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00:00KONIEC
00:30KONIEC
01:00KONIEC
01:00KONIEC
01:32Zobaczmy, że myślałam, że
01:34I'm going to bring Hulk Hogan in here
01:36and everybody's going to love me.
01:38Oh, look what Dixie did.
01:40Look what the f*** Dixie did.
01:53Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome
01:57Dixie
01:58Carter!
02:00It's really hard to put into words
02:02how I felt watching the product
02:04while I was sitting at home.
02:06How's my little baby?
02:08How's it going to be?
02:10Is it going to turn out alright?
02:11But Hogan was on the way
02:13and so for the brand
02:15I was excited about that.
02:17I'd like to introduce you to my new business partner
02:19Dixie Carter.
02:21This is the company
02:22that's going to lead the way in the future.
02:24I guarantee that.
02:28Hulk Hogan believed passionately
02:30until the day he died.
02:34Still hard for me to say that.
02:36That there was a tremendous amount of power
02:39and value in the Hulk Hogan brand
02:41and he was right.
02:42and I believe that Hulk believed
02:44that he could bring that value to TNA
02:47and help the little engine
02:49that couldn't achieve.
02:51With Hulk Hogan now in the fold
02:53Dixie Carter moves to consolidate her power
02:57issuing the roster of Stark Ultimatum.
03:01We get this notice
03:03that there's this big meeting
03:04and there's going to be cameras there
03:06so you know you kind of have to have your face on
03:08and whatnot
03:09and Dixie comes out.
03:11It's time for a change.
03:13You can choose to support me
03:15or you can choose not to
03:18but you'll need to find another place to work.
03:21If you don't like it
03:22it's my way of the highway
03:24and if you're starving
03:26let me take.
03:29We didn't appreciate that
03:31because we've been working our asses off for you
03:34and we're not asking for anything
03:36we have not earned.
03:40And you want to reprimand us for that?
03:43It was one of those meetings
03:44that single-handedly
03:45pulled a lot of the morale out of the room.
03:47It turns out that
03:49not only was recorded
03:50but we played that back later in the show.
03:53That's when she lost
03:54the absolute complete respect
03:55for the entire locker room.
03:56It was not about anything
03:59other than her ego.
04:01I expect you
04:02to support me 100%.
04:05And you can go back
04:06and look at the faces.
04:08Talent really understood
04:09this is who we're working for.
04:11But I think a lot of them
04:13and including myself
04:16where do things go now?
04:18And then all of a sudden
04:19I had a phone call
04:20from an attorney
04:21that worked for Panda.
04:23Hey Jeff we want you to come back.
04:25At that time
04:26that just rocked my world.
04:28I was just like wow.
04:30You could see clearly
04:31what her strategy was.
04:34Dixie wanted a thumb on me
04:35to really know what I was doing.
04:37I've been around a long time
04:38and I knew the cards
04:39they were playing
04:40but I still was a little skeptical.
04:43And I said
04:44what all do you have in mind?
04:49I was brought back
04:50doing live events
04:51and international.
04:53When I returned
04:54you put on a game face.
04:56I wasn't exactly sure
04:57about the different chess pieces
04:59but my best strategy is
05:00let's let this play out.
05:04With Hulk Hogan
05:05and Eric Bischoff
05:06joining TNA's creative team
05:08they found themselves
05:09once again working
05:10with head writer
05:11Vince Russo.
05:12it was a partnership
05:13carrying years of baggage.
05:17Russo I think
05:18told Jared to lie down.
05:19Over a decade earlier
05:20in the shocking moment
05:22backstage tensions
05:23erupted in front
05:24of a live audience
05:25blurring the line
05:26between reality
05:27and fiction.
05:28I don't think anybody
05:28agreed to that.
05:29Now
05:29the same trio
05:30was together again
05:32in TNA.
05:33Hogan you big
05:34bald son of a bitch
05:35kiss my ass.
05:37At the time
05:39the creative team
05:40is myself
05:41Ed Ferrara
05:42and Matt Conway
05:44and what we are told
05:45by Dixie is
05:47guys
05:48Eric is only involved
05:51in the Hulk Hogan creative.
05:53He's gonna come
05:54and he's gonna sit
05:55with you guys creatively
05:57and just talk about
05:58what's going on
06:00with Hulk.
06:00Hulk Hogan had
06:02real issues
06:03with Vince Russo
06:03professionally
06:04creatively
06:05was not interested
06:07in working
06:07anywhere near
06:08Vince Russo.
06:09I had to have
06:10a sit down
06:11with Vince Russo
06:12to kind of
06:13clear the air
06:14so to speak
06:15and we both
06:16shook hands
06:16and agreed
06:17let's try
06:17to make it work.
