just cannot see happening.
Simply write "High Road", "Low Road", or "Both Roads" in the comment section.
E-Mails:
These are all of the e-mails that we received this week. We do not respond to the actual e-mail, but the reply to your e-mail will be below.
Matt Johnson Writes:
I think Morgan is better than a lot of the big guys in the WWE. I would rather see him than any of the big guys there. He is better than Batista and WAY better than Kane and he has had more than a solid career. How many monsters have been Main Event guys? You could probably count them on one hand this century and on both in the last 25 years. What do you think?
Sat: I'll agree that Morgan seems better than most monsters.
Uncletrunx:How many monsters have been main event guys? Off the top of my head in 30 seconds, there have been André, Big Show, Undertaker, Earthquake, King Kong Bundy, Vader, Kane, Khali and Diesel; as I said, that's just a quick, 30 second list. I'm sure there are more. Quite a few, all things considered.
Comments:
Below are the comments for last week's columns and our responses. Every comment will not be included because it makes our lives a lot easier. The comments section was last looked at on Tuesday Night Pacific Time.
LilWayne1 Writes:
Definite high road. I've been high on Matt Morgan ever since I saw him come in. He's a big guy that, refreshingly, isn't slow and plodding like Big Show or Kevin Nash.
He's young, charismatic, had good mic skills, is a decent wrestler, and has shown he can be a believable heel or face. Why NOT push him to the main event? Lord knows TNA is stale enough as it is and could use any fresh blood they can get right now.
Sat: You make a point I should have made last week. He is a big man and better than Nash and Show.
Uncletrunx: To be honest, I quite like Morgan and I'd much rather see him wrestling at this point than Nash. I'm still not sure he's quite at main event level and this weekend will be a good indicator of exactly where he is.
Guest#7159 Writes:
Low road,just.
He won't be big enough to carry TNA on his own or grow it, and it's so close between he will just miss and be an upper mid-carder who can headline the odd ppv and whether he is a true main-eventer it doesn't matter to anyone but him. Same with Joe.
The only people it matters with is AJ, and to some extent Lashley if his mma career goes well,and the effect if it doesn't.
Sat: I think comparing him to Samoa Joe is a good comparison, but Joe as the fact that he is a former world champion.
Uncletrunx: I see him being positioned below Joe, Lashley and AJ. If one or more of those moves on he may get his place in the sun for an extended time, but not otherwise.
Guest#1682 Writes:
High Road.
He looks like a champion and could easily be TNA's crossover star with Hollywood.
For a big man he moves well (unlike Nash) and he's not cartoony (like Abyss). Morgan could be the face of the company.
The only low aspect is his size. If injuries slow him down, he'll lose his edge.
Sat: I think his match with Kurt Angle at Bound for Glory is going to say a lot about him.
Uncletrunx: I don't see him being the crossover guy. They already have that ready made in Lashley.
JR Writes:
High Road. Trunx, you say that because he was a nobody in WWE and the fact he's getting pushed in TNA makes them bush league? You're really reaching there.
It just shows that even the almighty WWE doesn't know how to properly build up potential stars, just look at the bland characters they're putting out there now. It would be one thing if he instantly won the belt upon going to TNA, but they built him up slooooooowly, the way it should've been handled all along.
Between Morgan, Styles, Samoa Joe, Lashley, and possibly Abyss, TNA has set their future World Championship core up very nicely.
Sat: I can kind of see where Uncletrunx is coming from. The thing that I like about Matt Morgan is that at least TNA is pushing somebody new instead of the older guy.
Uncletrunx: I'm not sure it's that much of a reach but the other side of the argument does carry some weight. If he does become the face of the company, you can bet WWE (if they bother to acknowledge him at all) will use that against him. That said, it is far better that he's been given a slower build and credit to TNA for building him.
