NWA executives Billy Corgan and Dave Lagana were guests on Sam Roberts’ NotSam Wrestling podcast earlier this week. Topics discussed include their Into the Fire pay-per-view, producing ‘television’ without a TV deal, their business model and hopes for eventual profitability.

Billy Corgan says it will be ‘interesting’ to see if they can continue operating without a television deal. Currently, the weekly NWA Powerrr series is distributed via YouTube.

“If you remember when TNA first started with Jarrett they were running the PPV model, which I was interested in just from a consumer point of view. It was like whatever, $3 to watch an episode or whatever,” said Corgan.

He continued, “I would watch a lot of them because I wanted to support the idea that they were trying to do something different as far as the market place. So I think we are in the same position, where we might be in a situation where we can continue to grow the NWA, be able to do live shows, and not actually have to serve any particular master as far as a network would go.”

NWA’s Road to Profitability

Of course, not having to ‘serve a particular master’ also comes with the downside of not receiving lucrative TV rights fees. Dave Lagana touched upon that situation indirectly when talking about the NWA’s business model. Lagana believes the company is “maybe six months away” from being profitable.

“As we scale this product, we’re so much closer than people think to being a very scalable product.” Lagana said. “I ran the numbers on Powerrr, I was like, ‘We’re maybe six months away from really being profitable on this show, on our own, without having to take an investment from anybody,’ and it may even be faster than that.”

The NWA will present another pay-per-view event in January. They held the latest round of NWA Powerrr TV tapings on Monday night:

• Spoilers: NWA Powerrr TV Tapings Results from Atlanta, GA (12/16)

The full interview with Corgan and Lagana can be viewed in the player below:

Transcriptions via 411Mania

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kEXaE0bM7c

On Friday afternoon, David Lagana, TNA’s Senior Director of Creative Writing, announced that he’s quitting the company in a blog post that he wrote on Medium. He had been with TNA since October of 2011, with stints in Ring of Honor and WWE before that. In a post that had a positive tone overall, Lagana wrote:

Today I made the decision to leave TNA Impact Wrestling. A decision I do not make lightly but one I made to create a future that I control. In 2017, you need to look forward to 2020 and beyond. My focus now is on personal branding, technology and the wild west of storytelling available to all content creators today.

With the exception of John Gaburick and the more rank and file WWE creative team members, Lagana thanked just about everyone he would have worked with directly in the process of writing TV for all three promotions. He thanked TNA for giving him the opportunity as well as “the talented and underappreciated television production crew and locker room.” Going forward, Lagana says he will be devoting his time to “personal branding, technology and the wild west of storytelling available to all content creators today.”

Lagana was close with Billy Corgan, so this is going to fuel a lot of speculation about why he’s leaving.

The original plan for Davey Richards and Eddie Edwards debut in TNA was for the two to win the TNA Tag-Team Titles from The Bro Mans right out of the gate.

According to one source, TNA changed the plan because creative writer Dave Lagana feels the company has finally gotten The Bro Mans over as a tag-team.

As things stand now, Richards and Edwards are set to work a program with Christopher Daniels and Kazarian.

The following are highlights from a recent More Like Radio interview with former WWE writer Alex Greenfield:

On Daniel Bryan’s recent WWE push: “It’s flashback city for me because i feel like it’s exactly what Vince did to us with Rey you know? During my run, well David Lagana first and then my run as lead writer on Smackdown you know, we were all super excited A. to be done with the exploiting Eddie thing and B. to make Rey, make him our champion, make him a giant killer. Vince was like ‘Goddamn, pal, he’s gonna change things.’ Our Latino demographics were going up, our minority demographics were going up like we were gaining audience when Raw was losing audience and it was on Rey’s back and then once he got there (Alex impersonates Vince) ‘Well nobody’s gonna believe he can beat Mark Henry, lets have Mark Henry just kill him and we’ll find some la la ending.’ He just cut Rey out at the legs during that World Title run and we’ve talked about my screaming fights with Vince and it was more of that. He just couldn’t see the little guy beating the big guy. It just didn’t work for Vince McMahon and it’s super frustrating and i feel like that’s what happened with Daniel Bryan.”

