Dynamite ratings

Over the past few weeks, All Elite Wrestling added three more high-profile free agents to its roster when Kazuchika Okada, Will Ospreay and Mercedes Mone all inked to full-time contracts. However, the numbers have remained sluggish and in some cases there was a decline despite the new talent added to the show. As these new performers made their arrival on Dynamite over the course of the past month, I've written about the impact or lack thereof that it had on the television ratings that were sluggish over the past year.

Unfortunately, this week's edition of Dynamite drew just 747,000 viewers, the lowest the show has garnered in almost six months.

As a disclaimer that I have to include in most of these articles to avoid the misguided feedback of the diehard AEW fan base, I hope that All Elite Wrestling can be a successful as possible, but when analyzing the status of the company on a continuous basis, the patterns that emerge usually underscore the fundamental flaws within the structure of the organization. In fact, the key segments with the broadcast served as key examples of why the product continues to either plateau or have slight decreases during certain weeks.

Keep in mind, I've said prior to this that there's a difference between a matchmaker and a booker. Tony Khan is a great matchmaker and practiced t that on the internet for years when he booked an E-fed on message boards for 22 other people. That's a much easier task since it's not a ground-breaking concept that Ospreay and Takeshita had an incredible bout on pay-per-view. A great booker knows when, where, and under what circumstances that specific talents collide to get the most out of the situation. There's very little of the All Elite product where you can say that Tony maximized the opportunity or the assets he had. CM Punk returned to pro wrestling for the first time in seven years under the All Elite banner, but more than twice the audience that tuned into AEW at his peak saw him cut a promo on Monday. Even on the injured list, Punk is a bigger star for the WWE than he ever was under contract to All Elite. Furthermore, Khan just spent another hefty amount of cash to bring in New Japan's top guy, the biggest female star on the free agent market, and a tremendous talent with the potential to build the company around for Ospreay.

But, still Dynamite just had the lowest rating of the year so far during the same month that these three top-tier talents arrived.

Sure, the March Madness tournament is stiff competition, but the bottom line is, even a portion of the core All Elite audience would rather watch hoops than three major talents? If Tony booked a compelling show then the viewers would watch it. If NCAA basketball can take a portion of the All Elite television audience away, it proves that not enough is being done to maintain viewers.

At this point, the fans know that the three previously mentioned stars are going to be there, but maybe the viewers know that how the talent is going to be used won't be "must see" television so they watched other programming.

Will Ospreay is one of the best in-ring talents in the business today and has a huge upside as a main event guy for AEW. The story of him winning the championship at Wembley this year writes itself. That being said, his first main event match as a full-time talent was against Kyle Fletcher a few weeks ago drew a disappointing 779,000 viewers, which had more to do with the opponent than Ospreay. It's not that Fletcher isn't a talented wrestler, but rather that he was rarely on television prior to this and the audience didn't know enough about him to watch the main event segment. Sure, it allowed Tony Khan to see a dazzling spot fest, and the participants probably wanted to have the match since they are real-life friends, but Fletcher wasn't established enough to justify a main event spot and the numbers reflected that.  In a similar fashion, the Ospreay/Katsuyori Shibata bout that opened Dynamite this week didn't have the chance to be promoted as anything more than a random bout. Yes. Ospreay and Shibata have history from New Japan, but that wasn't used to advertise the contest in advance or build it up with their background in Japan. Shibata, similar to many others on the roster, is just another of the numerous names that you will see sporadically on television. Aside from Dynamite, he made just two other television appearances this year that were within the past two weeks on Rampage and Collision respectively. As talented as Shitbata is, he isn't on television enough to be seen as an important player within the All Elite landscape. A side note, given his history with the very serious head injury, it's still concerning to watch him wrestle and it would probably be safer if he remained a trainer for New Japan.

The pair of tag matches on the show were more or less in the same category as non-essential viewing. The Young Bucks vs. Private Party is a match that has been seen on television multiple times before, and most fans know that with the new heel persona, The Bucks are going to advance in the tournament. We've already discussed in prior articles that Matt Taven and Mike Bennett, regardless of their in-ring ability, went from lame comedy skits to a supposedly dangerous heel group in the span of a week. Trent Barrett is a really solid worker, but he's another guy that's rarely on television so Best Friends vs. The Undisputed Kingdom was skippable.

There was a four-way women's match to determine the number one contender for the women's championship at the pay-per-view next month, and it makes sense for Willow to get the win to set up her title win to be able to book Mercedes vs. Willow for the championship at Double or Nothing in May as a way to build off of their New Japan bout when Mone was injured. However, the problem was, Mercedes was put on commentary and sounded completely aloof with nothing to add to the broadcast. Given that her first two promos the weren't anything spectacular, it's questionable why she was put on commentary. Don't get me wrong, Mercedes Mone is a star, but this wasn't the way to showcase her, and she actually came across like less of a star during the segment.

The main event was a stellar fast-paced contest, but it failed to capture viewers for the same reason many of these type of main events don't bring up the ratings. Tony booked this because he thought it would be a great match and it was a bout that he wanted to see this week, but it was given a very minimal promotional push. The fact that it was deemed a number one contender bout was almost thrown in as a side note rather than the major focus. Furthermore, Takeshita was defeated by Ospreay at Revolution, and only won two matches on Rampage since then so how exactly did he get a number one contender match? On the other hand, Swerve has a lot of momentum behind him and he's one of the more popular on the roster right now so it was obvious that he was going to win the match. Again, there wasn't enough of a meaningful or important storyline for the main event segment for viewers to watch the entire broadcast.

Don't get me wrong, the sluggish ratings over the past month aren't going to make the company go out of business, and signing free agent talent isn't the only way to build hype around the product, but if you consider the past year, outside of the Adam Cole reveal that flopped, what long-term storyline was set up for a payoff? Furthermore, while new signings aren't the way to truly build the audience because it's an artificial boost rather than building compelling programming, All Elite adding more wrestlers to the roster is one of the few consistent concepts on the shows. There are a lot of talented names under contract, but very few legitimate stars that can boost the numbers and proof of that is the addition of more names have yielded a decline in the ratings.

What's the staus of Jack Perry?

Jack Perry, the former Jungle Boy in All Elite Wrestling, is back in the news this week, but the murky situation surrounding his status with the Tony Khan-owned organization isn't any clearer or provided any indication if he will actually resurface in the company again.

The Wrestling Observer's Dave Meltzer addressed the scenario in a recent edition of his newsletter, claiming that Perry, who was involved in the backstage brawl at Wembley Stadium with CM Punk that saw the real-life Phil Brooks fired, apologized to Tony Khan in hopes of opening the door to get back on television. Perry vehemently denied the report, claiming that he never issued an apology to his boss and didn't hear from Tony for two months after the backstage fight. The Observer's Bryan Alvarez added some clarity to the situation, reporting that Tony Khan set up an in-person meeting with Perry in Los Angles when the company held shows there to discuss plans to bring the former Jungle Boy back to television, but those plans were scrapped when Punk returned to WWE, as All Elite didn't want anything to look like a reference to the Wembley fight. Rocky Romero, who works as a liaison for New Japan Pro Wrestling, was able to set up Perry's current run for the Japanese league when they were touring the United States. It was also reported that Jack Perry legitimately requested his release from the company, but it was denied.

There are a few different layers to this story, and depending on how it unfolds, it will either be an indication of lessons learned or the same pattern repeated within management.

As I wrote at the time of the incident, while CM Punk was completely unprofessional and clearly didn't care about working for All Elite when he was willing to get into another backstage fight after all the negative press the original brawl with The Elite caused the company, Jack Perry provoked the situation. Furthermore, Perry was infamously aloaf at a wrestling convention months earlier when his comments implied that he didn't really care about his matches in AEW, and if that's the case, how was the audience supposed to be invested enough in his matches to be willing to pay to watch them?

It implied that Perry doesn't have the mindset to be a true pro that can draw serious money in the wrestling business.

Of course, the entire situation boiled down to a compete lack of management skills by Tony Khan, not just for how the Perry/Punk fight was handled, but also the way he mismanaged the Punk/Elite brawl the year previously. Keep in mind, there was also a backstage confrontation between Eddie Kingston and Sammy Guevara before Sammy was punched by Andrade during a different altercation. Unfortunately, there was a precedent set within AEW that real-life fights had very little consequence in the organization. Tony wanted to be friends with the wrestlers, not their boss. Nothing was truly done to address the issue, as The Elite were given the Trios championships upon their return to television, and Punk was given an entire show with Collision so he could play the top guy on Saturday night, but Khan didn't assert any authority as the guy that signs the hefty checks for the talent. Punk trashed the company at the press conference, got into a fight with the EVPs, got paid millions of dollars while he stayed home to heal from triceps surgery, and was given his own show when he returned.

What consequences were there for anyone involved in the original brawl?

Obviously, those lack of consequences gave Punk the impression that it didn't matter if he got into another fight with Jack Perry. On the other side of the coin, Jack Perry wasn't worried about any repercussions to his job when he provoked the situation with his comments about real glass during the All Out broadcast or when he was confronted by Punk. In a similar fashion to when CM Punk was kept under contract while his triceps injury heal, Jack Perry is still getting paid by Tony Khan, but is wrestling somewhere else. The details of his New Japan agreement aren't known, but the point is, he's under contract to All Elite Wrestling, but remains a healthy scratch from the line-up.

As far as what Tony Khan should do with Jack Perry, I have the same impression of the situation now that I did when the fight happened last September, Jack Perry cost All Elite Wrestling the biggest star they had on the roster. Perry is a secondary guy and whatever potential that it looked like he had initially diminished considerably within the past two years, and the convention appearance implied that he didn't have the mindset or the dedication to make it to the next level in terms of the star power required to draw money. CM Punk was exponentially more important to All Elite Wrestling business than him. The bottom line is, Jack Perry is completely expendable, and his involvement makes zero difference in the grand scheme of things for the company. Granted, there's a portion of the All Elite Wrestling roster that is expendable, not because they don't have talent or potential, but rather that they are simply lost in the shuffle of the bloated roster. 

