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Jeff Set To Rile Ahead Of Bout

Posted: Jan 27th 2011 By: CMBurnham

Jeff Jarrett is good at playing the villain.

?Scotland needs to grow up and get this chip off its shoulder about England,? he says.

?It needs to be more like England ? a real country.?

He?s joking, of course, but the 43-year-old, from Tennessee, is showing the gift of the gab that?s helped him enjoy a lengthy career in the brash, OTT world of professional wrestling.

Jeff competes for the Total Nonstop Action organisation, which will bring an array of bumps, bruises and brawls to the Braehead Arena tomorrow.

And he will tangle with local grappler Lionheart, who usually wrestles for local Scottish promotions. It?s all part of TNA?s push to find new talent.

Jeff said: ?I wouldn?t say its our version of X-Factor but on the last day of this tour, in London, we?re holding what we call a ?gut check challenge?.

?That?s where we take young hopefuls looking for a break, whether they have six days or six years of experience, and give them a chance to get on our roster.

?We started that process in East Kilbride, and what we?re looking for is that intangible, that ?it? factor.

?You can teach someone to wrestle, but you can?t teach the ?it? factor that a true top star has. That?s what we?re hoping to find.?

That hunt for new talent led Jeff to pop into the Premier British Wrestling school, in East Kilbride.

In typical wrestling fashion, he ended up cracking Lionheart over the head with a guitar at the end of his training session, setting up their match later this week.

Thankfully, there are no instruments around when I interview him at a Glasgow hotel. Brawny, with cropped blonde hair, wrestling has been in his blood all his life ? his dad Jerry was a well-known promoter.


Now his varied career has led him to TNA, which has grown steadily since he formed it in 2002.

And while the company promotes fast-paced action in an industry that combines sport, theatre and pantomime, Jeff feels its commitment to putting on a full experience, right down to meeting fans after the show, sets TNA above its competitors.

Our fan interaction is second to none,? he drawls in his Southern accent.

?If you?re going to spend money in this economy on entertainment, we make sure that money counts.?

Jarrett?s own background has had him down for the count on several times.

He left World Wrestling Entertainment during its bitter battle with World Championship Wrestling, leaving him all but black-listed from the world?s most famous wrestling group.

And TNA has had its critics too, while the company has tried to establish itself as the alternative wresting company. Now, he feels they can take the next step.

?2011 should be our best year yet?, he says, firmly.

?We?re positioning everyone to do what they do best. We?ve got a balance and a good mix of veterans and younger stars.?

And Jeff doesn?t let criticisms get to him.

?The thing that would bother me is if people didn?t talk about you ? the adage any press is better than no press holds true to me.?

Away from the ring, Jeff has had hardship too, with his wife Jill dying of cancer. He has since remarried.

And life on the road isn?t easy, with a gruelling show schedule, but he has struck a balance.

He said: ?I?ve always balanced my wrestling life with one outside the ring and I don?t know any other way of living.?

And, despite his villainous words about the country, the truth is that Jeff is fond of Scotland.

He said: ?I?ve always enjoyed visiting Scotland, because there?s a lot of history. I?ve always found that fascinating.?