INTERVIEW WITH TNA DIXIE CARTER ON BETWEEN THE ROPES
- 02/09/2006 (4:18:23 pm)
- Christopher Murray
Dixie talks about prime time, house shows, drug testing and more…
Thanks to Chris Murray for this interview recap, tomorrow Chris will have recap of Cowboy Bill Watts' interview.
Between The Ropes
Wednesday, February 8, 2006
Central Florida's Sports Radio 740 The Team
Simulcast online at BetweenTheRopes.com
Wednesday, February 8, 2006
Central Florida's Sports Radio 740 The Team
Simulcast online at BetweenTheRopes.com
On Wednesday night, February 8, TNA President Dixie Carter joined hosts Brian Fritz and Dickerman live on Between The Ropes on Central Florida's Sports Radio 740 The Team to discuss TNA Impact's move to Thursday night on Spike TV beginning in April and everything related to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling.
The interview commenced with discussion on the move of Impact to Thursday nights in prime time. Dixie said Spike TV has been a great partner since day one, having given TNA two prime time specials and a New Year's Eve special in the first few months of the relationship. Around three months into Impact's run, the two sides began quietly discussing a move to prime time. The entire deal got put together rather quickly. Compared to Fox Sports Net, Spike TV offers TNA much more of an upside. Fox Sports couldn't offer prime time due to the numerous pre-emptions for local sports among the twenty-two regional FSN affiliates. Dixie noted that the synergy between TNA and UFC on Thursday nights will help both properties grow.
"I'm thrilled being on Thursday nights. That's historically the biggest night of television during the week. It has drawn wrestling in the past. I wouldn't mind if we were up against Smackdown in that old Thursday timeslot. That would have been great. I think it's more about us getting a great timeslot on a network that is committed to promoting us and seeing where it grows."
Asked about potentially obtaining more television time on Spike TV in the near future, Dixie commented, "I think that we continue to prove ourselves. Spike has shown that they're open to having the success of TNA on their network. Whether it be maybe another show or an expanded show, I definitely think those are all possibilities if we continue to deliver."
Regarding touring, Dixie said the company is looking at house shows both domestically and internationally. She indicated the pay-per-views would be more apt to go on the road as opposed to the Impact show. She put over the relationship with Universal Studios and the Orlando crowds and indicated that TNA plans to continue filming Impact in Orlando long-term.
"Our goal right now is to always continue to tape the Impact show there [Universal Orlando]. If we ever tape weekly, we'd be there weekly. We're there every other week as it stands now. We're very committed to the Orlando area."
When asked about the prospects of running house shows at a time when WWE has difficulty drawing on the road, Dixie responded, "Touring in general is a risky and expensive proposition. There's no doubt. But there is something very, very special about allowing your fans to connect face to face with the talent and feel the energy that they bring to the ring. That's not an issue for the Orlando market, thank goodness, but at some point we are going to need to do that. We've proven that we can be successful by being smart businessmen and we have a very specific strategy put in place. So when we do it, it'll be a market where we feel like there is demand. We don't have the egos to go in there and say 'we're going to try to fill this arena.' We'll start small and hopefully have success and build upon that."
The topics of current wrestling free agents came up, particularly Bill Goldberg, Chris Jericho, and The Rock, to which Dixie replied, "Well, those are three wonderful names. All are huge within the business. We're in a great situation right now that we've got, I think, the most talented locker room in the business, period. But our biggest challenge is we have forty-two minutes of television each week and we've got a lot of guys who deserve time on television for us introduce them to the country and let them become household names with those who are already household names and have had a storied career in the business. We've got a mixture of, I think, the hottest new talent that's been exposed in years and some great superstars. Forty-two minutes is not a lot of time and when you start adding extra people into the mix, it just takes away from those, quite honestly, who have been with us from day one or who have made decisions, before things got so great, to be with us. I have a real commitment to those guys and they deserve this opportunity. Everything is on a case by case basis, but right now, we're set and good to go."
Dixie discussed the growth of TNA Wrestling over three and a half years. She brought up the video game deal with Midway, the toy licensing deal with Marvel, the national distribution deal for the DVD's - all of which came before TNA on Spike TV started. Getting on Spike TV and now in prime time is icing on the cake.
The topic of drug testing in wrestling was raised and Dixie was asked whether TNA plans to implement any such measures for its locker room. "That has always been a priority for us. We're in a slightly different position. Our guys work for us a couple of days a month and then work for different promoters across the world in an ongoing basis so they're not specifically TNA employees. We're in a slightly different position, but yes, we've always done that. We've always watched very, very carefully. We've had situations where we have had to become involved in certain things just to make sure everything works out. We're even looking at trying to change and upgrade our own internal policies. It's something we take very, very seriously just for the protection of everyone quite honestly."
Dixie said the move to Thursday nights will open an entire new audience and Spike TV will be a big part of exposing the TNA brand. She added that releasing a top flight video game, touring, having DVD's on the shelves, and other consumer advertising are pieces of the puzzle that are starting to come together to increase the company's visibility.
The interview concluded with discussion of how WWE perceives TNA, specifically WWE's recent attempt to sign Chicago White Sox catcher A.J. Pierzynski as a celebrity for WrestleMania 22 after his appearance on TNA programming, on which Dixie commented, "I find that very interesting too. They're a wonderful company and brilliant marketers and you don't get into that position without being aware of your surroundings and your competition and things such as that. Their talent watches the show [Impact]. I'm sure they watch the show. They're very aware of every move that we make. We know that. But we also feel that competition is great. We wish them nothing but success. When I see they have a great TV rating, I just think that's great for the business. It's great for TNA and it's great for WWE and even better for the fans. We wish them nothing but continued success because history has proven there's room for two very, very successful, healthy companies competing out there is in this genre and I just think it's time that happens again."
TNA Wrestling will present Against All Odds on pay-per-view this Sunday night from Universal Orlando headlined by Jeff Jarrett defending the NWA Heavyweight Title against Christian Cage and a Three-Way Match for the X Division Title between Samoa Joe, Christopher Daniels, and AJ Styles. TNA Impact, currently airing on Spike TV on Saturday nights at 11:00pm ET, moves to prime time on Thursday nights at 9:00pm ET beginning April 13.
To listen to the Dixie Carter interview, including additional comments on the future of Impact and TNA in general, and the entire February 8 edition of Between The Ropes in streaming audio, visit the show online at http://www.BetweenTheRopes.com. Join us for Between The Ropes for two hours every Wednesday night at 10:00pm ET on Central Florida's Sports Radio 740 The Team and worldwide on BetweenTheRopes.com.
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