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World Wrestling Events, the podcast about everything

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pro wrestling and more. Welcome back to the show,

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everybody. It is Sunday, February 22nd, 2026.

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And we are sitting right in the eye of the storm

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right now. Oh, yeah. We are officially on the

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road to WrestleMania. The big sign is up. The

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pyro is louder. And, you know, the Internet is

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absolutely losing its collective mind. It’s a

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chaotic, beautiful… time to be a wrestling

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fan it really is the season of scrutiny isn’t

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it i mean the weeks between the royal rumble

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and wrestlemania that’s just the most volatile

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period of the entire calendar year everything

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is under a microscope exactly every promo gets

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dissected every single booking decision is magnified

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and the tension like both on screen and behind

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the scenes it is just at an all -time high right

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now it feels heavier this year though doesn’t

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it yeah like we have a mountain of news to climb

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today. We are talking about roster moves that

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make absolutely no sense until you really squint

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at them. We’ve got legal situations involving

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massive fines and some booking decisions that

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have the fan base split right down the middle.

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We definitely have a lot to unpack today. But

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before we get into the weeds of the business,

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we have to pay the bills. And we are very excited

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about who is helping us do that today. This show

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is sponsored by worldwrestlingevents .com and

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BetOnline. A very, very important partner for

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in on the action for wrestling events now. Which

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is wild. It is. We just came off the rumble.

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We are looking ahead to the chamber in Mania.

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And BetOnline is the place to be if you want

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worldwrestlingevents .com and get started. Big

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thank you to our partners. So where do we even

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begin today? Let’s look at the roadmap. We’re

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going to be dissecting the fallout from the Elimination

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Chamber cycle, specifically why the ticket sales

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are looking the way they are. Very interesting

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data there. Yeah. And then we have a major roster

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move involving a certain technical wizard taking

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on a general manager role. That is a fascinating

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development for the developmental system, for

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sure. We’ve also got Dominic Mysterio going global

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and meeting his doppelganger, which is just hilarious.

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Yeah. We need to break down some heavy disciplinary

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stuff happening over in AEW involving Swerve

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Strickland. And then we really need to talk about

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why WWE pulls massive matches from free TV at

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the very last second. The business of booking.

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It’s a highly complex machine. So let’s jump

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right into segment one, the business of booking.

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I want to start with the Elimination Chamber.

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Now, usually this event is a total layup. Oh,

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yeah, it sells itself. Right. Big steel structure,

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massive implications for mania, people getting

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thrown through plexiglass pods. But the discourse

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this week hasn’t really been about the match

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quality. It’s been about the seats. That’s right.

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We’re looking at the data regarding ticket sales

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for this elimination chamber cycle. And frankly,

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they haven’t met the internal projections. It’s

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softer than expected. Now, the easy reaction

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for the Internet to have is to say, oh, the product

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is cold. Which is lazy. Exactly. Because looking

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at the TV ratings, the product isn’t cold at

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all. Viewership is great. Yeah. So what is going

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on here? You flagged something in our notes today

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called the Jeff Jarrett theory. Right. So this

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is something that requires a bit of a history

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lesson for the listeners. This refers to Jeff

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Jarrett, the promoter, specifically looking back

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at the way his father, Jerry Jarrett, ran the

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old Memphis and Tennessee territories decades

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ago. Their whole philosophy was centered around

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this concept of market burnout. Is that just

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like a fancy economic way of saying people get

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sick of seeing you? In an economic sense, yes,

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basically. It’s the law of diminishing marginal

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utility applied to live wrestling events. The

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theory is that every specific market, let’s say

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a city like St. Louis or Chicago or Columbus,

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has a strict wallet capacity within a rolling

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12 -month period. Okay, so there is a literal

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ceiling to how much cash a city can cough up

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for wrestling tickets. Exactly. In the territory

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days, you could run a town every single week

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because tickets were cheap. You know, five bucks

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to get into the Mid -South Coliseum. But in 2026,

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attending a WWE event is a massive investment.

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We are talking hundreds of dollars for decent

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lower bowl seats, plus 40 bucks for parking,

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plus $40 t -shirts, plus food. It’s literally

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a mortgage payment for a family of four. Precisely.

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The Jeff Jarrett theory argues that if you oversaturate

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a market, you just hit a wall. If WWE runs a

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Monday Night Raw in a city. Right. And then they

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come back three months later for a Friday Night

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Smackdown. And then they send a non -televised

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house show tour through the surrounding suburbs.

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Right. And then after all that, they try to book

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a major premium live event like the Elimination

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Chamber in the exact same building within that

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same calendar year. The fans just tap out. They

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literally don’t have the funds. They have to.

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The wallet fatigue sets in. The average customer

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isn’t thinking, oh, but this is the chamber.

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This is a bigger tier event. Right. They don’t

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care about the tiers. No, the customer is thinking,

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I just spent $400 on this exact same brand three

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months ago. My kids saw Cody Rhodes already.

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We’re good. So this dip in sales isn’t necessarily

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a critique of the storylines or the creative

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direction at all. It’s more of a critique of

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these scheduling logistics. I strongly believe

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so. It suggests that the routing department might

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be overlapping way too aggressively with the

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touring department. You cannot drain the local

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market dry and expect to sell out every single

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time, no matter how hot the main event angle

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is. That makes total sense. Yeah. But here is

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the part that really grinds my gears as a fan.

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While we are talking about these ticket sales,

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we have to talk about this report regarding the

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blackout policy. Yeah, yes. This is a massive

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point of contention right now, and rightly so.

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For the listeners who might not know, explain

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what a blackout is in this context. Because honestly,

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it sounds like something from the NFL in 1995.

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It is very similar to the old NFL model. Historically,

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a blackout policy meant that if a local sports

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event did not sell a certain percentage of the

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tickets, usually it was around 85 percent, the

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local television broadcast would be completely

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blocked in that region. Which is wild to think

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about now. It is. The logic back then was that

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If people knew they couldn’t watch it on their

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local TV station, they would be forced to actually

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go buy a ticket and physically go to the stadium.

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Which feels incredibly punitive. It’s essentially

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like the promotion saying, because your neighbors

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didn’t buy enough tickets, you aren’t allowed

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to watch this thing you enjoy. It is archaic,

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but the report suggests a variation of this is

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affecting the Elimination Chamber viewing in

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the local market. And doing this in 2026, it

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just creates a massive friction point with the

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audience. Because the entire business model has

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changed. WWV isn’t a gate -driven company anymore,

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right? I mean, they are fundamentally a media

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rights company now. That is the crucial distinction

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you have to make. 30 years ago, the money at

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the door, the live gate, that was the lifeblood

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of the entire company. If they didn’t draw, the

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boys didn’t get paid. Today, the billions of

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dollars come from the streaming deals and the

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massive global TV rights. The gate revenue, while

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still important, is just the cherry on top. So

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why alienate the local fan base at all? Like

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if I’m in the city hosting the chamber and I

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just can’t afford a $400 ticket, but I really

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want to watch on the streaming service that I

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already pay a monthly fee for and I get blocked

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out, I’m canceling my subscription immediately.

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And that is the huge risk they run. It really

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highlights a disconnect right now between the

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live events department, whose sole job is to

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put physical bodies in seats, and the media department,

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whose job is to keep streaming subscribers happy

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and engaged. They’re fighting each other. Exactly.

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The CFO wants the gate revenue to look good on

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the quarterly report, but the long -term brand

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health absolutely relies on positive fan sentiment.

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Blocking the locals creates horrible badwill.

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It feels like stepping over dollars to pick up

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dimes, honestly. A very apt metaphor. Speaking

00:08:45.919 –> 00:08:47.399
of dollars, let’s look at the bigger picture

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for a second. We got to look at the WWE stock

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report for February 2026. How is Wall Street

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actually feeling about the road to WrestleMania

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this year? The sentiment over there is confident,

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but there is definitely an undercurrent of caution.

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The stock is holding steady right now. Wall Street

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loves the road to WrestleMania because. Historically,

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it is the highest revenue generating period of

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the year. Everyone buys the video game. Everyone

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buys the new event shirts. Exactly. The merchandise

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numbers go through the roof. But you have to

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remember, it is also the period of highest expense.

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Production costs for WrestleMania are astronomical.

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The sets, the pyro, the stadium rentals, marketing

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costs just skyrocket. So what does that actually

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mean for the product we see on television? Does

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the stock price genuinely change the booking?

