In Defense of… 07.26.06: Jeff Jarrett (Part 3 of 3)
Posted by JP Prag on 07.26.2006
Does Jeff Jarrett kill WCW, WWAS, and TNA in this issue? You decide!
In Defense of…
By JP Prag
Issue #63
Jeff Jarrett (Part 3 of 3)
Intro
Hello people who find hot tubs invigorating, even in 95 deg heat, and welcome back to In Defense Of…! We are in the last part of our case for Jeff Jarrett, which can be read in Part 1 and Part 2. Simple enough, eh?
Oh, so you don't want to read it and just start getting all judgmental? Fine, for those new to the concept, this article has a pretty simple premise:
Certain people, events, organizations, and storylines in wrestling history have gotten a bum wrap. Some writers have presented overtly critical comments and outright lies as fact, and others have followed suit. Well no more! "In Defense of…" has one reason: to bring the truth to the wrestling fan!
And that's what I intend to do.
Me? I'm the One and Only JP, and I am never driving from Philadelphia to Albany again. Amtrak, you will do quite nicely. Wait, let me check some prices… yep, slightly cheaper to get a train and rent a car.
Stenography
Enough about my travel schedule. Stenographer, why don't you tell us what we already know:
Well, in Part 2, I said this about Part 1:
Jeff Jarrett: the man, the legend, the unbridled hatred. The spawn of ten thousand message board threads about what is wrong in professional wrestling today. But to understand the hatred of today, we needed to understand the motivation of Jarrett's past. That is why our story went way back in time to April 1967 when Jarrett was born to promoter Jerry Jarrett. The elder Jarrett started his career as a referee, moved on to being an in-ring competitor, began to book and promote his own cards, and eventually owned his own organization. As you might imaging, the younger Jarrett got quite an early education in the sport of wrestling. But unlike the Guerrero family, Jarrett learned also a good deal of what it meant to be a wrestler as a business. He was not just about the passion of the match, but was also about earning money, controlling the crowd, and making things grow.
Much like his father, Jarrett too began as a referee before moving on to the actual ring. Making his pro debut in 1986 at the age of 19, Jarrett learned wrestling in the Southern territorial style. His time began to get split between the CWA, NWA, USWA, WCWA, winning and losing title on a regular basis (as was the style at the time). Legends like Jerry Lawler saw the potential and future in Jarrett and wanted to work with him. The future seemed bright for the territorial star.
Unfortunately, co-currently the territory system was dying. The WWF had become a juggernaut in the industry and was crushing or buying out competition left and right. With some of the territories folding into each other, Jarrett had some opportunity to strut his stuff, but the organizations were not going well. Only Vince and the WWF were making money, despite the drawing power of the southern greats in their home territories. As the 80's moves into the 90's, though, Hulkamania began to wane and the WWF was without a direction. In a rare moment of cooperation, Jerry Lawler and Jeff Jarrett (representing the USWA) actually had an invasion-type storyline in the WWF. Although the story went nowhere and the WWF decided to end the relationship, they were incredibly impressed with Jarrett. Because of that, they traded four superstars in order to get Jarrett on the roster.
It was 1993, the steroid scandal was still fresh in everyone's minds, and the WWF wanted to change its image back to the fan/kid friendly show it used to be. Everything became a cartoon. So despite his success as a Southern wrestler, Vince McMahon either ignored Jarrett's true personality and history, or he never saw it at all (see: ECW). Because of that, Jarrett was strapped with the gimmick of a "country singer", though he had never picked up a guitar in his life. As 1994 moved on, Jarrett was finally plugged into programs with upper mid-carders and scored some impressive victories. With the spotlight finally on him, Jarrett was sure to want to take the opportunity.
I know that already! What about Part 2?
As 1995 moved on, it looked like the WWE was finally behind Jeff Jarrett. He had an iron grip on the IC title and a number of wins over Razor Ramon. But after Jarrett lost a match to Shawn Michaels, things began to spiral out of control. Someone in the WWE must have lost faith in him as he and the Roadie lost a handicap match Razor Ramon, got knocked out of the King of the Ring Tournament in the first round, and had the Roadie turn on him and reveal that Jarrett had lip synched his album. Jarrett realized that he was not moving up the ladder, but was consistently being pushed down. So he took a sabbatical to USWA and had a feud with Ahmed Johnson for the USWA Unified Title. The WWF was so impressed that they copied the exact same feud with the same guys on RAW. Jarrett and Vince began to argue about Jarrett's worth, and Jarrett decided he was worth more than the WWE wanted to give him. So instead of just accepting what Vince and company felt was fair, Jarrett instead went to the USWA to continue negotiations. Vince would not budget, so Jarrett started to negotiate with Vince's rivals. It just so happened, though, that they met what he was looking for.