06:19Eric's entire
06:21plan
06:22entire
06:23mindset
06:24was
06:25to somehow
06:26some way
06:27get power
06:28in the company.
06:29I knew
06:30what he was doing.
06:31We're shutting over!
06:33I knew his game
06:34and that's
06:35the rest is history.
06:37I mean
06:37creatively
06:38I was leading
06:39the charge.
06:40I just kind of
06:40evolved into that
06:42partly because
06:43I have a pretty
06:43strong personality.
06:44And what we're
06:45going to do
06:46is turn this
06:47company upside
06:48down!
06:49Starting
06:50I don't know
06:51right now!
06:52It took a few
06:53months for me
06:54to understand
06:55the role
06:56that Hulk
06:57was gonna play
06:58in Tenet
06:58and I thought
06:59he was coming
06:59in as Brandon
07:00Bassner.
07:00I quickly learned
07:01he's literally
07:03gonna be handed
07:04the keys
07:04to the brand.
07:05And the change
07:06starts tonight!
07:08I didn't know
07:08that he was
07:09gonna be
07:10completely revamping
07:11the roster.
07:12Mr. Anderson
07:13is in TNA!
07:15Thank you
07:15Hulk Hogan!
07:16It was like
07:17if you're a
07:18personal friend
07:19of Hulk Hogan's
07:20that works
07:20at the grocery
07:21store.
07:21Oh come on!
07:22You can be
07:23on the TV show!
07:24They let
07:24some people
07:25who were famous
07:27in the 80s
07:28that did some
07:29stuff and made
07:29an impact
07:30come in
07:31and tell us
07:31that the things
07:32we were doing
07:33were wrong
07:33and unprofessional
07:35and I felt
07:35like that was
07:37bullshit!
07:38I'm sure
07:38there was a lot
07:39of money
07:39you know
07:40going
07:40you know
07:41in different
07:41directions
07:42and egos
07:43a lot of egos
07:44coming to the
07:44surface.
07:45They weren't
07:46going to add
07:46to the product
07:47they kind of
07:48came in
07:48and they got
07:49a spot
07:49and they got
07:50paid.
07:51It became
07:52real clear
07:53what Hulk's
07:54vision was
07:55and that was
07:56complete rebranding
07:58of the entire
07:58product.
07:59and I knew
08:00what a massive
08:02failure it was
08:02going to be.
08:03They didn't
08:04know the TNA
08:04audience.
08:05Welcome
08:06to the brand
08:07new Impact
08:08Zone guys!
08:09I think the
08:09single biggest
08:10thing he did
08:11that was totally
08:13ego driven
08:13was get rid
08:14of the six
08:15sided ring.
08:16I got one
08:16thing to say
08:17about six
08:18sides.
08:19You're at it
08:20and it only
08:21cuts you so
08:22far!
08:22That was a
08:22staple.
08:23That was one
08:24of the hallmarks
08:24for being TNA.
08:26The hardcore
08:26TNA fans
08:27they wanted
08:27the six sided
08:28ring.
08:35I thought
08:36it was
08:36stupid
08:37frankly.
08:38Like if you're
08:38going to have a
08:39six sided ring
08:40use the damn
08:41thing.
08:41Create something
08:43inside of that
08:44ring that happens
08:45as a result of
08:46the fact that
08:47you're in a
08:47six sided ring
08:48otherwise it
08:49doesn't affect
08:50anything that
08:50happens on the
08:51map.
08:53then it's just
08:54stupid.
08:55Now do you
08:56understand why
08:57I have problems
08:58and issues?
09:00You are doing
09:01what's best for
09:02Hulk not what's
09:04best for TNA
09:05and and what
09:06we're all supposed
09:07to sit there and
09:09say oh yeah bro
09:10that's a great
09:10oh yeah bro
09:11no bro it's
09:12bullshit it's
09:14bullshit we
09:15work for TNA
09:16you work for
09:18Hulk Hogan
09:19that's the
09:20difference.
09:21Determined to put
09:22TNA on the map
09:23Eric Bischoff
09:24turns to the
09:25past reviving a
09:26strategy that had
09:27worked for him
09:27decades earlier.
09:28WCW kicked WWE's
09:30ass for two
09:31solid years going
09:33head to head on
09:34Monday night.
09:34I went back to
09:35I won't say a
09:36bag of tricks
09:37necessarily but I
09:38went back to a
09:40strategy.
09:41This is the
09:42biggest night in
09:43the history of
09:44TNA.
09:45You going head
09:45to head with
09:46WWE was going
09:47to make so much
09:48noise it was
09:49about creating
09:50awareness.
09:52I thought it was
09:52the dumbest
09:53thing.
09:55Trying to go
09:56Monday night live
09:57with a company
09:59that spends more
10:00on pyro than
10:00we spend on
10:01production.