At this point, Perry is expendable because he was more of a hindrance than an asset for the organization. Would there truly be a difference in any of the numbers if Jack Perry was released? Would ticket sales go through the roof if Perry was advertised for the live events? Would the ratings improve if he was promoted on television? If not, why is he still under contract? Tony Khan has nearly a full roster of talent that are in catering every week, why does All Elite Wrestling need Jungle Boy on the roster?

As far as Jack Perry refusing to apologizing to his boss for the backstage fight, it's completely ridiculous since he was totally unprofessional, and as much as Tony failed as management in the situation, there was no excuse for Perry to provoke the situation or get into a fight. As mentioned, Jack Perry is expendable, and while he has talent, he's not worth the hassle to keep on the roster. He's a mid-card performer, and there  are dozens of other wrestlers on the roster that can work in that role. In the grand scheme of things, Jack Perry is cannon fodder, but the way that Khan handled or avoided the situation says a lot about his continued mismanagement of the company.

The biggest takeaway from the entire scenario has nothing to do with Jack Perry since his impact on the promotion is minimal, but rather that Tony Khan took a passive approach to the situation again. Instead of confronting Perry about what he cost the company or cutting him from the roster, Tony avoided conflict, as Perry claims he hasn't heard from Khan in months. We've seen that when talent has left the company in the past, Tony had his legal team get them to sign NDAs to prevent public discussion about their exit. Sure, it covers the company from a PR perspective, but it's also another way for Khan to avoid the tough decisions that go along with being the boss. Tony doesn't have to confront the talent, he pays a lawyer to do it. Since nobody can talk about what happened when they left, Tony doesn't have to answer any questions at the press conference about the talent's comments on their departure. The bottom line is, if Tony Khan wants to be a successful pro wrestling promoter, he will have to be the boss that can make the firm decisions, not friends with the roster.

The Rock on Raw

You've heard the old pro wrestling trope that "red equals green," a notion that a bloody rivalry translates to big box office. There were undoubtedly times for professional wrestling, mostly within its regional heyday, that when the crimson flowed, it added an extra level of intensity that made a bout "must see" for fans at the arenas. When  Larry Zbyszko turned heel, pummeling his mentor, the legendary Bruno Sammartino, with a wooden chair on television, it was appalling. The fact that he bloodied the iconic Italian hero was unforgivable. "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes further established his blue collar persona because he was willing to bleed to overcome the villains in his quest for victory. The visual of "Stone Cold" Steve Austin refusing to quit in the sharpshooter as blood streamed down his face was ultimately what cemented the Stone Cold character as the top baby face in the years that followed.

Not surprisingly, when something works in pro wrestling, it will be replicated and usually its too often, thus diminishing its effectiveness. As we know, the Attitude era pushed the envelope, and as much as the mid-card drek doesn't hold up more than two decades later, a lot of the thrilling main events had blood on a regular basis. Triple H might be seen as the savoir of creative today, but fans were less than enthusiastic about his twenty-minute weekly promos and extended reign of doom in the early-2000s. Obviously, a student of the sport and a fan of the gritty NWA style, many of those Triple H pay-per-view bouts saw him bleed when his championship was on the line.

Of course, when Linda McMahon ran for Senate twice, the company went PG and while it was definitely a move designed to benefit her campaign, there were some positives with the shift in direction. Aside from the fact that it got away from the previously mentioned sleaze of the prior era, it unquestionably opened the door for more main stream sponsors, which is one of the company's most important revenue streams today. That said, there were also times when the PG approach hindered the product, as the nature of professional wrestling is based on conflict so you can tailor as product, but you can't reinvent the genre.

The elimination of chair shots to the head was one of the best decisions they company ever made and it should probably be something that is applied across every promotion. The other side of the coin was, the organization eliminated any blood from the shows, even from a hard way cut during a match. If the corporation doesn't want its performers slicing their head with a razor blade, there's somewhat of an argument to be made there, even if that method only causes superficial damage, but when matches were stopped because of a hard way cut, especially when the talent were fine to continue the contest, it halted any momentum the match had. A major example of this was Edge vs. Finn Balor at Wrestlemania last year when a stiff ladder shot accidentally gashed Balor's head open just minutes into the match. His head had to be stapled closed at ringside before the match could continue at the biggest show of the year.

Still, the decision to completely scale it back made the times that blood appeared, particularly when the action was allowed to continue stand out, adding another layer of sizzle to the segment.

The ridiculous legitimate elbow that Brock Lesnar used to slice open Randy Orton at Summer Slam years ago is still mentioned now, even though it was planned for Orton to take a stiff elbow to generate blood. Last year, Brock legitimately rammed his head into the exposed turnbuckle to bleed from a hard way cut during his match with Cody Rhodes at Backlash in Puerto Rico. It would've been exponentially easier to use the small cut from the traditional techniques of the blade, but it wasn't company policy.

However, perhaps with a new board of directors, there are new company guidelines.

As entertaining and compelling as The Rock's thirty-minute promo segments were on Smackdown and served their purpose to hype WM 40 in a few weeks, it's fair for the counterpoint to mention that such segments were becoming repetitive after being the standard formula for several weeks. Much of WWE programming has been primarily based on promo segments since The Rock joined the TKO Board of Directors, including the lengthy CM Punk/Drew McIntyre segment  on Raw so it's understandable that the audience wants to see more action to go along with the sizzle of the mic work.

After Cody had roughly twenty minutes on the mic on Monday, he was interrupted by Dwayne Johnson, but The Rock didn't say anything to the audience, opting to whisper something to Rhodes instead, It created somewhat of a flat opening segment, but at the same time, left some intrigue as to what was said. Thankfully, there was a resolution that was anything but flat at the conclusion of the show. When Cody was brawling backstage with members of The Bloodline, he was attacked by The Rock. The fight slipped outside the arena into the rainy parking lot, allowing for a very gritty and realistic segment. Rhodes was cut during the attack and the blood added the intensity that the angle needed ahead of Wrestlemania. The segment emphasized the violence and was presented in a way that appears to stack the odds against the baby face. As we know, the bigger the odds the baby face can overcome, the bigger the payoff for the victory. Furthermore, the gritty way it was done with The Rock being portrayed as a vicious heel can help sway the crowd to rally behind Rhodes rather than simply be entertained by The Rock's typical promos.

That's not to say that the crimson should be added back to WWE as a regular part of programming, but rather saved for big match scenarios like this when it can really put an extra sizzle to the angle. Keep in mind, selling the drama is a key aspect of drawing money in the sports entertainment business. The "good guy" is left bloody in the rain in the parking lot while the powerful villain talks trash as the show goes off the air. It's simple, but effective. Granted, this is yet another way that the focus is put on The Rock vs. Cody instead of Rhodes vs. Reigns, but with the level of hype this Wrestlemania event is going to generate, you can give the storyline the benefit of the doubt to what direction it goes in the next few months.

What's the status of AEW?

Similar to more or less any major promotion in the history of professional wrestling, there are positives and negatives to each national organization today. The Attitude era in the WWF was the hottest product during the hottest period in the history of the business. There are several iconic moments that defined the narrative of the sport during the late-90s. Stone Cold Steve Austin became the biggest star in the history of the industry and record-setting ratings were generated. At the same time, there was a lot of mid-card drek, most of which was scripted by Vince Russo, that didn't age well and in retrospect proves that not everything was gold among the wave of popularity. World Championship Wrestling had an amazing array of talent and was the only organization to put Vince McMahon on the ropes, but it also fell off a cliff to an embarrassing degree so Vince bought it for pennies on the dollar. Total Nonstop Action...enough said.

The point being, no organization is perfect, but the ability to make the most of the asset they had was ultimately what defined the narrative of the company. When the WWF had Steve Austin, Mick Foley, and The Rock on the roster at the same time, the correct decisions were made so millions of fans watched Raw every week. Eric Bischoff was able to offer enough cash for Scott Hall and Kevin Nash to jump to WCW, and the NWO became one of the most popular factions of all time. Bill Goldberg was very inexperienced, but he was presented in a fashion that made me a mega star, albeit for a relatively short run.

All Elite Wrestling had one of those critical opportunities and unfortunately, the story that unfolded since that time shows that they missed the boat.

At the All Out pay-per-view in September 2021, Bryan Danielson, who worked Wrestlermania earlier that year and was one of the most popular WWE stars of the modern era, as well as one of the best in-ring workers of his generation, made his surprise debut for the company. The same night, Adam Cole also showed up in AEW. Cole, a former NXT champion, was regarded as a tremendous talent that had main event potential, but the rumor mill suggested that Vince McMahon saw him as a manager on the main roster. In just one night, Tony Khan had one of the most popular stars, with the signing of Danielson, and a superb talent in the prime of his career for the addition of Cole. Let's not forget, less than a month earlier, CM Punk returned to professional wrestling for the first time in seven years when he inked a deal.

Within the span of just a few weeks, Tony Khan added two of the most popular stars of the modern era, and one of the best young in-ring workers to the roster.

This should've set the foundation for All Elite Wrestling's expansion to become a more competitive option for fans within the sports entertainment genre. As we know, that didn't happen, because for a variety of reasons, many of those that were discussed in the past, Tony found a way to either mismanage of minimize the assets that he had. Upon his arrival, Adam Cole wasn't slated for the main event scene, but rather became secondary in a stable in The Young Bucks and worked a mid-card feud with Orange Cassidy. Danielson's early tenure in the organization saw him wrestle Adam Page, who was portrayed as a whiny baby face during his title reign, to a draw for the championship before he also was camouflaged in the Blackpool Combat Club stable. There was a time frame, particular during the series of matches with Page, that Bryan Danielson was the best heel in the business, but very little was done to capitalize on it. The CM Punk debacle exposed not only the lack of professionalism from the supposed EVPs, but also the complete mismanagement from Tony Khan. The biggest money possible at the time would've been CM Punk vs. The Elite, but it was well-documented that The Elite refused to work with him. The talent doesn't have to be friends to draw money, and if The Elite wanted to draw money for the organization, they wouldn't let their personal grudge determine their business decisions. That's one of the responsibilities of being an EVP of a company, they should make the best choices for the company, not just themselves.