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In subtler ways than most fans realize, yes,

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it absolutely does. When corporate confidence

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is high, but the financial stakes are this incredibly

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massive, you tend to see a strategy of risk management

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take over the creative team. Define risk management

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in wrestling terms for me. Safer booking. Ah.

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You protect your investments. You don’t take

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a wild creative swing on an unproven character

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in the main event of WrestleMania if the stock

00:10:01.090 –> 00:10:04.049
price heavily relies on a guaranteed stable engagement

00:10:04.049 –> 00:10:06.649
number. So we get the greatest hits album. We

00:10:06.649 –> 00:10:09.350
get the established stars. We get the rematches

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that have proven analytical data behind them.

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It’s not necessarily about creative laziness,

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which is what the fans usually complain about.

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It’s about fiduciary responsibility. Right. They

00:10:19.450 –> 00:10:21.389
have a legal obligation to the shareholders.

00:10:21.809 –> 00:10:24.570
Yes. They need to guarantee a certain floor of.

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viewership for their broadcast partners. You

00:10:26.960 –> 00:10:28.840
don’t experiment during the Super Bowl. That

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is, man, that is depressing, but completely logical.

00:10:32.460 –> 00:10:34.899
It really explains why we sometimes feel like

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we’re watching a rerun during mania season. They

00:10:37.720 –> 00:10:39.820
are just playing defense with the shareholders.

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Safe bets pay the dividends. It’s business. Well,

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let’s move away from the boardroom and get back

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into the ring. Segment two, in -ring psychology

00:10:48.700 –> 00:10:51.870
and character deep dives. Because while the suits

00:10:51.870 –> 00:10:54.389
are upstairs worrying about stock prices, we’ve

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got some incredible character work happening

00:10:56.330 –> 00:10:58.509
on the ground level. And I have to start with

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the man who I genuinely think is the MVP of the

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last six months, Dominic Mysterio. The evolution

00:11:03.909 –> 00:11:06.309
of Dominic Mysterio is arguably one of the greatest

00:11:06.309 –> 00:11:08.610
success stories of the modern developmental system.

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Did you see the video of him meeting his twin

00:11:10.570 –> 00:11:13.169
this week? I did. It is all over social media

00:11:13.169 –> 00:11:15.870
right now. For those who somehow missed it, Dominic

00:11:15.870 –> 00:11:18.500
is over on an international tour. He’s walking

00:11:18.500 –> 00:11:20.419
through what looks like an airport or maybe a

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hotel lobby, and he runs into a fan that looks

00:11:23.419 –> 00:11:26.620
exactly like him. It was uncanny. I mean, the

00:11:26.620 –> 00:11:29.500
mullet is perfectly styled. The scowl is perfect.

00:11:29.720 –> 00:11:32.879
The weird patchy facial hair is spot on. It’s

00:11:32.879 –> 00:11:35.700
a clone? Absolute clone. Now, here is where I

00:11:35.700 –> 00:11:39.059
really want your take on this. 99 % of wrestlers

00:11:39.059 –> 00:11:42.039
in that specific moment would break character.

00:11:42.570 –> 00:11:44.330
They would laugh, they would high -five the guy,

00:11:44.370 –> 00:11:46.389
they’d take a selfie, and they’d post it on their

00:11:46.389 –> 00:11:48.490
own Instagram saying something like, look at

00:11:48.490 –> 00:11:51.190
this legend. Right. They would prioritize the

00:11:51.190 –> 00:11:54.470
viral, feel -good human moment over the integrity

00:11:54.470 –> 00:11:57.029
of the character. But Dom doesn’t do that. Yeah.

00:11:57.129 –> 00:12:00.289
He looks at this guy with absolute disgust. He

00:12:00.289 –> 00:12:02.309
treats him like he’s an identity thief trying

00:12:02.309 –> 00:12:04.909
to steal his wallet. He stays completely in the

00:12:04.909 –> 00:12:07.590
zone. This is what we in the industry refer to

00:12:07.590 –> 00:12:10.580
as kayfabe 2 .0. Oh, I like that term. In the

00:12:10.580 –> 00:12:12.980
old days, kayfabe meant pretending the fighting

00:12:12.980 –> 00:12:16.080
was completely real, hiding your family, heels,

00:12:16.259 –> 00:12:19.159
and baby faces traveling in separate cars. Today,

00:12:19.419 –> 00:12:21.179
the audience already knows it’s a scripted show.

00:12:21.440 –> 00:12:24.460
So the new kayfabe is entirely about maintaining

00:12:24.460 –> 00:12:26.840
the emotional reality of the character across

00:12:26.840 –> 00:12:29.480
every single platform. So if he’s a jerk on Monday

00:12:29.480 –> 00:12:31.899
Night Raw, he has to be a jerk on his TikTok.

00:12:32.409 –> 00:12:34.889
Exactly. If Dominic Mysterio breaks character

00:12:34.889 –> 00:12:37.809
to laugh at a fan in an airport, he signals to

00:12:37.809 –> 00:12:39.889
the audience that Dominic is just a costume he

00:12:39.889 –> 00:12:43.190
wears for work. By staying in character, by treating

00:12:43.190 –> 00:12:46.230
this doppelganger with sheer arrogance, he reinforces

00:12:46.230 –> 00:12:48.789
the illusion. He invites the audience to just

00:12:48.789 –> 00:12:50.870
keep playing the game with him. It’s so much

00:12:50.870 –> 00:12:53.250
harder to do that than to just be a cool guy

00:12:53.250 –> 00:12:55.860
and take the picture. It requires immense discipline,

00:12:56.039 –> 00:12:58.500
honestly. It creates this meta reality where

00:12:58.500 –> 00:13:00.879
the fans actually respect him more because he

00:13:00.879 –> 00:13:03.820
refuses to wink at them and let them in on the

00:13:03.820 –> 00:13:06.940
joke. And that level of respect is directly translating

00:13:06.940 –> 00:13:09.179
to his booking right now. We have to talk about

00:13:09.179 –> 00:13:11.879
this AAA megatitle defense. This is a very significant

00:13:11.879 –> 00:13:14.360
development for his career. He is defending the

00:13:14.360 –> 00:13:17.960
AAA megatitle. And there is a stipulation attached

00:13:17.960 –> 00:13:20.320
regarding his mask or hair, depending on how

00:13:20.320 –> 00:13:22.389
the angle actually plays out. But just the mere

00:13:22.389 –> 00:13:24.850
fact that WWE is acknowledging the AAA title

00:13:24.850 –> 00:13:26.990
on their programming. It really speaks to the

00:13:26.990 –> 00:13:29.169
globalization of his character. Five or ten years

00:13:29.169 –> 00:13:32.529
ago, WWE lived entirely in a bubble. Nothing

00:13:32.529 –> 00:13:35.149
existed outside of their universe. If you wrestled

00:13:35.149 –> 00:13:37.929
a classic in Mexico or Japan, it basically didn’t

00:13:37.929 –> 00:13:41.070
happen to WWE canon. Right. But now, allowing

00:13:41.070 –> 00:13:43.409
Dominic to carry the AAA belt on television,

00:13:43.830 –> 00:13:47.009
acknowledging that specific lineage, it gives

00:13:47.009 –> 00:13:49.529
him a prestige that goes way beyond just being

00:13:49.529 –> 00:13:52.139
Rey Mysterio’s annoying son. It frames him as

00:13:52.139 –> 00:13:55.080
a legitimate world traveler, like a global champion.

00:13:55.200 –> 00:13:57.200
It makes him feel dangerous. You know, like he

00:13:57.200 –> 00:13:59.240
has conquered territories that the other WWE

00:13:59.240 –> 00:14:02.000
guys haven’t even touched. Exactly. And bringing

00:14:02.000 –> 00:14:04.679
that lucha libre apuesta psychology, the betting

00:14:04.679 –> 00:14:06.500
of something incredibly valuable like your hair,

00:14:06.580 –> 00:14:09.179
your mass, to a mainstream American television

00:14:09.179 –> 00:14:12.480
audience, that is high stakes drama. It’s distinct

00:14:12.480 –> 00:14:14.460
from everything else on the card. I absolutely

00:14:14.460 –> 00:14:16.080
love it. I think he’s doing the best work of

00:14:16.080 –> 00:14:19.500
his entire career right now. Let’s pivot from

00:14:19.500 –> 00:14:21.820
the comedy of Dom to something way more intense.

00:14:22.179 –> 00:14:25.179
Let’s talk about Liv Morgan. A very, very heavy

00:14:25.179 –> 00:14:28.100
segment on Raw this week. She broke down. Tears

00:14:28.100 –> 00:14:30.460
streaming, voice cracking, makeup running everywhere.

