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States</span> </div> </a> <button aria-controls="toc-History_in_the_United_States-sublist" class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only vector-toc-toggle"> <span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-expand"></span> <span>Toggle History in the United States subsection</span> </button> <ul id="toc-History_in_the_United_States-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-From_sport_to_performance_art" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#From_sport_to_performance_art"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.1</span> <span>From sport to performance art</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-From_sport_to_performance_art-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Cartelization" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Cartelization"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.2</span> <span>Cartelization</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Cartelization-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Transition_towards_pure_entertainment" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Transition_towards_pure_entertainment"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.3</span> <span>Transition towards pure entertainment</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Transition_towards_pure_entertainment-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Evolution_in_television_age" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Evolution_in_television_age"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.4</span> <span>Evolution in television age</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Evolution_in_television_age-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Development_of_stylistic_conventions" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Development_of_stylistic_conventions"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.5</span> <span>Development of stylistic conventions</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Development_of_stylistic_conventions-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Rise_and_fall_of_promoter_cartels" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Rise_and_fall_of_promoter_cartels"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.6</span> <span>Rise and fall of promoter cartels</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Rise_and_fall_of_promoter_cartels-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Consolidation_and_renewed_growth" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Consolidation_and_renewed_growth"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.7</span> <span>Consolidation and renewed growth</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Consolidation_and_renewed_growth-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Industry_conventions" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Industry_conventions"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">3</span> <span>Industry conventions</span> </div> </a> <button aria-controls="toc-Industry_conventions-sublist" class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only vector-toc-toggle"> <span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-expand"></span> <span>Toggle Industry conventions subsection</span> </button> <ul id="toc-Industry_conventions-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Kayfabe" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Kayfabe"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">3.1</span> <span>Kayfabe</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Kayfabe-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Sports_entertainment" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Sports_entertainment"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">3.2</span> <span>Sports entertainment</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Sports_entertainment-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Performance_aspects" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Performance_aspects"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">3.3</span> <span>Performance aspects</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Performance_aspects-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Rules_and_other_dramatic_elements" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Rules_and_other_dramatic_elements"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4</span> <span>Rules and other dramatic elements</span> </div> </a> <button aria-controls="toc-Rules_and_other_dramatic_elements-sublist" class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only vector-toc-toggle"> <span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-expand"></span> <span>Toggle Rules and other dramatic elements subsection</span> </button> <ul id="toc-Rules_and_other_dramatic_elements-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Structure_of_performances" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Structure_of_performances"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4.1</span> <span>Structure of performances</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Structure_of_performances-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Tag_rules" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Tag_rules"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4.2</span> <span>Tag rules</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Tag_rules-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Victory" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Victory"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4.3</span> <span>Victory</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Victory-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Pinfall" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Pinfall"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4.3.1</span> <span>Pinfall</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Pinfall-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Submission" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Submission"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4.3.2</span> <span>Submission</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Submission-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Knockout" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Knockout"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4.3.3</span> <span>Knockout</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Knockout-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Countout" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Countout"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4.3.4</span> <span>Countout</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Countout-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Disqualification" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Disqualification"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4.3.5</span> <span>Disqualification</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Disqualification-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Forfeit" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Forfeit"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4.3.6</span> <span>Forfeit</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Forfeit-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Draw" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Draw"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4.3.7</span> <span>Draw</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Draw-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-No_contest" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#No_contest"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4.3.8</span> <span>No contest</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-No_contest-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Other_dramatic_elements" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Other_dramatic_elements"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4.4</span> <span>Other dramatic elements</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Other_dramatic_elements-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Character_gimmicks" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Character_gimmicks"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4.4.1</span> <span>Character