What WWE can learn from Edge

[Luten]

In my opinion WWE are unnecessarily destroying young guys. Their schedule is so packed throughout the year that they never get time to truly heal.

Look no further than Edge. A young guy cut down in his prime. If he continued he could have very well ended up in a wheel chair. It must be heart wrenching for Adam ‘Edge’ Copeland seeing guys like The Rock come back nice and healthy and able to Wrestle at Wrestlemania. Well, of course he can. The Rock has been gone for 8 years. Same with Brock Lesnar. Although Brock competed fiercely in UFC and had his fair share of problems over there, he’s now able to come back and work a reduced schedule while being paid more than the majority of the current WWE roster.

I get it, guys like Lesnar and The Rock are money makers. But so was Edge and he was there every week.

Another example is Rey Mysterio, he’s had constant nagging injuries over the years and over the past year they have caught up with him. He suffers for this, and thus so does the company because No Rey Mysterio = one less solid worker.

If WWE were to stop and re-evaluate the way they treat their guys then this could be reduced. It’s a vicious cycle because this would also reduce the amount of guys who take pain killers to help their nagging health issues, only to be found violating the wellness act. So they are suspended and removed from TV. They suffer and thus the company suffers through more lack of star power on their shows.

I’ve always been of the mind set of quality over quantity and what we have now are Raw, Smackdown and Superstars once a week, plus House Shows, plus PPV’s....and a lack of quality.

Older workers have been said to criticize younger talent such as Edge for calling it quits but what they fail to realize is that they did not have the schedule that Edge did back in their day. While they might have been wrestling longer matches they also were not falling off ladders.

It’s a mixed bag of problems, and is something WWE won’t be able to fix easily, guys like Rock and Lesnar aren’t going to stick around. Whereas the guys showing up every week potentially won’t be around much longer either due to wear and tear.

If WWE reduced the schedule of certain workers than perhaps when they do make an appearance it would be a bigger deal.

Cena being advertised to wrestle week after week led to his resentment from a lot of fans. If top draws such as Cena were booked more strategically, I.E once a month then it would reduce nagging injuries (which end up in early retirement) and also increase their star power by making their matches seem like a bigger deal. Rather than relying on stars from a decade ago to come in for that ‘big match’ feel.

Basically, I feel WWE shot themselves in the foot a long time ago with the ever increasing amount of TV time over the years. Stars become exhausted and also fans become exhausted and complacent with the product. Thus we have to deal with the deathly silence of ‘graveyard’ crowds the majority of the time.

When WWE goes over seas the fans eat it up with massive crowd reactions. Why? Because they are starved of the product over seas. A prime example being the UK.

The current Blue print of the WWE won’t last forever because it will self-combust.

Guys like Edge are casualties of this Go Go Go company and in the next 5 years WWE need to make some new top draw, young, superstars and quickly, while also not falling into the same traps time and time again.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

You're trying to make it sound like that WWE cares nothing for the welfare of the wrestlers on its roster. One reason why WWE wrestlers are able to make so much money is becasue of WWE's intensive schedule. The whole debate about wrestlers having an off season has been going on for years and the simple fact of the matter is that it's just not going to happen.

If someone wants to be a pro wrestler, there are always going to be certain trade offs and sacrifices. One of those trade offs is going out there, putting your body on the line and risk sustaining injury. The same is true of any sport in which you have intense, physical contact with another person. As I aluded to earlier, the WWE's heavy schedule is part of the reason why the wrestlers are able to make so much money. Wrestling doesn't have the mega fanbase that football or basketball has, it's not ingrained into the American consciousness on a cultural level like those sports are, meaning that it might not be able to afford to just take off for months and months at a time. It's true in life that you just can't have it all. Wrestlers wanna make big money in WWE, then they have to work their asses off for it. Simple as that.

Also, why is it that the WWE is always the target of these discussions instead of pro wrestling at large? I understand that WWE is always the convenient target but, let's be honest, WWE is far from the only wrestling company out there that has a hectic schedule. It has the most hectic I grant but I see no reason to throw WWE under the bus just because of convenience and leave the rest of the wrestling world alone.

 

[ECFNW]

All i can say is it happens guys get injured get fixed up and keep going, the only thing i can think of is thank god he stopped when he did. And he was planning on retiring this yr anyway.

What wwe can learn from this is to keep a closer eye on their talent, iam sure everyone knew of his condition, even though they kept putting him out there days after day. Edge was a worker big time. But edge also = ratings, great mic work, great look, great world champion.

WWE needs to learn ratings and sales should not become more of a concern than a persons health especially one of your employees.

And sure i know they didnt force edge to go out every night, edge truly loved what he did and he prrobably chose his career before his health as well. But its always better to be safe than sorry even if theres large money envolved.

 

[Davi323]

Not to mention, it might have something to do with each wrestler's style. What's one of the main things Edge is known for? Ladders, chairs and tables. That style of wrestling is not going to be conducive to extending one's career. Neither is Rey Mysterio's style. That lucha libre/high flying stuff is also high risk, and injuries are going to be more prevalent.