10:02When you put
10:04our show next
10:05to their show
10:06at the same
10:07time they are
10:09going to look
10:09like a million
10:10bucks and we
10:11are going to
10:11look like
10:12trailer trash.
10:13We didn't have
10:15the money to
10:16compete with
10:17them.
10:19Countless
10:20amount of
10:20people came
10:20over to me
10:21and would say
10:22how long are
10:23you going to
10:23let this go
10:24on Jeff?
10:25And I would
10:26say I'm
10:26powerless.
10:27Seven years
10:28ago I
10:28found a TNA.
10:29You know
10:30something Jeff?
10:32So what?
10:33Nobody cares.
10:34With Hulk Hogan
10:36and Dixie
10:37Carter, TNA
10:38is going all
10:39the way brother
10:40to the top.
10:41From the day
10:41Hulk came in,
10:42it was less
10:43than 12 months
10:44that we went
10:45from profitability
10:46to financial
10:47death spiral.
10:50With Hogan
10:51and Bischoff
10:52calling the shots,
10:53TNA takes
10:54its biggest
10:54gamble yet,
10:55moving impact
10:57head-to-head
10:57with WWE's
10:59Monday Night Raw.
11:00I don't remember
11:01what the viewership
11:02was, but I think
11:02the most watched
11:04impact episode
11:05in history
11:07was some of that
11:09head-to-head
11:09competition,
11:10at least the first
11:10night.
11:12TNA had never
11:13had that big
11:13of an audience
11:14before.
11:14I was realistic.
11:16I knew why
11:17I was doing it
11:18and I was
11:19pretty convinced
11:20that it wasn't
11:22going to work
11:22long-term.
11:24I don't even
11:25remember how long
11:26it lasted,
11:27but yeah,
11:28it did not
11:28work well.
11:30You had one
11:31that was a
11:31major league
11:32product and
11:32then you had
11:33another one
11:33which was like
11:34a smaller product,
11:35up and coming.
11:36Unless you both
11:37have that major
11:38look, you can't
11:39really go head-to-head
11:40with the giant
11:42in the industry.
11:43It killed momentum.
11:44It made us look
11:46like amateurs
11:47trying to play
11:47in the big boy
11:48pond.
11:49Our house show
11:50attendance dropped.
11:51Our Nielsen numbers
11:52dropped.
11:53We were the fly
11:54on the ass
11:55of a rhino.
11:56To this day,
11:57this is what I
11:58believe.
11:58Hulk wanted to
12:00come in and
12:01move some chess
12:02pieces to create
12:03his next race.
12:05And I'm in a bad
12:06place here in that
12:08I can't voice my
12:09opinion because it
12:10will sound
12:10self-serving.
12:11With declining
12:13ratings and the
12:13failed attempt to
12:14reignite the
12:15Monday Night Wars
12:16hanging over the
12:17company,
12:17the creative team
12:18turns to one of
12:19wrestling's oldest
12:20formulas, turning
12:22real-life conflict
12:23into compelling
12:24television.
12:25Just months after
12:26Jeff Jarrett returns
12:27to TNA, he's asked
12:29to step back into
12:30the ring.
12:30I will never
12:32forget this
12:33conversation.
12:34And if I could do
12:36a good Vince Russo
12:37impersonation, I
12:37would.
12:38But I get this,
12:40bro, what do you
12:43got, Vince?
12:44We need this story.
12:46My job is to get
12:48as many eyeballs
12:49on that show as
12:50possible.
12:51That is my job.
12:53Without a shadow
12:54of a doubt, I was
12:55going to pitch the
12:56angle to them.
12:56If they weren't
12:57good with it, fine.
12:59I was asked to be in a
13:02storyline with Jeff and
13:06with my ex-husband in
13:08the storyline of Jeff
13:10took me from Kurt.
13:12And I said, okay,
13:14Vince, I know you and
13:17your crazy ideas, but
13:19you got to get some
13:20sign-off.
13:21I've already done it.
13:23That's what turned my
13:24head.
13:24I said, do what?
13:26Yeah.
13:27I said, so Dixie
13:28signed off?
13:29Yep.
13:31It was obvious to me
13:32that there was a
13:33tremendous amount of
13:34strain between Dixie and
13:35Jeff.
13:36And now we're going to
13:37add, oh, I don't know,
13:39a love triangle with
13:40Kurt's ex-wife and
13:42Jeff Jarrett on top of
13:44that stress.
13:45Kurt Angle, the 1996
13:47Olympic gold medalist,
13:49the father, the
13:50husband, well, the
13:52ex-husband.
13:55I just sat back and
13:57chuckled, Jeff's the
13:58bad guy.
14:00And Kurt's this American
14:03gold medalist that lost
14:04his wife.
14:05And here's this evil
14:07bitch.