Being the smart and shrewd businessman he is, and coming from the territory days, Jarrett did not like the idea of being trapped in one place for long. So in a rarity among rarities, he signed a one-year deal with Eric Bischoff and WCW. Immediately be became involved with the Four Horsemen. And despite the Horsemen being face and Jarrett being heel, he tried to get in the organization and fought the nWo. Jarrett truly was embracing a tweener role that was not common in late 1996. You also have to remember that in WCW, wrestlers were given a lot more leeway to develop themselves. So Jarrett was vastly responsible for his own character and matches, as well as major parts of his storylines.
Through 1997, Jarrett stayed heavily involved with feuds either against or with his Four Horsemen brethren. It was also during this time that he first began to managed by Debra McMichael, another idea that the WWF/E would steal and claim as their own. But at the end of his one year contract, Jarrett realized how much he had increased his own value. The WWE was looking for a new direction, and they wanted Jarrett. So Jarrett took his new found respect, lost a match to Booker T on the way out, and returned to the WWF.
The problem was, the WWF was going through an upheaval every week and did not know what direction to go. When Jarrett got there, he did a shoot-work interview bashing Bischoff and McMahon and was refusing matches with challengers not in his caliber. Instead of continuing this, the WWF jobber him out to the Undertaker and but Jarrett in an invasion angle. Except this time Jarrett was in the NWA. This, too, got quickly dumped after jobbing to D'lo Brown, and Jarrett was back to a country singer with Tennessee Lee as his manager. All of that work in building himself up in WCW was lost and he was right back to where he started. Jarrett was then given a new direction… AGAIN… when he feuded with DX and lost a hair vs. hair match with X-Pac. This time he had a new look to go with his new attitude, which was actually just the same attitude that he had when he returned to the WWF that he carried over from WCW. Vince and company were so hell bent in make their storylines work that they just forgot to let the wrestler he who he was and do what he did best.
Despite doing everything he was told and getting the fans ire, Jarrett was still given no reward except to job to Al Snow. But when he teamed up with Debra and Owen Hart in 1999, things began to change. Despite everything thrown at him, Jarrett in an interview around that time was extremely optimistic. He never took what happened to him personally (although I do), and just wanted to be business. Others may not have shared his philosophy, but he tried to live it.
With the death of Owen Hart, Jarrett gave a heart-felt speech that really opened up a lot of people's eyes to his personal side, something an old school person like Jarrett will rarely let you see (see: Scott Steiner). People were also impressed that he wrestled the match after Owen's fall and the next night at the tribute show. Jarrett had show he was a professional, and won the IC title that was supposed to go to Owen. Many people call this a pity run, but Jarrett had wont he title numerous times before and proved he was a worthy contender even recent to that date.
Then the same thing happened. The WWF forgot what they were doing with Jarrett and forgot everything they had learned about the man. Instead, he lost and re-won the IC title and began beating women. It was this that led to him being in a feud with Chyna over the IC title. Jarrett, to his credit, actually jobbed the title to Chyna, never complaining. This was actually one day past the end of Jarrett's contract with the WWF. He did not have to do the job, he could have walked away with the title and thrown it away on Nitro. Many people chagrin Jarrett for this, saying he held up the WWF and Vince for money. This is not true as Jarrett just wanted all the back pay owed to him in PPV and merchandise sales. You don't leave a job without getting the money you are owed, especially when you are going to the competition. The WWE had let Jarrett down before, and he was not about to let them screw him out of money he was owed.
Also during the time, Steve Austin decided to squash any ideas of working with Jarrett or having Jarrett get into any high profile feuds. Austin was vindictive from the territory days when he felt that he was screwed over by Jeff's father, and that Jeff had been rude to him. So instead of doing business right and putting his personal feelings aside (see: Ric Flair vs. Mick Foley), Austin decided to intentionally try to hurt another wrestler's career.