It's not the schedule, it's the style. Ric Flair wrestled over 300 times a year for 30 years, and to the best of my knowledge, he never suffered any significant wrestling related injuries. (his back injuries stem from a plane crash back in the 1970s).

There are plenty of examples of guys that have wrestled just as many if not more matches per year than either Edge or Rey, that have had LONG careers, because they didn't take the chances those two did. Sorry, but I think your analysis is flawed in that you failed to account for other factors that led to their situations.

 

[rokuma]

It's hard to see your point. Shawn Michaels did the same things in the 1990s and has taken many more brutal bumps throughout his career and continued into his 40s. The schedule hasn't really changed too much....guys are still wrestling 300 days a year and traveling all of the time, plus the style of wrestling has toned down to early-to-mid 90s style IMO. I know HBK had his bad back injury, but he had surgery, came back, and still put on 5 star matches. Same with Flair. Who's taken more bad bumps than Flair? He had a legit broken back and has taken roughly 6 million backdrops in his career and been thrown off the top rope in every match he was in. Shouldn't his body be even more broken down just due to longevity? I think it has more to do with style of the wrestler like someone else said. That being said, I think it's irresponsible of the WWE to have guys wrestling like 300 days a year these days. I think they should cut down on the work demands for some of the wrestlers to avoid career ending injuries like that.

 

[BlakeFerris458]

You're wrong dude. Wrestler now work way less than before. Wayyyy less. WWWF was pretty tame on work schedules back in the sixties and seventies, and places like Calgary had seasons, so there were months where wrestlers wouldn't work there, but they generally would move to another territory to get as much work as possible. Wrestlers don't do 3 weeks on the road wrestling everyday and twice on Sundays anymore. Unless they are doing publicity shots (Where they don't bump) they are home at least once a week. Edge had injuries, it happens. Same thing happened to Austin.

Now on another point, the Rock and Brock Lesnar just don't count. Of course these guys are fine, they got out early. They were smart. A wrestler shouldn't work into their fourties anyway. Get in, make money, get out. They don't even count in such an argument.

 

[jrichardson25]

I see the point but at the same time I respectfully disagree. I do feel like they work a lot more than they used to but that is strictly from not knowing how much guys worked before.

The higher risk matches are a big factor in it. Most of the guys that participated in those matches have had some major surgeries because of the abuse they put on the body but at the same time they did agree to do them.

Do I feel like WWE should keep a closer eye on their talent and maybe let them work a little less? Of course, as a fan I want to see guys continue for as long as they want. There's a big glaring hole where Edge once stood. We're finally starting to see it closed with the building of Sheamus and Daniel Bryan but for the last year its been a big hole to fill....

I would hope that they could find a way to write people off for a month or so and give them a much needed rest without risk of them falling down the card (which I've heard is the main reason why talent doesn't take breaks.)...

 

[willross]

UMMMMM WWF's schedule back in the 80's and early 90's was WAY WORSE than the one they have now.

They actually get days off now consistantly. They used to do 6 or 7 shows a week back in the day. They would do a show on the east coast and then travel to west to do a show on the same day.

Bret Hart in his book said he once didn't go home for 300 consecutive days. WWE guys get about 2 - 3 days off per week as their schedule permits it. SMackdown guys do Shows on Friday, Saturday, Sunday and then TV's on Monday and Tuesday. Raw guys do Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and then TV's on Monday.

The workers get paid ALOT more. Have guaranteed money allowing them to take time off unlike guys who all got paid commission back in the day. They have the best doctors and EMTs backstage waiting for them after their matches. The best catering, masseuses, etc. that money can buy.

It is very hard work but please they go it easy compared to the guys they grew up watching.

When Austin says "i can beat you anyday of the week, twice on sunday" that is how the schedule used to be. That is a wrestlers phrase that they used because they would literally go week after week doing just that, everyday, twice on sunday.

I remember they would run a show in Toronto and London(Ontario) at the exact same time, and Bret Hart was booked for both of them. He would be first half main event on one show and then drive to the other city to main event the other show.

All the boys in the back who actually liked wrestling growing up know how easy they have it and only the ones who are doing it for a paycheck complain.

 

[Headman]

I hear guys complain about the schedule, but at the same time I've heard of guys worried about their "spot" and are afraid to leave for any amount of time in fear of having some other guy upstage them. And then of course there's the fact that they don't want to miss out on the money they'd make doing the shows. Any way, here's my idea for an "off season" that I think would work for everybody.

Brand Extension should exist only at house show levels with two tours going on at one time. Time off from house shows should be given to wrestlers who want or need it as long as the company can swing it without hurting for star power. The wrestlers on vacation would still be required to appear on television to maintain their current program but that's once, maybe twice a week.

Guys lower on the card will still probably end up working the insane schedule because they want to make the money and impress the boss, but guys a little higher up the card could use this time to rest their bodies. They could work about 9 months of house shows and take the other three off. I think this would work fine, and wouldn't really hurt the WWE that much.

