What’s the story?
MMA veteran Josh “The Warmaster” Barnett made his pro-wrestling return and TNA debut last night. According to f4wonline.com, Bobby Lashley was in the ring for an interview and claimed to be the ‘baddest’ man on the planet.
The current TNA Heavyweight Champion also claimed that nobody in the world of pro-wrestling and MMA could defeat him. Lashley’s out spoken behaviour led to Josh Barnett coming out. He challenged Lashley for the TNA title, which the champion accepted.
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Before facing the champion in a title match,“The Warmaster” also faced “Bad Bones” John Klinger in a match. He won the match via submission due to a 'kimura' lock. He later faced Lashley in a match for the TNA title. Lashley defeated Barnett via pinfall to retain his title.
In case you didn’t know...
Barnett last defeated Andre Arvloski inside the Octagon and was looking to become a title contender. However, he was suspended after testing positive in an out of competition doping test by USADA.
He began his professional wrestling career in 2003, when he wrestled for NJPW. In 2007 he joined Antonio Inoki’s wrestling promotion, Inoki Genome Federation. In his IGF career, he has faced and defeated Lashley before. He is also Lashley’s MMA trainer in real life.
The heart of the matter
The 39-year-old American has always been a fan of professional wrestling. Due to his suspension from mixed martial arts, he can turn his attention towards his pro-wrestling career.
Lashley currently fights for UFC’s rival Bellator. There are rumours that a unique UFC vs. Bellator storyline will be executed in TNA. In the storyline, UFC will be represented by “The Warmaster” and Lashley will represent Bellator MMA.
What’s next?
Barnett seemed to have won the match for the TNA title. However, Lashley protested claiming that he got his shoulders up before the three count. So the match was restarted. Later, when the Bellator fighter pinned Barnett, he too got his shoulder up. However, the referee still gave Lashley the victory via pinfall. It seems apparent that there will be a rematch.
Sportskeeda’s take
Barnett is currently serving a suspension from USADA so he should focus more on his pro-wrestling career. Watching “The Warmaster” perform moves like ‘powerbomb’ and ‘brainbuster’ on weekly television would be a treat for his fans and also for pro-wrestling fans. He surely has the tools to become a successful professional wrestler.
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