Ethan Carter III, or EC3 as you may know him, has come along way. On July 1st, he jumped to the top of Impact Wrestling’s mountain when he defeated one of the best wrestlers of his generation, Kurt Angle to become Heavyweight Champion at Bell to Bell. But who would have thought that in 2 years since, from when he was released from his WWE contract, that the former Derrick Bateman would become one of wrestling’s brightest stars. I’ll be honest and say not me but I’m happy to have been proved wrong.
EC3, Real Name Michael Hutter, has done extremely well for him self since joining TNA. You may or may not remember his WWE NXT run, where he was called Derrick Bateman and his claim to fame was that he was being mentored by Daniel Bryan. Hutter had a decent look at the time and was one of the more likeable guys but he was fairly green still. While some of his better work wasn’t seen by most WWE fans, those who did tune in to NXT and NXT Redemption got a glimpse of what Hutter could do. He had a solid foundation and tons of potential but in the year or so after Redemption, Hutter was an after thought for WWE creative and was forgotten about until his release.
Hutter had an unfortunate time in WWE, not through his own accord. He was sidelined with injuries at the worst possible times and when he returned staff at WWE didn’t have anything for him or know what to do with him. You could see he had potential but you began to wonder would he able to even realise any of it.
Now Michael Hutter could have faded into obscurity like many other names before him. He could have thrown in the towel like many other wrestlers have after being the victim of too many injuries. But with a clear drive and passion, which can be clearly seen in his present work, Hutter didn’t let his WWE release end his dreams of being a successful professional wrestler.
After his release, he soon got a try out match with TNA and was signed based on that. From what I’ve read he did enough in that match to show his talent, plus he also fit the profile for a new character they had in mind for television. It would appear that WWEs loss would be TNA’s gain.
On his arrival in TNA, many fans didn’t have high hopes for Hutter when it was revealed he was to be the new character talked about in vignettes. Ethan Carter III was to be the nephew of newly heel TNA owner Dixie Carter and fans didn’t seem to approve of this direction at first. For one, he wasn’t the established big name the TNA fan base wanted, and secondly the thoughts of a young nephew character to the newly heel owner Dixie brought back memories of Eric Bischoff and Eugene from WWE circa 2005.But what they got in Hutter was a young, hungry, pro wrestler, with the determination to make a name for him. They got EC3.
While it can be argued that many already established names went to TNA for the money or the lighter work schedule, Hutter had joined in much different circumstances. The fans at the time didn’t really care, and those that did mostly groaned at the thought of a “WWE never was” joining the company. Hutter had the hurdle of trying to establish himself as something other than the low card NXT character, as well the task of proving to the world that he had the skills to succeed, both in and out of the ring.
With a new haircut and dress sense that made him resemble Jerry Maguire on first glance, EC3 was a welcome change from Derrick Bateman of NXT fame. Ethan Carter debuted at a time when TNA were mostly in the news for different reasons. From the departure of Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff from the creative team to uncertainty over the future of some top-tier talent, Carters debut went slowly under most people radars.
When EC3 arrived at Bound for Glory back in October 2013, he was a welcome change not only for TNA, but for Michael Hutter as well. From the off I liked what I saw, he had a catchy,well suited theme song, a cool look and he was confident straight off the bat. EC3 had swagger about him that brought back memories of The Rocks Hollywood persona from 2003. He was cocky, brash and was able to show sides to this character that we only saw in very small doses when he was Derrick Bateman. Hutter was unleashed from the shackles of WWE and it wasn’t long before Derrick Bateman was forgotten. As EC3, he brought an air of freshness to TNA’s roster, something that was devoid in recent times when already established stars or ex WWE characters were showcased. EC3 was exactly what TNA needed.
EC3s heelish character was a welcome surprise to me personally. I won’t pretend I know Hutter personally on any level, put he always struck me as a likeable guy from his early days in NXT. He just seemed like a genuine nice guy and this spoilt nephew of Dixie’s was anything but that. With a condescending tone and an elitist demeanour; Ethan Carter III was a hit and he was slowly becoming a bad guy that I loved to watch.
He got negative comments online, saying he couldn’t wrestle and even smarky fans would chant this at him. Just like John Cena, a man who people ridiculously say “can’t wrestle”, EC3 used these comments and jeers to fuel his determination.
I would look forward to seeing how this character would develop and how much TNA allow it to grow. TNA, to their credit gave EC3 the ball and in the last 2 years he slowly walked up the ladder with it.
TNA don’t get everything right wasn’t booked perfectly (giving jobbers some offence when he shouldn’t have for example early on, starting feuds yet not following up on them e.g.: Lashley), but Carter was slowly and surely making waves on TNA television and by in large was being built up well. With TNA being TNA, I was sure they would some how some way mess this up. But too their credit, Carter was being booked slowly and safely, and most of all he was protected and he repaid their trust with some great work. Being booked against the like of Sting, Jeff Hardy and Lashley and performing well with these established stars really gave you a sense that EC3 not only could hang with these guys but TNA were prepared to put him on their level.
But EC3 hasn’t done it all by himself. The pairing with British wrestler Rockstar Spud with Carter was in hindsight a great decision, as these two persona’s clicked instantly, giving each other someone to bounce off. With Spud essentially being Waylon Smithers to Carters Mr Burns, both men excelled on television and gave each others character purpose to grow. As Spud began to tire of being the lackey to EC3, the anticipation that grew with wanting Spud to stand up for himself made for some fun TV. Spud was such a sympathetic character and this allowed EC3 to shine more as the pompous arrogant heel at Spuds expense. Spud made Carter a better heel and brought out the best in both stars.
This was most evident in the hair vs. hair match between the two which followed from Rockstar Spuds face turn. The build up to feud magnified what a great heel Carter had become and the subsequent match between Carter and Spud was a great piece of story telling. With Spud being the smaller plucky underdog face, up against the bigger egotistical heel in Carter, these two had a fantastic match one that wouldn’t be out-of-place in 1980s Memphis. In front of a hot hometown crowd for Spud, he and Carter tore it down. For me, this match confirmed that EC3 belonged at the top of TNA.
Now TNA have capitalised on Carters momentum and have positioned him at the top of the card. On July 1st, the toppled Kurt Angle to become Heavyweight Champion and now he’s the guy carrying the company. Just as his post match video proclaimed, TNA gave him the ball and time will tell if he runs with it.
While for his character, being on top has come at a good time for him, on the flip side it may have come at a bad time. Currently TNA are going through rough time to say the least and a lot of uncertainty hangs over the promotion. With rumours of talent leaving, financial problems, discontent with their TV station and production staff unhappiness, in some ways the future of TNA doesn’t look bright. But if TNA can nature a talent like they have with Michael Hutter, it proves TNA can do things right.
From here I hope Ethan Carter can shine as the poster boy for the company now that he’s champion and truly hope TNA makes a recovery or at least shows signs of a turn around in the coming weeks and months. In Ethan Carter III they have a job well done, and he is one symbol that TNA can make a recovery. Either way I’m sure EC3s future is bright and I wish him all the future success.
