By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
Impact Wrestling announced the end of their business relationship with Eli Drake (a/k/a Shaun Ricker) on Sunday. “Impact Wrestling announced today that it has terminated its relationship with Shaun Ricker, known as ‘Eli Drake’, reads a statement at ImpactWrestling.com.
Powell’s POV: Drake declined to face Tessa Blanchard in an intergender match at Thursday’s United We Stand pay-per-view. Drake offered something of an explanation in tweets listed below regarding intergender wrestling and a face off involving Killer Kross and Jordynne Grace. Impact Wrestling creative team member Jimmy Jacobs disagreed in his response to the tweet regarding Kross and Grace. Sadly, Drake has been spinning his wheels creatively in Impact Wrestling since he dropped the company’s top title in February 2018. While there’s two sides to every story, a change of scenery can’t hurt at this point.
Since what I’m saying seems to be lost on some:
If the women are outperforming the men, they should absolutely main event, they should absolutely be paid as much, if not more, and pushed beyond the men.
But Ronda vs Lesnar???
WNBA champs vs NBA champs???
Those only end one way— Eli Drake (@TheEliDrake) April 2, 2019
Not to take anything away from her. She’s a great performer and athlete, but there is nothing realistic about a 5’3” girl fighting a 6’4” jacked wrestler.
Wrestling rooted in some level of realism attracts casual audiences, and that’s how you grow. #sorrynotsorry https://t.co/yKJXbvW326
— Eli Drake (@TheEliDrake) April 1, 2019
This is a fundamentally wrong. Wrestling is absolutely not rooted in realism, which is self evident to anyone who’s seen a real fight. It’s rooted in storytelling, characters, drama & emotion. To correlate realism with audience growth is 100% wrong. https://t.co/rb7wfUrsee
— Jimmy Jacobs (@JimmyJacobsX) April 2, 2019
Check below for the new Pro Wrestling Boom Podcast with Jason Powell and guest John Thorne, who discusses promoting the AIW Slumber Party Massacre from the Thursday of WrestleMania weekend (available via VOD on FITE TV), being a small fish in the big WrestleMania weekend pond, his long history with Johnny Gargano, and much more.
Eli Drake is to good for TNA, He should be in AEW or back to NXT
You had no idea who he was until TNA developed him. Now he’s too good? He wasn’t too good when he debuted in TNA green as grass.I love Eli Drake but the grass is always greener outside of TNA until the reality of EC3 and Matt Hardy comes to mind.
A change of scenery can’t hurt? Well EC3, Matt Hardy, Mike Bennett, Maria, Laurel Van Ness all beg to differ.