00:14:30.879 –> 00:14:32.919
And immediately, the internet debate started

00:14:32.919 –> 00:14:35.820
up. Is she okay? Is this real? Is this a shoot?

00:14:36.000 –> 00:14:38.700
And that ambiguity is exactly the goal of the

00:14:38.700 –> 00:14:41.139
performance. We have some reports now discussing

00:14:41.139 –> 00:14:44.379
the real reason she broke down out there. It

00:14:44.379 –> 00:14:47.860
seems to be a mix of legitimate physical exhaustion,

00:14:48.509 –> 00:14:51.870
pure passion for the business, and just the immense

00:14:51.870 –> 00:14:54.990
pressure of carrying this storyline. But as a

00:14:54.990 –> 00:14:57.330
viewer sitting on the couch, does it really matter

00:14:57.330 –> 00:14:59.909
if it’s real or scripted? That is the golden

00:14:59.909 –> 00:15:02.730
question of performance versus reality in professional

00:15:02.730 –> 00:15:05.929
wrestling. The most successful babyfaces, the

00:15:05.929 –> 00:15:07.789
ones who sell the most merchandise, the ones

00:15:07.789 –> 00:15:10.309
who move the needle on ticket sales, are almost

00:15:10.309 –> 00:15:12.570
always the ones who let their real -life vulnerability

00:15:12.570 –> 00:15:15.169
bleed directly into the script. It’s the difference

00:15:15.169 –> 00:15:18.090
between an actor acting sad and a person actually

00:15:18.090 –> 00:15:20.129
being heartbroken in front of you. Precisely.

00:15:20.169 –> 00:15:22.610
If Liv Morgan goes out there and just recites

00:15:22.610 –> 00:15:24.929
a memorized monologue about being sad, the audience

00:15:24.929 –> 00:15:27.250
tunes out. They check their phones. But if she

00:15:27.250 –> 00:15:30.090
taps into her real frustrations, her long journey

00:15:30.090 –> 00:15:32.490
to the top, the time she was overlooked by management,

00:15:32.870 –> 00:15:35.590
the physical pain she’s in, and lets that genuine

00:15:35.590 –> 00:15:38.350
emotion bubble up to the surface, that connects

00:15:38.350 –> 00:15:40.970
on a deeply visceral level. It really blurs the

00:15:40.970 –> 00:15:42.690
line. You stop watching a fictional character,

00:15:42.809 –> 00:15:44.629
and you just start rooting for the real person

00:15:44.629 –> 00:15:47.879
behind it. And that is exactly when the true

00:15:47.879 –> 00:15:50.519
emotional investment happens. You want to see

00:15:50.519 –> 00:15:53.000
her win the title because you feel like you watched

00:15:53.000 –> 00:15:55.440
her actually suffer for it. Now, it’s a very

00:15:55.440 –> 00:15:58.500
dangerous line to walk for the performer’s mental

00:15:58.500 –> 00:16:01.919
health to constantly mine your real trauma for

00:16:01.919 –> 00:16:04.960
entertainment. But it is incredibly effective

00:16:04.960 –> 00:16:07.340
storytelling. It’s powerful stuff. Now, speaking

00:16:07.340 –> 00:16:10.200
of emotional investment, I was very emotionally

00:16:10.200 –> 00:16:13.700
invested in seeing Io Skye face off against Julia

00:16:13.700 –> 00:16:16.480
on SmackDown this week. Oh, the match that wasn’t?

00:16:16.559 –> 00:16:18.840
Yes. They advertised it. They hyped it up all

00:16:18.840 –> 00:16:21.700
week. Two of the absolute best female wrestlers

00:16:21.700 –> 00:16:23.740
in the world going at it. And then you’re doing.

00:16:24.340 –> 00:16:27.059
Pulled from the card. Why do they do this to

00:16:27.059 –> 00:16:29.059
us? This is a classic case of booking preservation.

00:16:29.379 –> 00:16:31.360
It deeply frustrates the viewer in the moment,

00:16:31.419 –> 00:16:33.639
I know. But it is almost always the right business

00:16:33.639 –> 00:16:35.539
move in the long run. But I wanted to see it.

00:16:35.600 –> 00:16:37.659
I sat through two hours of television for it.

00:16:37.980 –> 00:16:40.279
Think about the actual environment of Friday

00:16:40.279 –> 00:16:42.799
Night Smackdown for a second. It’s a two -hour

00:16:42.799 –> 00:16:45.820
show on network television. You have commercial

00:16:45.820 –> 00:16:48.740
breaks every seven to ten minutes. You have very

00:16:48.740 –> 00:16:52.860
rigid timing cues. Do you really want the first

00:16:52.860 –> 00:16:55.960
ever WWE encounter between Io Sky and Julia,

00:16:56.139 –> 00:16:59.259
a legitimate global dream match, to be chopped

00:16:59.259 –> 00:17:02.019
up by insurance and pizza commercials? When you

00:17:02.019 –> 00:17:04.269
put it that way, no. I want it uninterrupted.

00:17:04.289 –> 00:17:07.089
Exactly. The reports indicate they pulled it

00:17:07.089 –> 00:17:10.190
to protect the matchup itself. Management realized

00:17:10.190 –> 00:17:13.130
that giving it away on free TV with limited time

00:17:13.130 –> 00:17:16.029
and constant interruptions would completely cheapen

00:17:16.029 –> 00:17:18.490
the impact. By snatching it away at the last

00:17:18.490 –> 00:17:20.670
second, they have actually increased the baseline

00:17:20.670 –> 00:17:23.230
anticipation for it. It’s the old absence makes

00:17:23.230 –> 00:17:25.829
the heart grow fonder strategy. It is. Now, when

00:17:25.829 –> 00:17:28.769
they finally do lock up, maybe at a premium live

00:17:28.769 –> 00:17:31.029
event where they can go a solid 20 minutes with

00:17:31.029 –> 00:17:32.930
zero commercial breaks, the audience is going

00:17:32.930 –> 00:17:34.910
to be even hungrier for it. They are banking

00:17:34.910 –> 00:17:37.369
on your current frustration turning into a future

00:17:37.369 –> 00:17:40.710
buy rate. OK, OK. I’m slightly less mad now.

00:17:40.769 –> 00:17:44.569
I’m still impatient, but I get the logic. One

00:17:44.569 –> 00:17:46.710
last note on physicality in this segment before

00:17:46.710 –> 00:17:49.950
we move on. Jacob Fatu. The Samoan werewolf.

00:17:50.250 –> 00:17:52.109
There was a report that dropped this week that

00:17:52.109 –> 00:17:55.970
honestly made my jaw hit the floor. Jacob Fatu

00:17:55.970 –> 00:17:59.630
had 11 teeth removed. 11 teeth. That is just

00:17:59.630 –> 00:18:02.690
a staggering number to comprehend. Why? How does

00:18:02.690 –> 00:18:04.309
that even happen? And what does this say about

00:18:04.309 –> 00:18:07.269
the guy? Well, the exact medical specifics are

00:18:07.269 –> 00:18:09.569
obviously private, but it’s likely a combination

00:18:09.569 –> 00:18:12.390
of severe impact damage over the years on the

00:18:12.390 –> 00:18:14.269
independent circuit and maybe some necessary

00:18:14.269 –> 00:18:17.049
dental reconstruction. But the what it says about

00:18:17.049 –> 00:18:19.630
him part is the absolute key to his aura right

00:18:19.630 –> 00:18:21.789
now. He sounds like a horror movie villain. He

00:18:21.789 –> 00:18:24.250
really does. And in wrestling, locker room lore

00:18:24.250 –> 00:18:26.690
is everything. When the boys in the back and

00:18:26.690 –> 00:18:29.269
the fans online hear that Jacob Fatu had 11 teeth

00:18:29.269 –> 00:18:31.349
pulled from his skull and is still walking around

00:18:31.349 –> 00:18:33.470
taking bumps, looking like an absolute monster,

00:18:33.650 –> 00:18:37.140
likely barely missing any ring time, it builds

00:18:37.140 –> 00:18:39.339
the monster persona better than any scripted

00:18:39.339 –> 00:18:42.460
promo ever could. It’s primal. It reinforces

00:18:42.460 –> 00:18:43.960
that he just isn’t built like the other guys

00:18:43.960 –> 00:18:46.799
on the roster. Exactly. It signals to the audience

00:18:46.799 –> 00:18:49.079
that he has a much higher pain threshold, that

00:18:49.079 –> 00:18:51.420
he is fundamentally built differently. Whether

00:18:51.420 –> 00:18:54.180
it is a strict medical necessity or not, it immediately

00:18:54.180 –> 00:18:56.599
becomes part of the legend. Did you hear Fatou

00:18:56.599 –> 00:18:59.079
ripped his own teeth out? The rumors do the heavy

00:18:59.079 –> 00:19:01.200
lifting for you. Yeah, I certainly wouldn’t want

00:19:01.200 –> 00:19:02.880
to be the dentist telling him he needs to floss

00:19:02.880 –> 00:19:05.700
more often. I don’t think anyone tells Jacob

00:19:05.700 –> 00:19:09.539
Fatu what to do ever. Absolutely not. OK, let’s

00:19:09.539 –> 00:19:11.660
shift gears a bit. We’ve looked at the main roster,

00:19:11.759 –> 00:19:13.799
but there is so much happening in the developmental

00:19:13.799 –> 00:19:17.279
system right now that we need to track. So segment

00:19:17.279 –> 00:19:21.319
three, roster moves, renamings and the future.

