In this very unique edition of Fantasy Warfare, we’ll look at two of the most infamous runs in pro wrestling, which just so happened to occur around the same time.
While Triple H had a stranglehold on Monday Night Raw throughout the mid-2000s during that same time Jeff Jarrett was doing the same thing in Total Nonstop Action (TNA).
Triple H
Triple H had already been a master at backstage politics in the WWE, so much so that during the post-attitude era of WWE, he was able to convince WWE management that the WWE Championship should be exclusive to Smackdown (Keeping him away from Brock Lesnar) leaving a void at World Champion on Raw, a void in which he would fill.
Being crowned the World Heavyweight Champion we would then begin to see Triple H’s reign of terror begin. He would go over the following superstars: Booker T (in his prime), Shawn Michaels (post-4-year retirement), Rob Van Dam (the most over babyface on the roster), Kane (loveable fan favorite), Scott Steiner (a legit badass that could kick Hunter’s ass), Randy Orton (red-hot post-world title win), Goldberg (undefeated WCW icon), Kevin Nash (still had draw ability). Give me a break. This was a joke. Especially when he defeated Booker T at Wrestlemania. Heinous!! It still pisses me off to this day!!
Jeff Jarrett
The good ole days of Total Nonstop Action, (the first real wrestling promotion to emerge in the states second to WWE since WCW) was something very special in its early days, or was it?
Jeff Jarrett somehow managed to strike a deal with the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) to use their championships on his new weekly PPV programs. Of course, as long as he was World Champion… and ONLY he was world champion.
The early days of TNA would see Jarrett go over the likes of Ken Shamrock, Raven, AJ Styles, Monty Brown, Ron Killings, Rhino, Christian Cage, and Samoa Joe. In some cases losing the belt and winning it back the next night, week, or month.
With Vince Russo in his back pocket, Jarrett would single-handedly be responsible for TNA’s stop-and-start momentum.
So whose Reign of Terror was worse?
| Triple H | Jeff Jarrett | |
| Role | Married to the Chairman’s Daughter | Founder |
| Reign of Terror | 2002-2006 | 2002-2006 |
| World Titles | 5 | 6 |
| Days Held | 695 | 1,006 |
| Defenses | 97 | 35 |
| Bad Beats | Booker T, RVD, Goldberg | AJ Styles, Christian Cage, Rhino |
Jarrett held the NWA Championship 6 times during his reign of terror (2002-2006) for 1,006 cumulative days while Triple held the World Heavyweight Championship 5 times during his (2002-2006).
This one is so tough because the immediate answer is Triple H because he did it on a much bigger stage but Jeff Jarrett held that belt hostage for over 1,000 days, so it’s not that easy. When you dive into it and look at the bigger picture (excluding Booker T) Triple H put over “the next big guy” at Wrestlemania in 3/4 of those years (Benoit, Batista, Cena) while Jarrett lost to Rhino and Sting in title matches at back to back Bound for Glory pay per views.
Ok, so really which Reign of Terror was worse?
The answer is Jeff Jarrett. It has to be. Jarrett held the title 6 times for over 1,000 days while only defending it a modest 35 times. Not to mention, he was the FOUNDER of the company. So, while Triple H certainly held the WWE hostage for four years, at least they had another champion on the other brand, not to mention Triple H defended the belt over 95 times. Jarrett should have had the best interest of the company at the forefront and let guys like AJ Styles, Christian Cage, and Samoa Joe have prolonged runs with the belt but over time he would lose it he would almost instantly win it back. Jarrett saw an exit from TNA in 2007. You have to wonder if he had booked his talent to go over if TNA would have had a better run, therefore the answer has to be Jeff Jarrett.