The Great Captain Smooth Writes:
Moderate high road. As good as he can be now and in the future, he's 32 or 33 and won't have too much time to become a top star. Imagine if he were about five years younger? The wwe really blew it with him. I remember it was the summer of 2005 and I was going to see Wedding Crashers, when all of the sudden Matt Morgan walks in with a girl. Heads turned. People started to point and talk. This was a week after the WWE let him go and right after he F-5ed The Big Show. If you have a guy that had just been fired and who F-5ed The Big Show, that wanted my seat, I would have been more than willing to give it to him. To his credit, he was very polite about it. Sorry to go off topic a bit, but it was pretty damn cool.
Sat: To say the WWE blew it is putting it lightly. They totally botched this one when they gave him a stuttering gimmick. Really? That was the best they could do. Honestly they would have been better off taking the Kozlov or Jackson route with Morgan and it would have worked just as well.
Uncletrunx: The stuttering gimmick was an absolute brainfart.
"Here's a guy with all the tools to go to the top. He has the talent, the size and the look. Let's make him stutter. That'll get people into the building."
HBK's Smile Writes:
Low road. He will be what Kane is now at best. A big scary guy who will flirt with the ME from time to time but doesn't have the skill set to stay there and probably never will.
Sat: If he can do this, then I think it is a good thing.
Uncletrunx: In Abyss, TNA already has a big scary guy who can flirt with the main event and is very much like Kane. I hope Morgan's path is a different one.
The Turth Of It All Writes:
Trunx, you say taking someone who was a nobody in the WWE and making them a main event player is bush league.
Here's a history lesson:
Stone Cold Steve Austin - Midcard in WCW - Biggest Star in WW/E history
The Undertaker - Bugger all in WCW - One of the next biggest stars in WWE history
Eddie Guerrero / Chris Benoit / Mick Foley / Chris Jericho / Kevin Nash
All midcard / underutilised at best in WCW before going to the WWE and getting the strap. Even Triple H himself was a WCW nobody.
Wrestlings an incestuous industry, everyone will work for someone else at some point. What's wrong with picking up somebody elses poor judgement and pushing talent in your company.
There's nothing wrong with TNA pushing Morgan. Just like there's nothing wrong with WWE pushing CM Punk, who previously, drumroll, jerked the curtain for TNA.
At least hold together a cogent argument if you're intent on bashing TNA for pushing someone who, shock horror, once worked for Vince McMahon.
Oh and, High Road for Morgan.
Sat: Again, I can kind of see where Uncletrunx is coming with this. All of those guys that you mentioned were midcards talent, but nowhere near having a stuttering gimmick.
Uncletrunx: I believe it is a coherent argument and I am aware of the history, having been watching wrestling since the mid ‘80s. To be fair, all of those guys are good examples of people who were moderate at best in one promotion and blossomed in another but the key thing there is, those promotions were of similar size and status within wrestling. TNA is certainly below WWE and as such, my point is that by building a guy who was lower card in WWE into a main eventer, TNA does open itself to this accusation. The WWE position has been that TNA is not real competition where WCW certainly was. I will acknowledge that I actually like the slow build they have used for Morgan far more than the practice of throwing the belt onto the newest WWE cast off; that, I will admit, is far more damaging. However, I see a big difference between TNA vs WWE and WCW vs WWE (or WWF, as it was then) and therefore between Morgan and those you listed within the context of the point I raised. Also, I'm not a TNA basher; I like a lot of what they do. However, I am here to provide the "Low Road" and do so equally between TNA, WWE and anyone else who happens to be the subject of the column.
The Gold Standard Writes:
High Road.I think Morgan will make it as a main eventer.Hes agile for a big man.My only thing is thing is if he wins any titles anytime soon it should be the Legends belt.Yea its been crapped on but its their secondary title and I think having him win the belt and actually defend it will give it some kinda value also will give him something to do before its time to give him the world title.I agree I think 2010 he will win the TNA World Title.
Sat: I agree. He should win the Legends title before going for the World Title.
Uncletrunx: I also agree. I don't think it's time to put the bigger belt on him yet.
