X-Pac welcomes Magnus to the show.
Magnus says that working as an American Gladiator was a fun experience and that ultimately led to his debut in TNA, but he wasn’t happy at all with his initial ‘gladiator’ gimmick. He says he has spoken with Vince Russo and other creative members in the years since and they all try to pass the blame in terms of who came up with that gimmick, but apparently Dixie Carter came up with his name.
X-Pac says that Magnus did a very good job as TNA World Champion as a homegrown talent who clearly cared about the success of the company as a whole. Magnus says that was an interesting time in TNA, but he’s proud to inform that the television ratings on Spike TV held firm and the live event ticket sales actually increased during his Title run.
X-Pac points out that Magnus had a significant impact on TNA’s ratings and overall popularity in the UK. When he was thrown into a main event match with Sting early on during his run there in 2009, the ratings for that show apparently went up 50%. Although he doesn’t like boasting about it, he does feel that he had a positive impact on the company’s success in the UK.
