There has been a lot to talk about in TNA as far as talent and contracts are concerned. There have been several reports and rumors of names staying, leaving, or jumping aboard over the past few weeks. I am going to take a moment to address a few of those names with my thoughts on their situations. I will be taking the time to address a few more in part two coming later this week.
Mick Foley
Mick Foley is now officially part of the TNA roster. Foley appeared at a TNA house show in Long Island over the weekend and has said that he will be making his television debut with TNA in the upcoming weeks. Reports are going around that his deal with TNA is a short-term 6 month contract, possibly a way for Foley to test the waters. Here’s to hoping that the “creative” minds in TNA have something great planned for him to work with in those 180 days. I have already written enough on the subject of Foley’s move to TNA, so I will leave it at that.
Gail Kim
From out of almost nowhere, Gail Kim seemed to have bolted from TNA to head back into the WWE, or so it would seem. Mike Tenay acknowledged the fact that Kim was no longer part of TNA during a recent broadcast of Impact and reports have stated that TNA gave Kim a low offer on a new contract, which was next to insulting, so she decided to take money over happiness and return to the WWE. Since then, it has been said that TNA President, Dixie Carter, was upset over the situation and has reached out to Kim to try and work a new deal out. Kim seems open to the offer and hasn’t signed a deal with the WWE yet.
I can see where this can be a tough situation for Kim or anyone else who is in a similar spot. TNA has taken women’s wrestling to a whole new level with the Knockout division. Sure, the WWE has given their divas some new attention as of late by creating a second women’s title, but it still pales in comparison to TNA. Just look at the rosters for proof of that. TNA: Awesome Kong, Taylor Wilde, ODB, Angelina Love. WWE: Kelly Kelly, Maryse, Michelle McCool, Maria.
Gail Kim and the rest of the TNA Knockouts pull in some of the biggest ratings on a weekly basis and they should be rewarded for that. However, it’s no secret that TNA will not be able to offer her anything close to what the WWE can. What it really boils down to is what is right for Kim at this time. If TNA is able to give her a better offer that she can live with, I really hope she chooses to stay with the company. If not, I suppose I could get used to seeing her be pinned by Jillian Hall and Maryse on a weekly basis.
Team 3D
The 20-time tag team champs recently signed a 2-year contract extension with TNA and is now signed through 2010. Depending on how the duo is utilized, this could be good news for the lacking tag team division. Team 3D is one of those teams who can usually deliver a good match when it is set up correctly. You have to look no further than their feud over the NWA Tag Team Championship against the LAX to see how much they bring to the table, no pun intended.
When they are motivated, Team 3D can be one of the best tag teams in the business today. TNA’s ability to constantly book them as solid comic relief, though, turns them a tag team I would rather quickly forget. In less than a year, Team 3D went from brutal matches over tag team gold to picking on the smaller guys in the X Division just because they can. Soon they were trying to get under a certain weight limit as we got to watch footage of Brother Ray pigging out at buffet lines and candy stores.
For the most part, it seems that they have been getting their focus and edge back in recent months. At times, they still toss in a bit of comedy, but it works well for them in small amounts. Hopefully they will stay clear of the full comedy routines and spend the next two years putting their opponents through tables and capturing the tag team gold for the 21st time.
Stay tuned for my thoughts on Christian Cage, Nathan Jones and more in part two to come later this week.
