In my last non-WWE G1 post (written WAAAAAAY too long ago), I commented on how the element of “sport” has lost its importance in the current WWE product. This was brought on by Ryback receiving a shot at John Cena’s WWE Championship at Extreme Rules despite his having lost six consecutive matches on WWE pay-per-views. It was a glaring example of the flaws inherent in WWE’s current focus on creating what Vince McMahon proudly calls, “sports entertainment.” The current product is one that places more emphasis on plotlines that could have been pulled straight out of a script from “All My Children” or, increasingly, “Pretty Little Liars.” Granted, storylines, characters and drama have always been a part of professional wrestling and well they should be, but I wish the focus was more on the “sports” and less on the “entertainment.”
Professional wrestling combines athleticism, spectacle and theatricality to create a dramatic and entertaining product for its audience, but it has a distinct advantage from “real” sports: the results are predetermined. The ability to determine what will occur in each match should provide the creative team with more than ample material from which compelling storylines can be built and for years that is exactly how wrestling worked, mirroring its most popular rival: boxing. Drama stemmed from competition, with individual wrestlers developing rivalries while striving for their ultimate goal of winning a championship. There were, of course, wrestlers who weren’t main eventers and there were all manner of silly gimmicks, but the conflict was almost always derived from a sense of competition.
It is precisely this sense of competition that I have found so prevalent in New Japan Pro Wrestling. While not devoid entirely of backstage antics, the focus of their product is in-ring action. This focus on athleticism and storytelling has made New Japan arguably the world’s hottest wrestling promotion.
If you are familiar with New Japan, or if you have been following our blog, you know that the centerpiece of the promotion’s summer is their G1 Climax tournament. While only one man ultimately comes out on top, the booking of the tournament allows for nearly every competitor to receive some sort of push and to demonstrate their ability to perform. The tournament can be reinvigorating for veterans or a vehicle for up-and-coming superstars to stake their claim (Katsuyori Shibata seems destined to fill this role in 2013). In 2012, G1 Climax winner Kazuchika Okada used his victory as a de facto Money in the Bank briefcase and catapulted to the IWGP Heavyweight Championship.
Just before I started my fantasy booking of the WWE G1 I wrote that, given the nature of the product WWE creates and the position the company is in with television, putting on a tournament of this nature would be impossible for the world’s biggest wrestling promotion. I have since changed my mind.
Tournaments are not an alien concept to WWE. In fact, the King of the Ring tournament was eventually given its own pay per view. More recently, tournaments have been held to determine the WWE Champion (after CM Punk left the company with the title) and several developmental titles, so it wouldn’t be too far outside of the norm. The biggest and most significant difference is that the WWE has traditionally favored single-elimination tournaments which see half of the field eliminated after the first round.
Taking on something like the G1 would provide all of the competitors with multiple opportunities to shine in front of WWE’s huge audience. Instead of occupying their current roles as jobbers, midcard mainstays like Zack Ryder, Alex Riley and the guys from 3MB would have an opportunity to not simply display their talents in legitimate matches, but to score victories. Wrestlers who the WWE have dropped the ball with, such as Ryback and Jack Swagger, could be built back up with storylines developed and nurtured throughout the tournament. This is, of course, all dependent on WWE’s willingness to let some of their bigger stars lose matches. The key thing for WWE to remember is that they have guys whose status in the company would not be hurt by losing. Guys like Big Show, Kane, Chris Jericho, John Cena and CM Punk have all reached a point that even losing to a low to midcard guy isn’t going to hurt them, especially when you consider that they’ll have another opportunity to win the following night.
The nature of a tournament such as the G1 is that it will take place over several days and, originally, I thought this would be a problem for WWE. However, after giving it some more thought, I think it would actually provide WWE with an opportunity to expand the way its product is offered. WWE has its set TV schedule, with Raw on Mondays, Main Event on Wednesdays and Smackdown on Fridays and during the tournament this would remain the same. Raw could be used as a vehicle to kick off the tournament. Smackdown could air live on Tuesday as a special event, with highlights of the first two nights of the tournament airing on Main Event on Wednesday. Wednesday and Thursday could feature live house shows, airing exclusively on the WWE App and WWE.com. Friday could be used as a day off with a replay of Tuesday night’s Smackdown airing on television or, even better, another special live Smackdown could be aired featuring the next full day of action. Saturday and Sunday could again see house shows being aired on the app and the website while the next episode of Raw could be used as a grand finale to the tournament. Using the app, the website or even the WWE Network to air what would otherwise be dark events would generate traffic and buzz and could help the company move into the future embracing alternative delivery methods.
Of course, all of this is a stretch and all of this stems from my desire to see WWE go back to a more competition-driven product with rules that stay consistent and are enforced and where wins and losses mean something. Don’t get me wrong. I think the WWE’s product is better than it has been in a long time, but it can be better. By putting the focus back where it belongs—on in-ring competition with titles as the ultimate goal—their product will be stronger.