No, Jarrett knew that there was no chance for him to grow in the WWF, so he went back to where he had the most success. Of course, it helped that his best friend just became head booker over there.
All that and we still haven't got to TNA! My word! Well, first it's WCW, part deux!
Now it's time to be chosen
All right, where were in Mathew Sforcina's Evolution Schematic for Jeff Jarrett (Part 3):
Jarrett ran out and I his first act back in WCW broke a trademarked guitar over Buff Bagwell's head, seconds after Bagwell had lost to La Parka. Jarrett's second act was to talk about how much he hated the WWF and certain people there. His third act, perhaps, was to lay out Elizabeth with a guitar. It's hard to say if he did that or not, he left his Women Hating days behind him at the WWF. But his first major act was to confirm that he was The Chosen One of the Powers That Be, and that he would be the PTB (Vince Russo)'s main man. He would continue to get up in Bagwell's grill (i.e. hit him over the head with his guitar as often as possible) leading into the World Title Tournament to crown a new champ after Hogan, Goldberg and Sting had controversy and stuff. Really, any excuse to hold a tourney. Everyone loves a tourney.
Jarrett had a tough, but successful run to the semis of the tourney, getting past Booker T (impressive), Curt Hennig (expected) and Bagwell (thankfully). But then at Mayhem in the semi final against Chris Benoit, Creative Control (Russo's hired goons, a.k.a The Harris Twins) came out and screwed up, allowing Benoit to grab Jarrett's guitar and use it on Jeff to advance to the finals. Jarrett took his anger out on Disco Inferno as he headed to the back.
Jarrett then was convinced by Russo to leave the World title for now. Jarrett was ok with this, since Russo promised him success without the belt, and that's all he wanted. At Starrcade, Jarrett won the Bunkhouse match against PTB enemy Dustin Rhodes with help from Hennig. He then helped Nash beat Sid with (what else?) a guitar shot. However, third time was not a charm, as when Jarrett replaced an injured Scott Hall in the US title ladder match against Benoit, Benoit had little trouble beating the tired Jarrett to win the title.
Jarrett's new WCW career was off to a start, but not as much of a start as the re-writers of history would like us to believe. You see, despite being friends with Russo and being the Chosen One, Jarrett was not immediately just thrust into the top of the card. Although heavily profiled, this was mostly because WCW was going in a new direction under Russo, a creative direction WCW had never been in before. Russo, like many of the great wrestlers in the past that we've covered, saw Jarrett as someone who could be built as a huge star.
Jarrett was 32 at this time, still young enough to be built around the future (as Russo had a penchant for younger wrestlers [see: Billy Kidman vs. Hulk Hogan]), but had 13 years of in-ring experience that made him a veteran. Of course, that did not even come close to including his true experience from growing up the son of a regional wrestling promoter.
But WCW was in an incredibly turbulent phase. Vince Russo was pushing the buttons of everyone, money was beginning to be lost, and the departure of Bischoff left the company without a true head. Although Russo was in charge of storylines, he was not in charge of the business. In reality, nobody truly was as temporary heads from Turner Sports and TBS would make their presence known.
Meanwhile, Jarrett managed to capture the US title from Chris Benoit with much shenanigans. But what happened later that night was more important as Jarrett joined with Bret Hart, Scott Hall, and Kevin Nash to form nWo 2000 (Black & Silver). This, though, did not again lead to success. From Accelerator3359:
Jarrett feuded with Benoit for the next few weeks, as well as joining Nash in his fight against the Commissioner, Terry Funk. Because of this, Funk put Jarrett into three matches during a Monday Nitro, against Funk's old friends. Jarrett lost all three, falling to George "The Animal" Steele, Tito Santana, & "Superfly" Jimmy Snuka. During the final match, which was fought in a steel cage, Snuka jumped off the top and tried a splash, but accidentally hit Jarrett in the head with his knee, giving him a concussion. Due to the injury, Jarrett was forced to vacate the US belt, and did not have his scheduled "Triple Theatre" match with Benoit at Souled Out '00.
Despite being plugged into the most important group in WCW and being best friends with the booker, Jarrett was still going out and doing his job. He did not make demands or have his friend give him huge wins. He went out there and lost to three non-regulars (and ones way past the use by date). The injury was a setback, but he was able to come back and regain the US title when then Commissioner Kevin Nash (having won the right from Terry Funk) gave the belt back to Jarrett.