gimmicks</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Character_gimmicks-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Story" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Story"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4.4.2</span> <span>Story</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Story-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Promos" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-4"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Promos"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4.4.2.1</span> <span>Promos</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Promos-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Championships" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Championships"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4.4.3</span> <span>Championships</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Championships-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Ring_entrance" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Ring_entrance"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4.4.4</span> <span>Ring entrance</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Ring_entrance-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Training_and_qualifications" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Training_and_qualifications"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">5</span> <span>Training and qualifications</span> </div> </a> <button aria-controls="toc-Training_and_qualifications-sublist" class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only vector-toc-toggle"> <span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-expand"></span> <span>Toggle Training and qualifications subsection</span> </button> <ul id="toc-Training_and_qualifications-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Occupational_hazards" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Occupational_hazards"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">5.1</span> <span>Occupational hazards</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Occupational_hazards-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Regional_variations_and_subgenres" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Regional_variations_and_subgenres"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">6</span> <span>Regional variations and subgenres</span> </div> </a> <button aria-controls="toc-Regional_variations_and_subgenres-sublist" class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only vector-toc-toggle"> <span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-expand"></span> <span>Toggle Regional variations and subgenres subsection</span> </button> <ul id="toc-Regional_variations_and_subgenres-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Women's_wrestling" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Women's_wrestling"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">6.1</span> <span>Women's wrestling</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Women's_wrestling-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Intergender" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Intergender"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">6.2</span> <span>Intergender</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Intergender-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Midget_wrestling" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Midget_wrestling"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">6.3</span> <span>Midget wrestling</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Midget_wrestling-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Culture_and_sociology" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Culture_and_sociology"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">7</span> <span>Culture and sociology</span> </div> </a> <button aria-controls="toc-Culture_and_sociology-sublist" class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only vector-toc-toggle"> <span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-expand"></span> <span>Toggle Culture and sociology subsection</span> </button> <ul id="toc-Culture_and_sociology-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Mainstream_popularity" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Mainstream_popularity"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">7.1</span> <span>Mainstream popularity</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Mainstream_popularity-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Measures_of_popularity" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Measures_of_popularity"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">7.1.1</span> <span>Measures of popularity</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Measures_of_popularity-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Study_and_analysis" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Study_and_analysis"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">7.2</span> <span>Study and analysis</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Study_and_analysis-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-See_also" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#See_also"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8</span> <span>See also</span> </div> </a> <button aria-controls="toc-See_also-sublist" class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only vector-toc-toggle"> <span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-expand"></span> <span>Toggle See also subsection</span> </button> <ul id="toc-See_also-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Terminology" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Terminology"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8.1</span> <span>Terminology</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Terminology-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Lists_of_wrestlers" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Lists_of_wrestlers"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8.2</span> <span>Lists of wrestlers</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Lists_of_wrestlers-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Types_of_professional_wrestling" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Types_of_professional_wrestling"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8.3</span> <span>Types of professional wrestling</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Types_of_professional_wrestling-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Related_genres_and_topics" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Related_genres_and_topics"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8.4</span> <span>Related genres and topics</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Related_genres_and_topics-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Radio_programs" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Radio_programs"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8.5</span> <span>Radio programs</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Radio_programs-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-In_fiction" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#In_fiction"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8.6</span> <span>In fiction</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-In_fiction-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-References" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#References"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">9</span> <span>References</span> </div> </a> <button aria-controls="toc-References-sublist" class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only vector-toc-toggle"> <span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-expand"></span> <span>Toggle References subsection</span> </button> <ul id="toc-References-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Notes" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Notes"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">9.1</span> <span>Notes</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Notes-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Citations" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Citations"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">9.2</span> <span>Citations</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Citations-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Sources" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Sources"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">9.3</span> <span>Sources</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Sources-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Further_reading" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Further_reading"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">10</span> <span>Further