Benoit's contract up in 3 weeks

[JJ Johnson 0]

I'd say the second one, but Piper made a good movie.

[iliketurtles 0]

If Benoit goes, I'm not watching Smackdown again.

[LucharesuFan619 0]

What's all this talk about him going to Italy? What makes him more inclined to work in such a random country as that than say...ohhh...maybe the US?

[Enigma 0]

What's all this talk about him going to Italy? What makes him more inclined to work in such a random country as that than say...ohhh...maybe the US?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The paydays for the Italy tours are supposedly mindblowing.

[Guest *KNK*]

Benoit will will re-sign with WWE. Unlik Christian, WWE sees value in Benoit, regardless of the fact they severely lowballed him. The lowball offer might also be their way of testing how loyal Benoit is.

 

While everyone else is excited about Benoit in TNA (which is a pipe dream), I'd be more excited for Benoit in ROH. Benoit/Joe, Benoit/Daniels, Benoit/Dragon, Benoit/Lethal and Benoit/Low Ki are very appealing.

 

If Benoit re-signs, I hope he puts in a clause that says American Dragon must be signed and they work a Best of 7 series. If others can have Benoit=TNA pipe dreams, let me have that one.

[CanadianChick 0]

Is Jericho really a "rock star?" Or is this more like a "Roddy Pipper as movie star" circumstance?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Fozzy's pretty popular in the UK, I know that much.

 

I think people are getting way ahead of themsleves thinking that Chris Jericho will go to TNA. I Emailed Meltzer asking about Jericho and he said that him and Chrisitan are not as close as people might think. He said Jericho didn't even know about Christian leaving or why until word broke out about it. Basically his only plans are to work for WWE or not be in wrestling at all.

 

Huh. Aren't they neighbours?

 

I think everyone pretty much figures Jericho is WWE or bust, but it is fun to speculate.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

If Christian, Benoit and Jericho made a conscious effort to come into TNA as a group, it would probably be most beneficial to them. I think a group composed of those three could make some serious money for TNA. As it stands now, none of three would make any impact on their own in either WWE or TNA. I say take a shot at really making a promotion. Together, they could have an NWO type renaissance.

 

Just a thought.

[justcoz 0]

If Christian, Benoit and Jericho made a conscious effort to come into TNA as a group, it would probably be most beneficial to them.  I think a group composed of those three could make some serious money for TNA.  As it stands now, none of three would make any impact on their own in either WWE or TNA.  I say take a shot at really making a promotion.  Together, they could have an NWO type renaissance.

 

Just a thought.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Exactly, when I first mentioned Christian, Jericho and Benoit leaving WWE, my uncle, a casual fan who just wants an interesting product again, immediately said, "TNA's Outsiders". There is enough of a cool factor between Jericho and Christian and a respect factor with Benoit for this to get over huge and possibly respark a promotional rivalry.

[razazteca 0]

Bret Hart shows up on one of these live TNA specials, calls Team Canada a joke, then brings out Benoit, Jericho, Christian and Lance Storm.

 

Never happen, but it would be huge for me and I don't have too many "huge mark out moments" left.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

That woud draw a 2.0 rating on a Saturday or a 3.1 on Monday if given a better time slot.

[Styles 0]

What's all this talk about him going to Italy? What makes him more inclined to work in such a random country as that than say...ohhh...maybe the US?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Italy is becoming like the US was in 98 where Pro Wrestling is just exploding into the main stream culture. There are semi-regular tours over there booked by Rikishi who apparently has a big money backer because the paydays are said to be huge and the accomodations (plane, hotel, meals, etc.) are first class all the way. All the former WWE guys and current TNA guys have been doing the tours.

[Downhome 0]

You know, in these days, it wouldn't surprise me not matter what the fuck happens. The best thing to do is just sit back, watch, and pray to God that things get really interesting once again.

 

It's already started.

[Guest Brian]

Well, he was the most sought after guy in the Radicalz when he came over, so point well taken that they won't treat him like Christian. Although, when Jericho came over in 1999 he was sought after too, but he never was given a decent run with the title like Benoit was just last year.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

In their opinion, they gave Jericho as good of a run as possible, and the only reason it ended was because he ran into the biggest star in the company. They let him unify the titles, put him over Rock and Austin (the second and third biggest stars), let him main event WrestleMania, and threw a McMahon on top of it (and what more fitting of McMahon than Stephanie). Benoit's run is probably in the same plane, but the WWE probably views both these guys as failures at some level.

