If Hogan was going to wrestle, planning for Jan. 4 would be easy. Just set up a monster heel as champ – Bruce Mitchell of Pro Wrestling Torch suggested Matt Morgan managed by Russo – and prepare to feed him to Hogan.
But Hogan isn’t wrestling, so Russo’s confusion is understandable. It won’t matter – Russo will be gone sooner, not later. There’s NO WAY Hogan would ever keep him. Kevin Sullivan seems a likely replacement, or maybe Hogan does the booking himself. I have no idea what Hogan would push or emphasize, because in the past Hogan always pushed and emphasized himself.
This is going to suck. As noted, Hogan would never sit down and watch 20 hours of TNA tapes to judge strengths, weaknesses, charisma, work, promos, etc., and it doesn’t seem like he’s hired anyone to do it for him. Hogan re-booked Nitro with zero notice on a wing and a prayer. For a while, it worked. But WCW had a lot more talent and resources, and it had Hogan and Ric Flair a lot closer to their primes than TNA does now.
Anyway, the Monday night war will happen again. It just might not last too long. Hogan is captain of TNA’s ship. But he’ll hop into a lifeboat the minute it starts to sink. Then again, the guy needs a job. He’s got alimony payments to make.
As for Flair, the word is he’s not yet 100 percent committed to TNA, but will end his U.S. retirement if the money’s right.
Flair’s work in Australia showed that, at 60, he’s still better than most. That’s a compliment to him, an indictment of many. But while TNA should use Flair for occasional bouts, I’ve often wondered how he’d function as a full-time manager. Could Flair’s interviews get over talent that can’t talk? Yes, absolutely. Flair is the best promo ever. Age doesn’t change that.
Mark Madden can be reached at [email protected].