reading</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Further_reading-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-External_links" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#External_links"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">11</span> <span>External links</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-External_links-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </div> <div class="mw-content-container"> <main id="content" class="mw-body"> <header class="mw-body-header vector-page-titlebar"> <nav aria-label="Contents" class="vector-toc-landmark"> <div id="vector-page-titlebar-toc" class="vector-dropdown vector-page-titlebar-toc vector-button-flush-left" title="Table of Contents" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-page-titlebar-toc-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-page-titlebar-toc" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Toggle the table of contents" > <label id="vector-page-titlebar-toc-label" for="vector-page-titlebar-toc-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only " aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-listBullet mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-listBullet"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Toggle the table of contents</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="vector-page-titlebar-toc-unpinned-container" class="vector-unpinned-container"> </div> </div> </div> </nav> <h1 id="firstHeading" class="firstHeading mw-first-heading"><span class="mw-page-title-main">Professional wrestling</span></h1> <div id="p-lang-btn" class="vector-dropdown mw-portlet mw-portlet-lang" > <input type="checkbox" id="p-lang-btn-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-p-lang-btn" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox mw-interlanguage-selector" aria-label="Go to an article in another language. Available in 61 languages" > <label id="p-lang-btn-label" for="p-lang-btn-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--action-progressive mw-portlet-lang-heading-61" aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-language-progressive mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-language-progressive"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">61 languages</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-af mw-list-item"><a href="https://af.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rofstoei" title="Rofstoei – Afrikaans" lang="af" hreflang="af" data-title="Rofstoei" data-language-autonym="Afrikaans" data-language-local-name="Afrikaans" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Afrikaans</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ar mw-list-item"><a href="https://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D9%85%D8%B5%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%B9%D8%A9_%D9%85%D8%AD%D8%AA%D8%B1%D9%81%D8%A9" title="مصارعة محترفة – Arabic" lang="ar" hreflang="ar" data-title="مصارعة محترفة" data-language-autonym="العربية" data-language-local-name="Arabic" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>العربية</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ast mw-list-item"><a href="https://ast.wikipedia.org/wiki/Llucha_llibre_profesional" title="Llucha llibre profesional – Asturian" lang="ast" hreflang="ast" data-title="Llucha llibre profesional" data-language-autonym="Asturianu" data-language-local-name="Asturian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Asturianu</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-az mw-list-item"><a href="https://az.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pe%C5%9F%C9%99kar_g%C3%BCl%C9%99%C5%9F" title="Peşəkar güləş – Azerbaijani" lang="az" hreflang="az" data-title="Peşəkar güləş" data-language-autonym="Azərbaycanca" data-language-local-name="Azerbaijani" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Azərbaycanca</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-azb mw-list-item"><a href="https://azb.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%AD%D8%B1%D9%81%D9%87%E2%80%8C%D8%A7%DB%8C_%DA%AF%D9%88%D9%84%D8%B4" title="حرفه‌ای گولش – South Azerbaijani" lang="azb" hreflang="azb" data-title="حرفه‌ای گولش" data-language-autonym="تۆرکجه" data-language-local-name="South Azerbaijani" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>تۆرکجه</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-bn mw-list-item"><a href="https://bn.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%A6%AA%E0%A7%87%E0%A6%B6%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%A6%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%B0%E0%A6%BF_%E0%A6%95%E0%A7%81%E0%A6%B8%E0%A7%8D%E0%A6%A4%E0%A6%BF" title="পেশাদারি কুস্তি – Bangla" lang="bn" hreflang="bn" data-title="পেশাদারি কুস্তি" data-language-autonym="বাংলা" data-language-local-name="Bangla" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>বাংলা</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-bg mw-list-item"><a href="https://bg.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%9A%D0%B5%D1%87" title="Кеч – Bulgarian" lang="bg" hreflang="bg" data-title="Кеч" data-language-autonym="Български" data-language-local-name="Bulgarian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Български</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-bar badge-Q17437796 badge-featuredarticle mw-list-item" title="featured article badge"><a href="https://bar.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wrestling" title="Wrestling – Bavarian" lang="bar" hreflang="bar" data-title="Wrestling" data-language-autonym="Boarisch" data-language-local-name="Bavarian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Boarisch</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-br mw-list-item"><a href="https://br.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katch" title="Katch – Breton" lang="br" hreflang="br" data-title="Katch" data-language-autonym="Brezhoneg" data-language-local-name="Breton" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Brezhoneg</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ca mw-list-item"><a href="https://ca.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lluita_lliure_professional" title="Lluita lliure professional – Catalan" lang="ca" hreflang="ca" data-title="Lluita lliure professional" data-language-autonym="Català" data-language-local-name="Catalan" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Català</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-cs mw-list-item"><a href="https://cs.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wrestling" title="Wrestling – Czech" lang="cs" hreflang="cs" data-title="Wrestling" data-language-autonym="Čeština" data-language-local-name="Czech" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Čeština</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-cy mw-list-item"><a href="https://cy.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ymgodymu_proffesiynol" title="Ymgodymu proffesiynol – Welsh" lang="cy" hreflang="cy" data-title="Ymgodymu proffesiynol" data-language-autonym="Cymraeg" data-language-local-name="Welsh" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Cymraeg</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-da mw-list-item"><a href="https://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wrestling" title="Wrestling – Danish" lang="da" hreflang="da" data-title="Wrestling" data-language-autonym="Dansk" data-language-local-name="Danish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Dansk</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-de mw-list-item"><a href="https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wrestling" title="Wrestling – German" lang="de" hreflang="de" data-title="Wrestling" data-language-autonym="Deutsch" data-language-local-name="German" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Deutsch</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-et mw-list-item"><a href="https://et.wikipedia.org/wiki/Professionaalne_maadlus" title="Professionaalne maadlus – Estonian" lang="et" hreflang="et" data-title="Professionaalne maadlus" data-language-autonym="Eesti" data-language-local-name="Estonian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Eesti</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-es mw-list-item"><a href="https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucha_libre_profesional" title="Lucha libre profesional – Spanish" lang="es" hreflang="es" data-title="Lucha libre profesional" data-language-autonym="Español" data-language-local-name="Spanish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Español</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-eo mw-list-item"><a href="https://eo.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spektakla_luktado" title="Spektakla luktado – Esperanto" lang="eo" hreflang="eo" data-title="Spektakla luktado" data-language-autonym="Esperanto" data-language-local-name="Esperanto" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Esperanto</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-eu mw-list-item"><a href="https://eu.