Courtesy: www.MondayNightMayhem.com
TNA’s Eric Bischoff was one of the featured guests on this week’s live edition of the award-winning Monday Night Mayhem: You can feel The Mayhem every Monday evening (at 7PM ET/6PM CT), exclusively on The Monday Night Mayhem Radio Network (www.MondayNightMayhem.com, www.AudioWrestling.com, www.Geekweek.com, www.Hybrident.tv, & www.iTunes.com). Join The Mayhem right now on Facebook (at www.Facebook.com/MondayNightMayhem), and follow The Mayhem on Twitter (at www.Twitter.com/FeelTheMayhem).
Eric joined The Big Mosh, “The Chairman of the Board” Todd Vincent, & special guest co-host Pro Wrestling Illustrated’s Dan Murphy for his return to “Your Home of Wrestling Radio” & for another installment of his exclusive monthly interactive segment on Monday Night Mayhem, “The Hot Seat With Eric Bischoff” (flavored by Sizzlin Sauces), which is now available in Windows Streaming Media or via the official MNM Podcast on iTunes:
“The Hot Seat With Eric Bischoff” (flavored by Sizzlin Sauces) (MNM Streaming Audio): www.mondaynightmayhemarchives.com/waxfiles/052311.wax
“The Hot Seat With Eric Bischoff” (flavored by Sizzlin Sauces) (MNM Podcast on iTunes): www.mondaynightmayhemarchives.com/may11/052311.mp3
Questions were taken via Eric’s & Monday Night Mayhem’s official Facebook pages (located respectively at www.Facebook.com/TheEricBischoff & www.Facebook.com/MondayNightMayhem), along with Monday Night Mayhem’s official Twitter page (located at www.Twitter.com/FeelTheMayhem). Interview highlights courtesy of Paterson, MNM’s associate producer & official correspondent:
His reaction to the passing of Randy Savage & how he will remember “The Macho Man”: “It hit me pretty hard, and it’s still hitting me now. He was a very private individual and kind of kept to himself, and I respected that. As more information comes out the more I see it, it still shocks me, and it’s hard to believe that Randy is not with us.”
The transition from iMPACT into iMPACT Wrestling & why he believes now is the perfect time to make changes to the television program itself: “Last week, a lot of the changes you saw were cosmetic. Graphics, lighting, staging, and that sort of thing, which was part of the plan. I think anyone who had any expectations that all of sudden iMPACT Wrestling was going to be a completely different show, probably had misaligned expectations. We are going to try & improve the show in many different ways in what you are going to see throughout the summer and going into the fall. It’s a great time of year to experiment with format and experiment with different elements of the show. You’ll see those changes. Some will noticeable, and others won’t be.”
Whether or not he sees Ring of Honor as more of a direct competition to TNA, after the acquisition of ROH by Sinclair Broadcasting: “I know I am going to get a lot of heat for what I’m about to tell you, and I’ve got nothing against anybody at Ring of Honor. In fact I wish them all the best. I’m reading a lot of stuff people are writing, and I think they are kidding themselves. Sinclair is 22 television stations, however many it is, that has a 22% market penetration in the United States. 22% market penetration in the United States means you don’t exist from an advertisers point of view. 22% means Nielsen doesn’t even track you as a network, and that’s assuming they get distribution on all 22 of those stations, which isn’t guaranteed. So while I think it’s a great thing for ROH because at least they have something, I think the enthusiasm of the fact that it’s a network, people are getting excited over a lot of nothing.”
If he has ever been a fan of short title reigns (coming off the fan fallout after Christian losing the World Heavyweight Championship to Randy Orton, just days after winning the title): “It all goes back to story. What’s the circumstances? What’s the context? Where’s it going? There’s not a simple formula to answer that question. Generally speaking, short title reigns tend to be risky, because your audience never really has a chance to grasp it and to get embedded into it one way or the other.”
More is contained in the latest installment of “The Hot Seat” (flavored by Sizzlin Sauces), including Eric’s candid thoughts on the rebranding of iMPACT to iMPACT Wrestling, whether or not he would be up for the challenge of increased duties within TNA after the departure of Terry Taylor, the company’s plans to have its biggest stars headline TNA’s BaseBrawl events this summer, what he currently sees in the X-Division that should give the fans hope for the future of the division, the development of the on-air persona of Karen Jarrett & if it’s too early to start comparing her to Vickie Guerrero in terms of generating “heat” on TV, Chyna‘s return to the ring after a ten-year absence, how the idea for Bischoff Family Brewing came about & his expectations for this new business venture, plus much more! If you missed the live & interactive “Hot Seat” experience, then tune in to “Your Home of Wrestling Radio” on Monday evening, June 6th (beginning at 7:40PM ET/6:40PM CT), as “The Hot Seat With Eric Bischoff” (flavored by Sizzlin Sauces) will return LIVE! This is your chance to speak directly to TNA’s Eric Bischoff leading into TNA’s Slammiversary Pay-Per-View. Post your questions right now on Eric’s official Facebook page (located at www.Facebook.com/TheEricBischoff), along with that of Monday Night Mayhem (located at www.Facebook.com/MondayNightMayhem).
Gotta love Eric Bischoff telling it like it is with ROH’s acquisition by Sinclair.