Jeff Jarrett Criticizes Scott D’Amore’s TNA Successor as “Not a Wrestling Guy”

On the latest episode of the “My World” podcast, AEW’s Jeff Jarrett weighed in on some of the significant wrestling news of the week, particularly Scott D’Amore’s departure from TNA Wrestling.

Reflecting on the situation, Jarrett delved into the speculation surrounding D’Amore’s alleged attempt to purchase TNA. While acknowledging that he wasn’t privy to all the details, Jarrett shared his thoughts on the potential reasons behind such a move, suggesting that D’Amore might have aimed to allocate more funds to the company’s operations.

“As I sat down and drilled through everything, without knowing any of the details and as things trickled out, you hear, and I don’t know if it’s true or not, but the one thing that’s in there is he tried to buy it. The reason I think he tried to buy it, if this is true, was because he wanted to spend more money.”

Jarrett also pondered over TNA’s financial standing, acknowledging the Asper family’s wealth and the various ventures associated with the company. Despite the recent buzz surrounding TNA, Jarrett questioned the timing of D’Amore’s departure and emphasized the importance of understanding the company’s financial performance over the years.

“I don’t know the books, but the Asper family is very well to do and they’ve made a lot of money through the years off the television industry and cable and AXS and Pursuit and they did the merger a couple years ago or the acquisitions and Steve Harvey got involved. With all that being said, it drills down to I don’t know what TNA’s true EBITA, PNL, like the real financials. What does that really look like because it’s obviously Len Asper’s sole decision. I ask myself, ‘What did the profit/loss look like over the last six years’ because there’s no way that you do the re-brand and you have, and maybe it’s just the internet, but it felt like it had the most buzz on the company in the last three or four years, maybe longer than that. They had quite a bit of buzz. The timing of it all is very perplexing. You never judge a book by its cover, but I don’t know what their financial picture looks like and the timing of it all. I’ll say this, they got their work cut out. No doubt. No one is irreplaceable. We are watching that right before our very eyes, but no talent, no executive, nobody is irreplaceable in this industry.“

Highlighting the transient nature of the wrestling industry, Jarrett emphasized that no individual, whether talent or executive, is indispensable. However, he expressed curiosity about TNA’s future plans and questioned the suitability of Anthony Cicione, D’Amore’s replacement, as a wrestling-centric executive.

“That being said, what is their plan in place? That’s what I’ve yet to hear come out. I know him (Anthony Cicione, the person taking D’Amore’s spot). I worked with him back then and I think he will tell you he is not a wrestling guy by any stretch of the imagination. He can be an executive and he is, but I’m thinking at the core, who is the wrestling guy? At the end of the day, that is an enormous component of who is steering the ship creatively?” 

Jarrett underscored the significance of having a wrestling-oriented figure at the helm of creative decision-making, stressing the importance of steering the company in the right direction.

What are your thoughts on Jeff Jarrett’s analysis of Scott D’Amore’s departure from TNA Wrestling? Do you agree with his speculation about D’Amore’s alleged attempt to purchase TNA and the potential reasons behind it? Let us know in the comments below.