Jim Ross has been around the wrestling block, a few times, including some lengthy work in talent relations. With that kind of experience, it's not hard to spot some malpractice.
WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross discussed TNA's high booking rates among other things on his blog this week.Below is an excerpt from the blog on JR's website, detailing Bobby Lashley's current booking fee, and the idea that TNA has priced him out of bookings.
“Saw where TNA wants to charge promoters $6K for Bobby Lashley to appear at selected events which eliminates the vast majority of promoters from consideration. This is a classic case of negotiating a talent out of extra paydays when they are not booked. I'm in favor of keeping talents busy and earning new money. Asking $6K per appearance, if that is accurate, essentially discourages promoters from booking a great talent like Bobby Lashley therefore prohibiting him from earning extra money at these smaller budgeted events," Ross said in his blog post.
Lashley is currently TNA World Heavyweight Champion and X Division Champion. He is also under contract with Bellator MMA, and had to withdraw from a booking in Puerto Rico with WWC, although it's unknown if TNA's new booking fees for Lashley are the reason why.
TNA re-signed many of it's stars to new contracts in which allow the company to control their independent bookings and get a cut of the pay. This has allowed TNA to get a return on some of the contract money while they've faced dire financial straits.
