411 Fact or Fiction 5.24.07: TNA Giving Away Matches, The HBK Concussion Angle and More!

Posted by Larry Csonka on 05.24.2007

Week ONE-HUNDRED and TWENTY-EIGHT of Fact or Fiction returns and discusses if the WWE really HAS to turn to Randy Orton with the plethora of injuries!

Welcome back to another week of 411 Fact or Fiction: Wrestling Edition! This week, two 411 Wrestling standouts collide as The Original SMARK Superstar Mathew Sforcina does battle with Joshi lover Matt Adamson!

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Let's get to it!

1. TNA giving away the first Sting vs. Samoa Joe match on free TV is another bad business move.

Mathew Sforcina: Fact. Right now, NOTHING seems to be working for TNA to bump up the ratings. No matter what they do, be it matches, angles, the works, nothing is bumping the ratings up any. And really, it's not what they should be aiming for. PPV buys are the key. They'll get their second hour eventually, but until then, they need to focus on selling PPVs. And Sting/Joe, while not the first dream match for either man that springs to mind, is one that could, if built properly, sell. It still can, but it's not the best move, for a company that has a hard time focusing on the major issues. Unless Spike is about to fire them for low ratings or something...

Matt Adamson: Fact. The idea of this boggles my mind. While personally I don't really care too terribly about this match, it is a passing of the torch type match that TNA is burning away for nothing. Sforcina is right in that they should be focused on Pay Per View buys, that is unless they are in bad shape with Spike TV. From every report I've read however, it would seem as though Spike is pleased with the ratings Impact is getting, so why aren't they in turn now focusing on making some actual money? You got me there, I have no idea, and I really don't think anybody in TNA management really has a clue either. Every time they do this they blow a huge chunk of potential PPV change. If you look back to the PPV that drew the most for TNA, it was one that featured a first ever meeting of two of their top stars. You'd think they would have learned from this but alas, they didn't learn a damn thing. There were a good dozen original matches between their top superstars that they could have had main event several Pay Per Views, but that number is quickly declining in favor of television ratings that aren't improving at all and aren't making them any money. It's a shame.

Score: 1 for 1


2. Bobby Lashley is not ready to be the top star of any WWE Brand.

Mathew Sforcina: Fiction. He's as ready as he'll ever be, provided they A) Stop pushing him like Cena (and how sad is it that I could have put Stone Cold or Hogan there and the point was still made), and B) GIVE HIM A MANAGER OR VALET TO SPEAK FOR HIM. If he had those, he'd be able to carry ECW as a brand as either Face or Heel. He has a look, some charisma and enough talent to get by, they just need to use it correctly. If you had said Raw or SD, then it's Fact. But ECW...yeah. If they use him right.

Matt Adamson: Fact. I agree with Sforcina in that he is as ready as he'll ever be, but I don't think that is ready enough. It's pretty much been the standard that a guy who can effectively be the top star of a brand has to have a great amount of charisma or have a manager that is a superb mouthpiece that can get the guy over on his words alone. The push he is currently getting is a "top guy" type push, but he isn't ready to be the top guy. That's not to say he shouldn't be champion. Being champion of a brand doesn't mean that he is the top guy (See: Benoit 2004). I see ECW as more of a testing ground to see if a guy can be the top star of Raw or Smackdown and so far in my eyes, Lashley is a failure in that way. It's not entirely his fault though. While he is supposed to be the top star of ECW, the brand is in no way built around him. How am I supposed to buy a guy who is hardly on the show he's supposed to be on, while spending most of his time on the other shows? Lashley just isn't ready to be a top guy, not only because of his lack of charisma, but also because WWE doesn't know how to make somebody a top guy in the only brand he might actually be ready to take over at the top.

Score: 1 for 2


3. With Shawn Michaels down with his latest knee injury, WWE will have no choice but to turn to Randy Orton to fill the void.

Mathew Sforcina: Fiction. Chris Benoit, Finlay, Carlito, Flair, Punk, Shelton, Burke, Monty Brown, MVP, The Hardys, hell, even Sandman if done right, could all fill the void with a small amount of effort. They'll go with Orton, and it's a bad choice, but it's still a choice.