But then more interesting things happened. Vince Russo was ousted from WCW and WCW was without a creative head, nonetheless a business head. This, as you can imagine, led to some levels of insanity in WCW storylines, and Jarrett was no exception. From the Accelerator:
Jarrett then added the Harris Brothers to the nWo, making them his personal allies in his battles to retain the belt. When Nash was injured, he handed over the responsibilities of the Commissionership to Jarrett, who used the power to battle against the current World Champion, Sid Vicious. But Jarrett & the Harris Brothers had trouble combating Sid, and when Nash returned a few weeks later, he stripped Jarrett of the power, taking it back for himself.
This caused friction between Jarrett & Nash, especially after Nash made a #1 Contenders match for the World Title shot between his 'friends' Jarrett and Hall, which ended in a Double Disqualification. Nash then opted to make the match at Superbrawl X a Triangle match between Jarrett, Hall, and the World Champion, Sid Vicious. He also announced that the Harris Brothers were barred from ringside, which was too much for Jarrett, who bashed Nash with his guitar, putting Big Sexy out of action and causing even more heat between Jarrett and Hall.
At Superbrawl X, Jarrett made things better for himself, as he took over the Commissioner spot once again. He changed the ruling, allowing the Harris Brothers at ringside, giving him an edge against the other two opponents. During the fight, many referees were taken out, usually by Jarrett. It soon became apparant that Jarrett had been doing it on purpose, as Jarrett's personal referee, Mark Johnson, came out and took over, making Jarrett a serious favorite to win the belt. However, "Rowdy" Roddy Piper then reappeared, wearing a referee's shirt, and took out Johnson, taking over the match. Jarrett was then taken out by Vicious' Powerbomb, ending the match and causing a loss for Jarrett.
In the next month, a furious Jarrett, still carrying the powers of the Commissionership, continued to go after Vicious at every opportunity, bringing the Harris Brothers with him. He assigned himself a rematch at Uncensored '00, where he again faced off against Vicious for the World Title. During the match, the referee was once again taken out, bringing Johnson to the ring, who began to make fast counts for Jarrett. Hulk Hogan then came out, however, stopping the counts and tossing Johnson to the wind. He then attacked Jarrett, beating on him, which allowed Vicious to come back and get the Powerbomb. Once again, due to outside interference, Jarrett had missed his chance to be the World Champion.
But then something amazing happened! Russo was back, and he was with Bischoff. After a week off, WCW "reset" and all the champions were stripped of their titles. It was an incredibly refreshing time in WCW, one filled with great excitement. Unfortunately, Bischoff was mostly just a consultant and on-air character, nobody was really in charge of WCW, and Russo was making rash decisions because his choices were being changed on him. From John Milner at Slam! Sports:
At Spring Stampede 2000, Jarrett defeated Diamond Dallas Page in the finals of a tournament to win the vacant World Heavyweight title. Page would, in turn, defeat Jarrett on April 24, 2000 to end Jarrett's title reign but a second title reign would begin when Jarrett defeated Page and David Arquette in a "Ready to Rumble" match.
On May 15th, 2000, Ric Flair would defeat Jarrett for the belt, but the title would be stripped from Flair and Jarrett would defeat Kevin Nash for the vacant belt a week later. This latest title reign would last only two days, as Nash would win a Three-Way Dance involving Jarrett and Scott Steiner but Jarrett would, of course, regain the title.
So four title reigns in two months! Something else? But if you were Jarrett, what could you do? Jarrett was doing everything possible to get over the New Blood and make WCW a fighting organization again. Was he to refuse the world title? No! He knew that he was the future of wrestling, and wanted the chance to prove it. Unfortunately, no time with the title and quick decisions by Time Warner Corporate led to excessive demands being put on Russo for changes. And then came the Bash… at the Beach…
Chop it down with the side of my hand
In what can only be described as one of the most controversial moments in wrestling history, Jeff Jarrett laid down for Hulk Hogan in the middle of the ring. From In Defense of… Hulk Hogan (Part 3 of 4):
Coming into Bash at the Beach 2000, Hogan was to [challenge for the] World Heavyweight Championship against Jeff Jarrett. Hogan came to the PPV prepared to drop the [match], but under one condition: he wanted to know what the plan was for him afterwards. He was fine with dropping the [match] to Jarrett and understood that WCW was going in a new direction. Hogan understood that a new generation of wrestlers had to be created.