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borroka_profesional" title="Borroka profesional – Basque" lang="eu" hreflang="eu" data-title="Borroka profesional" data-language-autonym="Euskara" data-language-local-name="Basque" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Euskara</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-fa mw-list-item"><a href="https://fa.wikipedia.org/wiki/%DA%A9%D8%B4%D8%AA%DB%8C_%DA%A9%D8%AC" title="کشتی کج – Persian" lang="fa" hreflang="fa" data-title="کشتی کج" data-language-autonym="فارسی" data-language-local-name="Persian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>فارسی</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-fr mw-list-item"><a href="https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catch" title="Catch – French" lang="fr" hreflang="fr" data-title="Catch" data-language-autonym="Français" data-language-local-name="French" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Français</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ko mw-list-item"><a href="https://ko.wikipedia.org/wiki/%ED%94%84%EB%A1%9C%EB%A0%88%EC%8A%AC%EB%A7%81" title="프로레슬링 – Korean" lang="ko" hreflang="ko" data-title="프로레슬링" data-language-autonym="한국어" data-language-local-name="Korean" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>한국어</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-hy mw-list-item"><a href="https://hy.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D5%8A%D6%80%D5%B8%D6%86%D5%A5%D5%BD%D5%AB%D5%B8%D5%B6%D5%A1%D5%AC_%D5%A8%D5%B4%D5%A2%D5%B7%D5%A1%D5%B4%D5%A1%D6%80%D5%BF" title="Պրոֆեսիոնալ ըմբշամարտ – Armenian" lang="hy" hreflang="hy" data-title="Պրոֆեսիոնալ ըմբշամարտ" data-language-autonym="Հայերեն" data-language-local-name="Armenian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Հայերեն</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-hr mw-list-item"><a href="https://hr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Profesionalno_hrvanje" title="Profesionalno hrvanje – Croatian" lang="hr" hreflang="hr" data-title="Profesionalno hrvanje" data-language-autonym="Hrvatski" data-language-local-name="Croatian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Hrvatski</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-id mw-list-item"><a href="https://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulat_profesional" title="Gulat profesional – Indonesian" lang="id" hreflang="id" data-title="Gulat profesional" data-language-autonym="Bahasa Indonesia" data-language-local-name="Indonesian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Bahasa Indonesia</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-it mw-list-item"><a href="https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wrestling" title="Wrestling – Italian" lang="it" hreflang="it" data-title="Wrestling" data-language-autonym="Italiano" data-language-local-name="Italian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Italiano</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-he mw-list-item"><a href="https://he.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D7%94%D7%99%D7%90%D7%91%D7%A7%D7%95%D7%AA_%D7%9E%D7%A7%D7%A6%D7%95%D7%A2%D7%99%D7%AA" title="היאבקות מקצועית – Hebrew" lang="he" hreflang="he" data-title="היאבקות מקצועית" data-language-autonym="עברית" data-language-local-name="Hebrew" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>עברית</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ka mw-list-item"><a href="https://ka.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E1%83%A0%E1%83%94%E1%83%A1%E1%83%9A%E1%83%98%E1%83%9C%E1%83%92%E1%83%98" title="რესლინგი – Georgian" lang="ka" hreflang="ka" data-title="რესლინგი" data-language-autonym="ქართული" data-language-local-name="Georgian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>ქართული</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-kk mw-list-item"><a href="https://kk.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%A0%D0%B5%D1%81%D0%BB%D0%B8%D0%BD%D0%B3" title="Реслинг – Kazakh" lang="kk" hreflang="kk" data-title="Реслинг" data-language-autonym="Қазақша" data-language-local-name="Kazakh" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Қазақша</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ku mw-list-item"><a href="https://ku.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gem%C5%9Fa_profesyonel" title="Gemşa profesyonel – Kurdish" lang="ku" hreflang="ku" data-title="Gemşa profesyonel" data-language-autonym="Kurdî" data-language-local-name="Kurdish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Kurdî</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ln mw-list-item"><a href="https://ln.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%C3%ADbanda" title="Líbanda – Lingala" lang="ln" hreflang="ln" data-title="Líbanda" data-language-autonym="Lingála" data-language-local-name="Lingala" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Lingála</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-hu mw-list-item"><a href="https://hu.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pankr%C3%A1ci%C3%B3" title="Pankráció – Hungarian" lang="hu" hreflang="hu" data-title="Pankráció" data-language-autonym="Magyar" data-language-local-name="Hungarian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Magyar</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-mk mw-list-item"><a href="https://mk.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%9A%D0%B5%D1%87" title="Кеч – Macedonian" lang="mk" hreflang="mk" data-title="Кеч" data-language-autonym="Македонски" data-language-local-name="Macedonian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Македонски</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ms mw-list-item"><a href="https://ms.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gusti_profesional" title="Gusti profesional – Malay" lang="ms" hreflang="ms" data-title="Gusti profesional" data-language-autonym="Bahasa Melayu" data-language-local-name="Malay" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Bahasa Melayu</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-nl mw-list-item"><a href="https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Professioneel_worstelen" title="Professioneel worstelen – Dutch" lang="nl" hreflang="nl" data-title="Professioneel worstelen" data-language-autonym="Nederlands" data-language-local-name="Dutch" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Nederlands</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ja mw-list-item"><a href="https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%97%E3%83%AD%E3%83%AC%E3%82%B9" title="プロレス – Japanese" lang="ja" hreflang="ja" data-title="プロレス" data-language-autonym="日本語" data-language-local-name="Japanese" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>日本語</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-no mw-list-item"><a href="https://no.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wrestling" title="Wrestling – Norwegian Bokmål" lang="nb" hreflang="nb" data-title="Wrestling" data-language-autonym="Norsk bokmål" data-language-local-name="Norwegian Bokmål" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Norsk bokmål</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-nn mw-list-item"><a href="https://nn.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wrestling" title="Wrestling – Norwegian Nynorsk" lang="nn" hreflang="nn" data-title="Wrestling" data-language-autonym="Norsk nynorsk" data-language-local-name="Norwegian Nynorsk" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Norsk nynorsk</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-oc mw-list-item"><a href="https://oc.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catch" title="Catch – Occitan" lang="oc" hreflang="oc" data-title="Catch" data-language-autonym="Occitan" data-language-local-name="Occitan" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Occitan</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-uz mw-list-item"><a href="https://uz.wikipedia.org/wiki/Professional_kurash" title="Professional kurash – Uzbek" lang="uz" hreflang="uz" data-title="Professional kurash" data-language-autonym="Oʻzbekcha / ўзбекча" data-language-local-name="Uzbek" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Oʻzbekcha / ўзбекча</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-pl mw-list-item"><a href="https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wrestling" title="Wrestling – Polish" lang="pl" hreflang="pl" data-title="Wrestling" data-language-autonym="Polski" data-language-local-name="Polish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Polski</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-pt mw-list-item"><a href="https://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luta_profissional" title="Luta profissional – Portuguese" lang="pt" hreflang="pt" data-title="Luta profissional" data-language-autonym="Português" data-language-local-name="Portuguese" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Português</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ro mw-list-item"><a href="https://ro.