Billy Corgan is known to many people around the world as the frontman for The Smashing Pumpkins, but Corgan is also involved in professional wrestling and in 2016 it was announced that Billy had become the President of TNA.
Corgan used his own money to help fund the company, and he made it clear that he wanted to purchase the wrestling promotion and make it his own. Unfortunately that didn’t work out so well for Billy Corgan, and he ended up parting ways with TNA when it was purchased by Anthem.
Corgan may be done with Impact, but during a recent interview with Sports Illustrated he announced that he has a 20 year plan for the NWA brand which he purchased over the summer.
“We want to be part of a new revolution of how wrestling can be consumed by fans and matches can be presented. This NWA brand dates back to 1948. The past few years have not been as kind as we would have liked, but we plan on building this into a powerhouse over time. Our focus is on the NWA plan, and we have a 20-year plan. We’re not going to just come in and throw money around for two years. We’ve learned from the past mistakes of TNA, which we have intimate knowledge of. We’re armed with this knowledge, and we’re setting out to rebuild the brand so a fan that currently doesn’t know anything about the NWA will respect the tradition and also respect what we’re trying to accomplish, like a Ring of Honor or a New Japan. That’s where we are starting, and we’re building from there.”
Corgan also opened up about his time with TNA, and he didn’t really have too many positive things to say about the company.
“I was very, very frustrated by the obstacles I faced internally, both culturally and fiscally, at TNA. I dealt with a lot of backstabbing and lies. I was able to push through some things that ended up being successful at TNA, and I was very frustrated because you would think the success would have led to more leverage and further opportunities. But it was exactly the opposite. People were out to get me because I had power. At least now, in this situation, I am my own boss. You have to build your own infrastructure from the bottom up and work with people you really trust. The traditional ‘carny’ aspect of the wrestling business that plagues a lot of companies, and has plagued a company like TNA, are problems that hold the business back. You can’t run an effective business if it’s like Game of Thrones every week.”
Are you excited to see what Billy Corgan does with NWA? Sound off in the comments below.
Definitely looking forward to this.