 

[Defekt]

I think the schedule is pretty brutal, but Edge and Mysterio are both in their late 30's and had nearly 20 year careers.

Athletes in other sports almost never compete that long (except maybe in baseball).

 

[Otsegolectric]

UMMMMM WWF's schedule back in the 80's and early 90's was WAY WORSE than the one they have now.

It is very hard work but please they go it easy compared to the guys they grew up watching.

This. If you didn't grow up around the business as a fan in the 1990s then watch some of the WWE videos on Netflix and learn what these guys had to do, especially in the different regions. The travel alone has changed DRAMATICALLY over the past decade and longer.

The industry and lifestyle of wrestling has changed!

 

[TempestH]

I hear guys complain about the schedule, but at the same time I've heard of guys worried about their "spot" and are afraid to leave for any amount of time in fear of having some other guy upstage them. And then of course there's the fact that they don't want to miss out on the money they'd make doing the shows. Any way, here's my idea for an "off season" that I think would work for everybody.

Brand Extension should exist only at house show levels with two tours going on at one time. Time off from house shows should be given to wrestlers who want or need it as long as the company can swing it without hurting for star power. The wrestlers on vacation would still be required to appear on television to maintain their current program but that's once, maybe twice a week.

Guys lower on the card will still probably end up working the insane schedule because they want to make the money and impress the boss, but guys a little higher up the card could use this time to rest their bodies. They could work about 9 months of house shows and take the other three off. I think this would work fine, and wouldn't really hurt the WWE that much.

I have an idea as well.

I think that Superstars and NXT should become the new house shows. Extend the C-Shows to two hours long and tape them as independent, separate events.

An ideal Superstars card would be...

1. Kofi Kingston & R-Truth vs. Titus O'Neil & Darren Young
2. Randy Orton vs. David Otunga
3. Layla vs. Natalya
4. CM Punk vs Jinder Mahal
5. Jack Swagger vs. Percy Watson
6. John Cena vs. The Miz


An ideal NXT card would be...
1. Brodus Clay vs. Michael McGillicutty
2. Derrick Bateman vs. Johnny Curtis
3. Tyson Kidd & Justin Gabriel vs. Primo & Epico.
4. Yoshi Tatsu vs. Hunico
5. Zack Ryder & Alex Riley vs. Curt Hawkins & Tyler Reks

Superstars would feature some of the big names, while NXT can be the show for the newer talent, low card guys, and headlined by midcarders. Ideally Superstars can work RAW on Monday, Tape SmackDown on Tuesday, NXT on Wednesday, and Superstars on Thursday.

In order for this idea to be truly effective, they should als try to get as many Superstars over with the fans as possible. This way, the company doesn't have to rely on a "top draw" such as Cena and can shuffle wrestlers around a bit and give a few guys the night off.

 

[Defekt]

I have an idea as well.

I think that Superstars and NXT should become the new house shows. Extend the C-Shows to two hours long and tape them as independent, separate events.

This would not work.

1. As it is, NXT and Superstars are shot before Raw and Smackdown, which makes them very cheap to produce. Filming them as separate events would cause the cost of production to sky rocket.

2. House shows often feature the same matches in every town, which would not work on a weekly television show. They would have to accelerate the booking to put on another RAW/Smackdown caliber show every week.

3. Shows not featuring big stars would not draw enough fans to make it worth while. No one would pay to see the NXT card you described.

 

[d_henderson1810]

I like the way TNA did their schedule. They would film an episode of Impact Tuesday night, and then the next night on Wednesday, at the start of the month. The next week, they would do the same.

Then the remainder of the month, the wrestlers got off, except for the PPV. So, they worked only half a month, and then rested for a couple of weeks before the PPV.

Now, WWE could do a similar thing with Raw and Smackdown, by filming two weeks of shows on successive nights, two nights a week for two weeks. Then they could take time off, do tours and also the PPV.

But the problem is, Vince wants Raw live, as he is paranoid that things will leak out on the internet, if they are filmed, and then shown later.

Another idea I had, was for the WWE to take off a month after TLC, for Christmas/New Year. Have the post-TLC Raw and SD, then take a week off, where WWE show "Tribute To The Troops" and a "Year In Review" show to fill the Christmas week schedule (so you still get WWE TV, without using the wrestlers). Then resume the second week of January, which gives you three weeks to build for Royal Rumble. You don't need seven weeks between TLC and RR, so use four of them and give the wrestlers time off for the other three.

Besides, people are too busy with Christmas/New Year to worry about WWE, and don't have the money or time to spend going to a WWE show, so just rest it at the end of the year.

WWE can survive a week or two off a year. It won't kill it!

 

[ABMorales787]

The wrestling schedule today is far lighter. Most wrestlers would do more than one show a day. In the territory days, as many as you could. And most main event guys would do 60 minute matches twice. That did not stop them from having long, successful and mostly injury-free careers. It's a case of bad luck and it caught Edge.

Look at Chris Jericho. The man has gone for over 10 years without ever needing extensive surgery. And he's worked full schedule up until now. It's not really a matter of the schedule, but bad luck.