#2 Never-ending pay issues leads to a talent exodus
One of the biggest problems that have plagued TNA for years has been its ability to pay its wrestlers. Many of them had been signed to lucrative contracts and were promised big payouts, but these wrestlers experienced significant problems when it came to the wrestlers getting paid for their performances.
During 2016, there were countless reports throughout the year that the company was behind on paying their wrestlers, with some wrestlers not getting paid for months on end. These problems worsened when it was revealed that Alberto Del Rio initially didn’t sign with them ‘because he knew he wouldn’t get paid’, as well as a report that TNA wrestler Jesse Neal had to rely on food stamps just so that he could eat.
These high-profile financial problems caused a mass exodus of talent over the past few years. Hulk Hogan, who had signed with the company in the hopes of rebuilding it, left in late 2013. He was followed soon after by A.J. Styles, who said that the company wanted to reduce his pay by up to 60%.
A year later, TNA experienced another exodus, with wrestlers Sting, Chris Sabin, Hernandez, Christopher Daniels and Kazarian all leaving the company. A year later, long-time TNA wrestlers Samoa Joe, Velvet Sky and Eric Young also left, leaving the roster even more threadbare.
This problem with payment and problematic issues with the office led to another enormous exodus earlier this year, Drew Galloway, the Hardys, Maria Kanellis & Mike Bennett all leaving as well. If these departures aren’t clear signed of backstage controversy, I don’t know what is.