The most recent Dynamite rating might suggest that the promotion has a clearly defined ceiling for their audience.

As we know, Will Ospreay's main event bout saw a decline in ratings with 779,000 viewers a few weeks ago. Okada made his surprise debut as a full-time talent on that show, but since it wasn't announced, the sluggish number wasn't a reflection on him. Mercedes Mone's surprise appearence two weeks, which was hinted, but never confirmed drew just 801,000 viewers. Again, that number can only be considered to a certain extent since Mone's appearence wasn't advertised.

However, last week would be the opportunity to see how much of an impact both Okada and Mone bring to the table because by this point, wrestling fans know they will be on the show since it was known that they arrived in the company. Furthermore, the show itself was somewhat stacked with Okada vs. Eddie Kingston, Samoa Joe defending the title against Wardlow, and Adam Copeland vs. Christian in an I Quit match.

The episode drew just 800,000 viewers, a slight dip from the previous week, indicating that either the company should've booked these stars better, promoted better, or the fans simply aren't as invested in the product as they were a few years ago. As a comparison, when the previously mentioned CM Punk was on the roster, the ratings were usually around a million viewers. Now, the numbers are generally around the 800,000 viewers that the show garnered last week so there was roughly a 20% decline in TV viewership. The diehard All Elite fan base might try to defend it, or Dave Meltzer might attempt to spin the narrative with 82 stars for the matches at the most recent pay-per-view, but the bottom line is, a noticeable portion of the AEW audience has eroded during the past two years.

There's not one specific reason for it, but rather a series of fumbles that brought All Elite to this point, as far as the perception of the product among wrestling fans. As we've discussed, when an alternative product launched in 2019, there was a level of good will with the audience because Tony Khan wanted to spark the industry, and fans wanted other options outside of the WWE to be successful, especially because the business had become so stagnant. When the novelty of a new organization wore off, the company had to stand on its substance, and that yielded very mixed results. The slapstick approach was disjointed and most of the time counterproductive to the quality of the product. Tony Khan gave away more wrestling contracts than Oprah gave away cars, and as a result, a portion of the roster is in the witness protection program in terms of exposure since the only main event spot they have is at catering every week. Along with that, there are a lot of names on the roster, but I'm not sure that automatically translates to depth on it. With a few exceptions, almost everyone on the show is kept at relatively the same level. If you try to get everyone over then nobody truly gets over. There are several guys that are very talented, but don't get the regular TV exposure to be established as anything more than just another name on the roster. The Ring Of Honor purchase didn't bring its library with hundreds of hours of footage as the foundation of an All Elite streaming service, it allowed Tony Khan to play Shane McMahon from the Nitro segment years ago. It goes without saying that the continued involvement of ROH belts on AEW programming is convoluted and rather silly, does anyone care who any of the ROH championships are outside of the world title?

As far as booking troupes, guys like Matt Taven and Mike Bennett, both talented athletes, went from being in lame comedy skits for months to a part of what should be considered a dangerous faction for the Undisputed Kingdom. These guys were cannon fodder and are supposed to be considered important in the span of a week? Wardlow had all the potential you'd want to see in a prospect, but as mentioned prior, he always ends up in the same position so it looks like the fans don't buy him being anything more than that, which was proven when the title match against Joe didn't draw bigger ratings. In a similar fashion, the Adam Cole reveal went on too long and was underwhelming.

Basically, the fans have seen All Elite Wrestling for what it is, Tony Khan's vanity project that his family bought for him so that he can play Vince McMahon, and if there happens to be good wrestling in the process then that's great, but AEW isn't viewed as the next great alternative. The fans have seen that Tony had the chance to do things right when WWE missed the boat, but his results were just as underwhelming. Adam Cole is a prime example of this type of scenario. Furthermore, the bizarre rants on social media and cringe worth stuff at the press conference after the pay-per-views send the message that All Elite is more about Tony getting the chance to be friends with the wrestlers than anything else.

Finally, this is all very disappointing because it would be great to see All Elite be as successful as possible, but the structure and the management skills to maximize the opportunities for the organization aren't there. CM Punk and Adam Cole weren't nearly as successful as they should've been after All Out in 2022. Bryan Danielson should've been more successful than he was, but the stellar matches he had was an example of his tremendous talent, not Tony's booking style. It's very frustrating because there was a chance for All Elite to be a lot more than what it is, especially because it was such a rare combination of factors that led to its launch in 2019. Tony signing every major free agent isn't the solution because talent on the roster isn't the problem, the booking philosophy to maximize what the talent brings to the table is the problem.

Sure, Ospreay is going to have great matches, similar to Bryan Danielson, but will he be put in a situation that makes the most of it? Okada is booked in a stable with The Young Bucks the same way, Adam Cole was upon his arrival. Mercedes Mone is very talented, but the AEW women's division is almost always in disarray. Perhaps, the perception of All Elite, with its series of fumbles as a promotion, is why the numbers plateaued. If you mentioned the potential of Ospreay, Okada, and Mone joining All Elite at some point two years ago, it's doubtful that many would've thought it would actually have a decrease in ratings.Granted, in 1995 nobody would've guessed that WCW would've become the number one show on cable by 1997, but there's absolutely no indication that there's going to be a major boost for the company.

What's the staus of Kenny Omega?

Kenny Omega's style and philosophy on professional wrestling are polarizing, but his impact on the modern era is undeniable.

The Canadian grappler has his share of fans and critics, some will cite his exaggerated mannerisms and thespian deliver of promos to be too hokey to be taken seriously, and they might have a point. At the same time, he's an incredible athlete that had a series of dynamic, fast-paced matches that one could argue that he helped define much of the style within America today through his stellar run as the top gaijin, or foreign wrestler in New Japan. Make no mistake about it, when Kenny Omega was in top form, he was pure excellence inside the ring ropes, and his incredible bouts with Kazuchika Okada were among the best in the history of the business.

More than just the in-ring work, Omega had a very important role in a contest that will be considered one of the most important matches in the history of the industry, especially in retrospect. After Omega, Okada, and the New Japan roster that had tremendous depth at the time made headlines within the business, Chris Jericho agreed to compete outside of the WWE for the first time in almost two decades to challenge his fellow Canadian to a dream match at the Tokyo Dome. Jericho said previously that he didn't plan to work anywhere else during the rest of his career because of his loyalty to Vince McMahon and his wrestling empire. While Y2J was smart enough to step away from WWE at various points to keep himself fresh and reinvent himself along the way to add longevity, his WWE stints before his Tokyo Dome venture almost seemed like the company didn't have anything scripted for him to do in terms of meaningful angles. An example of the perception of the office was that at Wrestlemania 33, despite a storyline that was one of the more over angles in the organization, Chris Jericho vs. Kevin Owens was slated as the second match on the card of the marathon event. The following year, Jericho was in one of the main event matches in front of 40,000 fans in Japan.

Omega's reputation of consistent quality matches, and a hefty offer from New Japan's parent company, Bushiroad, were enough for Jericho to return to Japan. Since that match, Jericho credits it as opening the door for him to consider working outside of the WWE, and thus it was a key aspect of the formation of All Elite Wrestling. Besides the fact that Omega was a member of the group that was the core of the launch, make no mistake about it, the buzz that Kenny Omega had prior to the start of AEW was a critical piece of the puzzle, as it built anticipation for a full-time platform for him in America on national television.

There's no doubt about it, Kenny Omega was a critical part of All Elite Wrestling.

That being said, in an example of the harsh reality of the industry, the same dynamic style that brought his name to prominence might also be what cuts his run in All Elite short. As we know, just a few months ago, Omega was scheduled to compete at the Worlds End pay-per-view, but the bout was scrapped when he was rushed to the hospital with a very serious case of diverticulitis.

Just a few days ago, The Wrestling Observer's Dave Meltzer reported that there was no update on Omega's condition, as it still hasn't been determined if he will undergo surgery to repair the medical issue. When the former IWGP and AEW champion originally landed in the hospital, Meltzer noted that the swelling to the real-life Tyson Smith's intestines was too serve for the typical diverticulitis surgery so doctors had to wait for the swelling to decrease to determine if it would still be required or if the condition could be managed with medication. With the recent update, Meltzer noted that if the AEW star eventually needs surgery to address the problem, it would extend his absence from the company.

At 40, Kenny Omega would be considered in the latter stages of his career, especially when you take into account that he started wrestling in his teen years, but it wouldn't have been unrealistic to think he could've wrestled another five years or so. That being said, I'm not sure Omega should return to the ring, and if he does, you have the wonder if the potential risk to his health would be worth the upside that he brings to the table? Don't get me wrong, Omega has a firm legacy cemented and will be known as one of the best of all-time within his style of pro wrestling, but it goes without saying that the high impact style took a major toll on his body. That's where the critics have a valid point, the over-the-top car crash style can and does shorten careers. Keep in mind, Omega was forced to take a nearly 10-month hiatus from the organization in late-2021 for surgery to repair a myriad of injuries.

The argument could be made that Omega isn't the same in the ring since the injuries forced him onto the sidelines. Assuming that Omega can wrestle, it will be months until he can lace up the boots again, and will be longer than that if he needs surgery for diverticulitis. If he can make another comeback, the question might be, can Tony Khan truly invest more TV time and promotional dollars into him? Granted, money is no object to Tony, but television time is critical and it will be a decision as far as how much of it should be used to promote Omega when he might be more prone to injury now than he was in the past. Remember, he was scheduled to compete at the Worlds End pay-per-view before the recent health scare. Obviously, injuries can happen to anyone at anytime, but Omega has a lot of miles on his body so that might be taken into consideration in terms of the future of the organization.