On TNA creative team member Dave Lagana: “I tend to watch TNA only when somebody tells me theres this great thing. Like I haven’t really been keyed in since the original Angle/Samoa Joe deal which is years ago at this point. There’s certainly been really good angles. I love what Dave (Lagana) did on Ring Ka King, which I just thought was so bizarre the indian sub show they did. I thought it was so bizarre and fun with the Bollywood wrestling. I was super into that and Dave was the creative mastermind behind that. I just find it difficult to get into TNA, like I was super into Mickie James’s evolution into a heel and sort of the build of her, and then she left and I sort of dropped away at that point. But like Aces & Eights, Hogan and Bischoff, like none of it resonated with me so I can’t say I watch very often at all. I like Dave a lot and I think he does good work it’s just that TNA for whatever reason, the mix of talent or the type of stories that are dictated to tell just don’t grab me.”

Check out the complete interview online at MoreLikeRadio.org.

– There has been absolutely no discussion in TNA of signing Hulk Hogan to a deal, even one with limited dates. Hogan being gone is considered a cost-cutting move by the company, as they simply couldn’t afford his price.

– As of this past weekend, there has been no deal struck between Roderick Strong and TNA. At this point, Strong remains committed to Ring Of Honor. Apparently TNA executive Dave Lagana has been talking with Strong as well as other potential new talents. TNA seems to be interested in the best independent workers in the business, including those in ROH and some of the Americans in Japan.

– The November 7th edition of TNA Impact Wrestling from Cincinnati drew approximately 1,500 fans.

– According to recent reports, TNA has expressed interest in signing top Ring Of Honor stars Davey Richards, Eddie Edwards and Roderick Strong. The company is apparently open to the idea of bringing in new talent and Dave Lagana, a top creative member in TNA, has a history of working with all three guys during his time working ROH creative.

– TNA recently posted a new “#IMPACT 365” video featuring Ethan Carter III doing a 600-pound deadlift. You can watch the footage via TNA’s official YouTube channel below:

http://youtu.be/MdkSv_4EkHI

The following are some new tweets from current and former WWE Superstars who paid tribute on Twitter to the anniversary of the passing of WWE Hall Of Famer Eddie Guerrero:

I love you Eddie! Always and Forever!

— Vickie Guerrero (@ExcuseMeWWE) November 13, 2013

Remembering my uncle/brother Eddie today. 8 yrs since his passing. Seems like yesterday. Miss him VERY much! See u soon, hold my spot.

— Chavo Guerrero jr. (@mexwarrior) November 13, 2013

Good question @ManRob89 – my favorite memory of Eddie Guerrero is of being room-mates on in Afghanistan, and staying up all night talking.

— Mick Foley (@realmickfoley) November 13, 2013

Miss him “@hiropiter: R.I.P. Eddie Guerrero #VivaLaRaza #ThankYouEddie #WillNeverForgetEddie http://t.co/bZl7rbUTo8 http://t.co/eG9uJqp9b2

— Chris Jericho (@IAmJericho) November 13, 2013

Man, 8 years. I'll never forget him or his hugs pic.twitter.com/Ix3vz8SakR

— Adam (Edge) Copeland (@EdgeRatedR) November 13, 2013

8 years ago we lost Eddie Guerrero. But we never forget the imprint he made on the business and my life. #VivaLaRaza #ThankYouEddie

— David Lagana (@Lagana) November 13, 2013

-Apparently Kurt Angle suffered another legitimate injury at the Bound For Glory pay-per-view. According to reports, Angle tore some cartilage in his knee when he missed the moonsault off of the top-rope in his match against Bobby Roode.

-With Eric Bischoff out of the picture in TNA these days, the creative direction of the company will be handled by TNA writers Matt Conway and Dave Lagana. The guys responsible for maneuvering the creative direction of the company will be John Gaburick and Jeff Jarrett.

