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Could a Talent Pipeline Benefit WWE?

By Josh.0

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Consider your feelings towards the following matches if they occurred in 2016:  Dean Ambrose vs. Eric Young. Lucha Dragons vs. Angélico, Ivelisse and Son of Havoc. Dolph Ziggler vs. Jay Lethal. Sound ridiculous? It doesn’t have to be.

The talent pipeline is a concept that currently flows one way: up. As it stands, the world of professional wrestling is built like a ladder, with WWE firmly perched at the top and all other promotions being the steps below as talent tries to ascend. The specific order of these other brands isn’t important and could spark an interesting debate in and of itself because it depends more on your personal preference than anything else. What cannot be argued is that WWE has firm footing exactly where it wants to be as the major leagues of the business.

But what if this pipeline flowed both ways, with talent from across all promotions appearing on different programs? This wouldn’t be a one night stand and it’s a different monster than the interesting excursion idea posted by Daily DDT writer Carl “Wolfpack” Gac. This would be legitimate brand cooperation involving storylines that carry over several shows and culminate at pay-per-views exactly as they do now only with different companies in the mix. The hierarchy would no longer be a ladder but rather a round table similar to the unification of the regional promotions of the 50s and 60s but with each brand maintaining control of their unique identity.

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The biggest hurdle to such an idea is that WWE has little reason to lend their talent out to other programs but the upside is more ratings and merchandise sales because of diverse viewership.

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It’s no secret that WWE engages in head hunting from other promotions and some of these stars end up returning to their roots for one reason or another but fans still know who they are and where they came from. Thanks to the rise of the internet and the availability of other programs across various media outlets, I’d wager that a majority of wrestling fans watch or are at least aware of more than just the superstars found on WWE programming which explains why men like AJ Styles, Shinsuke Nakamura and Samoa Joe found such quick acceptance. These men weren’t strangers to WWE fans and their accomplished body of work preceded them.

This idea is not a revamp of the Monday Night Wars. Those days are gone and there is no promotion that could assume the role of WCW and challenge WWE in any of its prime time TV slots. The struggle between WWE and WCW was about control over the entire business of professional wrestling and it resulted in some of the most entertaining years of programming we’ve ever seen. Competition breeds creativity and in that same vein we could see great characters and storylines emerge from each brand that can be showcased across all platforms. In this instance, the competition isn’t a Highlander-style battle for supremacy, but rather the pride of your brand. This isn’t about domination; it’s about expansion.

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Admittedly, this is an idea that could fail miserably or it could bring even the most ardent WWE haters on board for a Monday night RAW viewing. Pride and sour grapes may also prove too powerful to ever get this idea from board room to squared circle. Would Dixie Carter or Vince McMahon put their egos aside and allow former employees back on their show? Even if such an idea ever does come to pass, don’t expect GFW to get in on the action due to Vince McMahon’s forever hatred of Jeff Jarrett.

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