But when he went to Russo the day of the PPV and asked him what the plan for Hulk Hogan was after the PPV, Russo said, "Nothing."
Russo had absolutely no plans to use Hogan after the event! How can a booker have absolutely no plans for Hulk Hogan? The least he could have done was continue to use him in the New Blood storyline, putting over anyone from Scott Steiner to Booker T. But he had to plans for Hogan. He was essentially saying he was going to bury Hogan in favor of everyone else.
This was the final straw for Hogan. For the first time EVER he used his creative control clause to change the ending of the match. Russo was furious at Hogan, but Hogan was trying to protect his job. It wasn't him fighting the new wave of wrestlers of a change in direction; it was him fighting for his legacy.
With this decision, Russo told Jarrett to go out and just lay down, giving Hogan the "Hulk Hogan Memorial Belt" and then stripping Hogan of the World Title and putting it up in a match between Booker T and Jeff Jarrett later in the night. But that would not be before Hogan was verbally taken apart by Russo in the middle of the ring, breaking kayfabe in a way no one ever had before. Hogan left WCW and sued the company and Russo for defamation of character. Hogan's time in WCW was over in July 2000.
You see, there was no controversy between Hogan and Jarrett. Hogan felt Jarrett was worthy of defeating him. If there were any hard feelings, then why would Hogan have agreed to let Jarrett hit him over the head with a guitar in Japan? Jarrett and Hogan were of the same mindset: it's a business and they are the product. It was Russo's relationship with Hogan that was strained, and Jarrett was just doing the company's bidding. If Jarrett refused to go out there and lay down for Hogan, what would happen to him? He may have been friends with Russo, but he had already lost the title enough times to know that his reign was tenuous as best, as was all of WCW. Besides, he still lost the title to Booker T later in the night, as Russo and others wanted work with the future King Booker and move him up the card as well.
This incident also led to Bischoff completely leaving WCW until the week before the Night of Champions (aka, the season finale of WCW). WCW spiraled out of control for the following months and into 2001, and Russo was ousted once and for all. Jeff Jarrett never regained the World Title, but he did put over the champion Booker T again as well as Scott Steiner when he had the title. WCW had a brief glimmer of hope when Eric Bischoff and Fusient Media Ventures looked to purchase WCW. But as soon as AOL-Time Warner corporate mysteriously cancelled their top-rated show, the deal was off and Vince McMahon and the WWF bought WCW.
On the final Nitro and during the RAW simulcast, Vince McMahon polled the audience on many members of the WCW roster and what the crowd through of them. But in a final humiliate, Vince let his feelings about Jarrett be known as he "fired" him over the air (in reality, just not picking up his contract).
Sure, Vince has the right to not want to do business with Jarrett nor absorb his contract. That is fine. But he purposely went out his way to try to ruin a man's career. And why? Because he was still vindictive over the thought that Jarrett had screwed him out of money when he left for WCW. As we covered last issue, Jarrett was just trying to recover what was owed him from his time in the WWF and did not want to leave the company without the money he was owed. He was just doing smart business. This is just another example of Vince's hypocrisy with his policies and beliefs. I'm sure in a DVD review, Vince would say something (like he did in the Rise and Fall of ECW) that he is not sure why he (Vince) would do such actions, and that he should regret them. But Vince knows why, and the reasons are listed quite clearly here.
Jarrett, unlike many wrestlers, could actually get out of his contract in a rather short fashion, and did not turn to Vince McMahon for work. Instead, he helped the World Wrestling All-Stars get off the ground by joining the tour. From Slam!:
[Jarrett]joined the World Wrestling All-Stars on a tour of Australia, joining such stars as Buff Bagwell and Bret Hart. Jarrett's tenure with the WWA was highlighted by being crowned the first WWA Champion, defeating his former roadie, the Road Dogg, in the finals of a tournament on October 26th, 2001.
Jarrett would retain the WWA Championship at several house shows before losing it to Nathan Jones during a four corners bout (that also featured Scott Steiner and "Grandmaster Sexay" Brian Christopher) on April 7th 2002.
