Jeff Jarrett recently spoke with Nerds of Evolution Radio about the latest going on with his new Global Force Wrestling promotion. Below are highlights from the interview.
On what the latest status of GFW is: “Well, obviously we just wrapped and the end of January, basically a month long promotion. WrestleKingdom 9 obviously happened on January 4th and in today’s world of Ondemand viewing, Direct Tv, on Demand and scheduled replays, so we really just wrapped (promoting) that. And there was a lot of tying up loose ends business wise, not a lot of fun stuff, boring stuff, but stuff that had to be done. That sort of came to an end at the end of January, but during that time I’ve been working on everything that, in my opinion, if you’re interested in and curious about Global Force Wrestling, I’ve been working many long hours about the things you’re asking about. I’ve been having multiple discussions with talent, I’ve got several opportunities with sponsorships that have literally developed in the last 14 days. Talking to different venues, live event plans, it’s coming together. More international companies have discussed with me about bringing their product to the North American market via ppv. I’m just not quiet ready to release details but I am- I can tell you this, I am very excited. I’ll call it – I hate to put timelines because you miss them, and Murphy’s Law takes effect and that’s how it always is, but you know I think by WrestleMania season, by the end of the season there’s going to be some very exciting announcements about Global Force Wrestling.”
On whether or not GFW will produce a AAA PPV and if they’ll work with Lucha Underground: “That stuff I’d like to not discuss but what I can tell you is discussions are going on with AAA in Mexico. They (L-U/AAA) are really two separate entities, although the Roldan family is owners in both of them. They (L-U) have different partners in the states. Great group of folks, from Mark Burnett, all the way down. But it really is a different entity. I haven’t had any discussions with that group (L-U). But I continue with my 10 or 15 year relationship with AAA down in Mexico.”
On how difficult it is to go from TNA and start a new company all over again: “It’s so exciting. It’s, for lack of a better term, really refreshing. I said this on my media rounds heading into Wrestle Kingdom 9, I haven’t been this excited about the wrestling business in a long-long time, and it really really excites me. I think the timing is right for a number of reasons (next wrestling boom), at the very top of that list is the talent pool that’s out there. It’s red hot, the free agent market is as healthy as it’s ever been. Obviously the New Japan organization is top notch, and now they’re working with (pro wrestling) NOAH; well they’ve been working with NOAH but now they’re taking it to a whole other level. The wrestling business is really fun to be in right now in my opinion.”
On if the ‘Bullet Club’ will be part of GFW: “My quick answer to that is: ‘Stay tuned.’”
On which “inactive” wrestler he would like to build GFW around: “In my opinion this is a no brainer. When you have a guy that is 3rd generation, knows the business inside and out and comes up and becomes the hottest box office attraction in the world; The Rock. I mean he’s on a completely different level. He’s a movie star, a great athlete and a great wrestler. I think you’d have to absolutely start with him. Then you go back a couple generations and look at the great wrestlers like Buddy Rodgers, Jerry Lawler…The Von Erichs; but you’d have to go Rock. Then you know, Hulk Hogan. His record speaks for itself. He had Hulkamania and then was right back on top 15 years later with the nWo.”
On why he feels we’re near a next great boom period for wrestling: “I can’t put my finger on the main reason. I think there’s a bunch of contributing factors. I think the Rock-effect, when you had a guy come on the scene like that during the attitude era, Rock and Stone Cold, the Monday Night Wars. The kids that were 10,12, 14 years old who were watching it, are now 28, 29, 30, 31, 32 years old and these guys have all been wrestling 4,5, 6 years. There was such an enormous exposure to the mainstream. Everybody was watching wrestling and now we’re seeing some residual payoff of that. I also think that the wrestling fanbases that have popped up, ROH has been around as long as TNA has and they have their fans. …You have t.v. being produced in South Africa, in India, small promotions you guys have probably never heard of are being produced. Just all around the globe, wrestling as content is being produced and I think when you have that, a lot of wrestlers having a lot of matches, and the cream, slowly but surely, rises to the top and I think NXT is the best example of that today. Kevin Steen is a 12 year pro and he’s just now stepping onto the scene. I think all those contributing factors are to me, what are the biggest. But the proof is in the pudding. You got RAW, Smackdown, NXT, all under the WWE umbrella, you referenced Lucha Underground earlier, you got AAA in Mexico, you got TNA, you got ROH (New Japan, New Japan World, it) and that’s just a few who are producing content.”
On who his favorite NXT star is to watch: “Steen (Kevin Owens) He’s very good. There’s a bunch of other ones, but I’m excited him because of the road he’s traveled all these years. When he hits the main roster he’s going to shake things up.”
Check out the complete interview at NOEEntertainment.com.