00:19:21.500 –> 00:19:23.140
This is my favorite area. This is where we see

00:19:23.140 –> 00:19:25.279
the chess pieces being moved for the next five

00:19:25.279 –> 00:19:27.640
years of the business. First up, let’s talk about

00:19:27.640 –> 00:19:31.000
the WWE ID program. We have a brand new signing

00:19:31.000 –> 00:19:34.099
to talk about. Starboy Charlie. A very, very

00:19:34.099 –> 00:19:36.380
exciting talent. For those listeners who don’t

00:19:36.380 –> 00:19:39.380
follow the hardcore indie scene closely, what

00:19:39.380 –> 00:19:42.940
is the significance of this kid? And what exactly

00:19:42.940 –> 00:19:47.000
is the WWE ID program? So Starboy Charlie is

00:19:47.000 –> 00:19:50.359
a young, hyper -athletic, very modern, independent

00:19:50.359 –> 00:19:52.599
wrestler. He’s had a great run in places like

00:19:52.599 –> 00:19:55.680
GCW, incredible speed, great technique. But the

00:19:55.680 –> 00:19:58.700
bigger story here is the actual mechanism of

00:19:58.700 –> 00:20:02.259
his signing. Being given a WWE ID is not the

00:20:02.259 –> 00:20:05.079
same thing as being signed to an NXT contract.

00:20:05.420 –> 00:20:07.500
Right. He’s not packing his bags and moving to

00:20:07.500 –> 00:20:10.740
Orlando immediately, is he? No, not at all. WWE

00:20:10.740 –> 00:20:13.920
ID is a pipeline system. It’s a formal designation.

00:20:13.980 –> 00:20:16.700
It allows top tier indie talent to officially

00:20:16.700 –> 00:20:20.000
get on the WWE radar, receive some medical support,

00:20:20.220 –> 00:20:22.240
maybe get some coaching access or facility use.

00:20:22.359 –> 00:20:24.380
But they continue to work their independent dates.

00:20:24.559 –> 00:20:25.940
This is kind of like being tagged or drafted

00:20:25.940 –> 00:20:28.480
by the scouts, but you stay in college. Exactly

00:20:28.480 –> 00:20:30.880
like that. It deeply benefits the wrestler because

00:20:30.880 –> 00:20:33.059
their booking fee on the indies immediately goes

00:20:33.059 –> 00:20:36.079
up. Promoters can now advertise a WWE ID talent

00:20:36.079 –> 00:20:38.970
on their flyers. And it benefits WWE because

00:20:38.970 –> 00:20:41.349
they lock in a relationship with a hot prospect

00:20:41.349 –> 00:20:43.769
without taking on the full financial cost of

00:20:43.769 –> 00:20:45.990
a main roster contract yet. It’s a developmental

00:20:45.990 –> 00:20:49.369
bridge. It’s a really smart system. But once

00:20:49.369 –> 00:20:51.650
you do cross that bridge and get fully integrated

00:20:51.650 –> 00:20:55.210
into the WWE system, things usually change. Specifically,

00:20:55.430 –> 00:20:58.569
your name. We have to talk about Mike DiVecchio.

00:20:58.690 –> 00:21:01.619
Oh, boy. A massive powerhouse from the European

00:21:01.619 –> 00:21:03.839
scene. He has an incredible look. He does. But

00:21:03.839 –> 00:21:06.279
he is now officially going by the name Dorian

00:21:06.279 –> 00:21:09.539
Van Dux. Dorian Van Dux. Look, I have to be completely

00:21:09.539 –> 00:21:12.539
honest with you here. It sounds like the main

00:21:12.539 –> 00:21:15.799
villain in a straight -to -DVD vampire movie

00:21:15.799 –> 00:21:19.200
from 2004. I’m Dorian Van Dux, and I have come

00:21:19.200 –> 00:21:21.839
to drink your blood. It certainly has a very

00:21:21.839 –> 00:21:24.740
theatrical, almost gothic quality to it. But

00:21:24.740 –> 00:21:27.859
this really highlights the overarching WWE philosophy

00:21:27.859 –> 00:21:30.420
regarding intellectual property. But why do they

00:21:30.420 –> 00:21:32.299
do this? Mike DiBecchio is a really cool name.

00:21:32.380 –> 00:21:33.859
It sounds like a tough guy from the neighborhood

00:21:33.859 –> 00:21:35.500
who’s going to break your legs. It does sound

00:21:35.500 –> 00:21:38.500
tough, but… WWE doesn’t own the name Mike DiVecchio.

00:21:38.640 –> 00:21:41.220
Mike owns that name. If he builds up his brand

00:21:41.220 –> 00:21:43.740
on NXT and then his contract expires and he leaves,

00:21:43.900 –> 00:21:46.599
he takes that brand equity with him over to AEW

00:21:46.599 –> 00:21:50.500
or New Japan. WWE owns Dorian Van Dux. It’s completely

00:21:50.500 –> 00:21:52.779
theirs. So if they’re going to put a million

00:21:52.779 –> 00:21:55.240
dollars of marketing and TV time behind him,

00:21:55.299 –> 00:21:58.380
they want to own the asset outright. It is purely

00:21:58.380 –> 00:22:01.299
a calculated business decision. If Dorian Van

00:22:01.299 –> 00:22:03.940
Dux becomes a WrestleMania main eventer, sells

00:22:03.940 –> 00:22:06.339
millions in action figures, and is featured in

00:22:06.339 –> 00:22:09.660
the 2K video games, WWE holds that trademark

00:22:09.660 –> 00:22:12.099
forever. They want a name that is completely

00:22:12.099 –> 00:22:14.539
unique and legally protectable. It’s going to

00:22:14.539 –> 00:22:16.380
take some getting used to. I’ll give him a fair

00:22:16.380 –> 00:22:19.200
chance in the ring, but man, Dorian Van Dux.

00:22:19.299 –> 00:22:22.619
Wow. Hey, we’ve seen stranger names become legendary.

00:22:22.740 –> 00:22:24.819
Remember when they named a guy Hunter Hearst

00:22:24.819 –> 00:22:28.059
Helmsley? True, true. Now, speaking of names,

00:22:28.220 –> 00:22:31.059
we also saw a new trademark filing this week

00:22:31.059 –> 00:22:34.220
for Romeo Moreno. Yes, we did. Any idea who this

00:22:34.220 –> 00:22:36.279
is? Speculation online is running absolutely

00:22:36.279 –> 00:22:38.940
wild. The surname Moreno obviously suggests a

00:22:38.940 –> 00:22:41.920
Latin heritage. And Romeo strongly implies a

00:22:41.920 –> 00:22:44.160
lover character, maybe a suave romantic heel

00:22:44.160 –> 00:22:46.259
type. I’m immediately picturing a rose in the

00:22:46.259 –> 00:22:48.730
mouth. Some salsa dancing on the entrance ramp.

00:22:48.869 –> 00:22:51.589
Yeah. All the classic tropes. It is a classic

00:22:51.589 –> 00:22:54.049
wrestling trope because, historically, it just

00:22:54.049 –> 00:22:57.210
works. It generates massive heat from male fans.