[Guest Jim Ross]

Man, WWE is practically begging TNA to get big.

 

They better be glad Tajiri signed a new deal, or else he probably would have went to TNA too.

 

But if they were to nab up Jericho, Benoit, and Christian, that locks up the TNA market for Canada. They could flesh out so many arenas with those guys alone.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Those guys wouldn't even be the least of it in terms of TNA marketing in Canada. BIG things might be on the horizon soon.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

 

Well if Bob Holly jumps to TNA then the WWE is out of business

[Guest tony manero]

I don't even know if this has already been posted, but Benoit, like Christian, is being offered HALF of what he used to make. Apparently, there is a chance that Benoit may refuse the offer:

 

"Chris Benoit's contract with WWE expires in three weeks and he is getting a lowball figure like Christian did with his contract. The contract offer is for half of what he is making now. There is no word yet on whether he'll take it or not"

 

From PWinsider and WO newsletter

[Styles 0]

I don't even know if this has already been posted, but Benoit, like Christian, is being offered HALF of what he used to make. Apparently, there is a chance that Benoit may refuse the offer:

 

"Chris Benoit's contract with WWE expires in three weeks and he is getting a lowball figure like Christian did with his contract. The contract offer is for half of what he is making now. There is no word yet on whether he'll take it or not"

 

From PWinsider and WO newsletter

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Yup, I pointed it out already. Most of the thread is still unbelievers and seem to believe Benoit means as much if not more to Vince Mcmahon than Jim Ross or Steve Austin. It's laughable really.

[Fökai 0]

Are we still on Benoit's first contract?

 

If so, we're talking about those high downside guarantees that he and Jericho got (he got paid higher than the other Radicalz).

 

Christian most certainly is coming in

 

He said his interests were outside of wrestling.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

You believe that kayfabe bull?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Earlier this week, SmackDown Superstar Christian alerted World Wrestling Entertainment that he was leaving the company. In an interview with WWE.com conducted Wednesday evening, the former Intercontinental Champion revealed that his decision to walk away from WWE was one that he struggled with for some time.

 

 

 

WWE.com: What lead to your decision to leave World Wrestling Entertainment?

Christian: My contract came up on Oct. 31 and we negotiated back and forth a little bit. But it wasn’t about the money for me, really. There were some other things that were going on that helped sway my decision. It wasn’t a contract dispute, if that’s what you want to call it. It was a number of different things – I’ve been on the road with WWE for eight years straight, and it takes a toll on your body when you’re going 250-300 days a year.

 

So part of it was that, and obviously there was some frustration and a lot of other reasons that factored in. But I wasn’t bitter at all. There’s no hostility. There’s just some times when you need a change and you need to do different things. It was something that I felt was necessary for myself at this time.

 

Plus, I have some other interests going on outside the business that I’m really looking forward to. I’m not saying I’m giving up wrestling, but there are some other things that are very appealing to me. I had a great eight-year run with WWE. A lot of guys would dream of having a run that long. So I thank God that I got to live my dream for that long. When it came down to it, not a lot of guys get to leave on their own terms, and it was something that I felt strongly that I wanted to do?

 

WWE.com: You said your contract expired on Oct. 31, but you still appeared at Taboo Tuesday on Nov. 1. Why did you show up after your contract expired?

Christian: It wasn’t even an issue. I was in the voting for Taboo Tuesday, so I wouldn’t have dreamed of not fulfilling that commitment. I didn’t want to let anybody that was counting on me down, whether it was the people with WWE or the fans. So there were no second thoughts. I was going to be at Taboo Tuesday regardless.

 

WWE.com: When did you finally come to the realization that you were going to leave WWE?

Christian: It was something that was weighing on my mind for months. I knew that it was a decision that could not be taken lightly because it’s a life-changing decision. So I was on the fence about it. Then right about the time I pulled up to the arena Sunday in Los Angeles, I realized that was it. It was a hard decision.

 

WWE.com: What was it like having to say goodbye to the people in WWE that you traveled with for eight years?

Christian: Saying goodbye was the hardest part. It all came about pretty quickly. I hadn’t told anybody how I was feeling or thinking, so it came as a shock for a lot of people. It was difficult because you spend a lot of time with them. You spend more time with them than you do your own family. They actually become your family. So it was hard to say goodbye. It was especially hard saying goodbye to the WWE fans because they are so loyal. I’m going to miss them, as well.

