Jim Cornette Discusses Hulk Hogan To TNA, ROH, MMA, More

Posted by Larry Csonka on 11.02.2009

Jim Cornette’s latest Q&A…

- Jim Cornette has posted a new Q&A, here are the highlights…

On Hogan and Bischoff To TNA: Oh, this whole thing reminds me of why I hate corporate wrestling. I must admit there are bright spots, like imagining Vince McMahon's face and blood pressure when he heard the news, or hearing Hogan bitchslap Vince Russo by saying they'd be OK if "he stays in his place." Can TNA make their minds up, LAST month everybody had to be "100% behind Russo's creative direction" and THIS month they hire a guy who once SUED him for his lousy booking? They have reunited the same team that helped WCW lose more money than any wrestling promotion in history.

On ROH: In the old territory days, when business was drastically down, even in danger of folding up, you would "hotshot" the territory. You would give them as much blood, violence, heat, angles and edgy content as you could get away with, until the fans either came back or the territory closed down. If they came back, the art was to pull the hotshotting back soon enough and get them hooked on the wrestling again, before it got to where you "couldn't follow it", and you closed up anyway. The base of it all was still two guys are gonna fight, who's gonna win? With the corporate world involved, the ratings wars, WWF vs. WCW, WWE vs. TNA, etc., wrestling has been hotshotted for 15 years straight, and it's finally gotten to where we can't follow it. So many angles and so many bumps, with special effects and outrageous stunts and preposterous stories and hardcore matches with buckets of blood.

On MMA: The rise of UFC in particular and MMA in general has shown that people have a desire to strip away the hokey bullshit and get back down to the base of it--two guys are gonna fight, who's gonna win? Whether it's "real" or not is about number 5 on the list of reasons the UFC is kicking wrestling's ass. People want to see two guys, charismatic, colorful, and athletic, engage in an exciting contest with flashy moves or hard strikes ending with one guy winning, sometimes in a controversial fashion and often necessitating a rematch. That describes both MMA and pro wrestling. They will pay to see that when properly promoted. They will watch sports entertainment on TV for free, but it's getting harder and harder to get people to get attached enough to "sports entertainment", presented outright as scripted entertainment and generally comedic in nature, to buy it on PPV or at the arenas.

On The WWE Hall Of Fame: Not much and no. Obviously, they have not been beating my door down nor do I expect them to, but here's my feelings. It started as a WWF Hall of Fame just so they could have a dinner before Wrestlemania. Vince picked who he wanted to put in it, and only WWF stars or personnel made it, so you got James Dudley (Vince Sr.'s limo driver). Bruno Sammartino is still not in. Then, when Vince bought WCW, they changed it to a Hall of Fame for ALL wrestling, and Vince still picks who he wants in. If he's doing a big video release on you, or you were over in the city WM appears in, you're in. There's a quota of not too many dead people per year so it's not a downer. If he's mad at you, you're not in. If he doesn't know who you are, you're not in. Lou Thesz is not in. So seriously, even though there have been some genuinely great moments at the dinner, that was due to the talent themselves and not the prestige of Vince's HOF. There are certainly people in there that would be in any HOF, and some that wouldn't. Overall, I am prouder of both myself and both versions of the Midnight Express being in the Wrestling Observer Hall of Fame, because in that one, you are actually VOTED in by people in and around the sport.

- You can read the full Q&A here.