00:22:57.730 –> 00:23:00.250
Whether this is a sudden repackaging for someone

00:23:00.250 –> 00:23:03.410
currently floundering in NXT or a name for a

00:23:03.410 –> 00:23:05.430
brand new signing from Mexico, we just don’t

00:23:05.430 –> 00:23:07.869
know yet. But definitely keep an eye on how that

00:23:07.869 –> 00:23:11.029
name gets deployed. Will do. Now, this next piece

00:23:11.029 –> 00:23:12.950
of news is the one that really caught my attention.

00:23:13.470 –> 00:23:16.480
Timothy Thatcher. Cuesless Timmy. The man himself.

00:23:16.839 –> 00:23:19.140
The man literally looks like he was carved out

00:23:19.140 –> 00:23:21.859
of a block of granite. Reports are now saying

00:23:21.859 –> 00:23:24.160
he is scheduled to be the next general manager

00:23:24.160 –> 00:23:27.140
of Evolve. This is a brilliant, brilliant casting

00:23:27.140 –> 00:23:30.079
decision by management. First, clarify what Evolve

00:23:30.079 –> 00:23:33.579
actually is in the year 2026. Because older fans

00:23:33.579 –> 00:23:36.140
remember it as an indie promotion run by Gabe

00:23:36.140 –> 00:23:39.220
Sapolsky. Right. WWE purchased the Evolve brand

00:23:39.220 –> 00:23:42.259
in its tape library years ago. Now, in 2026,

00:23:42.400 –> 00:23:44.740
it functions as a very specific tier of their

00:23:44.740 –> 00:23:47.220
developmental system. Think of it as the bridge

00:23:47.220 –> 00:23:49.460
between the raw day one recruits at the Performance

00:23:49.460 –> 00:23:52.519
Center and the polished, highly produced TV product

00:23:52.519 –> 00:23:55.579
of NXT. It’s the finishing school for wrestlers.

00:23:55.720 –> 00:23:57.339
And having Timothy Satcher run that finishing

00:23:57.339 –> 00:23:59.920
school. It sets a very definitive tone for the

00:23:59.920 –> 00:24:03.150
brand. Thatcher’s style is heavily rooted in

00:24:03.150 –> 00:24:06.269
the catchpoint philosophy. It is incredibly serious,

00:24:06.509 –> 00:24:09.390
grounded, painful, submission -based wrestling.

00:24:09.849 –> 00:24:12.670
He is the absolute antithesis of the modern sports

00:24:12.670 –> 00:24:14.769
entertainer who does choreographed dances to

00:24:14.769 –> 00:24:16.809
the ring. He is not going to tolerate any nonsense

00:24:16.809 –> 00:24:19.789
from the younger guys. None at all. By installing

00:24:19.789 –> 00:24:23.210
him as the general manager, the strict uncompromising

00:24:23.210 –> 00:24:25.670
authority figure, you are actively telling the

00:24:25.670 –> 00:24:28.289
audience in the talent pool Evolve is about the

00:24:28.289 –> 00:24:30.549
pure wrestling. It gives the brand a gritty,

00:24:30.609 –> 00:24:33.849
realistic identity. I can clearly see a segment

00:24:33.849 –> 00:24:35.670
where he’s staring down two guys arguing backstage

00:24:35.670 –> 00:24:37.630
and he just whispers, get in the ring or get

00:24:37.630 –> 00:24:39.769
out of my building. It fits his aura perfectly.

00:24:40.009 –> 00:24:42.690
I really love that direction for Evolve. Just

00:24:42.690 –> 00:24:44.410
a couple other roster notes before we move on

00:24:44.410 –> 00:24:47.269
to the other side of the fence. Tiffany Stratton,

00:24:47.349 –> 00:24:49.890
she made an announcement about entering a legitimate

00:24:49.890 –> 00:24:52.390
bodybuilding competition. This is quite interesting.

00:24:52.470 –> 00:24:55.210
It really speaks to her crossover appeal. Tiffany

00:24:55.210 –> 00:24:58.430
is already an incredible athlete, a world -class

00:24:58.430 –> 00:25:01.630
gymnast before wrestling. But bodybuilding requires

00:25:01.630 –> 00:25:04.670
a level of dietary and physical discipline that

00:25:04.670 –> 00:25:07.150
is just insane, even for a professional wrestler.

00:25:07.450 –> 00:25:09.230
She looks like a million bucks every time she

00:25:09.230 –> 00:25:11.750
steps out there. She does. And for WWE, this

00:25:11.750 –> 00:25:14.769
is just fantastic PR. It puts their homegrown

00:25:14.769 –> 00:25:17.529
star in a totally different world, featured in

00:25:17.529 –> 00:25:19.950
different fitness magazines and websites. It

00:25:19.950 –> 00:25:22.380
showcases the… superstar aspect of the talent

00:25:22.380 –> 00:25:24.819
beyond just taking bumps. And then we look at

00:25:24.819 –> 00:25:27.740
the other side of the athletic coin. Gable Steveson.

00:25:27.759 –> 00:25:30.319
The Gable Steveson debate just continues to rage

00:25:30.319 –> 00:25:33.440
on. The question is, is he UFC ready? Because

00:25:33.440 –> 00:25:35.819
fans are really split on this. He had a recent

00:25:35.819 –> 00:25:37.720
performance, I think it was a grappling transition

00:25:37.720 –> 00:25:40.619
fight or a jiu -jitsu showcase, and the reviews

00:25:40.619 –> 00:25:43.359
online were very mixed. It is a harsh reminder

00:25:43.359 –> 00:25:46.539
that an elite athletic pedigree does not guarantee

00:25:46.539 –> 00:25:49.059
instant success in combat sports or pro wrestling.

00:25:49.720 –> 00:25:52.940
Gable has the Olympic gold medal. He has unbelievable

00:25:52.940 –> 00:25:56.319
raw power. But the transition from amateur wrestling

00:25:56.319 –> 00:25:58.579
to pro wrestling didn’t quite click the way they

00:25:58.579 –> 00:26:01.559
hoped. And the transition to MMA is a whole different

00:26:01.559 –> 00:26:04.480
beast involving striking defense and complex

00:26:04.480 –> 00:26:07.039
submission defense. He’s kind of stuck in this

00:26:07.039 –> 00:26:09.519
weird athletic limbo right now. He really is.

00:26:09.819 –> 00:26:12.140
The fans are highly critical because they see

00:26:12.140 –> 00:26:15.039
the Brock Lesnar level potential. But the actual

00:26:15.039 –> 00:26:17.680
application in the cage hasn’t matched the hype

00:26:17.680 –> 00:26:20.200
yet. He has to learn an entirely new game from

00:26:20.200 –> 00:26:22.319
scratch, and that takes years of getting punched

00:26:22.319 –> 00:26:24.839
in the face. It’s a tough road to walk. All right,

00:26:24.859 –> 00:26:26.819
let’s cross the aisle. Segment four. We need

00:26:26.819 –> 00:26:29.160
to talk about AEW and some big international

00:26:29.160 –> 00:26:32.160
news. And the biggest story coming out of Jacksonville

00:26:32.160 –> 00:26:35.779
involves Swerve Strickland. The mogul. He has

00:26:35.779 –> 00:26:39.039
officially been fined $100 ,000 and suspended

00:26:39.039 –> 00:26:41.640
by the company. That is a massive eye -catching

00:26:41.640 –> 00:26:44.599
number. $100 ,000. I mean, that’s a small house

00:26:44.599 –> 00:26:46.480
in some parts of the country. That’s a luxury

00:26:46.480 –> 00:26:49.549
sports car. It is. And naturally, the first question

00:26:49.549 –> 00:26:51.549
on everyone’s mind in the wrestling bubble is

00:26:51.549 –> 00:26:54.990
the classic. Is this a work or a shoot? So what

00:26:54.990 –> 00:26:57.750
is your read on this? Because that is a whole

00:26:57.750 –> 00:27:00.269
lot of real money to lose if it’s a legitimate

00:27:00.269 –> 00:27:03.490
shoot fine. When you see a number like $100 ,000

00:27:03.490 –> 00:27:06.049
specifically publicized in a press release or

00:27:06.049 –> 00:27:09.569
on television, my instinct leans very heavily

00:27:09.569 –> 00:27:12.690
toward it being a work, a storyline element.

