One Wrestling Fan's Perspective: TNA's Possible Life After Hulk Hogan

TNA iMPACT! opens with the cameras panning the crowd. The fans are on their feet, they’re loud, excited—it is a pay-per-view atmosphere. The camera pans down to the ring and we can see that it is not the regular four-sided ring we have seen for the past year; it is the familiar six-sided ring.

Standing in that ring are Christopher Daniels, Samoa Joe, The Motor City Machine Guns and Beer Money. Their eyes tell the story, as they stare through the camera, stopping only to occasionally acknowledge the fans.

The lone microphone in the ring is being held by the man standing in the middle, AJ Styles. The camera focuses on AJ as he speaks:

“My name is AJ Styles, and this is TNA. For the past year, we have been a pretender. We have been fighting a war. Not with another company, oh no. We have been forced to fight a war internally with egos, with money, with ratings. The men you see before you, we have always considered ourselves the greatest wrestling promotion in the world, yet we have not been allowed to show it.

Why? Because this company was overrun with talent that had no business being here. Because TNA became less about us and you, the fans, and more about stroking the ego of guys who cared only about themselves.

The word is out, it’s been out all day long, and I know you’ve all heard the rumors by now. The truth is, the rumors are not rumors, they are fact. TNA is no longer the home of the guys who demanded the spotlight. TNA is no longer the dumping ground for bad ideas and poor execution.

TNA is now back where it should have been all along. In the hands of the fans. Because it is you who made us who we are to begin with, it is you who makes us shine, and it is you that keeps us coming back week in and week out. From now on, everything changes. From now on, we are all about the thing that put us on the map in the first place. We are all about the wrestling.

This ring, the ring that we bled, sweat, and paid the price in, to build this company, is back. It never should have left. And, the men standing in this ring, and the men and women in the back, are going to give you a show like you have never seen before. We are back. TNA is back. More importantly, professional wrestling is back.

My name is AJ Styles, and this…this is TNA.”

On the first iMPACT! after Hogan, the men and women of TNA set out to tear the house down. Gone are the veterans who perhaps stayed too long. Mic time is cut in half; countless spots of unending talking are over.

Promos are quick, simple and to the point, and the wrestlers are allowed to be as inventive in the ring as possible, bringing a main-event vibe to very match.

TNA as a company stops looking to stars from yesterday, and instead focuses on younger workers, bringing in top talent from independent promotions all over the country. They also reach out internationally, utilizing new names and fresh faces from Mexico, Japan and Europe.

Over the next year, the new foundation of TNA is built, with the focus being on the in-ring action.

Keenly aware of the entertainment aspect of the business and their need to gain a wider audience, TNA begins to work on its national exposure. Wrestlers begin appearing on top-rated late-night talk shows, as spectators at nationally televised sporting events and working as pitchmen for various companies.

As TNA grows in size and name recognition, established stars begin to sign with the company. Not because of a premature release from WWE or a personal vendetta against the McMahons, but because TNA is considered a good place to work.

CM Punk, John Morrison, Wade Barrett, Jack Swagger and even Randy Orton have all made the move within the past year.

As TNA keeps maturing as a company, with the hottest talent in the business, they also pay respects to the men and women who paved the way by establishing the TNA Hall of Fame. Talent inducted into the Hall receive the honor as a direct result of a true fan vote, rather than leave the decision-making to just one person.

Despite an outcry from some fans for a head-to-head battle with WWE, TNA decides to stay the course and works to make the Thursday night program as good as it possibly can be, eventually going live every week.

A second program on Tuesday nights is introduced, with no separating of the locker room, instead focusing on various different workers from week to week. All champions may appear on either or both programs, depending on storyline.

Realizing that competition is good for business, TNA’s mission is to be the best wrestling promotion without the notion of destroying WWE and resorting to shady tactics in order to accomplish that goal. TNA instead decides to keep its focus on the fans, knowing that keeping them happy means making money, and making money means continuing to exist now and in the future.

Within five years, TNA is a stronger No. 2 financially and in terms of fan support than WCW ever was. The debate as to whether or not TNA is actually the world’s No. 1 wrestling promotion rages among fans, who fill arenas all over the country every time the company comes to town.

And in the five years it takes the promotion to reach this level, WWE and Vince McMahon—or the past employer of some TNA workers—are not mentioned by anyone on the air at any time for any reason.

All of this has just been some fun speculation on my part. Why? Because I want TNA to succeed. If that company fails with all of the talent and money it has, it will be a sad day for the business. WWE cannot continue to be the only game in town, as competition is indeed the major driving force of ensuring that professional wrestling will live beyond my generation.

I love this business, I love being in the business and I love being a fan. WWE has done so many things right and TNA has done so many things wrong. This trend needs to change—as soon as possible.

Wrestling fans, whether we realize it or not, need TNA. Perhaps one day, TNA will realize that they need the fans. Until then, I will dream.