Perhaps, that's the biggest takeaway from the lack of an update on his condition, Kenny Omega was a fundamental part of the early years of All Elite, but that doesn't mean that he will be a major portion of the future, at least as an in-ring performer. At some point, even if he gets cleared for a return to the ring, is it worth the possible risk to his health? Again, Omega has an established legacy so does he need to risk more injuries? Will he add that much more to his resume at this point in his career?

While it would be great to see Kenny Omega return to the ring, I don't think it would be a wise decision. As far what he does next, if he gets clearer then he will undoubtedly wrestle again, even if it might be better if he didn't. If for some reason he can't return to the ring, he will probably shift to a backstage or producer role in AEW so he will still be on the payroll. Along with that Will Ospreay, an athlete ten years younger and without nearly as much of a toll on his body, looks to be positioned for the "Omega spot" in the company. It's somewhat ironic because the two had a pair of incredible matches last year, with one at the Tokyo Dome and the rematch at the Forbidden Door pay-per-view in Toronto. Maybe that's where the torch was unofficially passed to the British grappler? Ospreay can have the Omega style matches for All Elite, especially because as mentioned, he's younger without the toll of those risky bouts.

Sure, it might be difficult to image All Elite Wrestling without Kenny Omega as a part of its foundation, but the organization already showed that they would be fine without him since the promotion still drew comparable numbers without him on the shows as it did when he was regularly at the events. It looks like Kenny Omega's successor was already chosen and that would be another reason for him to consider retirement from in-ring competition, and a role behind the scenes for the company.

What's the status of Darby Allin?

Darby Allin is a microcosm of All Elite Wrestling not getting out of its own way.

Earlier this month, when the legendary Sting had his last match of a career that spanned 40 years, Darby Allin, one of the homegrown and popular stars on the roster, took a rather ridiculous plunge from the top of a ladder through a pane of glass to the floor. Allin's back was gashed, causing a grotesque scene as he bled profusely on the floor. Aside from the fact that such graphic violence can sour a portion of the audience and can prevent expansion, it was an unnecessary risk that could've ended the career of one of the company's primary talents, and will undoubtedly shorten his career. Stunts like that are suited for independent shows in front of 200 fans in the parking lot of a used car dealership, not for a national company that should theoretically look for more ways to expand its audience, specifically after such major investments in new talent from the free agent market. Sure, it makes sense to leave the door open for more violence when the situation calls for it, especially as a way to differentiate the organization from WWE, but there's a line between being an alternative and resorting to car crash tactics as a substitute for proper storytelling throughout a feud.

If All Elite wants to use blood to add a level of intensity to a segment, fine since it brings something to the table that you won't see in the corporate WWE product, but when wrestlers bleed too often, and that's often the case in AEW, it's not nearly as impactful. You can push the envelope without being so gory that a portion of the audience gets soured on the experience. Outside of the diehard AEW fan base that is already willing to invest money into the product, who is the Darby glass bump supposed to draw?

More importantly, there was footage and subsequently reports that surfaced online that fans in the front row were hit with flying glass from the Darby bump. That's a lawsuit waiting to happen, there are only so many times that the PR team can smooth it over with free stuff until one of the fans see dollar signs from an incident. It's well-known that Tony Khan is from a billionaire family and eventually, someone will look for six figures even for something that isn't a serious incident. Again, similar to Darby bleeding all over the place, the glass flying into the crowd is amateur hour. A truly national organization with the structure to be successful on that level doesn't let something like that happen.

As far as Darby as a performer, it goes without saying that he can go in the ring and has a very unique charisma that the audience can identify with, which is much more valuable in terms of drawing money than the reckless bumps. Speaking of the bumps, very similar to how All Elite jumps the shark with concepts that can make it an alternative, Darby doesn't take measured risks that enhance his character, but rather will take foolish bumps just for the "shock value" of it. Fans didn't dress up like him or paint their face at the arenas because they want to throw themselves down a flight of stairs, but because they connect with his persona.

Furthermore, and this is probably the biggest strike against Darby as a performer since it shows how narrow-minded his viewpoint is of the business, he'd rather be known to a niche audience as the folk hero that destroyed his body for a few years instead of  being a major star for a national organization. The bottom line is, the entire point of the pro wrestling business is to draw money, and with the expansion of media in the modern era, there are numerous ways to accomplish that. There are live event tickets, pay-per-views, merchandise, conventions, ad revenue with television, sponsorships etc. A talent can't draw money if they are on the injured list, and proof of that is Darby's current status with the company.

As I said before, the fact that Allin was planning to climb Mt. Everest was ridiculous, particularly because mountain climbing on that scale isn't something advised for amateurs to attempt because of the legitimate danger involved. Darby wanted to not only pause any momentum that his career had to attempt the dangerous climb, but was also risking his wrestling career, the potential he has to be successful in the profession, and financial stability to do it. Unless Darby already has enough money for the rest of his life, specifically if he got seriously injured on the mountain then it's completely irresponsible to make the climb. Yes, obviously, Darby Allin can make his own decisions, but it doesn't make those choices any less foolish. It's just a total lack of any common sense, an aspect that is also reflected with his wrestling style.

While Darby's decision to climb Mt. Everest was ridiculous, the fact that Tony Khan was willing to allow it was even more ridiculous. In some ways, it proves how much of a vanity project AEW is because it shows that the goal isn't about profit, or a return on the investment of Darby's contract, but rather it allows Tony to be friends with the roster.

Darby worked a match against Jay White two weeks ago on Dynamite after he announced that he would soon depart the company for a few months for the previously mentioned Everest venture. Despite the fact that the audience was already told that he would be leaving, they did an injury angle anyway to write him off of television. Ironically, during the match before the scripted foot injury to provide an unnecessary reason for him to be off TV, Allin legitimately broke his foot in three places, scrapping his Everest plans and putting him on the sidelines for an extended period of time before he can wrestle again.

Allin posted the news on social media, and it was actually picked up by TMZ. Allin also posted that he would have to wait to climb Everest next year since they are only certain months of the year when the mountain is considered safer to climb. If this is the case then Darby will be on the sidelines for at least a few months with the legitimate broken foot and then he will leave again for 2-3 months to try to conquer Everest. When exactly is he supposed to draw money for AEW? How will there be a return on the investment of his contract? Why should the company continue to invest money and TV time into his character if he plans to disappear from television again next year? Hypothetically, after he heals up from the foot injury, if Darby gets involved in the most over storyline on the show, should Tony Khan cut it short so he can have fun playing in the snow on the mountain? Theoretically, Darby is in the prime of his career and if he's not going to be available for All Elite then it's not worth the TV time or cash to promote him, simply because if the company is going to continue to expand, they need the talent on the shows to accomplish it.

Again, Darby is a microcosm of the bigger picture of AEW. He's more concerned with being the folk hero that crashed and burned to a niche audience the same way that Tony Khan books matches for The Wrestling Observer rather than a national television audience. Darby takes bumps for shock value instead of bumps that could enhance his character, whereas the All Elite product jumps the shark with violence that can sour the audience rather than establish it as an an alternative organization. Don't get me wrong, Darby has talent, but his approach probably won't allow him to make the most of his potential, which is very similar to the way that All Elite has plateaued compared to the potential that it had a few years ago.

The Rock vs. Cody Rhodes

Cody Rhodes is walking a very fine line ahead of Wrestlemania 40 in Philadelphia in just a few weeks.

It goes without saying that The Rock's heel turn upon his appointment to the TKO board, a move for the corporation to distance themselves from Vince McMahon as much as anything else, and return to the company for his first match in over a decade, is a delicate balancing act. Given Dwayne Johnson's popularity from Hollywood and his standing among wrestling fans as one of the biggest stars in the history of the sports entertainment business, it could've been tough to get the fans to boo him, but some stellar mic work, with purpose and importance, not tired catch phrases or cliches, made it possible. That being said, it's also difficult to avoid The Rock almost unintentionally making Cody Rhodes, the baby face in the situation, look lame in the process. Sure, we've heard reports of the real-life Dwayne Johnson's support for Rhodes, and that's probably true, especially because the better WM does, the better Johnson looks like a mega star, but again, The Rock made a career of cleverly insulting his foes on the mic.

As I wrote in a few different articles at the time, the notion that Cody was willing to hand over the biggest opportunity of his career, a shot at the championship that he chased for almost two years, to The Rock without any explanation, made him look much less important among the WWE landscape. If it was the plan all along for the shift in the storyline back to Cody/Roman was almost irrelevant since the damage was done in terms of perception. Furthermore, when Cody took a slap to the face without any retaliation at the press conference, it was another segment where he looked foolish. Would Steve Austin, Bill Goldberg, or any other top baby face in the history of the industry just take a slap to the face?

Thankfully, as more layers were added to the angle, including a tag match on night one between The Rock and Roman Reigns and Cody and Seth Rollins to determine the rules for the title match on night two, the roles of each performer were defined in a better manner. However, I'm still not sure how strong Cody looks in the grand scheme of things, and more importantly, Roman Reigns almost appears secondary to his more famous cousin.

The segment on Smackdown where The Rock endorsed Roman Reigns at the leader of The Bloodline was key, as it put the focus on the champion, but the way that Cody's promo on Raw was primarily geared towards The Rock, it put more of the spotlight on the part-time performer. In a similar fashion, Cody's slap to The Rock on a recent episode of Smackdown, was a way for him to return the favor and look strong ahead of WM, but the promos between the two have been rather lop-sided. The Rock took to Instagram to torch Rhodes for crying during segments in previous weeks, and since it was online, he used profanity that wouldn't be allowed on USA Network. Obviously, the language doesn't make the promo, and if it depended on the profanity, the substance wouldn't be there for a money promo anyway, but the point being, Dwayne Johnson responded to Rhodes with a clear level of intensity, while Cody is weeping on television. Again, this makes it look like perhaps the Rhodes character is overwhelmed by the moment thus implying that The Rock is a much bigger star. Reportedly, there are some within the WWE that have complained about the "double standard" with The Rock being able to use that type of profanity on social media, but the bottom line is, The Rock is a bigger star than the vast majority of the roster and he's on the TKO Board Of Directors so the ability to cur the type of promos he wants for his storyline is one of the perks of the job.