 

WWE.com: What was it like this week at RAW and Taboo Tuesday knowing you were leaving shortly?

Christian: I didn’t really think like that when I went out there. It was one of those things where it didn’t really hit me until I left the arena in San Diego. After SmackDown, I went to RAW. And after RAW, I went to Taboo Tuesday, so I was still going to work like I normally would. It really didn’t hit me until I left Taboo Tuesday. When I was pulling out of the parking lot, looking in the rearview mirror, I thought it was kind of an end of an era. It’s over.

 

WWE.com: Are you still going to be a wrestling fan? Are you still going to watch SmackDown?

Christian: Of course. I’ll always be a wrestling fan. I’m not saying I’m giving up wrestling altogether. This is just something that I felt I had to do to mentally get myself back into the place of where I want to be as far as competing and going out there and performing.

 

WWE.com: Do you think you’ll ever be back in front of a WWE audience again?

Christian: Never say never in this business. WWE was great to me. I felt like I gave the company everything I had. And they allowed me to live my dream, which was wrestle in WWE. So never say never.

 

WWE.com: What are you going to miss most about WWE?

Christian: Performing. We all get into wrestling to go out and perform for our fans. I’ll miss that feeling that you get right before you step through that curtain and you hear that live audience. There’s no feeling like it anywhere in the world.

 

WWE.com: Do you have any favorite memories of WWE that you are going to take with you?

Christian: I’m going to take all the memories I made with me, every last one of them. I wouldn’t give any of it back. There’s too many great memories to narrow down to just one. Leaving on my own terms is something I wanted to do. It’ll help me look back fondly and say “hey, that was a great time in my life. I lived my dream and I was able to accomplish my goals. And there’s no hard feelings whatsoever.”

 

WWE.com: Is there anything you would like to say to the Peeps reading this right now on WWE.com?

Christian: I’m going to miss them all. Hopefully, they will see me again someday.

 

Tell me that any of that sounds kayfabed.

[Styles 0]

It's awfully coincidental that Christian decides to "pursue other interests" at the same time WWE offers him a paycut of half his previous downside guarentee, after a year of getting over with the fans being ignored by management and being made a virtual jobber.

 

He'll be in TNA as soon as he's contractually allowed to be.

[Guest Leelee]

I don't think it's kayfabed...

 

And maybe, WWE didn't want to push Christian because he wanted to get out of the business...

 

I just don't see the point of any WWE worker wanting to quit to make certainly LESS money for a second-rate company.

[Styles 0]

I don't think it's kayfabed...

 

And maybe, WWE didn't want to push Christian because he wanted to get out of the business...

 

I just don't see the point of any WWE worker wanting to quit to make certainly LESS money for a second-rate company.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

So...they allowed Christian to cut weeks of promos on John Cena, clearly setting up for a title program and then he decided he wanted to leave the business and moved him to Smackdown and jobbed him inpractically every match? Yeah....

[Styles 0]

It's called not burning bridges on your way out. WWE.com is not going to print: "Those fuckers lowballed me and didn't push me. Im going to TNA".

[Fökai 0]

It's awfully coincidental that Christian decides to "pursue other interests" at the same time WWE offers him a paycut of half his previous downside guarentee, after a year of getting over with the fans being ignored by management and being made a virtual jobber.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

I'm not attempting to get into Christian's head here, but here's an educated guess.

 

He's loyal enough to take that figure; the WWE gave him him a big break, and made him millions in the process of working with them. Not that he "owes" anything additional to them, but he probably wasn't thinking too much about the financial figure more than the company lowballing him on the contract shows that they could give a shit about their roster, regardless of their value to the company.

 

He'll be in TNA as soon as he's contractually allowed to be.

 

He's allowed to go now if he wanted to.

 

 

EDIT:...and while being over with the fans, he was angry that they passed on the Cena/Christian program essentially keeping him a midcarder, not because he was jobbing. He's been jobbed for a worse period of time than this past fall.

[Fökai 0]

It's called not burning bridges on your way out. WWE.com is not going to print: "Those fuckers lowballed me and didn't push me. Im going to TNA".

 

They know how he feels - hence why he was jobbed out for the past two months to anybody and everybody, instead of just sitting in limbo like every other midcarder. Is it that hard to grasp the idea that the insistence of not going through with a Cena/Christian title program killed his interests for the time being?

[Guest clockworkraven]

WWE.com: Do you think you’ll ever be back in front of a WWE audience again?

