TNA X Division champion, Moose tasted defeat against Oba Femi at the NXT Roadblock event. It has become a part of the current fashion where TNA stars have been set up to put over stars at WWE NXT. These defeats do not benefit TNA as their stars keep losing credibility.
Even though The Hardy Boys from TNA came out victorious, other stars keep failing. In the longer run, it might not help NXT as well. To investigate this situation, we can break it down into separate areas, such as perception, talent development, storyline continuity, and business implications.
Table of Contents
Perception
If TNA continues to take a break from the crumble of dribble in well-known matches on NXT, the perceived would not be a comforting for the TNA hardcore fans. Generally speaking, fans and industry insiders have always viewed a performance record as an indicator of the value and trustworthiness of professional wrestlers in the world.
With someone as noticeable as Moose failing in his first match in WWE, this possibly will lend itself to a story of TNA talent being less credible. And that discrimination could potentially decrease the popularity of TNA as a whole and thus decrease followers of their programming. There may also mentioned fans’ backlash against WWE for reducing the TNA stars’ credibility for putting over NXT wrestlers.
On the bright side, Oba Femi’s win establishes him more thoroughly in WWE and also adds a level of trustworthiness to NXT as a brand. A victory against established names from another promotion could bring great value to any NXT wrestler. It can twist a storyline suggesting that they are, in fact, superior athletes. That could bring some serious attention to NXT storylines and characters.
Talent Development
Then again, frequent losses could be a major problem in the growth and development of the talents of TNA, including Moose. Surely, while exposure on a larger stage is something authorities encourage, such frequent losing would defeat a lot of talents who feel unused. If that is allowed to come to a head amongst the talents, it could strike at their morale. It might create some real stir in the going-away of others if they see that their value and capability of becoming real are not being recognised.
NXT, benefits from the erotic knowledge of showcasing their own talents against established stars from other promotions. The chance to put themselves against older, more time-served wrestlers will give their younger talents great experience in intensive faction.
Storyline Continuity
Ongoing defeats of TNA stars without proper, appropriate narrative could cause the storylines across both promotions to become involved. If Moose loses to Oba Femi but has no chance of swapping or character growth later, he runs the risk of turning away fans interested in the argument involving him.
Apart from TNA title matches, superstars involved in other matches have not found success in NXT. Hardy Boys have been an exception but they won their first match in NXT to set up a match at NXT Roadblock. The storylines have become predictable as apart from TNA title matches, all other matches seem to be a way to put over NXT stars.
Besides, the crossover of these matches provides for story arcs that can unite both brands. Wrestlers who are intended to lose can, in an ideal world, also have losses justified. The defeats could be part of larger arcs feeding into rivalries or building toward future shows where TNA stars will eventually regain their stature.
The results of these matches may also affect merchandise sales and audience ratings for both companies from a business perspective. If TNA stars are viewed as weak or ineffective in crossover matches, this could dent merchandise sales related to those wrestlers.
On the growth hand, if NXT stars continues to win and get over, there is a stronger chance for them of selling merchandise and strengthening WWE’s position further. The overall ratings of both promotions probably shift based on the reaction of the fans regarding these outcomes. If fans feel that TNA wrestlers are being underused or misrepresented within NXT matches, they may altogether decide to walk away from following either product.
Conclusion
In short, Moose’s loss to Oba Femi at the NXT Roadblock does much more than one fight, though its value is the image of brands of both companies. For TNA wrestlers such as Moose, a series of losses runs serious risks of eroding the credibility of such wrestlers and, even in contrast, giving the shine to WWE talents such as Oba Femi. Both companies need to tread on this very thin ground to keep up with audience interest and acceptable growth in the future.
Sachin Singh