Hello to everyone here at Online World of Wrestling.com! My name is Joe, and I run twf-net.com I have been an avid viewer of the website for a while now, and I think it's time I submitted one of my columns. Enjoy! In just one week, Total Nonstop Action Wrestling 'IMPACT!' will be returning to our television screens on Spike TV, the network that we once called home to Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Entertainment programming [which is moving back to the USA Network, their original home]. This will mark the first time TNA Wrestling has been on television since June, when their deal with FOX Sports Net ended and they were forced to broadcast their shows on their Internet website.

Now that TNA have a new television deal, they need to start thinking about what they will do to make the masses want to watch their show every week, which will be broadcast on 11pm each and every Saturday night. In my opinion, the only way TNA can go is to create a definite separation between their product and that of WWE's product. What WWE tends to do is concentrate on their 'entertainment' aspect of their show such as the talking and action, and not really the in-ring technical wrestling aspect of it. The in-ring wrestling part is something TNA has down to a 'T', as the roster boasts such talent as AJ Styles, Christopher Daniels, Petey Williams, and others who are all great wrestlers.

What TNA would need to do first, though, is to get rid of the talent that are not going to pull their weight, and bring in talent that are going to make the product better. I think releasing A1, Apolo, Cassidy Riley, Mikey Batts, Sonny Siaki, Sonjay Dutt, David Young and Zach Gowen can make room for the newer and more talented wrestlers on the roster, like Austin Aries and Roderick Strong. Remember that TNA have only one hour a week to play around with and promote Pay-Per-Views, and they can't go filling it with things that contribute nothing to the product. Also, what TNA can start thing about doing is phasing out the older ex-WWF and WCW wrestlers over time, like Kevin Nash, BG James, Kip James and Sean Waltman. All are good talents, but it feels like we have seen it all before, which in a sense, we have. This is where the wrestlers that are not recognized by the 'casual' fan need to step up, grab the ball and run with it.

An important thing TNA needs to do is to review their championship divisions and see what needs to be added to them, and taken away. As I said, they only have one hour a week, so they need to promote all their championship belts in that amount of time.

I think a TNA Women's Championship is needed, as TNA are bringing in such women as Gail Kim and Jazz, as well as a few others. All are great women wrestlers, and the women's division could be a big selling point for females, as the talent they have would portray women in a 'positive' light for sure, instead of just being 'tits-and-ass'. Apart from a TNA Women's Championship, I don't think any more belts are needed. They don't have enough talent for a mid-card division just yet, and they also have the X-Division to promote.

What could be done though, is to make all belts 'TNA', meaning that they get rid of the 'NWA' of their names [such as the 'NWA' World Championship, and the 'NWA' Tag Team Championship]. The belts would also have brand new designs for the debut on Spike TV, and having 'TNA' World Champions and Tag Team Champions would be much, much better. Again, it's something that contributes to the product. Going back to what I said about the X-Division, I think that they really need to promote this. High-flying wrestling is something TNA have over WWE, where their 'Cruiserweights' have never really been a big part of the show. In fact, the last time Cruiserweights were a big part of shows was on WCW Nitro, and TNA have a whole new set of fans to appeal to now. Having these matches with people such as Christopher Daniels and Samoa Joe is something that I feel could really broaden their audience, and bring in fans WWE has never really been able to achieve because they don't really want to promote that style of wrestling, and that is WWE's decision. Another division TNA could make a selling point is their tag team division, as both of WWE's tag team divisions are dead in the water. TNA have some excellent teams such as The Naturals, America's Most Wanted and Team Canada, but that could be improved by adding new teams such as 'Diamonds in the Rough' [Simon Diamond and Elix Skipper] and the 'New Age Outlaws' [BG James and Kip James, even though they won't be allowed to use the team name]. Again, this is something that could appeal to the 'casual' fan, as they have one instantly recognizable team in the New Age Outlaws, and great new teams such as AMW and The Naturals.

We now come to the 'cream of the crop', the TNA World Heavyweight Championship division. This is where TNA could make most of their money, if they book it right. For a start, they really need to get Jeff Jarrett out of there, and maybe put him in a tag team or something. Put back in AJ Styles, as he is "Mr. TNA" after all. This would make the division look somewhat like this;

AJ Styles
Raven
Jeff Hardy
Sabu
Lance Hoyt
Abyss
Rhino
Monty Brown

I think that with that sort of line-up, TNA have a great division they can work with for a while, not forgetting that they can promote new stars along the way and build it up even further. As I said, this division is something they can work with, and promote to their full ability.

So, there we have it. I don't really have that much else to say, except that TNA should try and build their show to appeal to a different sort of wrestling fan, the likes of who haven't really been seen since WCW and ECW were around. This would give them a distance edge over WWE, and hopefully force WWE to create a better overall product like they were forced to do in the late 1990's. Remember, TNA should innovate, not imitate.

by Joe M...