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wrestling" title="Wrestling – Romanian" lang="ro" hreflang="ro" data-title="Wrestling" data-language-autonym="Română" data-language-local-name="Romanian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Română</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ru mw-list-item"><a href="https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%A0%D0%B5%D1%81%D0%BB%D0%B8%D0%BD%D0%B3" title="Реслинг – Russian" lang="ru" hreflang="ru" data-title="Реслинг" data-language-autonym="Русский" data-language-local-name="Russian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Русский</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-sc mw-list-item"><a href="https://sc.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wrestling" title="Wrestling – Sardinian" lang="sc" hreflang="sc" data-title="Wrestling" data-language-autonym="Sardu" data-language-local-name="Sardinian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Sardu</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-simple mw-list-item"><a href="https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Professional_wrestling" title="Professional wrestling – Simple English" lang="en-simple" hreflang="en-simple" data-title="Professional wrestling" data-language-autonym="Simple English" data-language-local-name="Simple English" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Simple English</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-sk mw-list-item"><a href="https://sk.wikipedia.org/wiki/Profesion%C3%A1lny_wrestling" title="Profesionálny wrestling – Slovak" lang="sk" hreflang="sk" data-title="Profesionálny wrestling" data-language-autonym="Slovenčina" data-language-local-name="Slovak" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Slovenčina</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-sr mw-list-item"><a href="https://sr.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%9F%D1%80%D0%BE%D1%84%D0%B5%D1%81%D0%B8%D0%BE%D0%BD%D0%B0%D0%BB%D0%BD%D0%BE_%D1%80%D0%B2%D0%B0%D1%9A%D0%B5" title="Професионално рвање – Serbian" lang="sr" hreflang="sr" data-title="Професионално рвање" data-language-autonym="Српски / srpski" data-language-local-name="Serbian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Српски / srpski</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-sh mw-list-item"><a href="https://sh.wikipedia.org/wiki/Profesionalno_hrvanje" title="Profesionalno hrvanje – Serbo-Croatian" lang="sh" hreflang="sh" data-title="Profesionalno hrvanje" data-language-autonym="Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски" data-language-local-name="Serbo-Croatian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-fi mw-list-item"><a href="https://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Showpaini" title="Showpaini – Finnish" lang="fi" hreflang="fi" data-title="Showpaini" data-language-autonym="Suomi" data-language-local-name="Finnish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Suomi</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-sv mw-list-item"><a href="https://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fribrottning" title="Fribrottning – Swedish" lang="sv" hreflang="sv" data-title="Fribrottning" data-language-autonym="Svenska" data-language-local-name="Swedish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Svenska</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ta mw-list-item"><a href="https://ta.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%AE%B5%E0%AE%B2%E0%AF%8D%E0%AE%B2%E0%AF%81%E0%AE%A9%E0%AE%B0%E0%AF%8D_%E0%AE%AE%E0%AE%B2%E0%AF%8D%E0%AE%B2%E0%AE%BE%E0%AE%9F%E0%AE%B2%E0%AF%8D" title="வல்லுனர் மல்லாடல் – Tamil" lang="ta" hreflang="ta" data-title="வல்லுனர் மல்லாடல்" data-language-autonym="தமிழ்" data-language-local-name="Tamil" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>தமிழ்</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-th mw-list-item"><a href="https://th.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%A7%E0%B8%A2%E0%B8%9B%E0%B8%A5%E0%B9%89%E0%B8%B3%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%8A%E0%B8%B5%E0%B8%9E" title="มวยปล้ำอาชีพ – Thai" lang="th" hreflang="th" data-title="มวยปล้ำอาชีพ" data-language-autonym="ไทย" data-language-local-name="Thai" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>ไทย</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-tr mw-list-item"><a href="https://tr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Profesyonel_g%C3%BCre%C5%9F" title="Profesyonel güreş – Turkish" lang="tr" hreflang="tr" data-title="Profesyonel güreş" data-language-autonym="Türkçe" data-language-local-name="Turkish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Türkçe</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-uk mw-list-item"><a href="https://uk.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%A0%D0%B5%D1%81%D0%BB%D1%96%D0%BD%D0%B3" title="Реслінг – Ukrainian" lang="uk" hreflang="uk" data-title="Реслінг" data-language-autonym="Українська" data-language-local-name="Ukrainian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Українська</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ur mw-list-item"><a href="https://ur.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D9%BE%DB%8C%D8%B4%DB%81_%D9%88%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%86%DB%81_%DA%A9%D8%B4%D8%AA%DB%8C" title="پیشہ ورانہ کشتی – Urdu" lang="ur" hreflang="ur" data-title="پیشہ ورانہ کشتی" data-language-autonym="اردو" data-language-local-name="Urdu" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>اردو</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-vep mw-list-item"><a href="https://vep.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resling" title="Resling – Veps" lang="vep" hreflang="vep" data-title="Resling" data-language-autonym="Vepsän kel’" data-language-local-name="Veps" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Vepsän kel’</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-vi mw-list-item"><a href="https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C4%90%E1%BA%A5u_v%E1%BA%ADt_chuy%C3%AAn_nghi%E1%BB%87p" title="Đấu vật chuyên nghiệp – Vietnamese" lang="vi" hreflang="vi" data-title="Đấu vật chuyên nghiệp" data-language-autonym="Tiếng Việt" data-language-local-name="Vietnamese" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Tiếng Việt</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-wuu mw-list-item"><a href="https://wuu.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E8%81%8C%E4%B8%9A%E6%91%94%E8%A7%92" 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data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-appearance.unpin">hide</button> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </div> <div id="bodyContent" class="vector-body" aria-labelledby="firstHeading" data-mw-ve-target-container> <div class="vector-body-before-content"> <div class="mw-indicators"> </div> <div id="siteSub" class="noprint">From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</div> </div> <div id="contentSub"><div id="mw-content-subtitle"></div></div> <div id="mw-content-text" class="mw-body-content"><div class="mw-content-ltr mw-parser-output" lang="en" dir="ltr"><div class="shortdescription nomobile noexcerpt noprint searchaux" style="display:none">Form of athletic theater</div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1236090951">.mw-parser-output .hatnote{font-style:italic}.mw-parser-output div.hatnote{padding-left:1.6em;margin-bottom:0.5em}.mw-parser-output .hatnote i{font-style:normal}.mw-parser-output .hatnote+link+.hatnote{margin-top:-0.5em}@media print{body.ns-0 .mw-parser-output .hatnote{display:none!important}}</style><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">This article is about wrestling as a physical branch of choreographed theater. For the legitimate combat sport, see <a href="/wiki/Wrestling" title="Wrestling">Wrestling</a>.</div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">"Pro wrestling" redirects here. For other uses, see <a href="/wiki/Pro_wrestling_(disambiguation)" class="mw-disambig" title="Pro wrestling (disambiguation)">Pro wrestling (disambiguation)</a>.