Why not give wrestlers time off?

[OutsiderDX]

Is there a reason why the WWE does not let wrestlers take 1 month off, twice a year. Giving them a "off season"?

It just takes management some simple logistics to have a wrestler finish a fued and leave him off tv for 4 weeks.

There is enough talent that each big name wrestler doesn't need to be featured on every PPV. The smaller name wrestler's time off are easier to disguise.

Some of the time off can be storyline related, while some guys can just quietly not be written into the show.

The benefits: wrestler's have time to heal, they get a mental break, they get a "return pop"

I just think that if done properly the audience will not even notice that a wrestler is even gone for 4 weeks.

FYI- the WWE will not collapse because John Cena is gone for 4 weeks.

 

[FlairFan2003]

wrestlers do take time off, usually in storylines there are reasons for their abscence such as "injury", or they just quietly disappear for awhile after a loss, such as HHH just quietly not being around after losing his feud vs Batista for over a month.

Most WWE wrestlers have a base guaranteed pay. They get bonus for house shows, based on their match placement and the attendance. Wrestlers also get a bonus for PPV appearances, again based on the success of the event and their match placement. There are bonuses related to merchandise sales as well I believe. Contracts are guaranteed, however WWE contracts usually have "reviews", I believe every 90 days. If a talent has performance issues they are given a warning, then if WWE deems the "issue" is not resolved by the next review they can terminate the contract, even if it has significant time left on it.

A full time WWE wrestler makes around 200-250 appearances per year, most of those (not all) involve wrestling a match, so that is 200 plus matches per year. Now back in the "old days" a full time star was on the road almost all year, wrestling 300 times per year, and all the major holidays (WWE doesnt run as many shows on holidays as they and the other promotions did). Ric Flair has estimated that counting independent bookings (South America, Japan, AWA) plus his NWA obligations he averaged 380 matches per year 1981-85 (Jim Crockett Jr started restricting his non NWA bookings in 1986). Though he maybe an extreme case many guys wrestled around 300 times per year for a long time.

No doubt there was a culture during that time making it not popular for a guy to take time off for any length of time. Today Im not sure how much if at all that culture exists. However, with contracts as they are, most guys would miss significant bonus pay if they are not active.

 

[IT Factor]

With the frequency of injuries, WWE need to institute some sort of rotation schedule and allow wrestlers/entertainers time to rest. I know there is no off-season, but, there needs to be some kind of middleground between grueling schedule and off season. I know many can't afford it but it is a neccessary evil and detrimental in quality of life. Imagine how many wrestlers that could've lived longer had they rotated talent and given them time to take care of themselves. We might still have alot of gifted performers still alive and contributing. But because of their lifestyle and grueling schedule, they died all too soon. If this saves even one life, it is something WWE needs to look into.

 

[NotoriousMEAT]

Despite all the talent they have, the reason they don't give people any time off is (on top of numerous other reason) they barely have anyone to sell PPV's as it is. Need proof? The recent return of The Rock and Brock Lesnar should prove how desperate they are. Not to mention the (semi)constant use of Triple H and pulling Taker out once a year to help sell the big show. The only people on the roster today that anyone is PAYING to see is John Cena, and CM Punk. That's it. No one gives a shit enough about Sheamus, Alberto Del Rio, Randy Orton, The Miz, Big Show.. and even darlings like Daniel Bryan, Chris Jericho, or Dolph Ziggler.. to pull $50 out of their pockets. That's why all anyone can talk about is when Stone Cold is coming back to face Punk, or when Cena and The Rock will rematch, or who Undertaker will face at WrestleMania next year the very next day after WrestleMania, or what's WWE gonna do with the rest of Brock Lesnar's dates, and even ridiculous ways that Shawn Michaels might come back for one more match. ALLLLLLL of it points to how little people give a crap about today's WWE.

So... besides the fact it's their job to wrestle, and they AGREE to work 300 days a year... it's not 1940whatever or 1950blahblah. They can't build a match for 6 months through media and expect to sell out a 100,000 seat colesium. Today's wrestling fan expects consistent stimulation and entertainment. The WWE has to plunge away and try to keep the fans they have left.

 

[IT Factor]

I can understand that WWE want to keep top money makers going to generate revenue. That's just smart business. However, WWE have had to take a look at certain business elements and change them to evolve with the times. Just look at how the wellness policy changed after the Benoit tragedy. No more chair shots to the head, no piledrivers, or any other moves that immediately impact the head/neck/spine.

Eventually, I do think WWE will have to change with the times and start allowing more time off. Especially if they want their performers to live for an extended future. You either give them time off to rest up or risk the chance that they'll die prematurely from overextending themselves. You can only do that kind of grueling grind for so long before you cannot do it anymore. I think WWE have became more aware of this and will have to update the off season rule to prevent more unneccessary deaths in their business.

