Every TNA Championship Is Relevant
Posted by Brad Drysdale
I was reading fellow TNAnews.com writer Elto Alexandrov’s piece “TNA On The Rise: The Need For Hierarchy In Mainstream Wrestling”, where Elto described the TNA Heavyweight Title scene at the moment, which gave me the idea for this article.
Basically TNA has too many wrestlers with the potential to be the face of the company, or the champ, or the leaders in the back. The thing I love about TNA is that they have so much established talent, that often great performers get lost in the shuffle, and limited TV time means that some of these wrestlers are often neglected, and some even so for months at a time.
What Impact needs is a little direction, and maybe a little more organisation. I was thinking of a few years back, for a few months in 2010 if my memory serves correctly, when TNA had a rankings system, atleast for their Heavyweight Title. But it was put together in scrappy fashion, didn’t seem very well thought through, and wasn’t given much of a chance to operate. In saying that, it wasn’t a total failure- the idea was right.
One of my favourite wrestling video games ever was WWF Smackdown! 2: Know Your Role, which I used to smash out on the old PS1 with my brothers. Great game. When I pulled it out of its dusty shelf the other day and played around a bit on it, I remembered the ranking system they employed on the game. If anyone remembers it, then you’ll know exactly what I’m going to do with the TNA roster. Each wrestler is classified into one division, and the ranked number one wrestler in each division-was it’s Champion. Wrestlers could only challenge for the one title at a time, and wins meant moving up the ladder, while losses meant moving down. Superstars could also compete in the Tag Team division, but they would have to move out of their division and start at the bottom of the chain.
I love titles in professional wrestling. Ideally, I like to think that they are all prestigious in their own right, and that being a titleholder really meant something. Maybe introducing title rankings could help to create more honor for championships, maybe it could define the top four to six superstars in the company, and assist in building a hierarchy that TNA needs.
Or maybe not… Either way, took a look at the rankings and have your say in what you think! (58)
WORLD
- Bully Ray
- Jeff Hardy
- James Storm
- Samoa Joe
- Matt Morgan
- Mr. Anderson
- Kurt Angle
- AJ Styles
TV
- Devon
- Magnus
- Eric Young
- Rob Terry
- Doug Williams
- Joseph Park/Abyss*
- Robbie E
- Sam Shaw
- Jessie Godderz
TAG
- Roode/Aries
- Hernandez & Chavo
- Bad Influence
- D.O.C & Knux
- Crimson & Gunner
- Brisco & Bischoff
X DIVISION
- Kenny King
- RVD
- Chris Sabin
- Christian York
- Zema Ion
- Joey Ryan
- Rockstar Spud
- Alex Silva
KNOCKOUTS
- Velvet Sky
- Gail Kim
- Tara
- Mickie James
- ODB
- Brooke Tessmacher
- Madison Rayne
- Taeler Hendrix
- Taryn Terrell
- Christy Hemme
OTHER
Brooke Hogan, Hector Guerrero, Willie Urbina, Taz, Mike Tenay, Todd Keneley, Hulk Hogan, Sting**, JB, Jesse Sorenson***, SoCal Val.
*Joseph Park/Abyss: depending on who the character is, Abyss would be ranked first in this division.
**Sting: I think Sting is better used as a storyline player and should not be going after titles anymore.
***Jesse Sorenson: career is effectively over.
Thanks for reading!
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Uh, I never said that he was…?
Great blog, I’d however have m
Great blog, I would however have Morgan a lot lower, maybe even in the tv bracket. I’d also have Angle higher, based on this weeks impact he looks like he’s going for Aces, there for he’s going for Bully
It seems that soul_fool failed to grasp the nature of that final section of your article. Those are simply other personalities involved with TNA, some wrestlers and some not, who could be involved in story lines and, if applicable, matches. Not that they are/should be involved in the title divisions!
Personally, I love the idea. Its a different approach to that taken by WWE at present and, if promoted right, could become a real point to set TNA apart from WWE.
Like you, I used to love Smackdown 2, though one thing I found is that Vince would always work his way to the top of the WWF Title division, and often win it! Anyone else find this that played?
you neglected the Knockouts Tag Team Titles…partly due to they are the flaw in your theory lol
I'll try address all these at once.
Brad Bardy- Yep that was on purpose I kinda figured they have become irrelevant, as EY and ODB don't even carry them around anymore. I'm waiting for them to change up the roster page.
Mark- I'm a huge Morgan fan so it's a little biased, he probably should be lower. I have Angle so low because I figure he's getting old too and has enough title reigns in a stellar career. I think Angle should focus on getting some of the other guys over.
Mike- Spot on! haha yes someone he forced thq or jakks or whoever to make his wrestling avatar semi-decent. I used to hate fighting Vince. Why was he in the division anyway?
Love the idea but would change rankings. Good read