</div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1251242444">.mw-parser-output .ambox{border:1px solid #a2a9b1;border-left:10px solid #36c;background-color:#fbfbfb;box-sizing:border-box}.mw-parser-output .ambox+link+.ambox,.mw-parser-output .ambox+link+style+.ambox,.mw-parser-output .ambox+link+link+.ambox,.mw-parser-output .ambox+.mw-empty-elt+link+.ambox,.mw-parser-output .ambox+.mw-empty-elt+link+style+.ambox,.mw-parser-output .ambox+.mw-empty-elt+link+link+.ambox{margin-top:-1px}html body.mediawiki .mw-parser-output .ambox.mbox-small-left{margin:4px 1em 4px 0;overflow:hidden;width:238px;border-collapse:collapse;font-size:88%;line-height:1.25em}.mw-parser-output .ambox-speedy{border-left:10px solid #b32424;background-color:#fee7e6}.mw-parser-output .ambox-delete{border-left:10px solid #b32424}.mw-parser-output .ambox-content{border-left:10px solid #f28500}.mw-parser-output .ambox-style{border-left:10px solid #fc3}.mw-parser-output .ambox-move{border-left:10px solid #9932cc}.mw-parser-output .ambox-protection{border-left:10px solid #a2a9b1}.mw-parser-output .ambox .mbox-text{border:none;padding:0.25em 0.5em;width:100%}.mw-parser-output .ambox .mbox-image{border:none;padding:2px 0 2px 0.5em;text-align:center}.mw-parser-output .ambox .mbox-imageright{border:none;padding:2px 0.5em 2px 0;text-align:center}.mw-parser-output .ambox .mbox-empty-cell{border:none;padding:0;width:1px}.mw-parser-output .ambox .mbox-image-div{width:52px}@media(min-width:720px){.mw-parser-output .ambox{margin:0 10%}}@media print{body.ns-0 .mw-parser-output .ambox{display:none!important}}</style><table class="box-Original_research plainlinks metadata ambox ambox-content ambox-Original_research" role="presentation"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image"><div class="mbox-image-div"><span typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/b4/Ambox_important.svg/40px-Ambox_important.svg.png" decoding="async" width="40" height="40" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/b4/Ambox_important.svg/60px-Ambox_important.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/b4/Ambox_important.svg/80px-Ambox_important.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="40" data-file-height="40" /></span></span></div></td><td class="mbox-text"><div class="mbox-text-span">This article <b>possibly contains <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:No_original_research" title="Wikipedia:No original research">original research</a></b>.<span class="hide-when-compact"> Please <a class="external text" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit">improve it</a> by <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">verifying</a> the claims made and adding <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sources#Inline_citations" title="Wikipedia:Citing sources">inline citations</a>. Statements consisting only of original research should be removed.</span> <span class="date-container"><i>(<span class="date">July 2023</span>)</i></span><span class="hide-when-compact"><i> (<small><a href="/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal" title="Help:Maintenance template removal">Learn how and when to remove this message</a></small>)</i></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Christopher_Daniels_1.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3f/Christopher_Daniels_1.jpg/260px-Christopher_Daniels_1.jpg" decoding="async" width="260" height="173" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3f/Christopher_Daniels_1.jpg/390px-Christopher_Daniels_1.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3f/Christopher_Daniels_1.jpg/520px-Christopher_Daniels_1.jpg 2x" data-file-width="3888" data-file-height="2592" /></a><figcaption><a href="/wiki/Christopher_Daniels" title="Christopher Daniels">Christopher Daniels</a> (diving) and <a href="/wiki/Jonny_Storm" title="Jonny Storm">Jonny Storm</a> perform a <a href="/wiki/Flying_crossbody" class="mw-redirect" title="Flying crossbody">flying crossbody</a>; the move requires coordination between both wrestlers in order to ensure the safety of each.<sup id="cite_ref-:3_1-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:3-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup></figcaption></figure> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1129693374">.mw-parser-output .hlist dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul{margin:0;padding:0}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt,.mw-parser-output .hlist li{margin:0;display:inline}.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline,.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline ul,.mw-parser-output .hlist dl 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.sidebar:not(.notheme) .sidebar-title-with-pretitle{background:transparent!important}html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .sidebar:not(.notheme) .sidebar-title-with-pretitle a{color:var(--color-progressive)!important}}@media print{body.ns-0 .mw-parser-output .sidebar{display:none!important}}</style><table class="sidebar sidebar-collapse nomobile nowraplinks" style="border: 4px double #3633FF;border-spacing:0.2em 0;"><tbody><tr><td class="sidebar-pretitle">Part of <a href="/wiki/Category:Professional_wrestling" title="Category:Professional wrestling">a series</a> on</td></tr><tr><th class="sidebar-title-with-pretitle"><a class="mw-selflink selflink">Professional wrestling</a></th></tr><tr><td class="sidebar-image"><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Wrestling_-_Sikeston,_MO_1938_-_1.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b5/Wrestling_-_Sikeston%2C_MO_1938_-_1.jpg/175px-Wrestling_-_Sikeston%2C_MO_1938_-_1.jpg" decoding="async" width="175" height="116" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b5/Wrestling_-_Sikeston%2C_MO_1938_-_1.jpg/263px-Wrestling_-_Sikeston%2C_MO_1938_-_1.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b5/Wrestling_-_Sikeston%2C_MO_1938_-_1.jpg/350px-Wrestling_-_Sikeston%2C_MO_1938_-_1.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1300" data-file-height="865" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><td class="sidebar-content"> <div class="sidebar-list mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><div class="sidebar-list-title" style="background:transparent; border-top:1px solid #3633FF; text-align:center;;color: var(--color-base)">History</div><div class="sidebar-list-content mw-collapsible-content hlist" style="padding-top:0;"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/History_of_professional_wrestling" title="History of professional wrestling">History of professional wrestling</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Template:Years_in_professional_wrestling" title="Template:Years in professional wrestling">By year</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Early_wrestling_championships" title="Early wrestling championships">Early wrestling championships</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Gold_Dust_Trio" title="Gold Dust Trio">Gold Dust Trio</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1980s_professional_wrestling_boom" title="1980s professional wrestling boom">1980s boom</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Black_Saturday_(professional_wrestling)" title="Black Saturday (professional wrestling)">Black Saturday</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/NWA_World_Title_Tournament" title="NWA World Title Tournament">1994 NWA World Title Tournament</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Monday_Night_War" title="Monday Night War">Monday Night War</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Attitude_Era" title="Attitude Era">Attitude Era</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2000_All_Japan_Pro_Wrestling_mass_exodus" title="2000 All Japan Pro Wrestling mass exodus">2000 All Japan Pro Wrestling mass exodus</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/The_Invasion_(professional_wrestling)" title="The Invasion (professional wrestling)">The Invasion</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wednesday_Night_Wars" title="Wednesday Night Wars">Wednesday Night Wars</a></li></ul></div></div></td> </tr><tr><td class="sidebar-content"> <div class="sidebar-list mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><div class="sidebar-list-title" style="background:transparent; border-top:1px solid #3633FF; text-align:center;;color: var(--color-base)">Notable promotions</div><div class="sidebar-list-content mw-collapsible-content hlist" style="padding-top:0;"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/All_Elite_Wrestling" title="All Elite Wrestling">All Elite Wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/All_Japan_Pro_Wrestling" title="All Japan Pro Wrestling">All Japan Pro Wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/All_Japan_Women%27s_Pro-Wrestling" title="All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling">All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/All_Star_Wrestling" title="All Star Wrestling">All Star Wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/American_Wrestling_Association" title="American