Professional Wrestling: Time To Step Back and See Why the Brands Are Hurting

Bound for Glory is in the books. People are not happy with the outcome of the World Title match and right about now, I am scratching my head thinking I shouldn't be worrying about these issues at 1:45 in the morning.

But, being the fan that I am, I am mad at the way creative handled this PPV event.

The match between Kurt Angle and Bobby Roode was good, better than most of the main-event matches we have seen this year. And to have Angle win says a few things about the creative team, the power struggle that still exists within the company and the direction the brand will take in the next few months.

All of which is really predicated on what happens before Thanksgiving.

If you look at the wrestling horizon right now, there are so many questions that remain unanswered in the WWE and TNA. And Vengeance is on the horizon this coming weekend.

Fans and the IWC are becoming impatient with the process in which both companies are changing their stances, storylines and characters to please creative, and not the person buying the ticket to see the matches live or the ones plunking down money for a PPV event.

I can honestly say that when I look at the rosters of both the WWE and TNA, the talent level is at a point where we could see a dozen guys vie for championships but will never get that opportunity.

When a John Morrison or a D'Angelo Dinero are mid-card performers while stars from other promotions like Daniel Bryan aren't given the same respect they are due had they stayed where they were, it speaks to the true disconnect between writers, managers and wrestlers.

We all know Bobby Roode deserves to be the TNA world champion and to some extent, so does an Alberto Del Rio (who has the title now) and Mark Henry in the WWE.

We also know that wrestlers like James Storm, Crimson, Morrison, Bryan and someone like Justin Gabriel or Mason Ryan are the future of this business.

Like I said, I am not real happy. I am kind of annoyed and to be honest, I worry that the veteran pull or the old guard will continue to have the stroke it has.

Look at it this way. I am 40 years old and I remember a young Jeff Jarrett, a prospering Hulk Hogan, a wet-behind-the ears Sting and a just-getting-started Undertaker take flight in this business when I was an early teen.

And they still have a prominent place in their respective brands!

So much for the idea that the youths of this business are supposed to carry on the traditions set forth by these wrestlers because they still wrestle the youths.

Bound for Glory is a prime example of the old guard still having control because obviously someone did not like the idea of Bobby Roode winning the title (there are rumors flying that Hogan wants the belt back on Jeff Hardy). But in doing so, we saw a wrestler at the end of the night that honestly looked like he had been beaten by the very establishment that made him a star.

It was heartwarming and poignant at the same time.

So in order for the WWE to move forward with its "conspiracy" angle and TNA to move past the Bound for Glory series, creative teams now need to build new feuds, new rivalries and more drama that will keep us, the fans, in our seats.

The WWE is suffering. TNA is suffering. The bad part about both of those issues is that the fans are suffering, too.

And in this business, a fan who suffers leads to a fan who loses interest. And both brands know what happens when that becomes a reality.