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Return of the Gunslingers

Back in 2015, the wrestling landscape was changing on a daily basis, and the Sheriff Of Parts Unknown was there to comment. Samoa Joe had just joined the WWE and not really left the Indie circuit at the same time. It was an interesting time . . .

It used to be, up until yesterday as I write this, that wrestlers worked for one company in North America. That was the way it was ever since the Monday Night War opened and exclusivity of star power was seen as important to your brand’s ability to outdo the other guy. Then Samoa Joe signed with WWE and everything changed.

How did we get here? Well it's been creeping forward outside of WWE land all year; Lucha Underground has some people on exclusives, some people farmed in from AAA, and some indie workers from all over the States. Joey Ryan works for West Coast Wrestling Connection and Paragon two TV wrestling companies with national deals. Matt Striker wrestles for WCWC and commentates for Lucha Underground, the reality is only one six people have had non exclusive contracts with WWE since the Wrestlemania Era began; Samoa Joe, Rhino, The Steiner Brothers  and The British Bulldogs. For the Bulldogs and The Steiners the point was monetary. they had big money deals with All Japan and New Japan respectively, turning down thousands of dollars a night just to wrestle for Vince just seemed plain rude. However it would be detrimental to their long term pushes in the Fed. The Bulldogs magically became tag team champions about thirty seconds after handing in their notice to Giant Baba. The Steiners, the most dominant, talented and over tag team of their generation could not get any forward motion in a comically weak WWF Tag Team division and hightailed it back to WCW as quick as their tree trunk legs could carry them. Rhino seems to have been an experiment in how this new hiring model will work for Samoa Joe, and was beneficial to Rhino; more exposure to remind folks what you are like and receive increased bookings on the indie circuit. He pulled the same trick in TNA last year. Joe seems to be in a different kind of mode though. He still has a lot to offer any company and that's what WWE are hoping for, a revitalised Joe giving them some depth. He is largely TV ready and fills the same role played by Mick Foley at the beginning of the Attitude Era. Jim Ross didn’t sign Foley for his match ability, he signed him as a steadying influence on the locker room. The match ability was a bonus. An invigorated Joe puts some ballast on a young roster.  Used to helming a swaying ship, he is the man HHH hopes can bring some balance and deeper meaning to NXT and may be the main roster too, for everyone else it looks like WWE is being the benevolent master, a total win win for everyone.

  
This isn’t actually new, it has been going on for a little while as companies can’t afford talents on full time contracts, but hopefully, with a back wind, it will mean good things for Indie wrestling. As more companies get national exposure and the guys working for them don’t just work for one company, that should, with a back wind and some luck mean that smaller companies will be able to attract wider audiences. Thinking more deeply, it opens up the talent pool over the next ten years because as they grow the cream will rise. While I don’t expect anyone else on the WWE roster to be offered similar deals, this new way of thinking may be a smart move on WWE’s part. The long term success stories from NXT have come from recruited college athletes, but the ones who know the job and push the buttons are the indie darlings, the Ambroses, Rollins’, and Bryans of this world. They need them as glue to hold their roster together.  

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