Michael Writes:
High Road, one look at the guy and you can tell he'd be a main eventer. Morgan has all the potential and the tools in the world to be a champion. I don't know why on earth Vince decided to give a guy who can F5 the Big Show a stuttering gimmick. If Angle wants to fight you at the biggest event of the company they must see something in him. And seriously Trunx, you really think that because he used to work for WWE and went nowhere and now that he's being used well in TNA they are bush league? Then what does that make them in early 1996 for hiring a guy named who got fired over the phone by the name of Stunning Steve Austin?
Sat: I have stated above what I felt Uncletrunx meant by that comment and I am sure he has responded to it by now.
Uncletrunx: I have indeed. I refer you to my previous answer.
Code Red Writes:
Both roads -
He's being pushed well and is getting over very well with the fans especially since feuding with Kurt. However I find him very overrated by the IWC at this point. He's NOT ready for the main event at all. He should be in the midcard for the time being. Firstly his over the top promos give me a headache. He needs to take lessons from Nash on how to be more controlled and subtle when cutting a promo. Secondly his ringwork leaves a lot desired. Unless he's being carried by a superior worker like Kurt he's just not delivered anything. I don't buy the whole 'cocky, atheltic, articulate' gimmick. His moveset is just boring. They need to push him as a destructive monster, because that's something TNA is lacking in - Joe has become less of one and Abyss was completely ruined by the Dr Stevie storyline. Kong's a monster but she's obviously confined to the Knockouts division.
Sat: I'll admit that Morgan does need to improve his promo work.
Uncletrunx: He does need to improve in a few areas but I think it will come with time.
Guest#3582 Writes:
Low road, Morgan's a solid all-round performer and should have a strong upper-card spot but nothing he does makes me go "wow, this guy's amazing, I gotta put down money to see him", maybe down the road he can grow into the ME scene but he's not ready to carry the company yet and isn't exactly a young guy so he's got a limited time-frame. Basically I think there are better, younger prospects on the roster that TNA could gain more from on a long-term basis for the same time & money invested.
Sat: Honestly, does anybody have the ability to draw in viewers by themselves right now?
Uncletrunx: He's certainly not in a position to carry the company yet. He's a solid mid carder who may blossom into something more if he's used properly.
Your reasons for taking the High Road, Low Road, or Both Roads and suggestions for future High Road/Low Road are welcome at satuncletrunx@gmail.com or in the comment section. Your reply will be included in next week's column.
He's the only certifiable main-event-level babyface on the roster now besides the Undertaker. Aside from 'Taker and Batista, the Smackdown main event scene contains who, exactly? CM Punk (for now), Rey Mysterio (sometimes) and..?
Posted By: KanyonKreist (Guest) on October 09, 2009 at 03:40 PM
I have to go with the Middle of the Road here.
While Batista's tendency to get injured and have shitty matches with pretty much everyone who isn't named Undertaker is well-known and won't do anything to help SmackDown, he's still a big name presence in WWE and that'll help draw in viewers to the program.
Ah well. In any event, watching him team up with Rey Mysterio (Masking Agents, anyone?) means he doesn't have to carry the entire workload.
Posted By: Anonymous Smart Mark (Guest) on October 09, 2009 at 03:42 PM
low road.he will clog the main event scene on sd now and on top that get his world title reigns everytime he bitches for one.until i seem him turn heel put someone over or hell compete for the ic title ill always hate batista on the a show.
Posted By: The Gold Standard (Guest) on October 09, 2009 at 03:55 PM
"Aside from 'Taker and Batista, the Smackdown main event scene contains who, exactly?"
John Cena in 1 month.
Posted By: Guest#8173 (Guest) on October 09, 2009 at 03:57 PM
Both roads.
Smackdown needs some star power with so many main event/upper card guys MIA for various reasons. Plus a programme with Taker could spike the sluggish ratings the brand has suffered from in the last few months.
But the guy is a walking injury at this point. Who know what is longevity will be?