14:08You will not steal the
14:09toy from our lives for
14:11one more day!
14:14People wanted to root
14:15for Kurt.
14:16It was easy for them to
14:18hate us.
14:19It was only a
14:20matter of time before
14:20the whole world saw
14:21Karen and Jeff for who
14:22they truly are.
14:23You add the story to
14:24it and just start
14:25stirring the pot.
14:31I can say I watched
14:33two men put their
14:34differences aside and
14:36work for the betterment
14:38of Key and Mac.
14:40And by doing that,
14:41they stepped in that
14:42ring for me, too.
14:43And I had mad respect
14:45for both of them.
14:46To, by far, to me, was the most productive storyline TNA ever had.
14:56The downfall is, people believed it.
14:59They thought it was real.
15:01To this day, I get comments online, like, are you and Kurt okay?
15:06And I'm like, you do realize that we co-parent kids and have since 2010.
15:16Jeff wasn't screwing Kurt's wife.
15:19Jeff didn't take Kurt's wife.
15:22Do you think if that was the case, Kurt Angle would go through that with that storyline?
15:30No.
15:31You may kiss your bride.
15:34That's not what happened.
15:37It was a storyline.
15:43The hell?
15:45God.
15:45Less than 12 months ago, we're going to send Jeff home because of the dastardly deed he did.
15:52And now, all of a sudden, we're going to bring him back.
15:54And only, not only bring him back, we're going to create a storyline on this tragic situation that I was
16:01such a horrible person.
16:03Dixie's power play was never about her compassion for Kurt, never about her concern for the brand or the company.
16:13It was always about herself putting herself in power.
16:20As chaos grows behind the scenes, TNA's pursuit of star power culminates in one of the most infamous nights in
16:28company history.
16:30Victory Road, in 2010, coming back to TNA, I mean, Dixie was totally involved then, right?
16:44It seemed like things were different.
16:47And that was a real dark time in my personal life.
16:49I always go back to that night, you know?
16:51I'm like, oh my God, because it was such an embarrassing thing.
16:55Everybody backstage pretty much knew that Jeff was involved in drugs.
16:59For the most part, he had it under control.
17:03I'm in the truck, I'm directing, and it's the main event, it's the last match.
17:07And I tell D. LeBron, he's the agent on the match, he's on headsets by the go position.
17:12What do you know about this match, LeBron?
17:13I go, hold on a second, hold on, hold on.
17:15Jeff comes up, and within seconds of being around him, I know he's not in his right state of mind.
17:22I can just tell.
17:24I had wrestled earlier, and I remember being so excited for Jeff to be in the main event against Sting.
17:30The guy that he looked up to, and it was a very high-profile match, obviously.
17:34Jeff was getting ready to go out, and someone had buzzed me and said,
17:37Jeff is not in a good state.
17:40And I just remember my heart dropped.
17:43I'm like, oh my God.
17:45That's when Eric Bischoff popped up, and he's starting to ask what's going on.
17:52And somehow, we agreed to let him go to the ring to see if he could walk it off,
17:58or when he got in front of the crowd, maybe he would pop back into normal Jeff.
18:05And he comes out, and I can see that he's stagged.
18:08I'm like, oh my God, Jeff is f***ed up on something.
18:11Jeff Hardy, moment of truth has arrived.
18:14And he's doing all this weird stuff, like taking his shirt off and teasing someone in the crowd.
18:18What the hell is Jeff Hardy doing here?
18:20Everybody was kind of looking at each other, including Dixie.
18:24It's like, what do we do?
18:26What next?
18:28In Victory Road pay-per-view, what should have been the biggest match of the night,
18:33quickly descended into confusion and panic as Jeff Hardy made his way to the ring.
18:38Backstage, it became painfully clear that Hardy was in no condition to compete.
18:43I had seen Jeff earlier, and it seemed okay.
18:46But, you know, I was not in tune with anything going on that day.
18:50And I got a call.
18:53Russo, bro, get over here now.
18:55Eric Bischoff comes out right before they ring the bell at the introduction.
19:00Slight change in plans!
19:03So, I got close to Jeff, and I told him,
19:06turn around and get the f*** out of this ring.
19:09Walk back to the locker room.
19:12Just leave now.
19:16Nothing.
19:17Didn't register.
19:18It's all pretty much a blur, but I remember Eric Bischoff saying, you know,
19:22just, like, it was like, get rid of that piece of trash.
19:25I can't believe he would do this to these people that have paid to watch this pay-per-view,
19:29and these people that have worked so hard to put this show on.
19:32So, I went over to Stink.
19:33It just said, hit him with your finish.
19:35Yo, right now.
19:36No!
19:36Stink!
19:37Right off the back.
19:37It's going to be a death drop.
19:38Stop playing games!
19:40Got him!
