Why aren't there anymore time limits?

[NxtBigThing]

So I've been watching some old time wrestling and enjoyed when they had time limits on the matches. It gave two guys a chance to look strong that didn't involve interference, dq, or a count out. Plus I found it fun to hear the ring announcer announce how much time was left so it gave a bit of realism to the matches. Does anyone know why they stopped and would you like to see the time limits come back?

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

I'm not sure why they stopped them to be honest- maybe because it was believed that fans wanted more decisive endings to matches, which would help push the story to the next weeks television show? A draw between 2 wrestlers would not help the story to progress as much as a DQ, a screwjob, interference etc resulting in the end of the match?

Just a thought, no idea if that is actually the case, but it makes sense to me.

I WOULD like to see a time limit draw occasionally, as booked right it can be extremely exciting with lots of near falls as the time limit gets close to expiring. It could be really beneficial for a young up-and-coming talent to push the Champion so close and almost get the job done. I know as NWA Champion, Ric Flair used to have matches against local territory Champions that would regularly end in Time Limit Draws, which protected the local star (and make him look good for not losing to Flair) and allowed The Nature Boy to leave still NWA Champion.

 

[Mustang Sally]

I think it's because most matches are so short, the idea of setting a time limit is extraneous since the match never gets that far......and the reason they're short is because much of today's audience (the fans in attendance) don't have the patience or interest to sit through a 20 minute contest.

Watch the folks in the first few rows at ringside and notice how many are looking anywhere but the ring. If their interest can't be held, with the action just a few feet in front of them, I can just imagine what the folks in the balcony are doing.

Then again, matches that go wild and are fought outside the ring might go longer than the stated time limit.....and the fans wouldn't want those matches cut off.

So, they got rid of time limits. Logical move, imo.

 

[stingray11214]

One of the greatest TV matches that I ever saw was an "Australian Rules Match" for the Florida title between Dory Funk, Jr. and Mike Graham. It took up the ENTIRE HOUR of Championship Wrestling from Florida. It had EVERYTHING a wrestling fan could ask for: Near falls, near submissions, action from end to end. Not withstanding Terry Funk sticking his nose (and towel) in. Even a controversial finish with the bell beating out Mike Graham's pin attempt. A great, great match.

Sadly, today's "Sports Entertainment" fan will never experience great matches like that anymore. They are more into the "I want a result NOW!" mentality, and refuse to watch a performance with a measure of awe in their eyes. The getting rid of the time limit eliminates an important element that was long in a match: the ability to improvise on the "fly" in the eyes of the viewer. Today's wrestlers are not trained in the time element anymore, which is sad in itself. They are more trained to be "entertainers" rather than "athletes". Adding a time limit element would add some urgency, but you would end up with the "What do we do now?" additive, which then makes the match crap.

Would I like to see time limits return? Absolutely. Will they? Sadly, not in this day and age. You would need to retrain a whole generation to add the time element.

 

[BestSportsEntertainer]

Who wants to see time limits return? Apparently a lot of people on this thread to begin with.

This is pro wrestling. Countouts, disqualifications, and interference will happen.

I don't want to see a really good match end due to the time running out.

You all sound like that old man who wants everything to be like it was in the 1980s.

 

[RIPbossman]

It's a big let down for fans to get invested in a match for so long, only to have no real conclusion. Plus it eats up tv time.

 

[TML3:16]

I like the idea of a draw and find it stupid that there isn't a time limit on matches. The problem with wrestling right now is nobody buys anything because it has become so unrealistic. People want to believe and buy in, thats why they watch, but it just isnt happening. Just using the actual rules of the sport could help that.

Cena/Owens could use a draw very easily at battleground. Go 30 mins, the time expires, Owens goes nuts because he can't beat Cena during a regular match, calls Cena out on Raw, another match is made for the next PPV with no timelimit, DQ etc and we get an eventual winner.

Instead of trying to create a story or force the middle of the story before you get to the end and worry about who puts who over etc, just use the basic rules to forward the story and everyone will buy into it.

 

[rmp0012002]

I think shorter time limit draws would be good for the sport. The main reasons are that today's fan has a very short attention span along with Vince having every second scripted out and timed to be over and done quickly. I also believe a lot of today's wrestlers just aren't trained to wrestle long matches since its not required.

 

[peter_midnight]

It's a big let down for fans to get invested in a match for so long, only to have no real conclusion. Plus it eats up tv time.

WTF? Modern day wrestling is filled with nothing, but non-conclusive finishes. DQs, run-ins, ref bumps, and pretty much everything else they do these days is a non-conclusive finish with no contests being the worst. If anything a draw is one of the only legitimate ways to end a match that makes sense from a sports perspective where the rematch makes sense.

In real sports DQs result in big fines, suspensions, and having more than 1 would probably result in a lifetime ban in many cases. It's pretty laughable that wrestling uses the DQ as often as they do in comparison. Personally speaking, run-ins should've been tossed out the window the second the sport became a television business that no longer had title changes on house shows. Exactly how a run-in that is seen on television doesn't result in major fines/suspensions is beyond me.

TBH, modern day wrestling in the U.S. relies on so many hotshotting moves that it just screams of lazy booking. Giant Baba had the right idea, move to nothing, but clean finishes. It's the only way to run the show w/out insulting the intelligence of the fans. Heels should find more creative ways to get fans pissed. The fact that it's 2015 and heels still win with international objects, run-ins, and other non-sense is embarrassing.

Floyd Mayweather is probably the biggest heel in legitimate sports and he wins just by taking advantage of the rules. IMO, this is exactly what every heel should work towards. If I were a heel, I would put my foot on the ropes, choke till the count of 4, take 9 seconds outside the ring when the babyface is winning, constantly complain to the ref about hairpulls and just about every unlikable thing that doesn't result in an automatic DQ. Guaranteed it would generate heat much more effectively than a run-in.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

Who wants to see time limits return? Apparently a lot of people on this thread to begin with.

This is pro wrestling. Countouts, disqualifications, and interference will happen.

I don't want to see a really good match end due to the time running out.

You all sound like that old man who wants everything to be like it was in the 1980s.

No-one on this thread is saying that they want "time limit draws" to happen all the time, but it's just ANOTHER way that the story or feud between 2 wrestlers can move forward.

Another poster mentioned about how Owens v Cena at SummerSlam could end with a time limit draw, with Owens raging because he wasn't quite able to get the win in time before the clock ran out. That would add something different to their feud, and could result in Owens "snapping" after the match and destroying Cena. I think would be good for their feud for this to happen.

If count outs, DQs and interference can all end a match instead of just a pinfall or submission, why not mix it up a bit and have the occasional time limit draw?? It's something different that we'd don't see much any more.

 

[Jeff Deliverer of Mail]

I never paid much attention to the time limit until it was overused to a puke fest rate in WCW ....there was that time when all important matches, week after week, ended with a two count and a ring bell. Some of these were very good Flair matches that went 40 minutes to an hour. The best one I ever saw ( and one of the more unexpected ring bell endings ). was Scott Steiner vs Flair for the belt. Steiner was a popular face tag team wrestler and you knew he wasn't going to be champion....but they really , really made it look like he was going to win right at the dumb bell ringing ending at the two count.