00:27:13.099 –> 00:27:15.299
Why is that? Because in legitimate corporate

00:27:15.299 –> 00:27:18.200
governance, real disciplinary fines are almost

00:27:18.200 –> 00:27:21.059
always handled internally and quietly. They are

00:27:21.059 –> 00:27:24.160
often subject to HR policies, collective bargaining,

00:27:24.359 –> 00:27:27.099
if applicable, or legal caps. You very rarely

00:27:27.099 –> 00:27:29.099
see a major company issue a public statement

00:27:29.099 –> 00:27:32.259
saying we find John Doe exactly 100 grand unless

00:27:32.259 –> 00:27:34.160
they are actively trying to sell a narrative

00:27:34.160 –> 00:27:36.019
to the public. So the dollar amount is just a

00:27:36.019 –> 00:27:38.559
prop for the story. Exactly. By stating that

00:27:38.559 –> 00:27:40.940
specific massive amount, they are selling the

00:27:40.940 –> 00:27:42.720
extreme severity of his actions in the ring.

00:27:43.019 –> 00:27:45.339
They’re telling the audience at home Swerve is

00:27:45.339 –> 00:27:47.779
so dangerous, so violently out of control right

00:27:47.779 –> 00:27:50.140
now that he is literally costing himself a fortune

00:27:50.140 –> 00:27:53.279
just to hurt his enemies. It monetizes his aggression.

00:27:54.299 –> 00:27:56.740
It essentially tells me that his pure hatred

00:27:56.740 –> 00:28:00.220
for his opponent is worth more to him than financial

00:28:00.220 –> 00:28:02.500
security. That is a brilliant way to put it.

00:28:02.539 –> 00:28:05.039
It’s a cost -benefit analysis of kayfabe hatred.

00:28:05.380 –> 00:28:07.720
And logistically, behind the scenes, it serves

00:28:07.720 –> 00:28:10.480
a very practical purpose, too. The write -off.

00:28:10.599 –> 00:28:13.599
The write -off. Swerve has been going incredibly

00:28:13.599 –> 00:28:17.400
hard for over a year. His in -ring style is physically

00:28:17.400 –> 00:28:20.640
demanding. A storyline suspension allows him

00:28:20.640 –> 00:28:24.180
to go home, heal his battered body, maybe film

00:28:24.180 –> 00:28:26.880
an outside media project, and most crucially,

00:28:27.000 –> 00:28:29.519
let the fans actually miss seeing him on television.

00:28:29.799 –> 00:28:32.160
Because when he comes back, broke and angry.

00:28:32.259 –> 00:28:34.480
That is an instant main event angle waiting to

00:28:34.480 –> 00:28:37.160
happen. He returns with an absolute vengeance.

00:28:37.519 –> 00:28:41.299
I love the psychology of that. absolutely thrive

00:28:41.299 –> 00:28:45.339
on being hated mjf the aew world champion our

00:28:45.339 –> 00:28:47.160
favorite scumbag there was an incident at an

00:28:47.160 –> 00:28:49.359
indie match he was working recently the crowd

00:28:49.359 –> 00:28:51.700
started chanting well we can’t say it here but

00:28:51.700 –> 00:28:54.420
let’s call it the f ice chant a very derogatory

00:28:54.420 –> 00:28:57.519
personal chant involving a certain icy substance

00:28:57.519 –> 00:29:00.819
right a very hostile unscripted environment in

00:29:00.819 –> 00:29:03.339
mjf instead of getting flustered or legitimately

00:29:03.339 –> 00:29:06.599
angry he just seemed to feed on it This is Heel

00:29:06.599 –> 00:29:09.779
Psychology 101, but MJF basically has a PhD in

00:29:09.779 –> 00:29:12.319
it at this point. He is a master conductor of

00:29:12.319 –> 00:29:15.799
crowds. A conductor of hate. Yes. Think about

00:29:15.799 –> 00:29:19.220
it. Most wrestlers today, deep down, really want

00:29:19.220 –> 00:29:21.480
to be the cool heel. They want to do flashy moves

00:29:21.480 –> 00:29:23.420
and they want the fans to secretly love them

00:29:23.420 –> 00:29:26.359
and buy their black t -shirts. MJF genuinely

00:29:26.359 –> 00:29:29.339
wants you to despise him. When the crowd gets

00:29:29.339 –> 00:29:31.759
nasty, when they start chanting deeply personal

00:29:31.759 –> 00:29:33.759
things that would completely rattle a lesser

00:29:33.759 –> 00:29:36.750
performer, he smiles. because he knows he has

00:29:36.750 –> 00:29:38.730
them in the palm of his hand. He manipulates

00:29:38.730 –> 00:29:41.130
that raw negative energy. He does. He takes that

00:29:41.130 –> 00:29:43.269
heat, that genuine visceral dislike from the

00:29:43.269 –> 00:29:45.589
building, and he expertly transfers it to his

00:29:45.589 –> 00:29:48.470
opponent. If the crowd hates MJF that much, they

00:29:48.470 –> 00:29:51.029
will loudly cheer for absolutely anyone who steps

00:29:51.029 –> 00:29:53.329
up and punches him in the face. That is his core

00:29:53.329 –> 00:29:55.730
job description. He makes the baby face look

00:29:55.730 –> 00:29:58.130
like a conquering hero just by being the ultimate

00:29:58.130 –> 00:30:00.210
irredeemable villain. It’s brilliant to watch

00:30:00.210 –> 00:30:02.750
him work. Now, on a slightly more somber note

00:30:02.750 –> 00:30:05.029
regarding AEW, let’s talk about Britt Baker.

00:30:05.850 –> 00:30:08.549
There’s been a real update on her future in the

00:30:08.549 –> 00:30:11.750
ring. We all know she’s a dentist. A real -life

00:30:11.750 –> 00:30:14.509
practicing dentist with her own clinic. And the

00:30:14.509 –> 00:30:17.109
serious conversation now is about her wrestling

00:30:17.109 –> 00:30:19.690
future versus her long -term medical career.

00:30:20.210 –> 00:30:22.910
This situation really highlights the stark reality

00:30:22.910 –> 00:30:25.690
of part -time status in modern professional wrestling.

00:30:26.109 –> 00:30:28.509
Britt Baker carried that women’s division on

00:30:28.509 –> 00:30:31.890
her back for a long time. But dentistry is a

00:30:31.890 –> 00:30:34.549
highly demanding precision -based profession.

00:30:35.240 –> 00:30:37.440
You have patients in pain. You have strict appointments.

00:30:38.269 –> 00:30:40.289
You can’t just cancel on a patient needing a

00:30:40.289 –> 00:30:41.930
root canal because you suddenly have a booked

00:30:41.930 –> 00:30:44.349
match in Japan. And more importantly, you can’t

00:30:44.349 –> 00:30:46.589
be a functioning dentist if your hands are shaking

00:30:46.589 –> 00:30:48.210
because you took a bad bump on your neck the

00:30:48.210 –> 00:30:51.190
night before. Exactly. The sheer physical toll

00:30:51.190 –> 00:30:54.089
of wrestling, the cumulative neck issues, the

00:30:54.089 –> 00:30:57.289
back spasms, the concussion risks, directly threatens

00:30:57.289 –> 00:30:59.950
her longevity as a medical professional. I think

00:30:59.950 –> 00:31:01.650
we are currently seeing a natural transition

00:31:01.650 –> 00:31:04.009
where wrestling becomes the occasional special

00:31:04.009 –> 00:31:06.750
attraction for her, and the dental practice rightfully

00:31:06.750 –> 00:31:09.119
becomes the primary. focus. It’s a really smart

00:31:09.119 –> 00:31:12.359
life choice. Always have a backup plan or in

00:31:12.359 –> 00:31:15.579
her specific case, a very lucrative primary plan.

00:31:15.799 –> 00:31:17.380
Absolutely. It’s the healthiest approach you

00:31:17.380 –> 00:31:19.119
could take. OK, let’s move into segment five.

00:31:19.380 –> 00:31:22.680
We call this myths, misconceptions and history.

00:31:23.059 –> 00:31:24.779
We’re going to bust some persistent Internet

00:31:24.779 –> 00:31:26.599
narratives. Always my favorite part of the show.

00:31:26.720 –> 00:31:29.509
Let’s get into it. First, big myth. Retirements

00:31:29.509 –> 00:31:32.390
are sudden. We saw some news leak about the original

00:31:32.390 –> 00:31:35.269
long term plans for AJ Styles eventual retirement

00:31:35.269 –> 00:31:38.829
match. Right. And this leak reveals a massive

00:31:38.829 –> 00:31:42.029
misconception that casual fans hold. Fans often

00:31:42.029 –> 00:31:44.009
think a wrestler just wakes up one Tuesday morning,

00:31:44.269 –> 00:31:46.410
feels their knees aching and says, I’m done.