 

[HBsam31]

I guess I can understand why they don't get time off due to wanting to maximize the top stars time on tv, and for money making purposes, and all that. It just seems like it would be even smarter business to give them time off to minimize long term injuries, and being burnt out. It's a tough call because me being a person that employs people I can understand wanting them there all the time, but I also understand that my staff needs time to rest, be with their families, or do what ever it is that they like to do. It makes the work place more enjoyable when my staff is rested, and it also ensures that they will work hard when they are there. I think that it is something the WWE should at least experiment with.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

I do believe that this is something WWE need to consider, and I think they do in certain situations for certain superstars, especially the major names. The talent does need to be protected, and with so many wrestlers of the past having issues with painkiller addiction or problems with prescription drugs leading to so many early deaths it isn't an issue that WWE is unaware of.

Of course the fans want to see their favourites each and every week and of course WWE want to make the most money they can from each wrestler, but their health and wellbeing has to come first. Wrestlers today work alot less than in the 70s and 80s where people like Ric Flair were having 300+ matches a year and being on the road most of their lives.

I would be all for major WWE names having a month or 2 off a year to recharge their batteries, heal nagging injuries and coming back fit, healthy and motivated, getting a good return pop and starting a new storyline. It is a very good idea which will protect the talent and hopefully reduce problems that wrestlers face when burned out, constantly injured and always away from their families.

 

[Radical]

I think the problem is Vince truly thinks about business first above the welfare of the Superstars. That's why Cena hasn't really had any significant time off unless he was actually injured.

It is a pretty stupid way to do business, IMO. Actually, I think it can hurt business. People love returns but you can't have a good return if you don't LEAVE! They need more mid-top level Superstars to be written out and come back. Look at the pop Mysterio got with his return recently. It was due to a legit injury but it creates a lot of new energy.

The problem is the WWE spends way too much time pushing their top guys that their mid card guys suffer. There ARE talented Superstars that are getting looked over. I won't mention them because when I do people will laugh and only because WWE has done such a bad job of making them look good that most people would think they suck. BUT if the WWE did build up more of their mid-card Superstars they could be ready to pounce and take the top spot if they were to give their top guys some time off.

CM Punk's heel turn doesn't interest me. I'd much rather see an interesting TAKE OVER storyline where neglected heels like Swagger, Hunico & Camacho, Hawkins & Reks ACTUALLY rise up, start beating down the top compnay faces and seem to take control of the WWE for a good long while until the top faces can actually re-group and take back control.

 

[scottyshowman82]

I think that the WWE is more open to guys taking breaks now more than ever. It's a tricky situation because you don't want to loose your spot and they are taught to suck it up. I would encourage wrestlers to go to their bosses and ask for time off if they do feel mentality or physically worn out. In the long run I feel that's that best way to go and in these times I think a company like the WWE would be more willing to let them have the time.

 

[MCMG]

If you mean individuals superstars getting the odd month of than yes that is need however a proper off season for the whole company would be awful.

Giving a wrestler a small break will seriously help their long-term health and it does give them a chance to have a break which helps them and management.

 

[The 1-2-3 Killam]

Because people pay to see guys like John Cena, Randy Orton, CM Punk, Rey Mysterio, etc etc. I understand that it'd be easy to write them off TV for a month or two, but they still show up 5/7 days of the week to do house shows anyway. Televised "time off" usually means about as much as a hill of beans, except financially, to the wrestlers. Most of them, I'm assuming, would rather be on television getting a bigger paycheck, than taking Monday's off to rest up.

It's their job, you know. I don't get a month of my year off just because I'm tired and I want to spend more time with my family. Obviously I don't work near as hard as they do, but the bottom line is that being a wrestler is no different than working any other job in that aspect. They're not pure athletes who get the off-seaons to themselves. They're not pure actors who get TV off-seasons to themselves. They work the hybrid industry, and its their job to go out there and make the company money.

A lot of guys DO get time off. You can almost expect at least one minor injury per wrestler every 1-2 years. There's a couple weeks to a couple months off. Sometimes you don't make it on the card - there's another night off. It's a hectic profession, but they chose it. Nobody becomes a pro wrestler so they can take time off, you know?

 

[Honkey_Kong]

First off, wrestling is a busy business. If you're not a workaholic like Vince, you shouldn't be in the business.

Second, it's not like these guys don't know what they're getting in to. Their contracts tell them how many days they're going to compete or be on the road. If they don't want to work that many dates, they shouldn't sign the contract. That's the beauty of a capitalist economy, if you don't want to do something, you don't don't have to agree on it.

Now, I'll grant you that today's wrestling involves more physical spots than say wrestling in the 70's. The WWE doesn't make them work anywhere near as many dates as they did in the 90's or 80's. Still though if Vince was smart he wouldn't overly invest too much in to one or two guys. He needs to create more draws than just Cena and maybe Punk. WWE NEEDS to create more stars that can draw. If a couple injuries occur around the same time that take both Cena and Punk out for over a year, how do they expect to sell PPVs?

And to the guys who think being on the road too much will shorten these guys lives, that's total BS. It's not working 250+ dates a year that shortens people's lives, it's the use of illegal recreational drugs that does it. It's also the abuse of pain killers too, but if the wrestler can't cope with the pain of being on the road, he should notify management that he's hurt rather than just use drugs and continue.