Jeff Jarrett’s new promotion Global Force Wrestling took another step forward in its launch today by announcing several key members of its roster. During their press conference at the Orleans Arena, Jarrett mentioned that there would be a mix of stars from different backgrounds including professional wrestling (of course), former NFL players, mixed martial artists and so forth.
It seems as though there is a conscious effort to appeal to as many different crossover audiences as possible, marketing toward international crowds by having affiliations with organizations such as Mexico’s AAA, New Japan Pro Wrestling and more from the wrestling world, but also different sports outside of the squared circle.
While we could have always assumed both Jeff Jarrett and his wife Karen would be playing roles on screen, the rest of the talent was unknown until now. So far, the following people have been announced:
Chael Sonnen
Sonnen is an incredibly popular name who will undoubtedly help bring in some viewers from MMA and ESPN. Over the years, he developed a reputation for being outspoken and a trash talker, which is the type of edge that lots of fans absolutely love. He’s got personality and is very comfortable on the mic, so that shouldn’t be a worry whatsoever. Yes, it may seem odd for him to be an “expert analyst” when it comes to professional wrestling since he’s from UFC, but those two sports have as much of a connection as you can possibly get without being the same thing. It’s much less of a stretch to have someone from a combat fighting background talk about wrestling than someone from the NBA or even NFL. Sonnen should be nothing but a positive for the broadcast team.
Lance Hoyt and Davey Boy Smith Jr. (Harry Smith, formerly David Hart Smith)
The WWE audience may recognize Davey Boy Smith Jr. as Harry Smith (or David Hart Smith…or DH Smith…), the son of wrestling legend The British Bulldog. Being tied to the Hart Family is essentially enough credentials for people to pay attention to you, but having already won some gold in WWE and found success in other companies just adds to that. Sure, Smith wasn’t exactly the most charismatic person on the roster during his time, but his in-ring work should speak for itself in the long run.
As far as Lance Hoyt goes, he’s more of a TNA entity than a WWE one, as his time in the latter wasn’t exactly the most prolific. Just like Smith, he’s gone by numerous names over the years including Dallas, Lance Rock of the Rock ‘n’ Rave Infection, Vance Archer in WWE (where he would eventually team with Curt Hawkins to form the Gatecrashers) and the combination of all those names in Lance Archer in New Japan Pro Wrestling.
These two have been tagging with each other as the Killer Elite Squad for several years and are being advertised as one of the forefront teams that will be a backbone of that division for GFW. Both underperformed in WWE, but there have been plenty of cases where someone has excelled beyond that universe.
PJ Black
When amping up for the first season of NXT, Justin Gabriel was promoted as WWE’s answer to AJ Styles who would wow the audience every night and could end up being ridiculously over with the crowd. He definitely achieved some success in WWE as a former tag team champion on multiple occasions, a key member of The Nexus and a two-time Slammy Award winner. His career took a nosedive, though, and it seemed as though WWE had lost all confidence in him and wouldn’t be using him as anything but enhancement talent, so I fully see why he left the company to pursue other endeavors. While he could use a lot of work on his mic skills, I’ve always been fond of him in the ring and I think he can be a solid midcarder for GFW to build that division around.
Doc Gallows and Karl Anderson
One of the many people that I feel was underutilized in WWE was Luke Gallows, who was one of the more entertaining (albeit ridiculous) characters as Festus before transitioning to a legitimate superstar while working with CM Punk as part of the Straight Edge Society. I was really hoping he would break out into the midcard and become someone that could be around for a long time, similar to at least the level Rikishi was able to obtain. That didn’t come to fruition, but he has the skills to succeed and I think he can be perhaps the standout star in GFW.
Admittedly, I don’t know all that much about Karl Anderson, which is actually something that I’m positive about. I won’t be going into GFW with very high expectations for him that might not be matched, but rather, I’ll be able to see what he has to offer as it develops. At the very least, his association with Gallows and their work with the Bullet Club is enough for me to be confident that I should give him a chance.
Chris “The Adonis” Mordetsky
At one point in time, “The Masterpiece” Chris Masters was a rather big name in WWE and had a lot of potential to become one of the major players in the company. Things eventually turned south after several issues, but he found his way back into the company a while later, only to be relegated to jobber status. Many—myself included—felt as though it may have made sense to an extent, but Masters also deserved something better. I’m totally on board with him being in Global Force Wrestling and I’m hoping that this will be the place for him to properly shine.
Quinn “Moose” Ojinnaka
I’ve seen very little of Moose just by checking out a handful of matches on YouTube, but I’m impressed. He’s big in a way that will make him stand out from someone like PJ Black, but he’s also thankfully not too big to the point where he’s also slow. As a former offensive lineman for the NFL, it’s also beneficial to have him on the roster for the publicity that can get the company.
Lei’D Tapa
Lei’d Tapa is a second generation star, as she is the daughter of former WWE superstar The Barbarian. From what I’ve seen of her, I’m not that impressed. Granted, I haven’t seen all that much, so that opinion doesn’t hold a ton of weight behind it, but I can think of plenty of women I’d rather see in GFW than Lei’D Tapa. Here’s hoping she proves me wrong and is a valuable asset to the company instead of someone who drags the division down. Out of everyone announced today, she’s definitely the one I’m least excited for.
Thea Trinidad
Formerly Rosita of TNA and “that really good looking bee in the Rosebuds” in WWE, Thea Trinidad is actually one of my favorite people announced for this roster. She’s only 24 years old but she’s already proven that she’s talented in the ring, so she should only continue to improve in time.
That’s it for now, but it’s important to keep in mind that this is obviously not the entire roster. More names will be announced soon. Could we see more people such as Kazarian and Christopher Daniels? Maybe some of the bigger names in women’s wrestling like Katarina Waters will be joining the company. There’s always a chance some big Ring of Honor folk find their way on the roster as well.
All in all, I think this is a good start. If these are all of the big names that they have and the rest that will comprise the roster are nobodies, it will be disappointing for sure, but I’m willing to give them the benefit of the doubt. This could have been better, but it could have been worse as well. Fans will be underwhelmed if they compare this company through the perspective of challenging WWE, as it stands absolutely no chance in that fight. However, in comparison to TNA, ROH and the independent pro wrestling scene, GFW could definitely turn some heads in due time.
What do you think of the people that have been announced so far? Are you excited about Global Force Wrestling or is this just not doing it for you? Tell us what you’re thinking in the comments below!