Latest on Road Dogg Not Being at TNA Tapings

Is Brian James, a.k.a. Road Dogg, actually coming to TNA to replace Tommy Dreamer in creative, following his voluntary departure from WWE? He was backstage at Slammiversary this past weekend without a contract, but reportedly not at the latest TV tapings for the company. As he might suggest, when we don’t know, our asses better call somebody…

And of course, Dave Meltzer has answered the call. Over at Figure Four Online, he’s quoted as saying, “He is still expected to sign here, but the sides haven’t come to terms.” Meltzer notes that James did some match agenting unofficially at Slammiversary, but it was mostly still a Tommy Dreamer-Hunter Johnston show, despite Dreamer no longer being there.

James previously worked for TNA as a wrestler between 2002 and 2009, reforming the New Age Outlaws with Billy Gunn/Kip James as the Voodoo Kin Mafia. His tenure at that time was defined by a great deal of WWE-bashing, as TNA at the time had Vince Russo trying to create controversial TV.

These days, with the two companies cooperating, it’s a different story. Rather than play out a competitive angle on camera, James can help TNA be a competitor for fan eyeballs behind the scenes, offering a more old-school product than the TKO corporate model necessarily must.