Posted By: Guest#1422 (Guest) on October 09, 2009 at 03:57 PM
High Road
In my most honest and blunt opinion. I don't like Batista. I respect the good matches he put on, but they were anywhere from 2.5 years ago or longer. His days are over, and the injury after injury after injury thing is just a joke. And like i said im being honest, and the reason why i said High Road for him on Smackdown is because SD is on Friday nights and I dont watch it. If i had a DVR, it would be another thing, but i dont. So keep Batista on SD with Rey, so i don't have to see them on my tv.
Posted By: NickNitro (Guest) on October 09, 2009 at 05:20 PM
Both Roads. Honestly, it's a bit too early to really tell. Low, because he doesn't move the way he used to, is almost always getting hurt, and the age factor has to come into effect. High, because he can pop a crowd, can have some angles that are fresh, and if he were to retire from the ring, he could make for the type of GM that you don't fuck with. Just imagine Taker trapping him in a limo, turning around and saying, "Buckle up, Davey!".
Posted By: The Great Capt. Smooth (Guest) on October 09, 2009 at 05:34 PM
Low road. Batista is past his best and his best wasn't all that great anyway. Time to move on you boring fat headed freak.
Posted By: sprokit (Guest) on October 09, 2009 at 05:43 PM
I would love to be optimistic, but the low road argument is just so much stronger. I like Dave, but he is injury prone and not always motivated at the best of times. After feuding with Cena, HHH and Orton, I wonder if the audience can see any of the heels on Smackdown as in his league. Jericho may be, but he's giving up a lot of weight and besides, he's spending most of his time on Raw. If Punk had beat Taker, he could be there, but now Batista v. Punk just doesn't do much for me. Why would it happen, anyway? Punk doesn't have the title. And Batista v. Ziggler? Give me a break. Not for a couple of years....
I don't think Smackdown creative can be creative enough to get themselves out of this corner.
Posted By: Sly Reference (Guest) on October 09, 2009 at 06:16 PM
Definite low road. With Raw these days just being plain awful, why tarnish the blue brand with another 'star', when friday nights is functioning perfectly well with an excellent roster of 'wrestlers'.
Posted By: Guest#2904 (Guest) on October 09, 2009 at 07:33 PM
High road.
He's the only certifiable main-event-level babyface on the roster now besides the Undertaker. Aside from 'Taker and Batista, the Smackdown main event scene contains who, exactly? CM Punk (for now), Rey Mysterio (sometimes) and..?
Posted By: KanyonKreist (Guest) on October 09, 2009 at 03:40 PM
I couldn't put it better myself, so I say High Road also. I noticed that all of the praise SD seems to get has to do with it's midcard, not it's main event.
Posted By: JLAJRC (Guest) on October 09, 2009 at 08:52 PM
Both roads.
High road for Raw, because if DX is tied up in tag team action and Orton/Cena is coming to a close, it means they might actually push someone new on Raw.
Low Road for Smackdown. We already have Undertaker just shitting all over CM Punks heel push, jobbing him out in 10 minutes on consecutive PPV's. Do we really need Batista and possibly Cena interfering with his push, as well?
Posted By: Tim (Guest) on October 09, 2009 at 11:18 PM
Low
Posted By: Guest#2285 (Guest) on October 09, 2009 at 11:43 PM
Conditional High Road:
If he turns heel and/or is part of a tag team for a prolonged period, he'll be good for the blue brand.
Posted By: Guest#9996 (Guest) on October 09, 2009 at 11:54 PM
Low Road, I can't stand Batista, didn't care when he was stinking up Raw coz I don't watch it but SD! has been great the last few months. As soon as Batista showed up there was a drop in the show, he'll be injured again by the Rumble so why not push someone with talent thats proven they can stay healthy like MVP. From what I've read they haven't done anything to elevate him since he moved to Raw, tagging w/ Mark Henry is hardly a career launcher move him back to SD! and give him the Main Event push!
Posted By: Guest#2647 (Guest) on October 10, 2009 at 07:07 AM
Low Road. Batista stinks on ice...always has, always will.