It was a short time, but Jarrett enjoyed touring the world and working with many of his friends. But it also wet his appetite for something more.
It's a big world
Over the spring of Summer 2002, Jarrett and his father, along with some other financial backers, got together to form Total Non-Stop Action Entertainment, an affiliate of the NWA. In a matter of months, they were able to secure a weekly two-hour PPV block, exclusive rights to the NWA World Heavyweight and World Tagteam Championships, and a roster mixing old, new, and misused stars. In June 2002, NWA: TNA launched on PPV, changing wrestling in the twenty-first century forever.
And I can not leave this part without stressing this point huge: Jarrett put up HIS OWN MONEY in order to help create TNA. Jarrett took a huge financial and personal gambit in order to get TNA off the ground and running. He didn't have to do that. Jarrett had enough money to retire comfortably, and Jerry Jarrett had plenty of other side businesses that he did not need wrestling. Instead he risked it all for the possibility of creating a new business, for taking it to Vince McMahon, and to make sure there was another place for all his fellow wrestlers to work.
By this time, the InVasion had been a complete disaster and it was apparent that the WWF had no idea how to use former WCW stars (or did not want to use them). At that, without WCW a whole chunk of the wrestling audience had completely disappeared.
On the final Nitro, WCW scored a 3.0 rating and RAW a 4.6, thus a total audience of 7.6. This was far from the peak of a combined 11.0 seen just a year and half back, but there was still a much larger audience. But what did RAW Score in the following weeks?
DATE
RAW RATING
2-Apr-01
5.7
9-Apr-01
5.4
16-Apr-01
5.1
23-Apr-01
5.1
30-Apr-01
5.0
7-May-01
4.6
14-May-01
4.5
21-May-01
4.2
28-May-01
4.2
4-Jun-01
4.3
11-Jun-01
4.1
Immediately, ratings dropped almost 2.0 points. That means that millions of people just stopped watching wrestling that night! And as the weeks went on, the audience continued to degrade. Not everyone like the WWF-style. There is a whole echelon of southern-style, catch-as-catch-can style, and free-base style wrestling fans out there that were not being serviced.
In this, Jarrett saw the opportunity. Once again, let us not forget that he had grown up in the territory days and understood what the business was like before a national company. Because of that, and his travels, he knew that there was a difference in the audiences, and an audience was not getting what they wanted. Jarrett was not looking to necessarily steal the WWE's audience, but was also looking to recapture all those wrestling fans that had been lost, seemingly forever.
Things got off to a rocky start as within a couple of months the other financials backers of TNA backed out. Since PPV revenues take upwards of 6 months to clear, TNA was about to go under. But did Jarrett give up? Absolutely not! Instead he found a new backer in Panda Energy, who became majority shareholder, corporate parent, and good friend. Because of that profound sacrifice by Jarrett, giving up control of his company, TNA was able to celebrate its forth anniversary just a few months ago.
Also during this time, Jarrett did not put himself at the top of the card, nor with the championship. The title went from Ken Shamrock to Ron Killings while Jarrett feuded with the likes Bill Behrns, Bob Armstrong, and Apollo. This would all finally change in six months at a PPV in November. From Accelerator3359:
Having finally earned his World Title shot, Jarrett got his chance on the November 20th, 2002 PPV, to wrestle Ron Killings. In a bloody match that featured chairs, guitars, & tables, the two men fought it out for the belt. In the end, Mr. Wrestling III suddenly appeared and hit Killings with a guitar shot, allowing Jarrett to get the victory and become the NWA World Heavyweight Champion! The mystery man then unmasked to reveal former WCW booker Vince Russo. Jarrett defeated Killings in a rematch for the belt the next week, this time ignoring Russo's attempt to help and instead beating Killings with 3 straight Strokes. For the rest of the year, the puzzle was whether Jarrett was joining Russo's Sports Entertainment eXtreme, or S.E.X. On one December card, Jarrett stayed the NWA World Champion over Curt Hennig, thanks to Russo's interference. But on the final December '02 PPV, Jarrett decided that he wouldn't be joining Russo. This led to S.E.X. beating down Jarrett. Jarrett came back later in the night to attack S.E.X., but was surprised and beaten down by AJ Styles, who joined Russo's team.
