Timing......

[Mustang Sally]

......is everything.

If you've ever wondered how some of the big, fat old time wrestlers we used to see on TV could make a match more visually exciting than some of the young guys with great physiques, the answer is usually timing. An appreciation of this skill makes you realize how hard it is to do what these guys and gals do in the ring. It looks so easy, we think anyone can do it.

It's necessary to realize that the person in the opposite corner of the ring isn't actually your enemy; he/she is your partner. Face it, when two people get into a fight on the street, they aren't trying to make their opponent look good; they want to beat the hell out of them. This causes a virtual stalemate between the two combatants of equal size and stamina. Until one of them gets tired and can't go on.....or unless one is so much more proficient at fighting than the other..... they tug back and forth until someone can prevail. Timing has nothing to do with it.

Pro wrestling is hardly an indication of what a "real" fight is like. It's a series of interrelated moves that flow smoothly on our TV screens only if the two fighters exhibit proper timing and allow their opponent to execute his/her moves. There's usually no testing of strength between the two; it's more a cooperative venture of "You throw me and then I'll throw you" type of action. When the timing is off between the wrestlers...... when they aren't feeding the other openings to perform their moves......the match loses it's flow and looks visually crappy.

Take two matches on last night's Smackdown:

The match between A.J. and Naomi was dreadful in it's timing; the fault lying mostly with Naomi. As they worked, A.J. would get into position, only to have to wait for Naomi to do the same. It made the action look stilted. On one occasion, Naomi got to her spot too quickly and made A.J. have to run to accommodate, making the sequence looked forced and awkward. As a result, the action lost it's flow and the entire match looked choppy. Naomi is strictly a spot-hitter, and she actually can execute her flying maneuvers pretty well, as long as her opponent has the timing down. Whether you care for A.J. or not, she knows how to wrestle and can work a match better than most divas. She doesn't really make use of flying tactics, yet her matches are smoother and more pleasing to the eye because she's got the timing down.

The other match was the "11 vs. 3 Gauntlet match" with the Shield facing a bunch of guys who ran to the ring one by one. The propensity for a timing disaster in this type of contest is huge; the Shield can work as a unit, but how do they establish any kind of flow when taking on one guy at a time? It's hard enough to create effective timing when three guys are ganging up on one, but how can the guy who's alone get anything going offensively?

The Shield did an amazing job getting into position to receive the offense of the Darren Young, Titus O'Neil, Dolph, Kofi and RVD. Bodies were flying everywhere and though it seemed almost impossible for the participants to keep their timing intact..... all of them did. Vince McMahon must have been pleased with this match; his guys kept the action going flawlessly .....and all of it was in the timing.

In the early 90's, I remember seeing Dirty Dick Murdoch in a match on TV. He was in his mid-40's, had a huge belly and skinny legs.....and looked like a washed-up pug (he died at 49). Still, his match with another old-timer was visually pleasing because he still knew how to work; the match had a flow to it and the series of interrelated moves performed by both men allowed them to give and take punishment that looked good to the fans while not really taxing either guy too much.

You don't have to be a great athlete with an amazing body to perform as a pro wrestler; some of the experienced performers can make a Boiler Room match look like a world class contest. It's all in the timing.

 

[LascoX]

Your observation is spot on as usual Sally. Timing is everything. One thing about timing for me is the amount of timing wrestlers use to set up moves before execution. Take for example a few weeks back in the Golddust/ Orton match. Over all it was a good match with decent timing . The exception on that is when Orton went for the move where he gets his opponents feet hanging on the rope and then DDT's them. The move was forced into position and then Orton did his customary pause before the drop. Two things were wrong with the move and execution. First the way he moved Dustin into position from inside the ring. On a smaller opponent Orton can muscle the person over the ropes in a fluid motion. With Dustin , who is a big guy , he had to step over the rope and basically set himself up to be dropped on his head. Not realistic in the least and very little fluid motion involved. Then , and this is my main beef with Orton's move and it relates to other moves in the business. The inevitable pause he took before the drop. I know we are suppose to suspend reality while watching , but the long pause always gives time for a counter move to be executed. In the case of Ortons move all anyone has to do when being held there is to bend the knees and your out of the situation. If the move is done fast without the pause then I could believe someone could be hit with that effectively. I know its a small detail but often stars are spending to much time waiting for crowd reaction and it kills the effectiveness of selling the move.
Timing is everything and sometimes less is more if executed properly and with fluid motion verse a grand move with terrible timing

 

[Matty~!]

Totally in agreement with everything that has been said it's things like this and little nuances that are lost on a lot of current wrestlers whether in WWE, TNA or on the Independent scene. I like the example of Dustin Rhodes because whilst he never really worked territories, he was trained in that style and how to work crowds as such, if you look at a lot of his WCW work in the early 90's you can see him coming of age from a very green promising youngster in 1991 and slowly making a name for himself. Working with masters of nuance and timing like Larry Zbyzko, Terry Taylor, Arn Anderson, Barry Windham and Rick Rude. Not to mention he got to team with the likes of Barry Windham and Ricky Steamboat as a babyface and learnts how to do things the right way.

