Front Runner For SmackDown? Joe Rips Indies and More! – WrestleCorp News

WWE Television Updates – The WWE has agreed to a new deal with NBC Universal that will see the RAW brand stick with USA Network going forward at 3x the price they were getting before.  The re-upping was surprising but the amount that NBC paid is rather intriguing.  With the amount per year that RAW will generate, it’s expected that it’ll stay at 3 hours.

I’ve heard indecently that SmackDown was wanted by NBC as well, but they had a different monetary figure in mind for the show.  I’m told there’s a hangup on whether or not SmackDown getting a third hour was a sticking point.  I’m not sure what side wanted the third hour and who rejected it but that was apparently part of the discussion.  SmackDown is being heavily pursued by several other networks, with Fox Sports being the big favorite to land it.  However, that’s all just rumors at the moment.

I’m told it’s possible that the overall deal for RAW may be around the same figure that both RAW and SmackDown were signed for a few years back.

 

Samoa Joe Doesn’t Give A Fuck – Samoa Joe has a desire for wrestlers to make as much money as possible, even if it destroys their legacy or future earning potential outside of the WWE.  Joe talked to POPCulture.com and revealed that he’s glad the WWE is raiding the indies, saying;

Hey, you know whose fault it is, that your favorite wrestler got bought out? The company he was working for, cause they were too cheap to pay him what he was worth. So he should get paid what he’s worth, and if WWE comes and pays him what he’s worth, that’s on your sorry ass. Get the money right. And start paying these dudes.

There are too many crazy talented dudes out there that aren’t getting paid, and if you have a problem with WWE making those dudes rich, you can kiss my ass.  Cause those dudes deserve to be rich, cause they’re talented as hell.

It’s funny because people are like, ‘oh, well that’s kind of messed up,’ No. No. That’s how you win.  That’s why they’re the number one company in the world. You go out there and you get the best dudes. You don’t get mad at a tiger for being a tiger.

The problem with Joe’s mindset is he really doesn’t know how many people take paycuts in order to go to NXT.  There’s a reason why guys are turning down WWE contracts more than ever, and that’s because the money isn’t much different anymore.  It’s one thing if South Bermuda Championship Wrestling wants to pay $1000 for AJ Styles to wrestle a show, as opposed to NJPW or ROH, (or even IMPACT).  But some of the smallest of promotions can meet an NXT talent’s per show pay these days, something that wasn’t the case a decade ago.  The WWE wants to sign away all these top guys in order to dry up the indy money scene, plunging the indies back into the early to mid 00’s, where there was no money to be made; thus being able to poach more talent at cheaper discounts.

Quick Hits – Jeff Hardy had a minor knee tweak at the SmackDown tapings in the UK.  He’s since returned to work, taking on Rusev in Liverpool.  Horoshi Tanahashi is picking Hiromu Takahashi to win the Best of the Super Juniors this year.  NJPW’s new President, Harold Meij, wants to “trouble” the WWE in a few years, and within three years raise their sales to around $90 million.