Posted By: CM Wolf (Guest) on October 10, 2009 at 10:10 AM
High Road
Posted By: Rich (Guest) on October 10, 2009 at 10:30 AM
Both Roads
Posted By: Guest#2284 (Guest) on October 10, 2009 at 11:59 AM
Yikes. Did Maddox happen to write this column?
Posted By: lilwayne1 (Guest) on October 10, 2009 at 12:02 PM
LOW ROAD
Posted By: WuTang (Guest) on October 10, 2009 at 12:38 PM
Low Road. For a while smackdown was the best wrestling show in the world and then it took a massive nosedive in quality. Part of that was because of more Vince and stupid storylines but the biggest contributing factor was by far Batista.
He is just one of the worst wrestlers the WWE has ever had and everything he touches turns to pure crap. At least on RAW he would have been sucking the life out of a show which quality wise was already dead in the water, now he's taking up valuable airtime on a show which was previously doing a good job of putting over new stars, something he wouldn't know how to do if his life depended on it. The sooner he retires the better.
Posted By: Guest#3611 (Guest) on October 10, 2009 at 01:48 PM
Both roads only because Smackdown needs more main level faces. Other than that his appearance will only bring down what has been the WWE's new A show.
Posted By: Ojj (Guest) on October 10, 2009 at 07:30 PM
Low Road
Batista blows, take him off MY show and put him back on Raw.
Posted By: Guest#8918 (Guest) on October 10, 2009 at 08:38 PM
High Road
After losing to CM Punk on smackdown, I don't see how anyone can claim that Batista is just going to run over people.
Posted By: Guest#3372 (Guest) on October 10, 2009 at 11:03 PM
Both Roads -
I'd say Low Road based on what I see as most likely result either by him getting injured and/or not putting over talent, but there is *potential* for him to help elevate some of the talent. In terms of a business decision, I think it could be a positive thing, though if he's only working tv/ppv, it doesn't really do much for house shows and such.
Posted By: Guest#6364 (Guest) on October 11, 2009 at 12:53 AM
"After losing to CM Punk on smackdown, I don't see how anyone can claim that Batista is just going to run over people."
You mean after Batista lost by count out and then made Punk look like a bitch afterwards? Wow, talk about putting him over.
Seriously Batista is going to do what he always does, bury the vastly more talented so he can keep his spot. The sooner that waste of space retires the better. Low Road.
Posted By: Guest#5380 (Guest) on October 11, 2009 at 10:13 AM
Up, down, left, right, up, up, right, left, A, B, congratulations Batista, you have unlocked unlimited title shots.
Posted By: Low Road (Guest) on October 11, 2009 at 03:21 PM
low road, give a fresh new face a chance at the main event that can help the brand for years, not just 2 month sints at a time between injuries. Also Undertaker can't carry Batista through a series of matches like he did a few years ago.
Posted By: midcard madness (Guest) on October 11, 2009 at 05:00 PM
Low Road
Smackdown was a fresh and exciting brand with great talent willing to elevate each other. Guys like Matt Hardy, Morrison, and Ziggler had a great opportunity of success ahead of them. Putting Batista in the mix destroys all of that.
Posted By: Sock (Guest) on October 11, 2009 at 07:26 PM
I'll take Both Roads. It was clear that the WWE felt that it needed another main eventer on SD after Jeff Hardy left the company. And really, considering how the main event was playing out on Raw, Bastista wasn't going to do much on that show. But, while he is a "big name", he isn't really that talented. So, he will drag the show down. And just look what he did to Punk on last Friday's show. Ugg, I hope that's not a sign of things to come.
I do see a rather interesting scenerio though. Batista turns heel during the fatal four way match with Punk winning it and Cena loses the iron man match to Orton. Cena comes to SD and has a feud with Punk, while Batista goes at it with the other faces. It ends up with at Wrestlemania with either Cena/Batsita or Cena/Undertaker for the WHT.
Posted By: mogamer (Guest) on October 12, 2009 at 10:40 AM
