On the first ever edition of "Tha O Show Radio Hour", Frank Fronte mentioned that having a championship belt signifies you as the best at what you do. I realize that his statement was aimed at the MMA world and not professional wrestling, but a statement like that gives a good springboard into what I'm so damn hot about right now.On July 13th, 2007, TNA will present their next pay-per-view, Victory Road. The main event, as announced last night on "iMPACT!", will be the "Match Of Champions" - a match in which the TNA Heavyweight and X Division Champions will team up to take on the TNA Tag Team Champions.
Whoever gets the decisive pinfall or submission wins the belt of the man he pinned or made to submit. This idea is garbage.
When this match was first announced, I reacted with a slight stare of confusion. These four men have no history in particular, and all could be doing better things. Then Jim Cornette announced that all three titles would be defended between last night and the next pay-per-view...which is when it hit me. TNA is trying to pull a WWE by letting belts go to waste in order to build a feud!
The proof? Your new X Division Champion is Samoa Joe. Now, I may be one of the biggest Joe marks on this site, but I say that giving him the title again is pointless. Jay Lethal could have become a posterboy for your X Division. Yes, he's a blatant Macho Man ripoff, but he does it so well that even the most jaded smark (I'm looking at you, Big Daddy Donnie) loves what this guy is doing.
But instead of letting Black Machismo have a long run with the title, and letting him gain some steam and some new TNA fans along the way, they throw the belt on Samoa Joe in order to build up another Joe VS. Angle match. The belt that should set TNA apart from WWE is now an afterthought to a storyline that the E already has done several times.The writing for this is on the wall. Without even looking at spoilers, I can confidently say that Kurt Angle will retain his title next week against Cage and Rhino (I'll even make an extra wager saying that Rhino is the guy he pins or makes submit), and Team 3D will retain their championships. Angle and Joe will go over at Victory Road, and TNA will use the tag titles to build towards a Joe VS. Angle match for the TNA Championship.
It's unfortunate that TNA is deciding to go this route in order to build interest in the return of a feud. Perhaps if Angle VS. Joe hadn't happened three times already, there would already be enough interest in these two.
There are plenty of better ways to spark this feud again, and it can be done without burying the only titles TNA has got. Going back to my original point, these belts should be used to signify who is the best. The people who wear the belt should be the people who fans can either solidly root for...or solidly hate. The belts should be used in storylines where the people competing for them want to be the best.
Instead, they're afterthoughts. Instead of a feud giving the impression of "Who wants it more?" or "Who's willing to go balls deep and do whatever it takes just to be able to call themselves champion?", fans will get the impression of "Will they get along and be able to work as a team?" That will not make for compelling matches.Spots like you saw when LAX was feuding with Daniels & Styles over the tag belts will be blatantly absent for as long as Joe and Angle are champions. And whenever the belts are mentioned, fans won't care. TNA isn't going to give us any reason to care. They're setting up a story that will demonstrate that their new belts have no value on their own. They're merely props to help push a feud that they overplayed, and now must find a way to rekindle interest in.
To the X Division and Tag Team Championships - Joe's gonna kill you.
6 comments: on "Tha "iMPACT!" Dispatch - Respect Tha Belt"
I agree what was the point in taking the X-Division title off of Letal especially right after he won it. Joe doesn't need the X-Divison belt, he deserves the TNA World title if anything. He and Angle have a past history so they don't need to be tag team champs to spark a feud between them.
For the tag team titles I would rather see LAX fight Team 3D or Rick Steiner and a partner fight for the titles.
TNA keeps shooting themselves in the foot when it comes to big time matches, they are also are using to many gimmick matches. I think TNA is also trying to steal the idea of all the championships being defended on a ppv, they only have 3 it's nothing special compared to the WWE having all their titles, 9 total, on the line on the Vengeance ppv.
Boys, you're missing the point. Machismo will regain the strap after the PPV next month. If you haven't realized that the X title isn't pointless for Joe, its an immediate springboard to the TNA Championship. He'll relinquish the belt after becoming the TNA champ and guess who will be in the finals? Machismo and probably Sabin or Shelley. (Does Petey still work in TNA?)
I still like iMPACT, I thought it was a damn good show. Maybe TNA is going to pick the ball back up with my ex girlfriend Sarah Tonin.
This Match of Cahampions has to be the worst idea going right now. I cannot see how putting the X-Division title on Joe helps him in any way, or the X-Division.
Was it not Joe's size that made it seem like his run with the X-Division title would never end? He had a great run, never really lost the title by pinfall, and helped elevate himself AND the X-Division to a SOLID undercard attraction, not just a "weight division".
Now, Jow has one belt, Angle has another, and instead of building matches around "Who can beat the Champ?", we have ...? Really, what is the payoff here? The singles championships are being fought over by 2 guys, in a company that just said they were going to "get rid of the glass ceiling"!
Joe had his time with the X-Division, just let him move on. Maybe put Rhino is that spot and elevate him too. (What was with that freak-out and set-bashing?)
And you have Christian Cage still wasting time on screen with TOMKO! Fucking TOMKO! Send that guy back to wherever he came from since he will NEVER be over. All he does is drag down Cage and Styles.
Enough ranting. I'm busy investigating who killed McMahon.
TNA dropped the ball by taking the title of Lethal. I dont care about the match at Victory Road. It is so predictable and I hate that. We know that there is no way in hell Team 3D is going to win.
Another situation where a promotion tries to copy off the competition.
TNA got on the map cause they were different. Now, they run to many fuckin gimmick matches instead of letting their guys go out there and show off their talent.
I will continue to watch it but I wont buy a PPV. Its not worth it anymore.
Tha match of Champions is another recycled Russo gimmick.
Remember Heavyweight and I-C Champ HBK and Diesel VS Tag Champs Yokozuna and Owen Hart? Whoever got the pin won the corresponding title. 2 Dudes With Attitudes won the belts and Klique had officially bogarted the company worse than the Horseman in the old NWA.
Russo pulled this stunt in WCW too, but fuck me if I remember who was in the match.
I think the best thing they could do is either hae LAX or Sabin & Shelly beat Team 3D for the tag team titles before the ppv. Then at the Victory Road ppv have Angle turn on Joe in the match and cost him the X-Division title, losing it to eithe Homicicde, Shelly or Sabin. This also would give one of the teams a "rub" having a main event match with Angle & Samoa Joe.
I know it's just good thinking and I'm sure TNA won't do whats good for their company.
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