19:41Great!
19:43What you saw, that Jeff Hardy that was in that ring,
19:46I mean, complete, you know, just drug addict that had given up on him, himself,
19:54to be that irresponsible and that dangerous to go out there with somebody else's life,
19:59you know, that's in your hands and that you have to protect.
20:02It was just so careless and reckless.
20:05I'll never forget coming back from the hotel.
20:09I went straight to the truck, went to play back, and just said,
20:12hey, man, what actually happened?
20:14They just showed me 15 seconds, and I'm like, I got it.
20:19I got real angry at first.
20:23How in the world could you let him walk through that curtain?
20:28And then I began to hear a few different versions.
20:32I knew the reality that was, I can only make things worse, so I left.
20:38It was embarrassing for everybody involved.
20:41There's a million right choices and one wrong one, and we did the wrong one.
20:45At that time, I felt confused in that,
20:49how did Jeff get himself to a spot that he couldn't go perform?
20:54I had no comprehension of what the disease of addiction is.
20:58It's cunning, it's baffling, and it's powerful.
21:02I hope that people have forgiven me, you know.
21:05Forgiveness is such a huge thing in recovery, man.
21:08And forgiving yourself can be super hard, you know, when it comes.
21:11It took me a long time to forgive myself for that night.
21:13But ultimately, that was, it was me, but it's not me, you know.
21:17That's what I was, but not what I am.
21:19I was like the drug addict, Jeff Hardy, died that night
21:22because, in a way, I kind of, I needed that to realize how bad I was.
21:27That was the wake-up call that it took for him
21:30to totally stop taking pills altogether.
21:33So that is the only positive that I can say came out of it
21:37when it was all said and done.
21:38I hate that it happened for Jeff.
21:40I hate that it happened for the brand.
21:41I hate that it happened on Dixie's watch.
21:45She moved me out, she's in.
21:46So, no matter who you put under her, she's ultimately responsible.
21:51And this happened on her watch.
21:53By the end of 2011, a sober Jeff Hardy redeems himself
21:57by defeating Jeff Jarrett in a Loser Leaves TNA match.
22:01Oh my God!
22:01Allowing Jarrett to step away from the ring
22:04and focus on new ventures, including Ringkaw King,
22:07a TNA offshoot based in India.
22:11By this time, the financial situation was beginning to get bad
22:17and it was going from bad to worse.
22:19With the company's financials trending downward,
22:23Hulk Hogan's time in TNA comes to an end
22:25less than four years after it began.
22:28I know that a lot of you are not happy
22:31with some of the decisions I've made lately.
22:34I just remember when Hulk made up his mind
22:36that it was time for him to leave.
22:37We wanted to do it within the context of a storyline
22:40as opposed to Hulk just leaving.
22:43Hulk Hogan, we have some business in the ring now.
22:46It was probably my idea to have Dixie go as far as she did
22:50trying to get Hulk Hogan to stay.
22:52It's an amazing offer for somebody else,
22:55not me, because I quit.
22:58What?
23:05All angles, it's embarrassing.
23:08Just brutal, man.
23:11But, you know, Dixie probably thought it was great
23:13because she was on TV.
23:16That's Eric Bischoff's character.
23:18I don't even want to know the amount of those checks
23:23that she wrote to both of them.
23:26And then, because Hogan's got creative control,
23:31they're going to write him out that way
23:35to completely, 1,000%, humiliate her.
23:42Humiliate her.
23:43That shows you his character.
23:45That is disgusting.
23:47What an incredible masterpiece of a job
23:52that Hulk and Eric and whoever else was involved
23:56convinced her to do that.
23:59I would have never done that if I was Dixie.
24:02It said everything about her knowledge of the industry.
24:08As the company slips deeper into financial trouble,
24:12Jeff Jarrett turns to a legendary country music artist for help.
24:17My old buddy, Toby Keith.
24:19You know, Toby saw the little engine that could in TNA
24:22month after month and year after year grow to heights.
24:26I saw him at a show, and he asked how things were going.
24:30And I said, Toby, it's a financial death spiral.
24:33He's like, damn, and you don't have no power?
24:37I said, zero.
24:38He said, let's get it back.
24:41And I said, you're serious?
24:42He said, I am dead, effing serious.
24:46Attorneys met Toby at his golf course
24:48and went into their song and dance about,
24:51Mr. Keith, we sure would like to get you on board.
24:54and he said, folks, there's no doubt I know
24:57what Toby Keith's brand can do.
25:00But are we talking about with or without Jeff?
25:03They hemmed and hauled and stammered around
25:06and said, well, we can kind of talk about.
25:09He said, we have nothing to talk about.
25:12Jeff's my guy, and if Jeff's not running the show, I'm out.
25:16And he got up and walked to the tee box.
