Professional wrestling is very popular throughout the United States and is growing throughout the entire world. The company at the forefront of professional wrestling is definitely World Wrestling Entertainment, also known as WWE.
On average WWE brings in around $11 billion per year, all of which comes from their arena events, merchandise and even paying for each one of their pay-per-views every month. Whether people think it is stupid or not, there is no argument, WWE has a huge fanbase. In 2022, the WWE global revenue amounted to 1.3 billion dollars according to statista.com. 1.3 billion dollars is hard to argue against.
The main reason some people think WWE is “stupid” is because it’s fake. Wrestlers don’t actually hate each other, or put each other through tables or
use real blood, it’s all scripted for a storyline. The flips and even getting thrown onto the ring mat still may hurt because there is no faking that but for the most part, it’s more of a rehearsed show.
Sometimes there are fake injuries in WWE and sometimes there are real ones so how do wrestling fans differentiate what is real and fake? Well, wrestling fans like to call the “fake stuff” kayfabe which is basically just the wrestler’s job and has nothing to do with their real life.
If a wrestler is actually seriously hurt you will hear a wrestling fan say, “No it’s not kayfabe this time he actually broke his hand.”
It took me a little bit to cope with the fact that it was fake. As I have gotten older I have realized it doesn’t matter because there are still lessons to learn and it is still very enjoyable to watch.
I have always been a huge fan of professional wrestling ever since I was little. I would jump off the couch, throw pillows, and act like I was putting someone through a table. I’ve bought about every WWE title known to man and wore them around my waist acting like I am the champ. For my most recent birthday, I even went to my first WWE event at Indianapolis.
Before the question gets asked, yes, I know it is fake. I have heard that from so many people. ̈How do you even watch that crap when you know it’s
fake? ̈ I always just laugh and tell them, so it is your favorite movie and you still watch it.
Over the years I have realized that people just like what they like and you shouldn’t judge or make fun of them for it. Sometimes there are valuable lessons that can be learned from it.
In my experience, the biggest lesson WWE has taught me is that you don’t always have to be the biggest, strongest, fastest, smartest, or the best at anything to succeed. You can be the underdog and have everyone doubt you and still succeed.
On the other hand, WWE has also taught me how sometimes life isn’t fair. Sometimes people cheat to win and get away with it and sometimes people who don’t deserve it get a title shot or get to the main event of a show. Sadly, that’s how life is. Sometimes the person who you have outworked will get the raise when you feel like you deserve it, or maybe you worked all week on a history project, just for the person who copied someone else’s to get the better grade. It sucks sometimes but that’s just how it works.
Yes, professional wrestling is fun, and many people probably can’t take it seriously, but sometimes people like things that might seem weird. Just because they are weird to you doesn’t mean they are completely ridiculous because you never know why a person might like something. Even my parents still to this day don’t get how I like fake wrestling but I do.
Not very many people I know like it the way I do. But there are a few. Mr. Newkirk, Carson Little, and wrestling coach JT Zapien have always really enjoyed wrestling, each person I am sure has different reasons for why they started to watch and what made them keep watching. We all like it so much that this summer we plan on going to multiple professional wrestling events together.
Similar to your favorite TV shows or movies, there is always something you can learn from them even if they are as goofy as “fake” wrestling.