As long as the company gets the payoff of Cody as the top guy by the conclusion of the storyline then the argument could be made that any criticism is moot, but none of that is for sure right now.

From all indications, Cody will get his moment of winning the championship for his father, the legendary Dusty Rhodes, but will this angle, particularly with The Rock's involvement, allow him to be as over with the audience as he would've been otherwise? 

It will be extremely interesting to see how this scenario unfolds because right now, Cody vs. The Rock is exponentially more of the focus of the angle, regardless of if that was the intent, than the actual Rhodes/Reigns match at Wrestlemania night two. As far as the promos, Cody fired back with some language that could air on television on Raw, but there was a stark difference between that and what we've seen from Dwayne Johnson online. Quite simply, Cody's promo, including the profanity, sounded scripted and forced. It's not the typical Cody promo style and it showed, as he tried to stretch his verbiage to fit something from The Rock's playbook. Keep in mind, the reason that the fans became so invested in Cody's journey to the championship in the first place was that there was a level of authenticity to it, which was the opposite of his segment on Raw. Cody really was typecast as a secondary comedy figure, he really did have the ambition to leave the WWE to prove management wrong, and he really does want to win the championship for Dusty. The office shouldn't stray too far away from that narrative because if they want to make Cody as much of a top star as possible, that storyline is where the money is for him as a main event performer.

I understand that selling emotion is key to drawing money, and along with that is the emotional investment of the fans, but as I said, the fans already bought into Cody's journey to win it for Dusty. The top baby face near tears on television seemed a little too over-the-top and it's possible that the over dramatic presentation might sour some fans, especially because the other side of the coin of this angle is The Rock as one of the most charismatic performers of all time.

Reportedly, The Rock is set to take time off from WWE after WM, which is probably for the upcoming UFL season, but with the status of the angle now, an eventual Cody Rhodes/The Rock bout might be the only resolution. The reason being, not only is Roman portrayed as rather secondary in the storyline, even the visual sends that message, as The Rock looks completely massive standing next to Reigns. Despite the fact that he rarely defended the title last year, I still think that Reigns should take some time off after WM because he was basically the entire focus of the company for almost the past four years. Maybe this is all by design, but if Roman takes time off, maybe that will allow for a Cody vs. The Rock bout  this year.

Again, there could be a bigger payoff as the storyline continues throughout this year, but there's also the risk that Cody is seen as a timid baby face that isn't quite as cool as The Rock, and Roman's star power might not shine as bright as it did before he stood next to The Rock for a few months. Don't get me wrong, The Rock's involvement is obviously a major positive for the company, but there's definitely a fine line in terms of presentation ahead of Wrestlemania in a few weeks.

Pitt Fight

The late, great John Belushi became iconic for his role in the rowdy comedy, "Animal House," a tale of rebellious college students that crashed their campus with infamous toga parties. This Friday, there will be more collegiate chaos, but it will be for a good cause when the special Pitt Fight series returns to the Pitt-Greensburg campus with another memorable night of pro wrestling action that will benefit the Central Westmoreland Habitat for Humanity project, a noble venture to help those in need.

Pitt Fight was a concept developed by two college roommates, Kyle Harper and Cornell Grigsby when they formed the Pitt Fight Club at their school through their shared passion for professional wrestling. When the two pals took a newbie, their sidekick, Sam to an independent event early in their college tenure in 2018, it sparked an idea that led to a series of events that defined much of their tenure in higher education.

"The night was amazing. We watched a hardcore match with Tommy Dreamer, Cornell had a hilarious interaction with Colt Cabana, and we had the time of our lives. After we got home, we talked for what seemed like hours about the show. The one question we kept asking was, 'Why can’t there be something like this in Greensburg?' This think tank moment was where Pitt Fight was born. Our goals have always been to bring the Pittsburgh wrestling community and Pitt-Greensburg community together for a fun, action-packed night while also raising money for a good cause," explained Harper.

Harper was ingrained into the fabric of the university, located in Westmoreland County of the western Pennsylvania area, and remains a fixture at the school today. Dual-majoring in Communications, and Creative and Professional Writing, Kyle Harper earned his Bachelor's Degree in the spring of 2022. During his tenure as a student, he worked as  a community assistant within the Office of Housing and Residence Life, a role that he expanded upon after graduation when he was hired as the Resident Director position that he works in today.

But, this passion for the grappling arts wasn't discovered simply when he watched over-the-top stars drop elbows in between his time hitting the books at school. Professional wrestling is somewhat of a family tradition in the Harper household. Kyle's father was known to wrestling fans around the region as QB Blitzz, a powerful brute that left a memorable mark around various organizations throughout the area during his heyday through the late-90s and into the early-2000s.

This family connection was pivotal for the Pitt Fight project to get off the ground, as the man formerly known as Blitzz was still well-thought-of within wrestling circles and was able to introduce his son to longtime veteran, Marshall Gambino, a tag team specialist that also runs his own organization.

"My father eventually introduced me to Marshall Gambino, the promoter for Prospect Pro Wrestling. Marshall agreed during this meeting to support us and allow us to use his ring. Marshall has been a mentor to us since we started these shows, and Pitt Fight would not exist without him," Harper commented.

"Being part of Pitt Fight from the beginning has truly been an honor. It's great to see when multiple organizations can come together for one night to support a local cause, this year being the Central Westmoreland Habitat for Humanity. Pitt Fight is special because you'll get to see matches with several wrestling superstars that under regular circumstances you wouldn't normally with talent attending from Ryse Wrestling in Uniontown, 2PW in Worthington, RWA in West Newton among others. It's going to be an incredible night of non-stop wrestling action and I'm very excited about it," Marshal commented.

"My boys, they are no strangers to street fights or the men that they face on Friday. You're talking about Marshall and Mickey Gambino who haven't feared anyone for the past twenty years.The Gambino Family says what they mean and do what they say. You can expect they will do whatever it takes to get the job done this Friday, added Emily DelVecchio, business manager of the Gambino Brothers.

With the right connections, equipment, and determination to make what started as small talk in a dorm room into a reality at the university gymnasium, Pitt Fight hosted its inaugural event in March 2019, raising nearly $1,500 for Connor's Cure, the cancer research fund that was established in memory of WWE Hall of Famer, Connor "The Crusher" Michalek. Later that year, Pitt Fight returned with its second edition, adding another $800 to the research fund that was named after the 8-year-old that touched the sports world through his enthusiasm and courage. Future plans for the college-based grappling venture were in the works before the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered most of the world. However, Harper and his trusted team rebounded strong with their return event last March, shattering their previous fundraising efforts with almost $7,000 donated to the St. Jude organization.

"It’s incredible the amount of support that we have gotten from the wrestlers who participate at this show. My experience with creating matches was very limited. In high school, my father and I hosted a charity wrestling event, but he helped a lot with the creative end of things. In a passing of the torch moment, when we told him about this, he gave me the information I needed to help build a show myself. In terms of the talent as a whole, I am extremely grateful to anyone who has been on a Pitt Fight show. They hear me, listen to my ideas, help me improve these ideas, and then put on some of the coolest matches I have ever seen. That’s all anyone could ask for. I have some wrestlers who have been on all four of the Pitt Fight shows, but we also always have new faces in our matches," Harper remarked.

One of the many reasons that Pitt Fight became a staple of the Pittsburgh wrestling calendar is the all-star cast of athletes that come together for a good cause. There are top-tier talent from every major independent group in the region that gather at the Pitt-Greensburg campus to allow for matches that aren't seen anywhere else for these special events. Standouts like Gory, "The Gavel" David Lawless, The Gambino Brothers, Ron Hunt, and many others provided  memorable action throughout Pitt Fight's history that always generates anticipation for the next card.

This Friday's event has a particularly special importance for the campus, as Pitt Fight looks to positively impact the local community.

"This year, our proceeds are being donated to Central Westmoreland Habitat for Humanity. We have donated to several organizations during Pitt Fight’s tenure, but we have never donated to an organization that directly affects our surrounding community. Members of the organization are going to be present at our event, and they have been nothing but supportive and grateful. In terms of how the proceeds will go to the event, we donate everything we make from the shows to the respective charity. Since this event is funded by the University, we are given an allocated budget for each show that we have to present to our Student Government Association. This covers all the necessary costs for running an event like this," Kyle said.

This Friday's "Fight or be Forgotten" spectacular already has a stacked line-up with ten matches that has the Pittsburgh scene talking, as both wrestlers and fans look forward to this entertaining evening. A six man tag team street fight, a championship tables match, and more has already been announced for the card that will have more than fifty grapplers featured at the event.

"This show is going to be our craziest show yet. We are planting some seeds for the future with some qualifying matches for a championship scramble at a future event. Contenders will be named, titles will be defended, and Pitt Fight will be going to the extreme," Harper concluded enthusiastically.

Mercedes Mone debuts for AEW

After months of speculation, Mercedes Mone arrived in All Elite Wrestling in her hometown of Boston, adding not only some much-needed star power to the roster, but also another high-profile free agent to the organization. The former Sasha Banks infamously walked out of WWE in 2022 and eventually landed in New Japan for a brief series of matches before her run was cut short when she suffered a very serious ankle injury in May of last year.

Since that time, there were rumors on a semi-regular basis, including when Mone was shown in the crowd at Wembley Stadium for All In, that she would ink a contract with Tony Khan. However, after Vince McMahon was dismissed from the creative team by TKO management before he was exiled in disgrace, there was some speculation that perhaps the former Sasha Banks would consider a return to the WWE under the guidance of Triple H, who ran NXT when she arguably had the biggest success of her career, in terms of consistent quality booking. 

The rumor mill suggested that negotiations stalled because of the amount of money that Mone expected from a contract offer, and as we know, money is no object to Tony Khan so all things considered, it's not too surprising that Mercedes opted to sign with All Elite Wrestling.