25:19So that's when I knew that the dose wasn't coming up.
25:24So I said, yeah, I've spent enough time on this,
25:27and that's when I hit send on the email
25:28that I resigned from the company.
25:31Though Jeff Jarrett departs TNA,
25:34he remains determined to make his mark
25:36on the wrestling business,
25:38launching a new promotion, Global Force Wrestling.
25:41I kind of got my head together and named the company in 2014.
25:46I ran the Grand Slam Tour, the 20-something baseball shows,
25:51and my old Canadian buddies from Anthem.
25:55Acquired TNA, Dixie was essentially reduced to a few points, if you will.
26:02There came a point where Bob and Janice Carter,
26:05Dixie's parents, had had enough.
26:07We've spent enough money.
26:08So Dixie was out, and Anthem took the company over.
26:12And they had wanted to change the TNA name for years,
26:15and they changed it to Impact.
26:17Because at least that was less offensive than the childishness.
26:21The new owners of TNA get together with Global Force Wrestling.
26:26I'll never forget Ed Nordholm from Anthem Sports and Entertainment.
26:30He said, I want to know you've got Global Force,
26:32but is there a way to take the old brand and merge them together?
26:36Karen was very skeptical.
26:40I get PTSD from hearing that.
26:43I think Jeff thought, hey, I did this once.
26:46I can do it again.
26:48A lot changed in the world of wrestling and network TV.
26:53Man.
26:56We can make this thing run again.
26:59I'm taking the joint back over the place that I built.
27:05When Jeff came back with Anthem,
27:06it's probably the darkest I ever saw of Jeff Jarrett.
27:11And I think one of the mistakes Jeff made when he came back
27:13was that he was kind of like on a revenge tour.
27:16He wanted to stick it to Dixie.
27:17He wanted to stick it to everybody we felt was not on his side when he left.
27:24I kind of knew in my heart of hearts that I was struggling.
27:30In less than two months, the realities became crystal clear.
27:34I was fed a bunch of bullshit.
27:36That here I am now merging the brands and there is no money.
27:41And so if people thought I was angry or upset, they were right.
27:46He was a shell of the human being that he was before.
27:51It wasn't the same Jeff.
27:55He was so broken.
27:57I felt sorry for him.
27:58He was worried about taking care of me, taking care of our kids.
28:02Part of me justified his drinking.
28:06He was battling some substance issues and he was trying though.
28:11We didn't say anything because it's Jeff Jarrett, he's the boss,
28:14but we kind of knew and it saddened us because we felt he wasn't making
28:17the best decisions for the company in that moment.
28:20I pass no judgment.
28:21I come from a family that's had a lot of addiction problems.
28:24But clearly, at that point in time, Jeff was not in a great space.
28:31A cardinal rule that I had for years is I would never drink until I knew
28:37not only that my match was over, is that I would not be really in public.
28:42And I started breaking that rule and having a little bit here and a little bit there.
28:46I tried to get him to get help several times, but he just, I don't have a problem.
28:50I don't have a problem.
28:51He had a problem.
28:53And, you know, I'll never forget that, man, I was at a pool party in my backyard
29:02and I looked down at my gut and I go, not on my watch.
29:09I'm never going to have a beer gut.
29:14And that day I switched to vodka.
29:17Literally that day.
29:19That was not a good decision.
29:21He would start drinking at 10 a.m.
29:24Or he would drink all day.
29:26I wasn't just watching from the outside.
29:30I was living it.
29:32He was killing himself.
29:35With his drinking problem worsening, Jeff leaves Karen behind and travels to Mexico for AAA's
29:42TripleMania, one of the country's biggest wrestling events.
29:46I mean, I have processed this scene so many different times.
29:50Flew down on a Friday morning show on a Saturday.
29:54That entire Friday I was called to the building, hang out in the dressing room, we'll come get you for
30:00rehearsals.
30:01Well, I had the bottle in my bag and noon came along and had one drink and two came along
30:09and another drink and another drink and another drink and another drink.
30:14And it got 9 or 10 o'clock at night on the Friday and I'd never done a rehearsal and
30:19it was time for me to go to the hotel.
30:21So we loaded up.
30:22And so that's when that drunk started on the Friday midday.
30:28And I woke up the next day, like any active alcoholic, get up, have a good breakfast, and I'm going
30:36to have me a drink before I go to the building.
30:38And one thing led to another.
30:40Jeff, you got to go in the ring.
30:42Come on.
30:43No.
30:45It was, you know, very obvious to folks that I was under no condition to perform.
30:54Before I knew it, I went out, had no business going to the ring.
30:57I believe he's throwing some promotion.
30:59Wait a minute.
31:00Is that what I think it is?
31:02He's throwing out tortillas.