00:31:46.470 –> 00:31:49.319
I’m retiring today. Or they assume they get injured

00:31:49.319 –> 00:31:51.680
and are just forced to disappear instantly. But

00:31:51.680 –> 00:31:54.160
with a franchise guy like AJ. With a bona fide

00:31:54.160 –> 00:31:57.420
legend like AJ Styles, the sunset is meticulously

00:31:57.420 –> 00:31:59.880
planned out one to two years in advance. Years.

00:32:00.079 –> 00:32:03.380
Plural. Yes. You have to map the entire architecture

00:32:03.380 –> 00:32:07.180
of it out. Who ultimately gets the rub of retiring

00:32:07.180 –> 00:32:10.619
him? Does it elevate a young star or is it a

00:32:10.619 –> 00:32:13.079
respect match against another veteran? Is it

00:32:13.079 –> 00:32:15.359
going to be a year -long retirement tour? Is

00:32:15.359 –> 00:32:18.369
it a final dramatic match at WrestleMania? The

00:32:18.369 –> 00:32:20.769
merchandise team needs months to design and produce

00:32:20.769 –> 00:32:23.230
the commemorative shirts. The creative team needs

00:32:23.230 –> 00:32:25.849
to carefully build the story arc so it peaks

00:32:25.849 –> 00:32:28.549
at the right moment. So when we see a guy standing

00:32:28.549 –> 00:32:30.829
in the ring crying, giving a retirement speech,

00:32:31.049 –> 00:32:33.869
the rough draft of that speech was probably outlined

00:32:33.869 –> 00:32:36.730
18 months ago. The broad trajectory of the exit

00:32:36.730 –> 00:32:39.809
was yes. Unless a catastrophic career -ending

00:32:39.809 –> 00:32:42.890
injury forces their hand unexpectedly, the exit

00:32:42.890 –> 00:32:45.130
from the company is just as heavily scripted

00:32:45.130 –> 00:32:47.650
and produced as their debut entrance. It is a

00:32:47.650 –> 00:32:50.609
carefully curated monument to their entire career.

00:32:50.809 –> 00:32:52.849
That is fascinating to think about. Okay, myth

00:32:52.849 –> 00:32:55.049
number two. Cody Rhodes was always the hero.

00:32:55.230 –> 00:32:57.029
Oh, this is a big one, especially for the newer

00:32:57.029 –> 00:32:59.250
fans who just jumped on board. Yeah, if you started

00:32:59.250 –> 00:33:01.549
watching wrestling in the last three years, Cody

00:33:01.549 –> 00:33:04.309
is essentially Captain America. He kisses the

00:33:04.309 –> 00:33:06.970
babies in the front row. He gives away his weightlifting

00:33:06.970 –> 00:33:10.250
belt to a crying kid. He fights the evil bloodline.

00:33:10.410 –> 00:33:13.589
He is the embodiment of pure goodness. But you

00:33:13.589 –> 00:33:16.309
cannot fully understand the hero without understanding

00:33:16.309 –> 00:33:19.250
the villain he used to be. We have to talk about

00:33:19.250 –> 00:33:22.609
his star turn. He was a spectacular heel. He

00:33:22.609 –> 00:33:25.759
was a fantastic, deeply annoying heel. Think

00:33:25.759 –> 00:33:27.880
back to the dashing Cody Rhodes era, checking

00:33:27.880 –> 00:33:29.819
his face in the mirror, handing out grooming

00:33:29.819 –> 00:33:32.799
tips to ugly fans. Or his run as the corporate

00:33:32.799 –> 00:33:35.779
suit EVP in early AEW where the crowds turned

00:33:35.779 –> 00:33:38.099
on him. Why does all that past baggage matter

00:33:38.099 –> 00:33:41.500
for his current mega BB face run? Because the

00:33:41.500 –> 00:33:43.480
core lesson of wrestling psychology is that you

00:33:43.480 –> 00:33:45.599
have to learn to be a truly hated villain to

00:33:45.599 –> 00:33:47.759
fully understand how to get universally cheered.

00:33:48.250 –> 00:33:50.549
Cody knows exactly what specific buttons to push

00:33:50.549 –> 00:33:53.309
to make people boo him. Therefore, he knows exactly

00:33:53.309 –> 00:33:55.450
what behaviors to avoid to keep them cheering.

00:33:55.650 –> 00:33:57.990
He constructs his current babyface persona as

00:33:57.990 –> 00:34:00.750
the direct, calculated antidote to his old heel

00:34:00.750 –> 00:34:03.789
tendencies. So the smile is brighter now because

00:34:03.789 –> 00:34:06.490
he knows exactly how effective his scowl used

00:34:06.490 –> 00:34:09.250
to be. Poetically put, yes. You can’t effectively

00:34:09.250 –> 00:34:11.469
portray the light without intimately knowing

00:34:11.469 –> 00:34:14.690
the shadow. I really like that. Okay, last myth

00:34:14.690 –> 00:34:17.960
here. Production secrets. We need to talk about

00:34:17.960 –> 00:34:21.460
botches. The dreaded B word of the internet wrestling

00:34:21.460 –> 00:34:24.179
community. There was a report this week of a

00:34:24.179 –> 00:34:27.139
big botch on Friday Night Smackdown and subsequently

00:34:27.139 –> 00:34:30.300
some real backstage heat on the competitors involved

00:34:30.300 –> 00:34:33.179
when they got back to the curtain. First, for

00:34:33.179 –> 00:34:36.400
the uninitiated listeners, clearly define a botch

00:34:36.400 –> 00:34:40.079
and define heat. Simply put, a botch is a mistake

00:34:40.079 –> 00:34:43.179
during a match. A move timed wrong, a foot slipping

00:34:43.179 –> 00:34:45.500
on the ropes, a dropped catch, or a missed cue.

00:34:45.900 –> 00:34:48.519
Heat is the resulting backstage anger or resentment

00:34:48.519 –> 00:34:51.420
from your peers, the producers, or the management.

00:34:51.659 –> 00:34:53.940
So someone messed up a move on live TV and people

00:34:53.940 –> 00:34:55.940
in the back are mad, but everyone makes mistakes,

00:34:56.159 –> 00:34:58.559
right? It’s live TV. Right. But the nuance here,

00:34:58.619 –> 00:35:00.360
and this is what the fans online almost always

00:35:00.360 –> 00:35:02.679
miss when they complain, is that the heat from

00:35:02.679 –> 00:35:05.139
management isn’t usually about the physical mistake

00:35:05.139 –> 00:35:07.519
itself. It’s almost entirely about the recovery.

00:35:07.760 –> 00:35:10.380
How you fix it on the fly while millions are

00:35:10.380 –> 00:35:13.019
watching. Exactly. Pro wrestling is essentially

00:35:13.019 –> 00:35:15.460
live theater mixed with high speed gymnastics.

00:35:16.000 –> 00:35:19.579
Things go wrong every single night. A true veteran

00:35:19.579 –> 00:35:22.739
knows how to cover it up seamlessly. If you swing

00:35:22.739 –> 00:35:25.199
and completely miss a punch, you immediately

00:35:25.199 –> 00:35:27.840
step forward and grab a tight headlock. If you

00:35:27.840 –> 00:35:30.460
slip off the top rope, you hit the mat and instantly

00:35:30.460 –> 00:35:33.000
grab your knee, selling an injury. You protect

00:35:33.000 –> 00:35:36.460
the illusion at all costs. So the real heat comes

00:35:36.460 –> 00:35:38.900
down on the rookies when they panic. Yes, when

00:35:38.900 –> 00:35:41.420
they freeze like a deer in headlights, when they

00:35:41.420 –> 00:35:44.219
completely break character, stand up and look

00:35:44.219 –> 00:35:45.900
over at the referee with a face that says, what

00:35:45.900 –> 00:35:48.260
do I do next? That completely exposes the business.

00:35:48.320 –> 00:35:50.380
That makes it look fake to the guy changing channels.

00:35:50.539 –> 00:35:52.739
The veterans in the back get angry not because

00:35:52.739 –> 00:35:55.059
you slipped, gravity happens to everyone, but

00:35:55.059 –> 00:35:57.019
because you didn’t have the ring awareness to

00:35:57.019 –> 00:35:59.920
handle the slip professionally. That is a crucial,

00:36:00.139 –> 00:36:03.099
crucial distinction to make. It’s about maintaining

00:36:03.099 –> 00:36:06.059
professionalism. Not demanding robotic perfection.

