"If you only watch WWE, you're not a real wrestling fan."

3325 Views 112 Replies 77 Participants Last post by jon174, 4 d ago

PhenomenalOne11

Discussion Starter · 9 d ago

This seems to be a common sentiment amongst the hardcore audience in professional wrestling, that you have to watch all of these different companies to be a true wrestling fan, if you didn't know that Seth Rollins wrestled Joe Blogs in a spit swapping makeout match in a random bingo hall in Cleveland that one time 15 years ago you can't call yourself a wrestling fan. I exaggerate but you get what I mean.

For the most part for the world, WWE is professional wrestling, 99% of people in the world aren't aware that places like AEW, ROH, Impact, NJPW even exist. Are all the people who watch WWE because that's all they know not actually wrestling fans?

Another factor is simply time, most people don't have the time to watch more than a few hours of wrestling a week, and for most people that will be WWE. I'm personally not a fan of the current WWE product, but if I'm watching any show during the week it's probably going to be a WWE show, because they're the most easily digestable to me.

I think the whole gatekeeping nature of wrestling is silly to begin with, if you watch any company, you're a wrestling fan, doesn't matter what it is.

What do we all think?

Reactions: 5

21 - 40 of 113 Posts

Kewf1988

· #21 · 9 d ago

CivilMan61 said:
If they watch raw, nxt, and smackdown that is 7 hours and all them shows come on at night so if people work during the day they may have time at night to watch so not everyone who watches 6+ hours a week are “losers” you seem butthurt

This. And there's this thing called the weekend, and some people actually write about wrestling as their main source of income, such as Meltzer. And we are in the 2020s decade, where it's easier than ever to be an entrepreneur due to the internet.

Still, you can only watch one promotion and be a true fan, as shown by the NFL, NBA, MLB, etc. analogies, as nobody says that you need to watch NCAA, CFL, Euroleague, WNBA, Japanese baseball, etc. to be a true fan of the sport, and the same goes for watching WWE but not AEW, NWA, ROH, Impact, NJPW, etc. If that wasn't the case, nobody was a true fan during the Monday Night Wars as it was impossible to watch both Raw and Nitro unless you had two TVs.

Reactions: 3

toxicnacho

· #22 · 9 d ago

If you like wrestling, you like it. We've all found hidden gems and current day stars through whatever is ordered. WWE..great exposure..

Not the end all be all.

Reactions: 2

thorwold

· #23 · 9 d ago

PhenomenalOne11 said:
This seems to be a common sentiment amongst the hardcore audience in professional wrestling, that you have to watch all of these different companies to be a true wrestling fan, if you didn't know that Seth Rollins wrestled Joe Blogs in a spit swapping makeout match in a random bingo hall in Cleveland that one time 15 years ago you can't call yourself a wrestling fan. I exaggerate but you get what I mean.

For the most part for the world, WWE is professional wrestling, 99% of people in the world aren't aware that places like AEW, ROH, Impact, NJPW even exist. Are all the people who watch WWE because that's all they know not actually wrestling fans?

Another factor is simply time, most people don't have the time to watch more than a few hours of wrestling a week, and for most people that will be WWE. I'm personally not a fan of the current WWE product, but if I'm watching any show during the week it's probably going to be a WWE show, because they're the most easily digestable to me.

I think the whole gatekeeping nature of wrestling is silly to begin with, if you watch any company, you're a wrestling fan, doesn't matter what it is.

What do we all think?

I think you are completely fabricating the notion that this is a ‘common sentiment’ among anyone, but I would guess there is some truth to the idea that many/most WWE fans are not fans of ‘real’ wrestling. That’s a key difference.

Reactions: 1

Hotdiggity11

· #24 · 9 d ago

If you can’t name the last 5 Estonian Middleweight World Champions, I question your fandom.

Reactions: 5

Ghost Lantern

· #25 · 9 d ago

PhenomenalOne11 said:
This seems to be a common sentiment amongst the hardcore audience in professional wrestling, that you have to watch all of these different companies to be a true wrestling fan, if you didn't know that Seth Rollins wrestled Joe Blogs in a spit swapping makeout match in a random bingo hall in Cleveland that one time 15 years ago you can't call yourself a wrestling fan. I exaggerate but you get what I mean.

For the most part for the world, WWE is professional wrestling, 99% of people in the world aren't aware that places like AEW, ROH, Impact, NJPW even exist. Are all the people who watch WWE because that's all they know not actually wrestling fans?

Another factor is simply time, most people don't have the time to watch more than a few hours of wrestling a week, and for most people that will be WWE. I'm personally not a fan of the current WWE product, but if I'm watching any show during the week it's probably going to be a WWE show, because they're the most easily digestable to me.