31:03Amazing that Jeff Jarrett would travel all the way to Mexico City from Hendersonville, Tennessee, to disrespect and mock this
31:11crowd and their culture.
31:13Bullshit.
31:14Get the f*** out of here.
31:16F*** you.
31:17F*** you.
31:17F*** you.
31:23It was an ugly situation.
31:25F*** you.
31:26F*** you.
31:27Get in here.
31:29I flew home on Labor Day, came into the office on that Tuesday, and Lynn Asper and Ed were at
31:36the office.
31:37And then Ed just said, hey, we want you to go to outpatient treatment.
31:42And that really caught me off guard.
31:44When the decision was made to send Jeff to rehab, at that point I think Jeff was pretty mad at
31:52me.
31:52And I said, if Jeff never talks to me again, but gets clean, I'll be okay with that.
32:01Him being sent home that second time.
32:04Him being sent home that second time, disastrous for him.
32:05Absolutely disastrous.
32:08Absolutely disastrous.
32:09The canoe tipped and completely f*** capsized.
32:17Once again sent home from the company he helped build, Jeff Jarrett enters outpatient treatment for alcoholism.
32:25I cleaned my office out.
32:27I cleaned my office out.
32:28They said, you got six weeks, and let's get this thing under control.
32:32I went to outpatient treatment for four hours a day for six weeks.
32:38I sat at the front of the class, took the best notes, put on the mask of Jeff, the outpatient
32:45that's going to kick this drinking problem's ass.
32:49There was a double shot in Calgary and Edmonton.
32:52The following Fridays when I got on the plane to sit down in first class, the stewardess came by, and
32:58she's got her little notepad, and she said, Mr. Jarrett, can I get you anything to drink?
33:03And I literally said, I'll take a double rum and coke.
33:08At the time, I had no idea how much of the denial I was in.
33:12I drank all the way to Calgary, and after it was over, get on the plane, continue to drink, went
33:21home, woke up on Sunday, continue to drink.
33:26The scariest thing about places like that, the rock bottom places, is, man, it's just like, how am I going
33:33to survive this?
33:34How am I going to get through this?
33:36So I'm sure Jeff was in that spot where like, oh my God, how am I going to come back
33:40from this?
33:40There were two different times that I had to call 911, because I couldn't get him awake, and was worried
33:49that he was dying.
33:52Just, it got so bad.
33:54I was out of my mind.
33:56And on that Monday morning, I woke up, she had gotten the kids to school, and I was sitting in
34:02my recliner, TV on.
34:04She walked back in, and she just said, Jeff, what are you going to do?
34:12And you can call it a moment of clarity, I call it God speaking through me.
34:19I said, I'm going to treatment.
34:22And she just kind of looked at me and said, are you serious?
34:25I said, yes.
34:27I couldn't really believe how things had transpired.
34:32Like, how in the hell did I get myself in this position?
34:37She started making the calls, and finally she got the WWE Wellness folks on the phone.
34:43Then we got on a plane, and we flew to Tampa.
34:46I was scared, and I was worried just leaving him there, and not being able to be there with him.
34:58I didn't want to leave him.
35:00I didn't even know what an alcoholic truly was before I got to treatment.
35:05For me, it all started as the little scared five-year-old boy who was sent to go to a
35:12private school.
35:13The only one there that the dad never showed up.
35:16The dad was on TV wrestling.
35:18When I came to the realization that I had resentment at my dad, estrangement on any relationship is painful.
35:30And I liken it to dragging a massive ball around on your ankle.
35:36You're pulling that anger, you're pulling that resentment, you're pulling that bad relationship.
35:40But we knew that wrestling, specifically TNA, had really driven a wedge.
35:46And since that, we had time to reconnect, and he knew that I had a problem.
35:50When Jeff reconciled with his dad, it was definitely a tough thing.
35:57I'm grateful that it happened.
36:00Understanding that when Owen fell 82 feet to his death, and I was in the ring and walked through the
36:08crater that his body left,
36:11and me sensing it, but stuffing it, and putting on an emotional mask that I had no idea I had
36:21on.
36:24Dealing with the passing of my first wife with three kids, and knowing that I've got to run an organization.
36:32I've got to be a dad.
36:35I've got to wear these different masks.
36:37I didn't even know who I was at this point.
36:43In those 56 days, I finally got really rigorous, honest with myself.
36:52Got out a few days before Christmas.
36:55I was super grateful just to be home and alive.
36:59To see him, like, you know, go to treatment and just be the greatest human being he possibly can be,
37:04it's just so, so inspirational.
37:07The first Sunday of 2018, the phone rang, and it was WWE.
37:18Went into the bathroom.
37:20Karen, I just got a phone call.
37:21And she just stopped in her tracks, and we connected eyes through her looking in her mirror.
37:29Vince wants to put me in the Hall of Fame.
