In light of criticism that her company was not responding effectively to the drug problems that may have played a role in the death of Eddie Guerrero, TNA President Dixie Carter said Monday on the Audio Wrestling show that her company does not have the same drug problems that WWE has and no need for a policy.
“Right now, we don’t have any specific drug policy in place… We haven’t really had any problems, so I don’t know exactly where we’re going to go,” she said. “We keep very, very close tabs on our locker room situation,” she explained.
Carter’s statement comes as both WWE and TNA have been rebuffed over a lack of a comprehensive drug policy in the weeks after Guerrero’s death. After that death and an incident involving Nick Dinsmore, WWE made public the reinstatement of a drug testing policy. TNA, however, has chosen not to institute a similar policy. Some say that this reflects the company’s unwillingness to address or naïveté about the gravity of the problem.
According to Carter, TNA impresses on their wrestlers a different standard than WWE that does not encourage rampant use of steroids. “You can tell by looking at our roster that we’re not necessarily about size,” Carter said. “You don’t have to be a bulked up talent to be successful on our show. We have a different philosophy as far as the type of wrestler and style of wrestler.”
Other people feel that by distancing themselves from the problem, TNA ignores the systemic problems that are causing undue risk to the health of wrestlers. “TNA wants to be thought of us as competition for WWE, well if they want that then it’s time for them to start acting like a major wrestling company,” wrote Dan Whalers, a columnist with the Wrestling Observer website. “They are on national television now on Spike TV every week. They can’t hide in the corner and say ‘we’re not like them’ anymore, because that excuse doesn’t fly. It’s their responsibility to their wrestlers, and to their fans to address this drug problem in whatever manner they see fit. To ignore it, and act like it’s not going on is wrong.”