I think the whole gatekeeping nature of wrestling is silly to begin with, if you watch any company, you're a wrestling fan, doesn't matter what it is.

What do we all think?

I do not care who watches what. Feels like drama creating drama.

Reactions: 4

CivilMan61

· #26 · 9 d ago

Ghost Lantern said:
I do not care who watches what. Feels like drama creating drama.

Well said

LifeInCattleClass

· #27 · 9 d ago

Soul Rex said:
Haha who gives a shit.

If someone says you are "not a real wrestling fan", shrug and take a big smile, you should feel proud... Hardcore wrestling fans are generally the lowest form life on earth and they smell like shit.

I R O N Y

OP, c’mon - who still says that

plus we all know its dumb - don’t care so much about what other people say

The real Axel

· #28 · 9 d ago

Soul Rex said:
Haha who gives a shit.

If someone says you are "not a real wrestling fan", shrug and take a big smile, you should feel proud... Hardcore wrestling fans are generally the lowest form life on earth and they smell like shit.

Amen. Look no further than the AEW forum, I swear I can almost smell them through my computer screen.

LifeInCattleClass said:
I R O N Y

OP, c’mon - who still says that

plus we all know its dumb - don’t care so much about what other people say

Found the stinky boi.

Kenny's Ghost

· #29 · 9 d ago

Fighting for the sake of it and people bite every time.

toon126

· #30 · 9 d ago

Watch what you enjoy. Life need not be anymore complicated than that.

Municipal Waste

· #31 · 9 d ago

Anybody who watches any wrestling and enjoys it is a “real” wrestling fan. But only enjoying one specific type of wrestling makes you a very specific type of fan, where somebody else might enjoy a wide variety of wrestling that represents a lot more of what the industry has to offer.

Like how somebody who only watches true crime is a fan of documentary programming but they’re not seeking out Errol Morris films or The Devil and Daniel Johnston based on their very specific interest in that one specific style.

Fearless Viper

· #32 · 9 d ago

They're right though. We're a not real pro wrestling fan. We are Sports Entertainment Fans!!!

Reactions: 2

T99

· #33 · 9 d ago

It's incredibly Fucking stupid to say that. It's the type of gate keeping bs that some wrestling fans have to act better. You are a wrestling fan if you chose to watch wrestling. I don't care if it is just WWE or just AEW or if you watch both or more. If you are willingly sitting down to watch wrestling because you enjoy it, you are a fan

Reactions: 2

thorn123

· #34 · 9 d ago

TIL I am a loser ….. 8+ hours a week for me

Reactions: 1

Shaz Cena

· #35 · 9 d ago

If you don’t enjoy Orange Cassidy matches you are not a real wrestling fan.

Reactions: 1

Jersey

· #36 · 9 d ago

That’s not true everyone has their own preference of wrestling.

Municipal Waste

· #37 · 9 d ago

toxicnacho said:
If you like wrestling, you like it. We've all found hidden gems and current day stars through whatever is ordered. WWE..great exposure..

Not the end all be all.

WWE keeps the industry afloat almost single-handedly and is a very welcome presence to any fan with a brain. Half the best indie shows each year happen during Mania in the same town to piggyback it.

On the converse, a lot of fans don’t find out about some of our best living wrestlers until they get to WWE in their late 20’s or early 30’s, after their best matches are behind them and their bodies start to slow down at the same time they adopt the heavier WWE schedule.

Reactions: 1

Dolorian

· #38 · 9 d ago (Edited)

"if you don't watch every baseball game, you are not a real baseball fan"
"if you don't watch every Marvel and DC movie, you are not a real comics fan"
"if you don't own and play every gaming console, you are not a real gamer"
"if you don't own every bootleg by band X, you are not a real fan"

It is just dumb gatekeeping that makes no sense.

Reactions: 5

Dr. Middy

· #39 · 9 d ago

In reality, watch whatever the fuck you want.

Wanna only watch WWE? Only AEW? Both? ROH too? NJPW, NOAH, DDT, BJW, GCW, Rev Pro, Defy, CMLL, AAA, and so on so forth.

Enjoy whatever wrestling you want to enjoy and however much of it you want from an hour to 20 and more. Life's too short to have dumb gatekeeping arguments.

Reactions: 2

PhenomenalOne11

Discussion Starter · #40 · 9 d ago

Dolorian said:
"if you don't watch every baseball game, you are not a real baseball fan"
"if you don't watch every Marvel and DC movie, you are not a real comics fan"
"if you don't own and play every gaming console, you are not a real gamer"
"if you don't own every bootleg by band X, you are not a real fan"

It is just dumb gatekeeping that makes no sense.

Exactly, it'd be like telling an NBA fan that they aren't a real basketball fan because they don't watch the Euro League.

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