TNA was again going in a new direction, or just starting to find a direction. TNA did not know what it stood for yet, and so a lot of new things were being tried. One of those things was AJ Styles, who would go on to dethrone Jarrett not once, not twice, but three times, more than anyone else in TNA.
The times that Jarrett did have the belt, he was always out touring. He went to the small independent shows, the WWAS tours, the international dates, always representing TNA and the NWA. Christian Cage made a few sporadic appearances outside of TNA TV and PPV with the title, but Jarrett has taken it around the world. Say what you will about his death grip on the title, but Jarrett has always gone the extra step to defend the title represent TNA everywhere he went.
Meanwile, TNA moved from having a weekly PPV to an odd spot on FSN (not available in all markets) along with some syndicated television. Jarrett then convinced the rest of the owners of TNA to let the deal expire and work to get a deal that was good for TNA over the summer. That eventually led the organization to Spike, but that was hardly the definitive outcome. WGN was possibility for a while, and while they may have gotten a better timeslot than Saturday at 11pm, they would have been in far fewer homes. No, Jarrett helped take another risk because he wanted to make TNA succeed.
Does he have selfish reasons? Of course. He wants to get his investment back. He wants to make boatload of money. He wants his legacy etched into the sky forever. He wants to stick it to Vince McMahon. He wants everyone to see him as a genius on many levels.
But he also has many selfless motives, too.
Have you ever tried to protect a mountain?
Despite wanting to keep himself over, Jarrett does think highly of others on the TNA roster. From the TNA chat with Jeff Jarrett in 2003:
Submitted Question: Who is the best wrestler in TNA after you of course[?]
Jeff Jarrett: Well, you'll have to get more specific if you want an exact answer.
Best Technical? In my opinion, Chris Daniels is very technically sound. A couple guys in X Division that are very technically sound but [if] you're looking at a style and "the best wrestler" at displaying a persona? Monty Brown has unlimited potential. Abyss has the ability to work many different styles. Some would consider him to be the best in TNA.
Interesting choice of people, especially his comments on Abyss. And we know that these are people that have been featured on TNA television and surrounded around Jarrett for some time. He is trying to help bring them up, and he wants their talent to make himself look better. And what is wrong with that? Remember: Jarrett has JUST turned 39. Despite being around for a very long time, he is still very young and has many more productive years to add to the product. He does not need to completely step away, just slightly change his role.
And who knows where this current title reign is going? It seems that this time it may be his last as a transition role. He was the champion for a while because he was the most recognizable name in TNA, and Spike TV wanted someone who they thought the audience would know. Now that TNA has earned a lot of trust with Spike, they were allowed to make more changes that they wanted.
When it comes to the audience at the iMPACT Zone, I do not find them a fair gauge. Yes, they chant derogatory remarks at Jarrett demanding his dropping of the title, but that audience is the second most smarky in the business (next to ROH, of course). There are over a million regular viewers of TNA every week now, and we cannot believe that 200 people represent the entire audience. As entertaining as that audience is, they also do things just to be a part of the antidisestablishmentarianism movement. There was a "heel section" that had to be broken up, if you want proof.
No, out of a million people, more see Jarrett as he is portrayed on TV than the dictator of TNA. Granted the audience of TNA is among the smart mark crowd, there is also a much wider base now. That base will continue to grow, and so too will the reactions of crowds change. Anyone who has seen Jarrett live knows how different the crowds in other parts of the country react to him.
But as high conveyers of wrestling news and programming, we are apt to take the iMPACT zone reaction as dogma. This is not what is true reality, though it is hard to accept given what is seen on TNA iMPACT every week.
And what does Jarrett think about his time in TNA. From the chat:
Submitted Question: What's it like wrestling for TNA? Do you have fun?
Jeff Jarrett: I absolutely have fun! It's a 24/7 situation. I don't like to call it a job because wrestling has always been my passion. My family's been in the business for 3 generations. It's in my blood. In early 2002 me and my family "hatched this idea" and it has been a dog fight every step of the way but makes the good times all the more rewarding.
More importantly, what does Jarrett think of the belt he holds in his hands now?
Submitted Question: Hey Jeff what do you feel when you wrestle and held the NWA World Title belt here in TNA!