Matt Adamson: Fiction. With brand exclusivity down the toilet, I think a lot of the guys Sforcina mentioned are great prospects, especially with Benoit rumored to be heading to Raw (though I would imagine plans have changed with Smackdown's injuries.) I think they are also running with Khali for a longer program and can use Umaga as they need him. Mark Henry is another solid choice as he was booked as a monster before his injury. They could at the very least build a believable program around Cena vs. Henry. If they wanted to take a big change, Johnny Nitro is the perfect anti-hero to Cena but pushing him to that level would take some serious work as they have just seemingly started moving him down the card a little. If you want to talk money, Val Venis and the Money Shot would be money. Ha! While it is likely they will go with Orton, and I'm not terribly thrilled about it, better now than come WrestleMania 24.

Score: 2 for 3


---SWITCH!!!---


4. Considering that WWE supports Chris Nowinski and his crusade in the effects of concussions and post concussion syndrome, the whole Shawn Michaels angle comes off in bad taste.

Matt Adamson: Fiction. In the history of the WWE, off the top of my head I can think of a couple dozen angles that have been done in bad taste. Like just about everything from the McMahon infighting stuff to the infamous Katie Vick angle to McMahon vs. God. I think lumping this angle in with those other very distasteful angles isn't right. This is an injury angle and while I think the wrong message is sent, I do not think it is done in bad taste. Something that should have been considered however is that after watching this a person who is uneducated about the seriousness of concussions might think they are safe by going about their usual business without getting a concussion taken care of ASAP. I would be a shame that somebody received that message from watching this. I also think that this angle can result in education of the effects of concussions. It would be great if they were able to verbally acknowledge the Nowinski issue and his efforts when bringing up this angle on TV, in which case I think there is potential for this to be a good thing. One can only hope, right?

Mathew Sforcina: Fiction. As much as I appreciate the tone of the question, and Matt's wonderful answer... Fact is, Shawn has a (kayfabe) history of concussion. Ergo, using it in an angle isn't really bound by taste, just by history and logic. Now, had he come out in Harvard gear and run into a brick wall a dozen times, then you might have an argument. But this is no more or no less in good or bad taste than anything else in Pro Wrestling.

Score: 3 for 4


5. RVD will appear on TNA TV/PPV by October.

Matt Adamson: Fact. It's hard to really predict something like this because you never really know somebody's intent with their career unless they make it public. Since RVD hasn't made it public at this point what he plans on doing after his contract with WWE is up, we can only assume that TNA is the logical next step. He has worked for Vince and Company for the last 6 years and my guess is that it's quite easy to become worn out by being on the road so often. I figure that at the very least he is considering TNA as an option and by the look of TNA, I bet it's a fairly attractive option for a guy like RVD. The pay is decent and the workload is very light by comparison to the WWE's rough schedule. I'm not going to count my chickens just yet, but I'd imagine that plans are already being made regarding when and how RVD will make his TNA debut and if it doesn't happen before Bound For Glory, they won't hold out beyond that.

Mathew Sforcina: Faction. RVD will not appear on TNA TV. Robbie B. Damned or some such will. It's all about the trademarks. I just feel like nitpicking. I suppose FACT if you want a proper answer, if you don't like giving us a 3.5 out of 6 or whatever there Bossman.

Score: 3.5 for 5


6. Having all of the matches on the One Night Stand III card be, "Extreme Rules Matches" is a good gimmick for the PPV.

Matt Adamson: Fact. This one took some real thinking. A Pay Per View full off gimmick matches is usually rough to watch, however if done right, as the last two One Night Stand's have been done, it can be a very fun night of wrestling. I think this show will confuse some people into thinking it's going to be similar to the previous two, but it's already been made perfectly clear that this is not ECW One Night Stand; this is WWE One Night Stand. The two matches already booked are Bobby Lashley vs. Vince McMahon and John Cena vs. The Great Khali. I know, it's looking pretty bleak so far, but what can be done to make this Pay Per View stand apart from the rest, just like it has for the past two years? Make it an all "Extreme Rules" Pay Per View. This is the first month since the return to all PPV's being all brand shows that has featured two Pay Per Views in a single month. I can't imagine having the show double up in a month with Vengeance unless they wanted to make one of the shows considerably different than the other.

Mathew Sforcina: Fact. Hands up all those who think this is a good idea. Now hands up all those who think TNA's Lockdown is a crappy idea.

Now that I've pointed out the WWE Fanboys, this is a good idea. With so many PPVs now, WWE needs something to distinguish them. Expect a bit more of this sort of thing. They'll probably bring back KOTR, create a PPV with all World, Tag and Women titles on the line or something, maybe a huge ass brawl PPV (The Deadly Game match concept), anything to distinguish and thus make more PPVs much watch.

Score: 4.5 for 6


These two finish 4.5 for 6! Join us next week for more Fact or Fiction!