Samoa Joe finally gets a belt

Samoa Joe, real name Nuufolau Joel Seanoa, 29, of Huntington Beach, Calif., has been with the company since June 2005, and, during his time there has held almost every belt in the company, including the X-Division title three times. Prior to coming to TNA, Joe held the Ring of Honor title for 21 months, which is still the longest title reign for RoH. And, Joe has been the face of the company, perhaps one of the last TNA originals with real main event status given the influx of disgruntled WWE wrestlers and WCW refugees who have been pushed to the forefront.

So, when the Samoan Submission Machine eventually lifted the TNA belt over his head Sunday, it signaled the end to the longest title chase I’ve ever seen in all my years of watching wrestling as Joe had been bride’s maid for nearly three years. And, oddly enough, he achieved his goal by defeating Angle, who ended Joe’s 18-month undefeated streak when the two faced off upon Angle’s arrival at TNA. This after the 6-foot Samoan lost to Angle three times, the last time being for the TNA championship when Angle’s wife interfered in the match to help her husband win.

While I’m glad to see Joe get gold, seeing I think he is one of the best big men in wrestling today given his ability to move his 280-pound frame like a middle weight, I think TNA waited too long to put the strap around his waist. It’s one thing to build up a babyface (good guy) by having him chase the title, and it’s totally another to have the guy come up short so long that people lose interest.

For Joe, the chase for the TNA title was so long and broken up that it was hard to get into it. First he’d lose his shot at the belt or lose the big match at a pay-per-view and then he’d be on the backburner for several months while Christian Cage, Sting, Abyss or whatever flavor of the month would get their shot at Angle or whoever was holding the belt. It got so bad that there was rumor not to long ago that Joe might jump ship and head to WWE where his good friend John Cena is a main eventer. And frankly, had WWE not had an overage of stars and developmental talent, Joe may have been given an offer he couldn’t refuse.

It wasn’t too long ago I was singing the praises of TNA and its wide-open style, that is until they were bogged down by the old-timers who have pushed out originals like Joe, A.J. Styles (the best wrestler in wrestling today), and Christopher Daniels. Now they have the slow, plodding style we used to see in WCW as they have gotten away from the high-flying AAA style we used to see when TNA first hit Spike TV. Why, because half the main-eventers, who are refugees from WWE and WCW, are older than I am and would break a hip if they had to fly from the top rope. But that’s another rant.

The bottom line on Joe is that TNA really waited too long to put the strap on him as fans for the most part don’t care now. I guess the only good thing is that Joe is only the fourth person ever to hold the TNA title, joining Angle, Christian and Sting in that fraternity. Prior to installing the TNA title last year, the TNA champ wore the NWA Championship belt which is still part of the independent scene.

With that said, it might be a good idea for the WWE to watch carefully the loss of the shine on the TNA belt with Joe’s prolonged chase. For instance, I think WWE was about to do the same thing to Jeff Hardy that happened to Joe as they were leaving Hardy the bride’s maid a lot. However, his suspension for a dirty drug test makes that moot now.

For the fans, they can only be built up and their hopes dashed so many times before they just don’t care anymore. While the fans used to chant ‘Joe’s going to kill you,’ what actually happened is TNA killed Joe, or at least his reputation as an irresistible force.