Wrestling Association">American Wrestling Association</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Consejo_Mundial_de_Lucha_Libre" title="Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre">Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Extreme_Championship_Wrestling" title="Extreme Championship Wrestling">Extreme Championship Wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/DDT_Pro-Wrestling" title="DDT Pro-Wrestling">DDT Pro-Wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Frontier_Martial-Arts_Wrestling" title="Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling">Frontier Martial-Arts Wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Gorgeous_Ladies_of_Wrestling" title="Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling">Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Jim_Crockett_Promotions" title="Jim Crockett Promotions">Jim Crockett Promotions</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Joint_Promotions" class="mw-redirect" title="Joint Promotions">Joint Promotions</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Lucha_Libre_AAA_Worldwide" title="Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide">Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Major_League_Wrestling" title="Major League Wrestling">Major League Wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Maple_Leaf_Wrestling" title="Maple Leaf Wrestling">Maple Leaf Wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/National_Wrestling_Alliance" title="National Wrestling Alliance">National Wrestling Alliance</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/New_Japan_Pro-Wrestling" title="New Japan Pro-Wrestling">New Japan Pro-Wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Pro_Wrestling_Noah" title="Pro Wrestling Noah">Pro Wrestling Noah</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ring_of_Honor" title="Ring of Honor">Ring of Honor</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Soft_Ground_Wrestling" title="Soft Ground Wrestling">Soft Ground Wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Stampede_Wrestling" title="Stampede Wrestling">Stampede Wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tokyo_Joshi_Pro-Wrestling" title="Tokyo Joshi Pro-Wrestling">Tokyo Joshi Pro-Wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Total_Nonstop_Action_Wrestling" title="Total Nonstop Action Wrestling">Total Nonstop Action Wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/UWF_International" title="UWF International">UWF International</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Women_of_Wrestling" title="Women of Wrestling">Women of Wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/World_Championship_Wrestling" title="World Championship Wrestling">World Championship Wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/World_Wonder_Ring_Stardom" title="World Wonder Ring Stardom">World Wonder Ring Stardom</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/WWE" title="WWE">WWE</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Raw_(WWE_brand)" title="Raw (WWE brand)">Raw</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/SmackDown_(WWE_brand)" title="SmackDown (WWE brand)">SmackDown</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/NXT_(WWE_brand)" title="NXT (WWE brand)">NXT</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Evolve_(WWE_brand)" title="Evolve (WWE brand)">Evolve</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_promotions" title="List of professional wrestling promotions">Others</a></li></ul></div></div></td> </tr><tr><td class="sidebar-content"> <div class="sidebar-list mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><div class="sidebar-list-title" style="background:transparent; border-top:1px solid #3633FF; text-align:center;;color: var(--color-base)">Notable people</div><div class="sidebar-list-content mw-collapsible-content hlist" style="padding-top:0;"><small><b>Early 20th Century</b></small> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Bert_Assirati" title="Bert Assirati">Bert Assirati</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Billy_Riley" title="Billy Riley">Billy Riley</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Billy_Sandow" title="Billy Sandow">Billy Sandow</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ed_Lewis_(wrestler)" title="Ed Lewis (wrestler)">Ed Lewis</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Frank_Gotch" title="Frank Gotch">Frank Gotch</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/George_Hackenschmidt" title="George Hackenschmidt">George Hackenschmidt</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/The_Great_Gama" title="The Great Gama">The Great Gama</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Jack_Pfefer" title="Jack Pfefer">Jack Pfefer</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Joe_Stecher" title="Joe Stecher">Joe Stecher</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Jim_Londos" title="Jim Londos">Jim Londos</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Lou_Thesz" title="Lou Thesz">Lou Thesz</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Salvador_Lutteroth" title="Salvador Lutteroth">Salvador Lutteroth</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Toots_Mondt" title="Toots Mondt">Toots Mondt</a></li></ul> <p><small><b>Mid 20th Century</b></small> </p> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Blue_Demon" title="Blue Demon">Blue Demon</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bruno_Sammartino" title="Bruno Sammartino">Bruno Sammartino</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/El_Santo" title="El Santo">El Santo</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/The_Fabulous_Moolah" title="The Fabulous Moolah">The Fabulous Moolah</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Gorgeous_George" title="Gorgeous George">Gorgeous George</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Karl_Gotch" title="Karl Gotch">Karl Gotch</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mildred_Burke" title="Mildred Burke">Mildred Burke</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Rikid%C5%8Dzan" title="Rikidōzan">Rikidōzan</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sam_Muchnick" title="Sam Muchnick">Sam Muchnick</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Stu_Hart" title="Stu Hart">Stu Hart</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Verne_Gagne" title="Verne Gagne">Verne Gagne</a></li></ul> <p><small><b>1970s and 1980s</b></small> </p> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Akira_Maeda" title="Akira Maeda">Akira Maeda</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Andr%C3%A9_the_Giant" title="André the Giant">André the Giant</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Antonio_Inoki" title="Antonio Inoki">Antonio Inoki</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Shirley_Crabtree" title="Shirley Crabtree">Big Daddy</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Billy_Robinson" title="Billy Robinson">Billy Robinson</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bobby_Heenan" title="Bobby Heenan">Bobby Heenan</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Carlos_Col%C3%B3n" title="Carlos Colón">Carlos Colón</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Dusty_Rhodes" title="Dusty Rhodes">Dusty Rhodes</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Dynamite_Kid" title="Dynamite Kid">Dynamite Kid</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/El_Signo" title="El Signo">El Signo</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/El_Texano" title="El Texano">El Texano</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Genichiro_Tenryu" title="Genichiro Tenryu">Genichiro Tenryu</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Giant_Baba" title="Giant Baba">Giant Baba</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Gordon_Solie" title="Gordon Solie">Gordon Solie</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Harley_Race" title="Harley Race">Harley Race</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Hulk_Hogan" title="Hulk Hogan">Hulk Hogan</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Jim_Crockett_Jr." title="Jim Crockett Jr.">Jim Crockett Jr.