INSIDER: WHY MATT HARDY MUST SIGN WITH TNA

Here's this weeks' SLAMJAMZ column posted on PWInsider this week.

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SLAMJAMZ CENTRAL: WHY MATT HARDY MUST SIGN WITH TNA

By TC Kirkham

There has been a lot of news flying fast and furious over the past few
days concerning the future of one Matt Hardy. You wouldn't think
that in this day and age that the fate of one wrestler could have an
impact on the future of pro wrestling as i've heard so many people say
this past week,. But it is truly an important decision that the
Cameron, NC native has on his hands right now.

It has now come out that Matt has been contacted by WWE in the past
couple of weeks, a few days BEFORE the debacle last week where Matt's
entrance video aired during Edge and Lita's "wedding" on RAW, in
fact. They asked Matt to give them a couple weeks to decide
what they wanted to do, to see what Vince McMahon decided about the
money to be made with a Hardy/Edge feud. They even went so far as
to have a WWE staffer contact TNA about the situation.

The reason WWE is doing all of this is NOT because they want to make
money with such an obvious feud, although that's a nice incentive to be
sure. No, the REAL reason they are reaching out to Hardy now is that
they realize that Matt Hardy could be the match that lights the rocket
that propels TNA to national prominance, to a major TV deal, and
to the next level as a WWE competitor.

Quite simply, Matt Hardy is in the best negotiating position of his
life. And now is NOT the time to negotiate himself back into the
WWE and into a feud that will die after a few short weeks. Because
every wrestling fan knows that Vince McMahon holds grudges. And the
best thing that he can do to serve his own "I know the business
better than you do" ego is to make sure Matt is squashed to where his
career can probably never recover. Why? To screw the internet fans, of
course. Those same internet fans who are at every WWE live show
reminding Vince that he shouldn't have listened to John Laurinatis when
the suggestion was made to can Matt. That he really BLEW this entire
affair. That Matt Hardy IS capable of being a huge, A-level star
despite what Vince's own know-it-all son-in-law says or thinks. That
are out there ruining anything the company tries to dowith Edge. Those
same fans who are chanting "You screwed Matt" and "We Want Matt" over
and over at every single TV event and house show.. Vince's long term
plan is to make sure he gets to show that HE is in control.
You think Triple H's fate for an entire year after taking part in
the infamous MSG Kliq celebration was bad? If Hardy re-signs with WWE,
he's in for far worse treatment. And because of the way the internet
fans have rallied behind Matt, you can be absolutely sure that at the
culmination of an Edge/Hardy feud, Vince will make sure to put
EDGE, not Matt, over.

At TNA, Matt would have a chance to launch himself immediately into the
main title mix. His name value alone would be enough to help Dixie
Carter and company secure a better TV deal with Spike TV, or whatever
cable network they end up securing a deal with. All they have to do is
point to the evidence of the past few months, and to the reaction
of those very same internet fans and the overwhelming support Matt has.
Matt could help propel TNA into a new orbit, one that could possibly
push TNA into reigniting the Monday Night Wars.

For Matt, a deal with TNA would be sweet indeed. Shorter working weeks,
a decent six-figure salary, and the chance to be a main event
player. No matter what sweet sounding poison Vinne Mac is saying
out of the corner of his mouth, the best Matt can hope for in WWE is a
second or third from the top billing, even on the final Edge/Hardy feud
match.

Plus, signing with TNA would also give Matt the chance to do some indie
work as well. He's already planning some dates with Ring Of Honor, and
other indies have come calling as well. Matt's always been one of the
favorite performers of general fans; now he would have the chance to
earn the respect of the hard-to-please indie fan as well.

Matt found out when he launched his website, THEMatthardy.com, that the
internet fans would come to his site and be involved in his feelings
and his little community. He also found out that those same fans would
rally to his side in his time of need after the entire Edge/Lita
debacle became public knowledge. Those fans have been thorougly
disgusted with WWE's actions and behavior in the matter, and it's time
Hardy made the decision that would in addition to being beneficial to
his long term career, also pay those fans back for their loyalty.

It would also give Matt the chance to show Vince McMahon once and for
all that he can't get away with his sometimes sleazy tactics all of the
time. And that could be a revelation that could have long lasting, far
reaching consequences in the WWE, and the entire wrestling world, for
years to come.

To re-sign with WWE would be a slap in the face to those fans, and I
think Matt is smart enough to realize that. There's a good chance he'd
be branded as a sellout, going back to WWE because money rather than
integrity was always what was REALLY on the line. I've been
following this since it first broke, and I can't see Matt choosing the
money this time. Or ever. He's saved well, he's not hurting for
financial reasons, and TNA can continue to make signing with them worth
his while.

And for Matt, the chance to cement himself as one of the most popular
wrestling stars of the past decade by moving himself to new challenges
on the next level of the playing field should be hard to resist.
At the prime of his career, and in good health, he has the chance
that haven't been afforded many of his friends in the business: to be
the lynchpin in a possibly HUGE new level of the wrestling wars that
neither he nor Vinnie Mac nor the fans have ever experienced.

Let's hope he makes the right, and in the long term, most profitable
situation for himself. And in my view, that can only mean one thing -
becoming TNA's first MAJOR, and more importantly, mainstream, superstar.
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SLAMJAMZ BLOG

This week at SlamJamz Central, EXCLUSIVE to the SlamJamz Blog, i'll be
talking about a variety of things, including why TNA's X Division is in
serious jeopardy because of the AJ Styles factor and what TNA needs to
do about it, a look at some up and coming talent TNA should think hard
about hiring to help their continuing growth, this week's Separate At
Birth, updated every Friday, and a lot more. Check us out daily at
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to your "My Yahoo" page as well by adding "/atom,.xml" after the above
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ATTENTION, ROLLERJAM FANS!

If you were a fan of the 1999-2001 TNN series RollerJam, as I was, you
might want to know that SlamJamz will be opening a "Rollerjam
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Station" a few years back, I purchased a TON of RollerJam items, and
they have now become hard to find. And quite honestly, I can't afford
to hoard them any longer. I'll be liquidating them soon to clear
space in my house, and you'll find great deals on both issues of
RollerJam magazine, Keith Coppage's book "From Roller Derby to
RollerJam" , press kits, great photos of the stars, and more, and all
at prices far less than you'll find the items from time to time on
EBay!. Watch this column and the SlamJamz blog for more info!

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I'll be back
soon with more of my thoughts on the world of professional wrestling.
So Until next time, as always…. REPRISE
THE THEME SONG AND ROLL
THE CREDITS!