Christian: Never say never in this business. WWE was great to me. I felt like I gave the company everything I had. And they allowed me to live my dream, which was wrestle in WWE. So never say never.

 

It might not be kayfabe, but it's bull.

[Guest *KNK*]

WWE.com: Do you think you’ll ever be back in front of a WWE audience again?

Christian: Never say never in this business. WWE was great to me. I felt like I gave the company everything I had. And they allowed me to live my dream, which was wrestle in WWE. So never say never.

 

It might not be kayfabe, but it's bull.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

It could just as well mean "They gave me a fucking job, money to raise my family, and exposed me to the biggest crowd possible". They were great to him on that accord.

[Guest Y2DAYDAY]

From what I gather, here is all the info so far:

 

Bret Hart is interested in doing something with TNA but not until the new year(after the DVD is out for a while).

 

Chris Jericho is playing Vince McMahon. WWE wanted to re-sign him and no reports of a low ball figure came out. Some think Jericho turned it down to take time off, spend time with Fozzy, do the family thing, basically make Vince want him to return because he cannot have him, and then he'll get an even bigger offer like Hogan and Foley did. Vince wants everything and everyone he cannot have and that is the game Jericho is playing. He'll be back in WWE by mid 2006 at the latest. I could see him back even before Wrestlemania, who knows.

 

Christian was simply given a low ball figure reported to be half of his current downside. This is what isn't being reported. Just because they offer him a low downside doesn't mean he'll make less money. He'll only make less money if he cannot work and gets hurt. For example, Christian's old downside is reported to be $200,000. This means if he was hurt all year and couldn't work, he'd get $200,000. Or if he only worked 2 months and made $50,000, WWE would pay him the difference of the downside at the end of the year so he'd make his $200,000 guaranteed. He worked all year, got some good payoffs and made $400,000 this past year supposedly. So they offfered him a downside reportedly of $100,000, which is way too low for him. That doesn't mean he wouldn't have made $400,000 again but I guess that wasn't a chance he was willing to take.

 

The Chris Benoit situation is different. I am pretty sure they are not going to let Benoit go if they have any say over it. This is just a case of good negotiating, trying to get Benoit to take a lesser downside offer. I'm sure Benoit won't bite, teased going to TNA, and then Vince will cave and pay him what he is getting now. Basically this is Vince's way of tricking Benoit into thinking he is getting a deal but in reality it is their way of not giving him a raise. Cruel but smart.

 

Christian tried to play the game Benoit will and WWE didn't bite. They'll give in to Benoit though.

 

So, unless things change, and this is pro wrestling so who knows, it looks like Benoit will stay, Jericho will come back, Christian will go to TNA full time and Hart will appear for TNA a few times.

[Lil' Bitch 0]

I doubt he'll leave, but that would suck ass if he did. I'm not worried.

[Styles 0]

I doubt he'll leave, but that would suck ass if he did.  I'm not worried.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Oh yeah, Benoit having dream matches with the young talent of ROH and TNA in a less restrictive enviornment in front of crowds who would appreciate it. What a nightmare!

[Guest *KNK*]

I doubt he'll leave, but that would suck ass if he did.  I'm not worried.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

It's not like Benoit wouldn't easy to follow if he left WWE. He'd either go to TNA which is on national tv or ROH which is easy to buy. In WWE, he's pretty much run the table at anything worth staying for. With the exception of Undertaker, Benjamin, London and Mysterio, there's nothing Benoit hasn't really done yet that would be good to see. Im not begging another year of Booker/Benoit matches.

[Hunter's Torn Quad 0]

Benoit will make the best decision for Benoit. If he wants the security, he'll go with WWE. If he wants creative freedom, he'll go with TNA/ROH or wherever.

[Guest Leelee]

I don't think it's kayfabed...

 

And maybe, WWE didn't want to push Christian because he wanted to get out of the business...

 

I just don't see the point of any WWE worker wanting to quit to make certainly LESS money for a second-rate company.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

So...they allowed Christian to cut weeks of promos on John Cena, clearly setting up for a title program and then he decided he wanted to leave the business and moved him to Smackdown and jobbed him inpractically every match? Yeah....

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Yes, but you can't use common sense when referring to WWE booking.

 

It wouldn't shock me if they didn't just let Christian out there to waste time talking shit to Cena after their cute little exchange at RR. After all, he was never really pushed like a serious world title contender.