Billy Corgan named new president of TNA Wrestling

IMPACT Ventures [IMPACT], the parent company of TNA Wrestling and IMPACT WRESTLING, today announced the appointment of Billy Corgan as its new President. Current President Dixie Carter becomes Chairman and Chief Strategy Officer of IMPACT.

As President, Billy Corgan will be responsible for leading day-to-day operations for IMPACT and its affiliated brands. As Chairman, Carter will focus on long-term planning, strategic partnerships and global growth.

"Billy is a visionary, an iconic artist and savvy businessman with an incredibly gifted creative mind. He has built a decades-long successful global brand, and also has a deep passion and understanding for professional wrestling," said Carter. "In working with Billy over the last 16 months, he has impressed me to the point that I've been in discussions with him to take an elevated strategic leadership role within the company. The more we discussed our vision for the organization, the clearer it became that position needed to match his commitment."

"We are entering an exciting new era for IMPACT and will be working to continue to define our brand, develop global strategies for success, and structure for future investment and growth," added Carter. "These moves, effective immediately, signify the team's determination to work together to effectively cover more ground and capitalize on TNA's current momentum that has seen ratings rise in recent months."

Corgan, 49, is an American musician, songwriter, producer, TV writer and poet, best known as the lead singer, guitarist, and sole permanent member of The Smashing Pumpkins, who have sold more than 30 million albums worldwide and won multiple Grammy Awards. Corgan joined IMPACT in May 2015 as a senior producer.

"I believe in this company, its passionate fans, the talented roster and the dedicated staff and crew," said Corgan. "I am committed to this great opportunity and will use all of my resources and connections to drive the success of this company. This year we have made significant strides in establishing a strong foundation for our future and will be aggressive in continuing to evolve and grow the IMPACT brands."

IMPACT's flagship broadcast IMPACT WRESTLING airs Thursdays at 8/7c on Pop, and in more than 120 countries around the world.

New TNA Minority Owner Revealed

Smashing Pumpkins frontman and TNA's Senior Producer of Creative & Talent Development Billy Corgan is set to be TNA's new minority owner.

Corgan started working with TNA in April 2015 but is now moving into a new role after purchasing a minority stake in the company. PWInsider notes that some sources say the deal is done while another says it's moving in that direction but not 100% complete.

Dixie Carter will retain majority ownership, something that she did not want to budge on during negotiations.

Update on Rumors of Billy Corgan Possibly Buying TNA, Another Popular Name Interested?

With Lou D'Angeli confirming rumors that Billy Corgan is in talks to buy TNA, Jason Powell of Prowrestling.net notes that Corgan was not the person he was referring to when he reported that a notable name has shown interest in purchasing the company.

Also, Dave Meltzer of The Wrestling Observer Newsletter adds that there's not much to the Corgan rumors because he wouldn't have the money needed to buy TNA and carry it. F4Wonline.com adds that Corgan was not the leading candidate to buy the company as of a few days ago.

D'Angeli has since deleted all tweets referring to Corgan buying TNA.

Billy Corgan Rep and TNA Respond to Rumors of Corgan Buying the Company

Newsday.com has reached out to both Billy Corgan and TNA for comments on the rumors of Corgan potentially buying TNA Wrestling. The following is the response from TNA, which is a forward of a recent memo issued by Janice Carter:

"An unfortunate aspect of this business is that there are wrestling 'reporters' who consistently post 'news stories' without proper facts. I want to assure you these are just rumors and that I am committed to TNA and its future."

A representative for Billy Corgan responded to the rumors by issuing the following statement:

"There is no reason to comment on rumors. Billy is completely focused on Resistance Pro's upcoming 2nd anniversary [show on Nov. 23]."

More On This Weeks's TNA Sale Story

Former WWE Front Office man and close friend of Billy Corgan, Lou D'Angeli, has posted on his Twitter account that Corgan was in Nashville, TN this past week inquiring into buying in to TNA. Lou wrote, "I know he is pretty serious in at least partial, if not, majority ownership."

Janice Carter, of the Carter family that owns TNA, has said that they are not actively looking to sell the company. As we have said on the site all week, everything is for sale for the right price and when someone makes an offer, you listen.

Corgan, the front man of The Smashing Pumpkins, has been a wrestling fan his who life and has run shows himself in the past under the "Resistance Pro Wrestling" name in Chicago, IL. They have a show scheduled for Chitown on 11/23.

Rumor Mill - Person Rumored To Be TNA’s “Serious Buyer” Revealed

WrestleZone is reporting that Billy Corgan is one name coming up a lot right now as an individual seriously interested in the sale of TNA. Best known for his days as the frontman of The Smashing Pumpkins, Corgan is a notorious wrestling fan, and also the one behind independent wrestling company, Resistance Pro Wrestling.

One current TNA star and two former stars have all verified that Corgan's name is making the circles behind the scenes in TNA. While no concrete details are available at this time, and no public statements have been made by either party regarding this possibility, current water cooler talk in TNA is pointing to Corgan as a potential candidate.

Billy Corgan Says He Pitched Resistance Pro Wrestling to Stephanie McMahon as a Possible WWE Developmental Territory

For the past year, the Smashing Pumpkins’ frontman has worked as the behind-the-scenes brainchild for the Resistance Pro Wrestling promotion out of Illinois. He teamed with R-Pro owners, brothers Gabe and Jacques Baron, to raise the diminished expectations that usually come with a typical weekend indie show and make the company a smashing success over the first 10 cards.

Stretched out in a Philadelphia hotel room, Corgan explained he’s in the wrestling business for the long haul.

“I like that it makes people uncomfortable,” Corgan said. “I like that it’s not an easy thing to explain. I like when it’s great, it’s amazing; when it’s bad, it’s really, really bad.”

Corgan’s music career has pretty much been all great since he founded the seminal 1990s alternative-rock band that keeps churning out acclaimed records, like their latest, “Oceania,” even as they endured a breakup, lawsuits, and multiple lineup changes.

He shifted his talents to R-Pro as the creative director, where he consults with wrestlers and maps out old-school story lines with a modern twist to keep the promotion strong.

R-Pro isn’t quite the behemoth of World Wrestling Entertainment. But it’s not the typical low-budget show held in the local high school.

“We want to be able to expand to where we’re a national brand and can run pretty much anywhere in the country,” Corgan said. “My name and my access to certain things get help get us there, but it doesn’t mean we’re ready for that. We’re better off being a little bit more conservative.”

Corgan and the Baron brothers have no interest in running a typical indie show stocked with old-timers and highspots with no true story advancement. Corgan wants episodic events where the next show builds off the last one. He’s pitched a reality show on the promotion to a handful of networks and has even proposed becoming a developmental system for the WWE with Stephanie McMahon, who oversees the sports entertainment giant’s creative department.

“I think it would be to our credit to get people to the top level,” Corgan said. “I think it does a disservice to our talent to not prepare them for the next level.”...More?

source: washingtonpost.com

Celebrity Launching Wrestling Promotion

Smashing Pumpkins lead singer Billy Corgan, who is no stranger to the wrestling business, will be starting his own independent wrestling group this fall called Resistance Pro. Corgan is the creative director and will be making the official announcement at the Wizard World convention in Chicago later this month.

source: allwrestling.com