SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
As theoretical all-star teams were put together by NXT and TNA men’s and women’s captains ahead of next week’s Showdown event on Tuesday night, one name was notably absent and has been absent from the cross-over of these two brands since the beginning: Tessa Blanchard.
Blanchard is arguably the best women’s wrestler on the TNA roster, and certainly the biggest heel. That has not translated into an opportunity to be a part of the talent exchange between TNA and NXT to this point, nor was she selected by Kelani Jordan to be a part of the women’s Team TNA. She was passed up in favor of The Inspiration and Mara Sade.
In storyline, you could make the argument that, as three former NXT wrestlers, perhaps the chip on their shoulders from being let go would give them extra motivation to perform at their best in this match. You could also say that Blanchard is not someone Jordan or others selected for Team TNA could trust, given her dastardly heel actions, including recently beating up interviewer Gia Miller.
ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…
Check out the latest episode of “PWT Talks NXT” with Kelly Wells and Nate Lindberg, part of the PWTorch Dailycast line-up: CLICK HERE to stream (or search “pwtorch” on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or any other iOS or Android app to subscribe free)
On the other hand, it’s difficult to reason leaving the best wrestler on the bench if you’re indeed interested in helping Team TNA beat Team NXT (and with Jordan, the TNA Knockouts Champion and NXT contracted wrestler leading Team TNA, the idea that she’d want to help TNA beat NXT is certainly debatable).
Outside of storyline, Blanchard’s antics behind the scenes have come under intense scrutiny over the years, including accusations of racism and a lack of contrition since, such that NXT may still be hesitant to utilize her, even on a short-term loan. It would be a bad look for the company if NXT crowds took their cues from some TNA ones recently that have chanted “You’re a racist!” at Blanchard.
This Showdown event would’ve been the perfect opportunity to introduce Blanchard as a TNA hired gun in their match against the NXT women.
The fact that they haven’t done that is an indication that NXT is still not comfortable using her on their television. This far into the relationship between NXT and TNA, it’s fair to wonder if they’ll ever be comfortable enough to utilize her – or if they’d be comfortable having NXT talent wrestle her on TNA TV. That may seem the more likely scenario.
QUICK NOTE: Did you know you can read an ad-free, silky-smooth-loading version of this website with a PWTorch VIP Membership? Also, unlock 35+ years of archives including nearly 2,000 PWTorch Weekly Newsletters dating back to the late 1980s, hundreds of retro radio shows from the 1990s, and two decades of podcasts including Post-PPV Roundtable Podcasts dating back to the mid-2000s. Plus, new VIP-exclusive articles and podcasts throughout the week, fully compatible with the native Apple Podcasts app.
CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS ON VIP MEMBERSHIP
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.