I had zero problem with the end to Raw. The idea wasn’t for a satisfying close to the show. The idea was to make people want to watch WrestleMania.
You got a tug-of-war for free. The fight, you’ve got to pay for.
The mainstream build to WrestleMania has been extremely well-executed by WWE. Fake wrestling has never been less popular. A lot more people used to watch wrestling, than watch wrestling.
But WWE is great at pulling a con. ESPN is great at eschewing actual reporting by way of attempting to jack up ratings.
So, the week before ‘Mania, WWE has been all over ESPN.
Brock Lesnar got almost eight minutes to announce he was retiring from MMA to sign long-term with WWE. Wrestling jock-sniffer Michelle Beadle did the honors, and the betting is that ESPN thought Lesnar would be returning to UFC, which makes it news. Instead, he plugged ‘Mania, which makes it free promotion on a huge platform. WWE 1, ESPN 0…but ESPN was hardly kicking and screaming.
Roman Reigns and Paul Heyman got to run a mini-angle on ESPN, too. ESPN’s Bill Simmons, the Kardashian of sports journalism, guested on Raw.
Remember when the marks used to be in the stands?
I find the WWE Hall of Fame induction as intriguing as ‘Mania, if not more so.
Wrestling isn’t legit sport. It doesn’t need a HoF. Inductees are mostly chosen for their impact on that night. It’s an appetizer for ‘Mania.
The WWE HoF has no honor involved beyond that night’s ceremony, which is usually moving for everyone involved.
But when the Bushwhackers go in and Ray Stevens doesn’t, what’s that say? The Bushwhackers were a mid-card comedy act that didn’t draw one single dime for WWE outside of selling the occasional action figure. They’re getting inducted so they can do “the walk,” period.