00:36:06.420 –> 00:36:09.099
Correct. The show must go on and it must look

00:36:09.099 –> 00:36:11.639
real. All right. We are heading into the homestretch

00:36:11.639 –> 00:36:14.719
here. Segment six, listener recommendations and

00:36:14.719 –> 00:36:18.239
viewing guide. We’ve thrown a ton of inside baseball

00:36:18.239 –> 00:36:20.599
info at you today. What should the listeners

00:36:20.599 –> 00:36:22.880
actually go out and watch this coming week? I

00:36:22.880 –> 00:36:25.260
have a few specific recommendations to keep an

00:36:25.260 –> 00:36:28.400
eye on. Hit me with them. First, for pure entertainment

00:36:28.400 –> 00:36:31.619
value, go find that smartphone clip of Dominic

00:36:31.619 –> 00:36:34.340
Mysterio meeting his twin in the airport. It

00:36:34.340 –> 00:36:36.619
is circulating everywhere. It is an absolute

00:36:36.619 –> 00:36:39.480
masterclass in staying in character while completely

00:36:39.480 –> 00:36:42.099
acknowledging the sheer absurdity of the situation.

00:36:42.320 –> 00:36:44.360
It will definitely make you laugh. Oh, definitely

00:36:44.360 –> 00:36:47.559
check that out. It’s gold. Second. Keep a very

00:36:47.559 –> 00:36:50.139
close eye on Dorian Van Dux down in the developmental

00:36:50.139 –> 00:36:52.659
system. The vampire himself. The artist formerly

00:36:52.659 –> 00:36:55.519
known as Mike DiVecchio, yes. Yeah. Watch his

00:36:55.519 –> 00:36:57.900
upcoming matches. Try to ignore the silly name

00:36:57.900 –> 00:36:59.820
for a moment and just watch the physical work

00:36:59.820 –> 00:37:02.760
in the ring. See how his brawling style adapts

00:37:02.760 –> 00:37:05.559
to the WWE camera style. It’s going to be a great

00:37:05.559 –> 00:37:08.480
case study in watching a raw indie talent evolve

00:37:08.480 –> 00:37:11.500
under the massive WWE production umbrella. Okay,

00:37:11.559 –> 00:37:14.039
and what storyline should we be actively tracking

00:37:14.039 –> 00:37:17.960
this week? Two things to track. One, the Timothy

00:37:17.960 –> 00:37:21.579
Thatcher GM role over in Evolve. Is this leading

00:37:21.579 –> 00:37:25.000
to a completely new weekly episodic show format

00:37:25.000 –> 00:37:28.230
for the network? Is Evolve going to become a

00:37:28.230 –> 00:37:31.449
dedicated shoot style mat wrestling brand? Tracking

00:37:31.449 –> 00:37:33.789
how Thatcher manages that young roster will give

00:37:33.789 –> 00:37:36.869
us huge clues about the future direction of WWE’s

00:37:36.869 –> 00:37:39.510
entire developmental tier. I am glued to that

00:37:39.510 –> 00:37:42.190
one. I love the technical stuff. And two, the

00:37:42.190 –> 00:37:44.570
ongoing fallout of the swerve Strickland suspension

00:37:44.570 –> 00:37:48.440
over in AEW. Track the weeks he is gone. When

00:37:48.440 –> 00:37:50.800
does he finally return? And more importantly,

00:37:50.920 –> 00:37:53.039
when he does step back through the curtain, pay

00:37:53.039 –> 00:37:55.340
close attention to the level of violence. If

00:37:55.340 –> 00:37:58.199
he comes back noticeably more dangerous and unhinged,

00:37:58.199 –> 00:38:00.800
we know the storyline fine was the direct catalyst

00:38:00.800 –> 00:38:03.699
for a major monster main event push. I cannot

00:38:03.699 –> 00:38:05.679
wait for Swerve to come back. The pop is going

00:38:05.679 –> 00:38:07.380
to be massive. Me neither. It’s going to be great

00:38:07.380 –> 00:38:09.159
television. All right. That brings us to the

00:38:09.159 –> 00:38:10.940
end of another massive show. Let’s recap the

00:38:10.940 –> 00:38:13.039
big stuff quickly. We covered the complicated

00:38:13.039 –> 00:38:15.239
business landscape of the Elimination Chamber,

00:38:15.460 –> 00:38:18.039
why those ticket sales might be a little soft

00:38:18.039 –> 00:38:20.480
due to the Jeff Jarrett theory of market saturation.

00:38:21.360 –> 00:38:24.099
We analyzed Dominic Mysterio’s global expansion

00:38:24.099 –> 00:38:27.340
and what holding the AAA megatitle means for

00:38:27.340 –> 00:38:29.360
his character. We looked at the deep psychology

00:38:29.360 –> 00:38:32.159
of Liv Morgan’s Tears on Raw and the highly strategic

00:38:32.159 –> 00:38:36.159
pulling of the Io Sky vs. Julia match to artificially

00:38:36.159 –> 00:38:38.539
build pay -per -view anticipation. And we broke

00:38:38.539 –> 00:38:40.780
down the future of the industry with the WWE

00:38:40.780 –> 00:38:44.400
ID pipeline, the trademark rebranding of Dorian

00:38:44.400 –> 00:38:47.099
Van Dux, and the disciplinary storylines in AEW

00:38:47.099 –> 00:38:49.420
regarding Swerve and MJF. It has been a packed

00:38:49.420 –> 00:38:52.119
show, as always. Before we go, a very quick reminder

00:38:52.119 –> 00:38:54.219
to support the people who actively support us.

00:38:54.860 –> 00:38:57.159
Worldwrestlingevents .com and BetOnline. If you

00:38:57.159 –> 00:38:58.960
want to get in on the wrestling action this weekend,

00:38:59.099 –> 00:39:00.420
check the link right down in the description.

00:39:00.719 –> 00:39:04.039
Claim that exclusive bonus offer up to $250 in

00:39:04.039 –> 00:39:07.050
free bets plus 100 free spins. Do it. It is a

00:39:07.050 –> 00:39:08.750
great way to enhance the viewing experience.

00:39:09.289 –> 00:39:11.369
Now, my friend, send us off with a final thought,

00:39:11.510 –> 00:39:13.550
something for the fans to chew on until next

00:39:13.550 –> 00:39:15.909
week. Well, we talked a lot today about the Io

00:39:15.909 –> 00:39:18.650
Sky versus Julia match being pulled from TV,

00:39:18.769 –> 00:39:21.150
and it really made me think about the philosophical

00:39:21.150 –> 00:39:24.670
concept of the unseen match. In wrestling history,

00:39:24.789 –> 00:39:27.869
some of the absolute most legendary mythic matches

00:39:27.869 –> 00:39:30.690
are the ones that happened in empty arenas or

00:39:30.690 –> 00:39:32.989
on un -televised house shows with no cameras

00:39:32.989 –> 00:39:35.650
rolling or the ones that were promised on a marquee

00:39:35.650 –> 00:39:38.030
and never actually delivered due to injury or

00:39:38.030 –> 00:39:40.090
politics. Like the ultimate forbidden fruit.

00:39:40.230 –> 00:39:43.260
Exactly. Sometimes the matches we explicitly

00:39:43.260 –> 00:39:45.860
don’t get to see end up driving the business

00:39:45.860 –> 00:39:48.760
lore more than the ones we do see. The imagination

00:39:48.760 –> 00:39:51.480
of the fan is arguably the most powerful booking

00:39:51.480 –> 00:39:54.380
tool in the entire world. WWE management knows

00:39:54.380 –> 00:39:56.960
that. By withholding that dream match, they are

00:39:56.960 –> 00:39:58.780
essentially letting your imagination book the

00:39:58.780 –> 00:40:01.780
spots. And your imagination always books a five

00:40:01.780 –> 00:40:05.750
-star classic. Whoa. That is deep. And entirely

00:40:05.750 –> 00:40:08.710
true, honestly. I’ve booked some absolutely incredible

00:40:08.710 –> 00:40:10.769
WrestleMania main events in my head over the

00:40:10.769 –> 00:40:13.030
years. Haven’t we all? The perfect match only

00:40:13.030 –> 00:40:15.690
exists in the mind. Well, on that profound note,

00:40:15.809 –> 00:40:17.849
thank you for listening to World Wrestling Events.

00:40:18.369 –> 00:40:20.829
We will be back next week with more news, more

00:40:20.829 –> 00:40:23.289
rumors, and more wrestling. See you at the bell.

00:40:23.429 –> 00:40:24.130
See you at the bell.