37:33I was completely overwhelmed with emotion.
37:37The journey that I had traveled since 1993, WWF runs, and the WCW runs, and the IC title, and the
37:46world title, and the TNA years, and treatment.
37:50And this is how 2018 started.
37:53I was blown away.
37:55Karen and the kids, we've been through a lot.
37:59You guys are my rock.
38:02And to my dad, we've had our ups and downs.
38:05But I thank the good Lord that we're on an up.
38:08And thank you for what you've done for me in this business.
38:12Without those valleys, it's impossible to have the mountaintops.
38:17Vice.
38:19Now, where Jeff Jarrett is at in 2026, I worked for AEW.
38:25And AEW is founded by a guy who, at the very end of the day, we're so aligned in one
38:33thing.
38:34And that's the passion of professional wrestling.
38:37Jeff has so much experience in pro wrestling.
38:40He's been involved in thousands of wrestling live events all over the world.
38:44And so I love having Jeff in the office.
38:47I don't even really know how to put it into words because when I started at AEW, I was a
38:52heel.
38:53And then all of a sudden, I'm asked to be in the Owen Hart Invitational Tournament.
39:01The producer sat me down.
39:03It's like the camera in front of me now.
39:05They asked, hey, Jeff, what does Owen mean to you?
39:12And to this day, I'm getting emotional.
39:14It's hard for me to imagine.
39:16It's been 25 years.
39:22But there's so many things about Owen that I remember like it was yesterday.
39:29And there was no wrestling storyline.
39:31There was no angle.
39:33There was none of that.
39:34And that resonated.
39:36Somehow, some way.
39:38Entered the tournament.
39:40And quote, unquote, I was walking through the curtain as a heel.
39:44But the people that night in Chicago, I'll never forget that.
39:50They accepted me as a baby face.
39:53There was a massive full circle moment for myself that the kid from Hendersonville, it was special.
40:09I think Jeff Jarrett is in a great place.
40:12He's sober.
40:13He's healthy.
40:14He's happy.
40:15He looks great for all the hard hitting action and wrestling he's been through in the great
40:21matches.
40:22Jeff still moves around like a young, young man, whether it's competing in the ring or helping
40:28train the young wrestlers, where Jeff has great ideas and great insights.
40:32I think Jeff's greatest joy is working with younger talent.
40:36He loves teaching.
40:38He loves watching people grow, become stars.
40:43There's a certain gratification in contributing to the making of a talent.
40:49I'm more excited and engaged and passionate about professional wrestling today than I ever
40:56have been.
40:57Jeff will never retire.
40:59He will be 90 years old and somehow still contributing to this business.
41:03I'm very grateful for Jeff Jarrett taking the chance, rolling the dice, starting TNA himself, and
41:09making that into a place.
41:11He's changed the business.
41:13There's no doubt about it.
41:14He's been heavily influential in the business and I think he will be for a long time to come.
41:20between Jeff's understanding of the business, Jeff's eye for talent, Jeff's dedication, Jeff's commitment, Jeff's hard work.
41:31If Jeff would have never lost control of that company, God knows where TNA would be right now.
41:41I mean that from the bottom of my heart.
41:45Nashville, Tennessee has been the home of TNA wrestling for more than two decades.
41:49Should have died a thousand deaths already, but it's still kicking.
41:54To be a pro wrestler in TNA here in 2026 and the last couple of years has been so great
42:01for my brother and I.
42:03And whoever said that they wouldn't last, I mean, they are proven wrong.
42:08I hope the fact that TNA is still alive and kicking makes Jeff feel proud.
42:14The entity that's called TNA today, although it is a completely different company, wouldn't exist had it not been for
42:23Jeff and Jerry Jarrett.
42:24TNA is absolutely thriving today with everything that it's gone through.
42:29It feels like TNA is just a microcosm of Jeff Jarrett's life.
42:34It's still standing somehow.
42:36The story of TNA is the story of Jeff Jarrett because TNA is Jeff Jarrett.
42:42If Jeff Jarrett would have disappeared when Joe got sick and passed.
42:46If Jeff Jarrett would have disappeared with all the drama with him and Karen.
42:51If Jeff would have disappeared in 2017 and wouldn't have kept just fighting and coming back and believing when there's
43:00no rational reason to believe.
43:02Then we don't have one of the greatest success stories that's ever transpired.
43:07Not how many times you get knocked down, so many times you back up.
43:12A lot of people get knocked down in life.
43:15Everybody has setbacks.
43:17But every time he's gotten knocked down, he's gotten back up and coming back stronger.
43:22Some people call me stupid, naive, an idiot.
43:26But I bet on myself.
43:29And that is something that I can look my children in their eyes, get up to bat, get in the
43:36game.
43:37It makes life so rewarding.
43:39.
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