– TNA’s Eric Bischoff was the special guest on last night’s live edition (05/10/09) of the award-winning Monday Night Mayhem. You can feel The Mayhem live every Monday night (at 7PM ET/6PM CT), exclusively on MondayNihtMayhem.com.
Eric joined The Big Mosh & “The Chairman of the Board” Todd Vincent for his return to “Your Home of Wrestling Radio” & for the launch of his exclusive/all-new monthly interactive segment on Monday Night Mayhem, “The Hot Seat With Eric Bischoff” (flavored by Sizzlin Sauces).
Here are the highlights:
His thoughts on the move of TNA iMPACT back to Thursday nights, TNA never intending to compete with the WWE, & the experience of gaining more exposure for the TNA brand as a result of going head-to-head with World Wrestling Entertainment:
“First, I don’t recall fans en mass telling us not to go to Monday nights. On the contrary, I remember quite a bit of enthusiasm & energy, just because it was a chance to create competition & provide an alternative. There were a lot of fans that spoke out and said it was the wrong decision, but there was a lot of fans that felt the other way. What happened after the move (as we did some research, along with Spike TV), it was determined that while there were fans who enjoyed the competition, there was also a lot of fans that weren’t able to check out both. It was a problem for them having to switch back & forth. Unlike the WWE, TNA does not have a lot of other programming, so there’s only one TNA vehicle out there, and putting it head-to-head made it difficult for some fans of TNA. As far as WWE being too big to compete with, they’re a monster. We never intended to compete with WWE, we intended to position ourselves on Monday night, because that’s where the traditional wrestling fan audience is, and we thought that would be a great way to gain exposure for the TNA brand. That’s why we went to Monday nights, not to compete.”
Rob Van Dam capturing the TNA World Heavyweight Championship, the signing of RVD/what if means to the company now & for its future:
“RVD, in my opinion, is one of the better things that has happened to us in a while. He’s just got a different vibe, a different energy, and he appeals to a different audience again. Hoping that change (the TNA World Title change) is something that resonates with people who might not have otherwise tuned into TNA previously. One of the reasons RVD is here is to expand our audience, and he is clearly a guy that is worthy of being the TNA World Heavyweight Champion.”
Those Who Feel “The Blueprint” Matt Morgan is getting lost in the shuffle of TNA’s tag team division & the chances of seeing him return to the singles spotlight:
“I’m not the head of creative, and I don’t pretend to be. I’m a big supporter of Matt, and his future will be determined in the weeks & months to come. One of things I’m not going to do is talk about storylines & internal creative decisions, because A) there’s enough spoilers out there; I don’t need to do any it, and B) it’s not fair to a lot of other people involved. Matt Morgan is a great talent; I think he’s got a bright future, and those of you who are Matt Morgan fans should just sit back, watch, & enjoy.”
The confidence he has in TNA going to improve in the months ahead & his reaction to certain fans complaining about particular aspects of TNA, including those who are harsh to criticize the older wrestlers/talents in the company:
“Is TNA going to improve? Absolutely. Anyone who is objective who’s been watching it for the last couple of months, would be hard-pressed to deny that this product is evolving…and in a good way. In terms of older wrestlers, I heard exactly the opposite. I heard a lot of people say, who are fans of both WWE & TNA, they like seeing brands, names, & faces they recognize and that they have a history with. That’s not to say they want to see them dominate the show, and we don’t need research to tell us that. I’ll be careful to say that ‘all fans want to see one thing,’ because that’s not true.”
The likelihood of seeing either Jim Ross and/or Paul Heyman in TNA soon:
“I don’t know. I don’t know what Jim is thinking & his point of view. I like Jim, and he & I have a pretty good relationship, and we stay in touch from time-to-time. I don’t have this kind of conversation with him, and quite frankly, it’s been a few months since I spoke to him. Heyman…no idea. But who knows, time will tell. Never say never right?”