Jeff Jarrett: The World Title is something I always dreamed of attaining. Everyone knows this is a business first and foremost, but that being said, gaining the title you grew up watching is a great feeling.
Yes, Jarrett wants to be a champion, but he's about the business first. He has a long term interest in making sure TNA succeeds, and wants to see it go long beyond him. But he still has many years left in that ring, and is going to use them to cement his legacy and put over the next generation ready to take his place.
Swing that guitar
Jeff Jarrett is the last of the old school. His history is long and storied in this sport, and he was met with much resistance as he went. Nothing was easy for Jarrett, and he could have given up at any time. Instead, he worked hard to create a business of himself, setting up deals that no one thought were possible, moving on when he decided it was right. He never just let himself sell out for money or pushes, but always went where the opportunities would be the best. And when the opportunities were not in the existing companies, he dared to put everything on the line to start another organization. In that short time, he has dominated a promotion he is part owner of, but for good reason. He is still young and has much to offer. It is now the time that he can begin to move aside for the next generation, but not before establishing a platform for them to take.
Misunderstood? Yes. Needlessly berated? Yes. Turbulent history forgotten? Yes. True Champion? Most definitely.
The defense rests.
Hung Jury
Well everyone, that wraps up our twenty-eighth case. So what do you think?
And please take into consideration the rules (well, they're more what you might call guidelines than rules) of a fair court system:
(1) All parties, events, circumstances, etc… are innocent until proven guilty. In this court, the defendants have already been found guilty without trial, and so therefore this is an appeals court. Finding a defendant guilty means you disagree with the evidence presented.
(2) The jury must find the defendant guilty beyond reasonable doubt. That means that if there is doubt in your mind that the defendant is guilty, then you cannot find the appellant guilty. Reasonable doubt means that the average person, looking at the facts presented, could not find the defendant guilty on all counts despite personal feelings.
(3) This is a court of fact, not fiction. Fantasies of what could have been or should have been do not fly here; especially fantasies of the impossible (such as a wrestler not getting injured at an untimely moment). All we have is what did actually occur and the intentions of those being accused.
(4) A defendant cannot be judged by events outside the case at hand. For example, if we were trying a particular contract signing by a wrestling promoter, you cannot use that ten years later that wrestler died from a heart attack relating to the drug use that the wrestler started when he signed with the promoter. One has nothing to do with the other in terms of the case at hand.
(5) You do not have to like the accused before or after the case at hand, and a vote of not guilty does not change your personal preferences. You can make it clear that you feel the accused is the worst thing you have ever seen, but if the facts compel you to see that the accused cannot be found guilty beyond reasonable doubt, then voting guilty would be unconscionable.
And if you have any more questions about the rules, my writing style, the In Defense Of… creed, or what I do and don't do or why I do or don't do it, please see Issue #52.
Keeping the rules of this court in mind…
IN THE CASE OF THE IWC VS. JEFF JARRETT, JEFF JARRETT HAS BEEN ACCUSED OF BEING A NO-TALENT WRESTLER WHO SELFISHLY USES EVERYONE ELSE TO JUST PUT HIMSELF OVER AND NEVER DID ANYTHING TO GIVE BACK TO THE BUSINESS OR MAKE ANYTHING BEYOND HIS OWN EGO.
Sorry for the slight delay. If you read Hidden Highlights, you would know I had some power issues. Power being electricity, not stroke. That gave me some time to write a few extra paragraphs though, so it's all good.
I am a bit worried about this case, but we'll have to see how the votes go. Could this be my first loss? Do people hate Jarrett more than the Ultimate Warrior or the Fingerpoke of Doom? This will be most interesting.
As a spinoff of this case, I wanted to look at the circumstances that led to Jarrett's departure from the WWF and the lasting impact on the industry today. So when we return it is: In Defense of… Chyna Winning the IC Championship (Part 1 of 1)!!!!
In the meantime, be sure to check out Hidden Highlights—the most positive article in the IWC, as voted on by you, the readers! Don't forget to send JT and I your Hidden Highlights for anything you saw this or any week!
Until then, the next time you read some throwaway line presented as fact, challenge it. The truth matters, and you have a right to know.
Know a particular person, event, organization, storyline, etc… in wrestling history that needs a defense? E-mail the One and Only JP at lookforme@mikefine.com, and I'll be glad to hear your case.