So, what does this translate to for the organization?

At 32, Mone is still in the prime of her career, theoretically with several years of her prime ahead of her, but she was injury prone in the past so as much as anything, her success in AEW could depend on if she can stay healthy. According to Bryan Alvarez on Wrestling Observer Live, the TB Garden moved nearly 7,800 tickets for her debut, with a set up for just above 8,000 seats. Assuming the AEW marketing department can advertise it right, the appearances of Mone, at least for her first tours with the company, could be very helpful with ticket sales. As trivial as it might sound, when you take into account some of the outrageous ticket fees associated with live events, sometimes the cheapest ticket available can hover around $50 before the cost of parking at the venue is added into the experience. Granted, All Elite as a novelty sold very well during its original touring schedule, but similar to anything else, with each return trip to a market, there must be more or a selling point than just the opportunity to see a live show.

Undoubtedly, Mercedes can be a new selling point for the organization, which is needed, as the company doubled its live event schedule with the addition of Collision less than a year ago and thus doubled the amount of tickets it needed to sell to those shows. Outside of the fact that TNT was willing to pay for more live programming, nothing about the AEW product, even the good aspects of it, would've justified the addition of another two-hour show so the sluggish ticket sales for the Saturday shows reflected that. Furthermore, outside of a few notable matches, including MJF/Omega, and FTR/Bullet Club Gold, Collision is often skippable in the grand scheme of things.

As far as how Tony Khan will use his newest star signed to a hefty contract, without any direct promotion of her debut and the fact that she opened the show rather than closed it, the broadcast garnered just 801,000 viewers, a slight increase from the week prior, but still among one of the lowest numbers the show has generated within the past year. This is yet another example of what I wrote about recently, Tony is a great matchmaker because he can take two great wrestlers and put their names on paper, which I also mentioned isn't necessarily ground-breaking since it's not shocking that Will Ospreay and Konosuke Takeshita had an incredible spot fest on pay-per-view. However, and this is the key difference, we've seen many times during the existence of All Elite Wrestling that Tony doesn't know how to book the right performers at the right place, at the right time, and under the right circumstances to maximize the ability to draw for the company.

Clearly, based on the number, AEW should've done something more direct to advertise the debut of the former WWE star. One of Tony Khan's favorite things about playing promoter might be to surprise the audience because he was a big fan of ECW in the 90s, but given the lack of momentum for the past several months, especially after the Adam Cole reveal flopped in December, it would've been the better business move to let fans know that Sasha Banks was going to be on Dynamite this week to attempt to reestablish some regular viewers. A video package that provides a brief glimpse of her for a few weeks ahead of her arrival could've been enough to get more of an audience for Wednesday's show.

Sure, the counterpoint might be that maybe Sasha Banks was away from the WWE spotlight long enough that she doesn't have the same level of star power to generate a boost in viewership, but we won't know the answer because zero anticipation was allowed to build for her return to American TV. More specifically, the way that her debut was formatted also didn't do the ratings any favors. When Tony scripted her to start the show, there was going to be a portion of the audience that watched the segment, a promo that wasn't particularly well-down, and since viewers saw what they wanted to tune in for this week, they could change the channel with the relative assurance that was the premise of Mone's involvement for this episode. Obviously, Riho vs. Willow was a set up for her to get involved again, but given the criticism of the women's division, as well as the lack of importance placed on it, there was no way that the viewing audience was going to stay tuned in for the main event segment.

At least if Mone was the main event promo segment, it could've retained some viewers throughout the show. Besides fumbling the formatting, as mentioned, her promo wasn't anything spectacular and almost made it sound like there's no firm plan for what she's going to do in the company yet. Again, it's a pattern because the lack of meaningful and important angles has been a common problem and another reason why viewers haven't made watching Dynamite as much of a priority as it was in the past.

As I said when the rumors of Mone potentially signing with AEW made the rounds online, taking into account her track record, including a four-month hiatus from the WWE before she walked out, and her reputation of being difficult to work with, I think it's only a matter of time before Mercedes has a disagreement with how she's booked in All Elite. Don't get me wrong, she had some rightful complaints with how she was used in WWE, particularly when she often had to play second fiddle to Charlotte Flair so that the company could add as many title reigns as possible to get her near her dad's championship record, but the bottom line is, there were disputes between talent and management as long as the wrestling business existed so it's key for everyone involved to attempt to find a solution to be able to draw the most money possible. When Sasha walked out of the WWE, it made it difficult for the company to invest TV time and promotional dollars into her character in the future because what if she decided to walk out during a pay-per-view when she was in the main event?

Of course, Mercedes Mone got the artificial debut pop in her hometown and she's thrilled with her All Elite experience so far because the spotlight was put on her. In truth, given the status of the AEW women's division, she's a big fish in a much smaller pond, especially when you take into account that she would still fit in perfectly with the current stellar WWE female division. That being said, even being the biggest female star in AEW doesn't guarantee that Tony will book her properly, as we've seen him botch bigger stars in AEW than Mone. One thing is for sure, it will be interesting to see how Mone draws for the company, both in live attendance and TV ratings throughout this year. The shrinking core audience might disagree, but All Elite is almost on the slippery slop that saw the eventual decline of TNA in its heyday, when the company looked to sign free agents as the solution to the problems that exist as a substitution for compelling programming. There are only so many major free agents to sign, and Tony signed a lot of them in the past, but the primary show is drawing lower ratings. So, it will be interesting to see if the addition of Ospreay, Okada, and Mone will be a combination that can be presented in a way to boost the company or if they are just more expensive acquisitions for the vanity project.

Will Brock Lesnar return?

Professional wrestling, both for the positives and the negatives, will always surprise you.

As we know, the industry is such a unique genre and over the years, triumphs, tragedies, scandals, and spectacles are all a part of the business that originated from the carnival circuit. There's no question that sports entertainment can be a complete circus.

Unfortunately, at a time when WWE business surged for the first time in several years, and this year's Wrestlemania has the most buzz of a WM event in probably a decade, the black cloud of the Vince McMahon lawsuit, the horrendous assault allegations that saw him resign in disgrace, continues to hover over the success of the merger of the TKO corporation. More information was made public this week with four of the previously unnamed corporate officers being named as the next phase of the lawsuit begins, which Brian Nurse, a former counselor for the company's legal department, WWE president Nick Khan, the COO Brad Blum, and Stephanie McMahon named as those that had some level of knowledge of the accusations made against Vince McMahon.

The seriousness of the allegations should absolutely be taken into consideration, but at the same time, the nuances of who actually knew what must also be measured carefully.

For example, there was speculation, particularly after the original Wall Street Journal story that made headlines for the hush money payments that were made over the years, that the reason Stephanie McMahon left the company before she returned to make the PR save following Vince's initial resignation, was because of his affairs within the company. However, the fact that she knew Vince might've employed his girlfriends over the years, that doesn't mean that she had any knowledge of any type of assault or misconduct. At least from how it appears on paper, it seemed like Stephanie was named because she was in some of the same meetings as others that were named in the lawsuit, and if that was the case, it wouldn't be too surprising since she had a corporate role in the organization so obviously, she would attend a corporate meeting in the office.

Given the deviant nature of the accusations, it's somewhat difficult to assume that Vince or anyone close to him would disclose such information to his daughter. On the flip side, while not much is known about Brian Nurse since he's not a public figure, it's very possible that perhaps he was aware of something, specifically because of his role as legal counsel in the organization. It's also very possible that Nick Khan and Brad Blum knew something, but it would be rather difficult to parse the detail as to what exactly they would've known or to what extent. Again, did they know that Janel Grant was hired because she was Vince's girlfriend or were they aware that she might've been forced to do things against her will for him? It goes without saying that those directly involved, particularly John Laurinaitis, who was fired when the original story was reported in 2022, knew the depraved accusations toward McMahon.

Nick Khan was Vince's right hand man in the modern era, specifically because of the negotiating power he had in the entertainment world, landing mega contracts for the organization. That said, Nick Khan was a relatively new addition to the WWE office, not a longtime stooge that kept a job to do McMahon's bidding so it's possible that Khan wasn't told about McMahon's personal behavior. Keep in mind, Khan worked very successfully for several years as an agent in the legitimate sports world. At least on the surface, he doesn't seem like the type of guy that would risk himself to cater to Vince McMahon's nonsense. But, this story has been so bizarre that you have to consider the possibility that Khan might've known something about Grant's claims.

The biggest asset that anyone named in the lawsuit might have is plausible deniability.

They knew Vince's girlfriend worked in the office and didn't think of it as anything beyond that. There are text messages that seem to make it clear that Vince insisted on deviant behavior, and Laurinaitis' attorney acknowledged his participation, but claimed that the former head of talent relations was a victim, too. Unless there's some type of evidence to prove that any of the four people just named in the lawsuit had direct knowledge of misconduct then they have the benefit of plausible deniability. Granted, it's possible that they didn't know anything other than Grant was Vince's girlfriend, but even if they did, there would have to be text message, e mail, or some type of other evidence to prove it. That's not to dismiss the seriousness of Vince action's but rather to explain that within the legal system, there will have to be a level of proof as far as what exactly anyone else knew about the entire situation.

Along those lines, it was surprising to see that Brock Lesnar, who was unnamed, but referenced in the initial lawsuit filed, was back to the roster page of the WWE website, prompting speculation that it might open the door for his return to the company. Lesnar was scheduled to appear at The Royal Rumble to set up a match for WM, but was scrapped from any plans because of the reference in the lawsuit. Furthermore, Lesnar was cut from the recently released WWE 2K24 video game, appearing only in specific game modes and not as a fully playable character. Reportedly, the game was too far along in its development to remove him completely from the game so his appearence was limited. Vince's image in video footage used in the game was blurred, as the 2K video game company didn't want to feature the disgraced former boss of WWE.

Could Brock Lesnar be on his way back to WWE?

