Jeff Jarrett Reveals Why Monty Brown Never Won TNA World Championship

WWE Hall of Famer Jeff Jarrett talked about Monty Brown on his latest My World podcast and was asked about why Monty Brown never won NWA Title in TNA Wrestling despite his popularity at the time.

"Had we made him the champion, we would be having a different conversation. He was in main events all the way until he left. If he was not in the main event, he was in the semi-main event. He never was jerking the curtain once he got going. I was a big believer that once you make Monty the champion, the chase is over, and then he’s going to be a two time or 3 time champion. When we got into contract negotiations and he knew he wanted to see if the grass was greener, the time wasn’t right. I was working with Sting and there were different storylines that revolved around that belt. We were always super high on Monty and always protected him. There was a time frame, I don’t want to say it was ‘06, maybe it was ‘05, you better learn how to lose before you learn how to win. Monty learned how to do that.

That move, the pounce, was over. His verbal skills were over. He had all the tools in the toolbox and we were going with him. It’s not like we didn’t go with him, he just didn’t become champion. We didn’t feel the time was right. Me and Monty sat on a bench for a couple hours one night. I basically did everything in my power to get him to re-sign, including telling him, ‘Monty, you know when the time is right, you’re going to be champion. That’s kind of irrelevant. We’re not talking titles, wins, and losses. We’re talking from a financial perspective. You have to believe that although you may not make as much money here in your next calendar year, or maybe even in your next calendar year, it’s best for your long term growth.’

Monty, and I don’t want to say, didn’t want to hear that, but again, Monty had an NFL career. (Conrad Thompson said, ‘And that NFL career ended, so he knew that one bad match or move, this could be over. That makes sense, right?) He wanted to see if the grass was going to be greener, and you couldn’t blame him for that either."

Jarrett on Brown not being ready:

"I could tell guys like a Monty, ‘Monty, I don’t mean this out of disrespect, but you’re not ready to carry the ball by yourself. You’re just not.’ I meant it sincerely, but also out of a long term career. The proof is in the pudding. Monty went to WWE. You can slice and dice it any way you want. He failed miserably. Chris Harris failed miserably. There’s guys that got up there, and you can point the fingers all you want, but they didn’t succeed. At the end of the day, we’re talking about Monty. He had his opportunity. Why couldn’t he succeed? I am the biggest Monty Brown supporter. There was a time in this frame that we’re talking about, that the pounce and Monty’s skills, and I don’t want to get too far out of bounds and say the hottest thing in the industry, but he certainly was the most sure-fire bet that in the next 36 months, is this guy going to be a top star? You would have said, ‘Absolutely.’  I’m not saying 12 months. I’m saying 36 months. I think Monty would be at the top of everyone’s list."