-TNA drew a reported 1,500 fans for their Impact Wrestling television tapings in Salt Lake City, Utah recently.

How Serious Is Kurt Angle’s Injury? + Who Is The Potential Buyer In The TNA Sale? …

[Credit: F4WOnline.com]

-TNA Impact Wrestling executive Eric Bischoff recently took to Twitter to comment on working with MMA legends Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” Tito Ortiz at Thursday night’s “Hardcore Justice” edition of Impact Wrestling on Spike TV. Bischoff wrote:

“Enjoyed working with @Rampage4real and @titoortiz last night. Intense, competitive and pro’s.”

-Speaking of “Hardcore Justice” on Thursday night, TNA Impact Wrestling writer David Lagana also tweeted his thoughts on working on the show on his official Twitter account. Lagana wrote:

“Last night was a lot of fun with #HardcoreJustice. So much hard work by all those involved on levels most will never see.”

-Former TNA Impact Wrestling star Jesse Sorensen is available for independent wrestling bookings next weekend. To book Sorensen anytime between August 23rd and August 25th, email BookSorensen@GMail.com.

WWE SummerSlam 2013 Results

-The general consensus within TNA right now is that the creative direction of the company will not change much following the recent departure of Bruce Prichard. Eric Bischoff is currently in charge of the creative direction of the company, while David Lagana and Matt Conway handle the majority of the actual writing.

-As previously noted, TNA Knockout Taryn Terrell has not been released from the company, she is merely dealing with personal issues which has kept her off of television. Apparently, Terrell is not expected to return anytime in the immediate future. At one point, prior to Terrell taking time off, she was scheduled to defeat Mickie James at Bound For Glory for the TNA Knockouts Championship. Obviously with Terrell temporarily sidelined, those plans have been scrapped.

-The TNA Impact Wrestling live event in Tyler, Texas on August 2nd drew a reported 400 fans. The TNA live event the next night, August 3rd, in Thibodaux, Louisiana, drew a reported 1,200 fans.

Update On Sting Leaving TNA For WWE, Kurt Angle’s Rehab Status + MORE!

[Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter]

– Eric Bischoff officially welcomed Dave Lagana to TNA with the following message posted on Facebook & Twitter:

“Welcome David Lagana! Had the opportunity to work with David in WWE and learned to respect his knowledge of story structure and detail.”

As we reported on Tuesday, Vince Russo and TNA have officially parted ways. Early reports indicated that Lagana was replacing Russo, however this is not entirely true. Lagana exact role in TNA is unknown at this time. While he will be contributing to the creative process, he is not assuming Russo’s job. It’s believed that Eric Bischoff will assume more power behind the scenes now that Russo is finally out.

– Spike TV president Kevin Kay was at the Impact Wrestling taping in Orlando on Monday and threw a party for the TNA wrestlers and crew after the show.

– Kurt Angle wrote the following on Twitter about Jesse Sorensen, stating that doctors gave him a 1-year recovery time:

“I Visited Jesse Sorenson.He Is Moving His Arms and Legs.Drs’ say 1 Year recovery. I Say 4 Months.Jesse Is a Hero and Fighter. “I’ll Be Back””

Angle clearly means well here, but he should probably stay away from setting unrealistic goals for Sorensen, who is going to have a very long, difficult road to recovery.

Ring of Honor director Dave Lagana, a former member of WWE’s creative staff, has joined TNA Wrestling’s creative division as Director of Creative Writing.

“I leave Ring of Honor Wrestling to tackle new challenges,” Lagana wrote on his website. “I’ve accepted a position as Director of Creative Writing with TNA Wrestling.

“My duties will be to focus solely on the development of new wrestling shows beyond the Impact Wrestling show. I’m excited to see what the future holds and thank everyone for the support over not only the last nine months of this site but through my entire career.”

To read his entire statement, which included a farewell to a number of people he worked with in Ring of Honor. www.iwantwrestling.com.