A real shining example of this timing issue is when world class workers from previous era's come into major league promotions at the end of their careers. I remember Dory Funk Jr and Nick Bockwinkel wrestling a fifteen minute broadway Slamboree 1993 and it was like nothing else on the card, it was thoughtful, considered, it was pretty much all on the mat, and they had the crowd in the palm of their hands. This show also included The Hollywood Blonds vs. Dos Hombres (Ricky Steamboat & Tom Zenk) and it was just as great a match as Bockwinkel and Dory Jr but they had to give so much more to get a reaction that was exactly the same.

 

[Pay Per Ghost]

Its essentially also the wrestler knowing his next move like the back of his hand. Many a times you see wrestlers scramble for their next move and usually go to a resthold to call the next big spot.

Again, some people just have an amazing chemistry in the ring. They just play off each other so well that its nonsensically good. HBK would ping around for big guys selling their action but would then make his comeback as the scrappy never-say-die-hero that he was being pushed as in 96.

When to go to for a chop, for an armbar, an eye rake or a slap to the face to me, are the components present in some gifted wrestlers. I mean it comes so easy for them and thats what Ted Dibiasie said about Jake the Snake, it all came so easy for him. Watch Jake The Snake in his early days and he was a lanky, smooth worker. And later he developed some amazing ring awareness as an essential weapon in his arsenal.

One last point, people often do criticize the big men and shit but Hogan, Warrior had some great timing. They just fed the crowd their impact spots and then fed off it creating this frenzied cycle that got them ridiculously over. Real good hands.

 

[Blade]

Well said, Sally. But you talk about how old wrestlers in bad physical condition still have excellent timing. I'd like to point out that timing isn't completely a mental attribute. You could have a brain like a metronome, but if your physical capabilities are lacking, then your body can't keep up with your mind.

Through a series of random events, I ended watching Hulk Hogan vs. The Ultimate Warrior when they squared off in WCW today. Hogan, at his prime, was excellent with timing. You just have to watch his matches with André and Savage to see that. He knew what he was doing and what he was doing next at all times. Then you have Warrior. Who was bad a pretty much everything he did in the ring.

Now, Hogan was only good with his timing when his body was still in the shape to keep up with a reasonably fast paced match, like with Savage, or at least a match where he was against someone who had decent timing despite his physical limitations like André. But when Hogan was in WCW, a combination of lazyness and Hogan's physical decline meant that his body couldn't keep up with his mind. That wasn't so bad, when he was up against guys like DDP or Sting, who were still physically at the top of their game, but against Warrior, who was a mess in every sense, the match just collapsed.

There was one moment in the match where Hogan runs off the ropes, Warrior drops down with his usual lumbering motion, and Hogan slows down and actually just steps over Warrior, just destroying what little pace the match had.

Yeah, I know it came off as awful mostly thanks to Warrior, but in his prime, Hogan would've been able to pull that off. But in his physical state in 1997/98 WCW, Hogan's body couldn't keep up with the timing that his mind had set.

Just thought I'd add that to your original, superb post.

 

[Mitch Henessey]

I think a more recent example of timing being everything is Ryback.

He was white hot after WWE went with the repackaging post Wrestlemania 28. It took a while, but as Ryback squashed jobber after jobber, the fans were really starting to get into him. You could see arenas full of people chanting "Feed me more!" while pumping their fists up and down....and then the feud with Punk rolled around.

I still believe it was a colossal mistake to stick Ryback in a feud with a WWE Champion CM Punk, because everyone knew Rock was going to be the one, who ended Punk's reign at Royal Rumble. As Ryback continued to lose, his momentum and support from the crowd faded. The nonsensical heel turn the night after Wrestlemania 29 made everything far worse.

IF WWE was so hell bent on putting Ryback up against Punk for the WWE Championship, he should've crushed Punk at Hell In A Cell for the title. Punk could always win the title back, and face Rock at Royal Rumble as WWE Champion. I mean, did The Rock of all people really need the rub of ending Punk's year long + reign, and going into Wrestlemania 29 as WWE Champion to face Cena? I don't think so.

WWE obviously wanted Rock as the savior to end Punk's reign, but sacrificing Ryback's hot streak for the sake of that could prove to be a disastrous mistake in the long run. You can't always wait for that moment to come along, because lighting doesn't always strike in the same place twice.

Sure, Ryback is starting to regain his spark with Heyman at his side, the upcoming feud with Punk should help, and maybe you throw in the possibility of a future feud with Lesnar, but there's no guarantee we'll see that type of support for Ryback again. I hope I'm wrong, because Ryback has the look and the It Factor, and it would be a shame to let all that go to waste.