It's very odd timing for Brock to be added back to the roster page, particularly because the WM 40 card is more or less already set with the key matches, and specific measures were just taken to limit his appearence in the video game. Why exactly bring him back now or even re-add him to the website? The event already has a major buzz with The Rock's involvement, Lesnar's star power, while marketable in the past, isn't needed for the show to be successful.

That being said, similar to others referenced in the lawsuit, Brock might have plausible deniability on his side.

The fundamental question is, what did Brock really know? Did he know that Janel Grant was an unwilling participant in McMahon's behavior? Did Vince tell Brock that Grant consensually agreed to a physical encounter with him? According to the lawsuit, there were text message exchanges between both McMahon and Grant with Lesnar so if he was told that she was unwilling, that could prove his role in the misconduct. If there isn't evidence to prove it then Brock will also have the benefit of plausible deniability. Don't get me wrong, it's completely sleazy that Brock wanted to swap women with Vince, but if he didn't know the circumstances then it would be a different scenario than if he also wanted to force Grant to participate against her will in McMahon's request.

All things considered, I would still be surprised if Brock is brought back to WWE anytime soon. The last thing TKO needs is for anything to bring another reference to Vince McMahon after the negative PR for the past few months. Plus, as mentioned, Wrestlemania is already a major success, both in terms of ticket sales and hype ahead of the two-day event so Lesnar isn't needed and anything he might add to the show isn't worth the potential negativity it could bring to the company.

Dynamite ratings

The numbers don't lie. Unless you're doing a politician's taxes, but that's another story for another time.

This past Wednesday on Dynamite, the promotion's newest signee, Will Ospreay, formerly of New Japan Pro Wrestling fame, worked the main event segment in a match against longtime friend, Kyle Fletcher, one half of Aussie Open. After a few months of rumors and speculation about where he would show up next, another former New Japan talent, Kazuchika Okada officially arrived as a full-time talent for All Elite Wrestling, aligning himself with The Elite after he turned heel on Eddie Kingston during a promo segment.

So, one of the most spectacular wrestlers in the business today, and a performer that could already be regarded as one of the greatest of all time appeared on television for this episode of Dynamite. The ratings for the show actually declined, garnering 779,000 viewers, a slight dip from the previous week.

That's less of a strike against the talent, and more of an overwhelming statement about how the talent is presented, which lends to the lack of structure within the organization to maximize its assets on the roster. It might sound like a broken record at this point, but it must be the common disclaimer when discussing this aspect of the product. There's a difference between a booker and a matchmaker. Tony is a great matchmaker because he can put two names on paper, and given the amount of cash at his disposal from his billionaire family, he can offer enough money to sign very talented wrestlers for his pro wrestling project. It's not exactly ground-breaking for someone to realize that Konosuke Takeshita and  Ospreay are really great in-ring performers so it's not earth-shattering that they had a great match on pay-per-view. It's right from Tony's E-fed playbook when he formatted shows for 53 people on a message board in 2002. However, a booker knows when, where, and how to present the talent available to draw the biggest money and numbers possible within a specific scenario. The circumstances of the talent presented are just as important, and sometimes more important than the talent themselves. A lot of money has been drawn over the years for one-off or limited spots if the right amount of smoke and mirrors are used correctly. Mr. T wasn't exactly Lou Thez, but he was a key part of the success of Wrestlemania, a show that ultimately determined the future of the WWE, a corporation worth billions of dollars today.

By all accounts, Tony Khan is a great guy, but that doesn't automatically mean that he should be the booker for the second-largest pro wrestling company in the United States. Furthermore, outside of getting the money from his wealthy family to launch a pro wrestling venture, what exactly qualifies him to run a national organization? As I've said before, it would've been a lot cheaper for Tony to start an independent promotion to play Vince McMahon than the staggering amount of cash that was used to launch AEW. Keep in mind, according to Wrestlenomics, AEW lost $34 million last year, but money is no object to Tony and thus profit doesn't matter so the economics of the organization are moot, which is why it's ultimately a vanity project.

It's a combination of comical and astounding that with the sheer amount of talent that Tony has under contract that he can't seem to piece together a coherent or cohesive television program. When you look at the line-up of this week's Dynamite, it's rather easy to see why less viewers watched than last week, and with the number under the usual 800,000 benchmark, the argument could be made that the slapstick approach has even eroded some of the core audience.

The show opened with a rather erratic pace as Samoa Joe and Swerve Strickland did a promo before they had a brief tag match against The Undisputed Kingdom. Just when it looked like the stable was getting some importance based on the pay-per-view results, Matt Taven and Mike Bennett were basically used as an enhancement tag team. Swerve, the emerging baby face despite the fact that his actions in recent months would suggest the opposite, was made to look foolish because he agreed to team with Samoa Joe, who he just wrestled for the title days earlier so it wasn't a surprise when Joe choked him out to conclude the segment. Why were these two partners for a five-minute tag match? Why were members of The Undisputed Kingdom made to look so useless when the faction is supposed to be a part of a key storyline? It also reinforces the notion that Taven and Bennett are cannon fodder, which hinders any importance for the faction.

Hook and Brian Cage working a random hardcore match just days after Darby took a ridiculous plunge through glass was completely ineffective. Besides the fact that there was a gimmick match without an angle to justify it, the AEW viewing audience saw a car crash just a few days ago with the main event of Revolution, how impressive is the fender bender of Hook/Cage by comparison? Furthermore, Cage and his stablemates that got involved are completely secondary among the AEW landscape.  Toa Liona and Kaun are usually in the Ring Of Honor witness protection program so does it make a difference if they show up on Dynamite if the vast majority of the audience isn't familiar with them? Hook has a level of popularity, but how much progress has he truly made in his AEW stint?

As entertaining as Matt Menard is, he worked two matches on Rampage this year before his match against Killswitch on Dynamite so this was more or less a squash match. Similar to Cage, Menard isn't used in any role of importance on the shows so it's not as though his matches are must-see for viewers. That's not to say that Menard doesn't have the talent to be more than that, because it seemed like he does, but rather to point out that based on his presentation, he's not a guy that the fans have to consider a key performer for the organization.

Riho vs. Kris Statlander...enough said.

As far as in-ring action, similar to how the Hook/Cage bout was a scaled down version of hardcore wrestling compared to the Revolution tag match, Ospreay/Fletcher was a lesser version of the British grappler's match with Takeshita at the pay-per-view. If this match was booked for a few weeks later, it could've stood out as a dazzling, albeit repetitive spot fest instead of being rather tame compared to a similar bout from just a few days earlier.

However, the biggest reason that this main event didn't draw or maintain the usual Dynamite viewership is rather simple, the audience doesn't really know who Klye Feltcher is and he hasn't been on television enough for the them to be familiar with him. This might've been a contest that both wrestlers wanted to have or a match that Tony Khan wanted to see, but the bottom line is, Feltcher hasn't been on television for roughly six weeks, how was this supposed to be perceived as a major match? Sure, there's the background of their friendship, but how many fans know that? Furthermore, instead of Feltcher going from a six-week absence from TV to the main event segment, why not build up the bout for a few weeks with promos and video packages to give it a level of importance and some context for the viewers? Don't get me wrong, both athletes are very talented, but the reason that this didn't draw ratings is because it was thrown onto the show without the proper approach or promotional push to make the most of it. 

Unfortunately, that's a criticism that could be applied to most of the AEW product.

Okada's arrival was interesting, as they took a road that will require more booking technique, but could have a bigger payoff in the end. Granted, nothing that we've discussed or seen from Tony's booking philosophy would suggest that he could accomplish that, but the point being, Okada as a baby face for his debut as a full-time AEW wrestler would've been very easy. The Japanese superstar as a heel gives his character more options and opens the door for a bigger run as a baby face as his persona progresses within the organization.

According to Tokyo Sports, Okada signed a three-year deal worth nearly $14 million to work for AEW. That would put him in the range of what main event talent in WWE get paid, but it's important to remember that All Elite isn't near that level. Don't get me wrong, if Okada can get that type of cash then good for him, but you have to wonder if the company could realistically generate that level of money promoting Okada? Remember, he's still relatively unknown to American fans, and All Elite has a limited market share so is it possible that Okada will have the opportunity to generate almost $4.5 million a year for AEW?

Again, it's great for Okada that he could land that type of deal, especially after reports from The Wrestling Observer described his New Japan pay as "shockingly low," but if AEW can't generate enough revenue to get a return on the investment then it might've been a foolish offer for Tony Khan to make to the Japanese star. Clearly, he offered more than the WWE to get Okada to ink a contract, but this might've been a case where Khan offered an unrealistic amount of money just to be able to say that he signed Okada after the success of Cody Rhodes, CM Punk, and Jade Cargill in WWE.

Considering that Okada will make $4.5 million a year, Tony Khan should have some major plans for him and a long-term spot in the main event. I wouldn't be surprised if that wasn't the case, given Tony's track record, but if the company intends to have any chance of getting a return on the investment of the contract then Okada will have to be featured in a high profile spot to hopefully boost recent sluggish ticket sales and TV ratings.

Obviously, Okada's debut was unannounced so the decline in ratings can't be blamed on that, and next week will be the highly-anticipated debut of Mercedes Mone so that should increase the numbers, but this isn't about the artificial increase when Tony spent big money to land a free agent, we've seen that before. The question is, how does this impact the company on a long-term basis? Will Okada and Mone be put in a position to maximize the money that they can draw for the company?

What's the status of Maxxine Dupri?

This really is the participation trophy generation.

Last week, Maxxine Dupri went viral when a video of her post-match at a WWE live event surfaced on social media. The crowd was booing and among the jeers, some local yokel yelled, "you suck, Maxxine. Don't come back." After the video made the rounds online, several of her peers, including some of the top stars from the WWE women's division, came to her defense with messages of support.

According to Wikipedia, the real-life Sydney Zmrzel is the young lady that portrays the Maxxine character in the WWE. Assuming her legal name listed online is accurate, it should be noted that the fans rejected the in-ring work of the Maxxie Dupri persona, not the real-life Zmrzel.

