Impact Wrestling (TNA) News: Eric Bischoff defends how Impact Wrestling handled the contracts of Matt and Jeff Hardy
What’s the story?
On the most recent edition of his podcast, Eric Bischoff discussed the departure of the Broken Hardys from Impact Wrestling.
In case you didn’t know...
Earlier this week, the Hardys confirmed that they would not be re-signing with Impact Wrestling. The Hardys were a significant loss for Impact, who has lost the likes of Drew Galloway, Mike Bennett and Maria Kanellis, as well as Jade over the course of the past week.
The heart of the matter
Bischoff responded to another report that stated the Hardys felt, “disrespected,” by officials from Impact Wrestling during contract negotiations. He also intimated that he felt that the, “Broken Hardy,” gimmick was not a significant factor in ratings of the Impact Wrestling television program. Moreover, he defended the company with how they approached handling the contracts of the multiple-time tag team champions.
Also read: WWE Rumors: Eric Bischoff expected to induct Diamond Dallas Page into Hall of Fame
Bischoff said that perception isn’t always reality, unfortunately. Most times it is, but not always. He said that when it comes down to a financial decision – like the one Impact Wrestling had to weigh in the case of the Hardys – he thinks it would be difficult to assign credit for an increase in ratings to any particular talent.
“I know that the 'Broken' Hardy thing is really popular on the internet. I’ve been to events. Signings and independent events where Matt or Jeff Hardy have been. Usually Matt and I see the kind of response it gets. It’s great on the internet. It’s great in the peripheral wrestling community.”
The man responsible for defeating Monday Night Raw in the ratings for well over a year also chimed in on his opinion about the company’s ratings. He said that if you only look at the television numbers and their correlation to real revenue – not perceived revenue – he thinks it would be difficult for any individual roster member to claim that they’re the reason for that increase.
Bischoff finished his thoughts on the situation by stating that if you’re going to ask to be treated differently financially, you have to be able to justify what you’re asking for and – in his opinion – there is no justification.
What’s next?
New episodes of Bischoff on Wrestling are available for download on Wednesdays.
Sportskeeda’s take
Bischoff brings up some interesting points from the view of someone who’s dealt with contract negotiations with talent, as well as equating ratings to revenue. We’re inclined to believe that Bischoff knows what he’s talking about, but it will be very interesting to see if he’s correct in his views. That will likely happen next week when the ratings for the first episode of the new regime are released.
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