WWE rehashing WCW mistake?
Let蘑菇视频 take a trip down memory lane.
In the mid-1990s, a lot of older talent left WWE for WCW and they helped WCW take control of the Monday Night Wars after Nitro debuted in September 1995.
Wrestlers like Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage, Lex Luger, Kevin Nash and Scott Hall all showed up in WCW between 1994 and 1996 with Bret Hart arriving in late-1997.
Prior to wrestlers like those six showing up, WCW was built around Sting, Ric Flair, Vader and young performers like Booker T, Mick Foley (as Cactus Jack), Brian Pillman and a guy named 鈥淪tunning鈥� Steve Austin.
The Big Show, known as The Giant in WCW, debuted in the mid-90s, but was one of the few homegrown talent that WCW built on its own.
When Hogan and company began trickling in, two things happened. Ratings and attendance went up because fans wanted to see the former WWE stars and fans knew them.
But the influx also pushed young stars, like Austin and Booker T, down the card and for most of them, out the door to WWE.
While Booker T eventually would become a five-time WCW champion, the others would all move on to WWE. Austin arrived in December 1995, while Pillman and Foley debuted a few months later.
Yes, WCW had bigger names, but the wrestlers at the top of the card were in their 40s and 50s while WWE was being built around hungry young stars in their late-20s and early 30s.
The previously mentioned WCW stars were joined by older guys like Dallas Page, as well as its 鈥測oungster,鈥� Goldberg.
WWE, on the other hand, was being built around the likes of Austin, The Undertaker, The Rock, Foley (as Mankind), Chris Jericho, Kane and Triple H.
And, while WCW had the established names, WWE was creating new and fresh stars and it would eventually make the difference in WWE taking over WCW in the ratings on Monday nights.
WWE had the new top stars and an average midcard, while WCW had bigger names but an incredible midcard roster. WCW蘑菇视频 older stars had massive contracts, had creative control over what they did and they held down the younger guys.
Fast forward to today.
WWE has announced five matches for Mania with three having part-time stars and two more matches that will be announced will also have part-timers.
WWE champion Brock Lesnar, Universal champion Goldberg and John Cena have been announced for big matches, while The Undertaker and Edge will also have important bouts.
A generation ago, WCW made the mistake of featuring their old stars and not building up new ones.
That is exactly where WWE is now.
The same formula that buried WCW and helped WWE in the late-90s is now hurting WWE. And, the one constant that helped WWE years ago is hurting the company now, and that is Vince McMahon蘑菇视频 vision.
Could Mania be cancelled?
With the announcement that a coronavirus outbreak happened this week in Tampa, it has led to speculation about WrestleMania.
The show takes place there on April 5, but WWE released a statement Wednesday.
鈥淭he health and safety of our fans, performers and employees are our top priorities. 鈥� We remain committed to hosting WrestleMania at Raymond James Stadium on Sunday, April 5. .,. currently no plans to cancel or postpone our upcoming events.鈥�
Elimination Chamber Sunday
Before WWE can fully focus on Mania, it has to get through the Elimination Chamber show which takes place Sunday on the WWE Network.
As on Thursday night, the lineup for the show was very light and if not for the pair of chamber matches, this show would look no different than an episode of Raw or Smackdown.
One chamber match will pit Asuka, Liv Morgan, Natalya, Ruby Riott, Sarah Logan and Shayna Baszler against each other with the winner facing Raw champion Becky Lynch at Mania.
The safe call here is Baszler.
The Smackdown tag titles will be on the line in the other chamber match as The Miz and John Morrison defend the titles against The New Day, The Usos, Heavy Machinery and the team of Robert Roode and Dolph Ziggler with a sixth team expected to be added.
Four other matches have been announced with a few more to be added.
This week蘑菇视频 question
Why did Chris Jericho lose the AEW title? And what s up with the Cody Rhodes neck tattoo? Please tell me it is fake. Ryan, Uniontown.
Chris Jericho will be taking time off from AEW and should be back by the end of the summer. As far as Cody蘑菇视频 tattoo, it is real.