If the jeers from the live audience were too much for Zmrzel or any of her peers to handle then perhaps they are in the wrong business. I don't think anyone can to the defense of Giant Gonzalez when his career was universally panned, even though anyone that knew him can still tell you how nice of a guy he was outside of the ring.

Keep in mind, the entire premise of the pro wrestling business, even when its presented as sports entertainment, is based on the heat or support from the audience. This isn't Disney on Ice where Mickey and Minnie get applauds just for going through the usual routine that they take on tour in different cities. The term, "you suck" is not only common place and relatively harmless within pro wrestling, it's literally a part of Kurt Angle's entrance so it isn't something overly offensive for the context of a pro wrestling show. Furthermore, there's obviously a clear line of common sense and what would be considered going too far in terms of what the audience chants or says to a performer. Nothing that was said to or about Maxxine was vulgar or out of line within the scope of a live event.

Remember, the audience criticized her wrestling ability or lack thereof, not her real-life character or made some claim that she's a terrible person. The 26-year-old has a background in cheerleading and dance so clearly she's athletic, but that doesn't automatically mean that she can be a successful pro wrestler on national television. She did well in her role as a valet, but has no prior wrestling experience so maybe it wasn't time for her to perform in front of a live audience, or maybe being a pro wrestler simply isn't for her. There's nothing wrong with that or would make her be less successful if her role on the show is as a non-wrestler.

At the same time, the blame might be on management for either rushing her into live matches before she was truly ready to work in front of a crowd or trying to make her a wrestler in the first place. The downside of her being signed with no wrestling experience is that while it gets her into the developmental system as soon as they can, she had no chance to learn the ropes on the smaller circuit and thus make the rookie mistakes on a stage where most people wouldn't see it anyway.

That's another problem created within the modern era of social media, not only are the platforms usually a cesspool, everyone has a smart phone to record matches at events that aren't televisied so there's no way to contain the rookie mistakes just to the fans in the building. Among the problems with social media, and this situation in particular,you have to wonder if the fans that claimed to be so offended and outraged for Maxxine were actually upset or if they simply wanted to give themselves credit for being a social media warrior? Isn't it ironic that all of the sudden, there are so many dedicated Dupri fans? It reminds me of when there are the extensive releases from the WWE, and suddenly those that got cut from the company are unanimously praised on Twitter because some fans think that if they are contrarian that they can score social media points. No Way Jose never had some many fans until he was released from his contract.

Manufactured outrage is undoubtedly a part of the social media sphere, and I'd guess that when this video surfaced, enough fans wanted to be noticed or attempted to try to "prove that they know more" when out of nowhere Dupri's currently non-existent wrestling ability had to be defended. When it went viral, her friends on the roster supported her, which is fine and understandable, but everyone that commented on the situation should realize what business this is. There wasn't this level of outrage when Lacey Evans' underwhelming matches were boo'ed on television and criticized online. While the office didn't do her any favors with the illogical random character switches, ultimately, Lacey Evans wasn't a good pro wrestler or sports entertainer so she pursued other career options.

Again, the entire point of pro wrestling is to get a reaction from the audience, if the crowd is just supposed to be happy to be there then they can watch amateur sports at the local YMCA. Pro wrestlers, music acts, or any other form of live entertainment aren't owed unanimous praise from the audience just for being there. That's part of giving the audience their money's worth or at the very least, acknowledging that the fans have the right to voice their discontent since they paid for a ticket. The jeers from the audience might be disappointing for a talent, particularly if that wasn't the intent with the presentation, but quite frankly, it's a part of the live entertainment business. The fans bought a ticket and have the right to express their opinion, and as mentioned, the criticism toward Dupri wasn't anything over the line. Sports entertainment is a business based on profit and along with that, there can be rightful criticism of a performance. If Fozzy had a subpar performance on stage or Chris Jericho had an underwhelming match in the ring, the audience would have just as much right to express their discontent with it. If some yo-yo tries to be a comedian and gets boo'ed off stage during an open mic night, nobody should have to cater to their subpar performance.

Dupri's colleagues have said that she's a wonderful person, and I'd be willing to bet that she is a great person in real-life outside of pro wrestling, but that doesn't mean the fans that bought a ticket have to pretend to enjoy her match if it wasn't good. She's getting paid to work for the WWE, if she can't handle the potential negative reaction then maybe live entertainment isn't for her. The fans paid for entertainment, and if Dupri had a rough day at the office then there's no reason that the audience has to pretend that she's the next Trish or Lita so that it doesn't hurt her feelings.

The other side of the coin is that while she's in her rookie phase of wrestling, and shouldn't be given false praise just because some fans on social media want to ignore her lack of experience, that doesn't mean that she isn't eventually going to emerge as a stellar pro wrestler. It's very possible that within a few years she could be a very polished talent and this underwhelming house show performance will be moot. The bottom line is, Maxxie Dupri doesn't have to be praised or given a participation trophy just for showing up, and that philosophy definitely isn't going to make her a star either.

NWA title at Ryse

The National Wrestling Alliance is one of the most historic, influential, and storied organizations in the existence of the industry. Originally a collection of regional promoters that began in the 1940s, the NWA was the most powerful group in the business for decades. Names like Sam Muchnick, Jim Crockett, Paul Boesch, and Fritz Von Erich were just a few of the powerful promoters that ran their specific territories under the NWA banner.

The NWA championship, known as "the ten pounds of gold," was deemed the most prestigious title in the sport. A belt that was worn by Lou Thez, Harley Race, Jack Brisco, Dory Funk Jr, Ric Flair, Dusty Rhodes, Terry Funk, and other legends had a global impact on the grappling arts. The championship was defended everywhere from Toronto to Tokyo to Texas.

After the consolidation of the pro wrestling business in the modern era, many pro wrestling pundits assumed that the NWA and its world championship would remain as fixtures of the past of the sport, a shining example of the legends that paved the road for the sport of today.

However, after Smashing Pumpkins front man, Billy Corgan, known both for his passion for wrestling and prior work in the business, bought the organization in 2017, a renewed spotlight was put on the traditional style of the National Wrestling Alliance. Make no mistake about it, regardless of the pandemic that shuttered the entire world a few years ago, Corgan has done more for the NWA in just the past few years than other regimes had done in the previous two decades.

As a result of that, the modern approach to the National Wrestling Alliance actually borrows from its tradition. Through the use of the advancements of technology, the NWA program recently launched on the CW streaming platform. Along with that, Ethan Carter III, the current NWA Heavyweight champion, takes a throwback approach to his reign, defending his title throughout different parts of the country against top challengers in different organizations.

Of course, each of those bouts brings with it an inherent level of importance, as the results of the contest could completely shift the direction of the NWA if a new champion is crowned.

This weekend, EC3 will make the trip to the Uniontown Mall in Uniontown, Pennsylvania, a blue collar city just south of Pittsburgh, to defend his championship against longtime veteran, Ron Mathis for Ryse Wrestling.

“The negotiations were very productive, but also took a little delicate. The NWA title is considered by some wrestling fans to be the only 'real' world title in wrestling because they associate it and its lineage with Flair, Rhodes, Von Erich, and Race. You have to take that in mind when booking a match of this magnitude,” said Chris LeRusso, head matchmaker of Ryse.

"One of the biggest matches I've had in my career was facing then-NWA Champion 'The Monster' Abyss for the coveted ten pounds of gold. The energy was high and my adrenaline was through the roof because the company was riding on me to bring it home and put that recognition of being NWA champion to that company. The advice I can give because I came up on the losing end that night is don't blink. In such a high caliber match just when you think you have it in your hands, one small yet critical mistake can take that opportunity away so Ron Mathis on March 9th my advice to you is do not blink," added Dean Radford, a more than twenty-year pro and co-head trainer at The Stronghold Academy. 

Ryse, an organization that was founded by Jason Clements, known as Brandon K in the ring, just celebrated its seventh year at the end of 2023. Clements, who wrestled for almost 25 years, has spent the majority of the latter half of his tenure in the sport as a trainer. The foundation of Ryse is built upon its training center, The Stronghold, an academy where Brandon teaches the next generation, along with co-head trainer, Dean Radford, another longtime pro that worked coast-to-coast during his full-time wrestling career.

"In my early years of wrestling, I was in the NWA and captured the Jr. Heavyweight and North American tag belts. I was so proud of that because it was something I would have deemed impossible years earlier as a fan. For Ryse to be able to host an NWA world title match at the end of my career really feels like it has come full circle. Besides that personal reason, It’s also unreal how much Ryse has grown and how hard everyone has worked to be able to have this opportunity in the first place," explained Clements.

A mixture of upstarts with potential like Jason Hendrix, Cowpoke Paul, and Gianni Micheal Emricko with established independent talent and national guest stars create a unique brand for its fan base. After enduring the hurdles of the pandemic, Ryse Wrestling emerged from those restrictions a few years ago with a goal to continue to elevate itself with even more high profile talent and matches. Shane Douglas, Sumie Sakai, Fandango, and Delirious were just a few that provided highlights for the organization in recent years.

This Saturday, Ryse will reach another important milestone as it hosts an NWA World Heavyweight championship bout.

“I believe that a match like this can do a lot for Ryse’s standing and reputation. There are so many fantastic wrestling organizations in the area and you really need something special to stand out. Being the place for major first time world title matches can be something we add to our resume and that can be associated with our brand here in Western PA. We can also be seen as an organization that produces world title contenders like Pretty Boy Smooth.“

Ahead of the highly-anticipated match, a bout that many of the Ryse fan base are looking forward to with the chance to see the historic championship belt in-person, many pro wrestling pundits have speculated what impact the contest could have on the National Wrestling Alliance if the wild Ron Mathis wins the championship? With the advancements of modern technology, if Mathis can claim the belt, it could be reported and make headlines almost immediately for the company. However, this is also an opportunity for EC3 to further cement himself as the dominate NWA champion so it's undoubtedly a high stakes bout for the Ryse organization.