</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mil_M%C3%A1scaras" title="Mil Máscaras">Mil Máscaras</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Negro_Navarro" title="Negro Navarro">Negro Navarro</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Randy_Savage" title="Randy Savage">Randy Savage</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ric_Flair" title="Ric Flair">Ric Flair</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Satoru_Sayama" title="Satoru Sayama">Satoru "Tiger Mask" Sayama</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Stan_Hansen" title="Stan Hansen">Stan Hansen</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Terry_Funk" title="Terry Funk">Terry Funk</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Vince_McMahon" title="Vince McMahon">Vince McMahon</a></li></ul> <p><small><b>1990s</b></small> </p> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Akira_Taue" title="Akira Taue">Akira Taue</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Antonio_Pe%C3%B1a" title="Antonio Peña">Antonio Peña</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Atsushi_Onita" title="Atsushi Onita">Atsushi Onita</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bret_Hart" title="Bret Hart">Bret Hart</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Eric_Bischoff" title="Eric Bischoff">Eric Bischoff</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Keiji_Muto" title="Keiji Muto">Keiji "The Great Muta" Muto</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Jim_Ross" title="Jim Ross">Jim Ross</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Jushin_Liger" title="Jushin Liger">Jushin Liger</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kenta_Kobashi" title="Kenta Kobashi">Kenta Kobashi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kevin_Nash" title="Kevin Nash">Kevin Nash</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Manami_Toyota" title="Manami Toyota">Manami Toyota</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mitsuharu_Misawa" title="Mitsuharu Misawa">Mitsuharu Misawa</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Paul_Heyman" title="Paul Heyman">Paul Heyman</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Scott_Hall" title="Scott Hall">Scott Hall</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Shawn_Michaels" title="Shawn Michaels">Shawn Michaels</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sting_(wrestler)" title="Sting (wrestler)">Sting</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Stone_Cold_Steve_Austin" title="Stone Cold Steve Austin">Stone Cold Steve Austin</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ted_Turner" title="Ted Turner">Ted Turner</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Dwayne_Johnson" title="Dwayne Johnson">The Rock</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/The_Undertaker" title="The Undertaker">The Undertaker</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Toshiaki_Kawada" title="Toshiaki Kawada">Toshiaki Kawada</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Triple_H" title="Triple H">Triple H</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Vince_Russo" title="Vince Russo">Vince Russo</a></li></ul> <p><small><b>2000s</b></small> </p> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/AJ_Styles" title="AJ Styles">AJ Styles</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Dave_Bautista" title="Dave Bautista">Batista</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Brock_Lesnar" title="Brock Lesnar">Brock Lesnar</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Chris_Jericho" title="Chris Jericho">Chris Jericho</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Eddie_Guerrero" title="Eddie Guerrero">Eddie Guerrero</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Edge_(wrestler)" title="Edge (wrestler)">Edge</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Hiroshi_Tanahashi" title="Hiroshi Tanahashi">Hiroshi Tanahashi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Jeff_Hardy" title="Jeff Hardy">Jeff Hardy</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Jeff_Jarrett" title="Jeff Jarrett">Jeff Jarrett</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/John_Cena" title="John Cena">John Cena</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kurt_Angle" title="Kurt Angle">Kurt Angle</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/M%C3%ADstico" title="Místico">Místico</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Randy_Orton" title="Randy Orton">Randy Orton</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Rey_Mysterio" title="Rey Mysterio">Rey Mysterio</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Rob_Van_Dam" title="Rob Van Dam">Rob Van Dam</a></li></ul> <p><small><b>2010s and 2020s</b></small> </p> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Becky_Lynch" title="Becky Lynch">Becky Lynch</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bryan_Danielson" title="Bryan Danielson">Bryan Danielson</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/CM_Punk" title="CM Punk">CM Punk</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Cody_Rhodes" title="Cody Rhodes">Cody Rhodes</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Jon_Moxley" title="Jon Moxley">Jon Moxley</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kazuchika_Okada" title="Kazuchika Okada">Kazuchika Okada</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kenny_Omega" title="Kenny Omega">Kenny Omega</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Nick_Khan" title="Nick Khan">Nick Khan</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Roman_Reigns" title="Roman Reigns">Roman Reigns</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Rossy_Ogawa" title="Rossy Ogawa">Rossy Ogawa</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Seth_Rollins" title="Seth Rollins">Seth Rollins</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tony_Khan" title="Tony Khan">Tony Khan</a></li></ul></div></div></td> </tr><tr><td class="sidebar-content"> <div class="sidebar-list mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><div class="sidebar-list-title" style="background:transparent; border-top:1px solid #3633FF; text-align:center;;color: var(--color-base)">By region</div><div class="sidebar-list-content mw-collapsible-content hlist" style="padding-top:0;"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_Australia" title="Professional wrestling in Australia">Australia</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Fighting_Cholitas" title="Fighting Cholitas">Bolivia</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_Canada" title="Professional wrestling in Canada">Canada</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_China" title="Professional wrestling in China">China</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_France" title="Professional wrestling in France">France</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_India" title="Professional wrestling in India">India</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_Iran" class="mw-redirect" title="Professional wrestling in Iran">Iran</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_Israel" title="Professional wrestling in Israel">Israel</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_Japan" title="Professional wrestling in Japan">Japan</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Lucha_libre" title="Lucha libre">Mexico</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_New_Zealand" title="Professional wrestling in New Zealand">New Zealand</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_Puerto_Rico" title="Professional wrestling in Puerto Rico">Puerto Rico</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_Russia" title="Professional wrestling in Russia">Russia</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_Saudi_Arabia" class="mw-redirect" title="Professional wrestling in Saudi Arabia">Saudi Arabia</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_the_United_Kingdom" title="Professional wrestling in the United Kingdom">United Kingdom</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_the_United_States" title="Professional wrestling in the United States">United States</a></li></ul></div></div></td> </tr><tr><td class="sidebar-content"> <div class="sidebar-list mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><div class="sidebar-list-title" style="background:transparent; border-top:1px solid #3633FF; text-align:center;;color: var(--color-base)">Styles</div><div class="sidebar-list-content mw-collapsible-content hlist" style="padding-top:0;"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/British_wrestling" class="mw-redirect" title="British wrestling">British wrestling</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/All-in_professional_wrestling" title="All-in professional wrestling">All-in style</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Admiral-Lord_Mountevans_rules" title="Admiral-Lord Mountevans rules">Mountevans rules</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Cruiserweight_(professional_wrestling)" title="Cruiserweight (professional wrestling)">Cruiserweight</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/X_Division" title="X Division">X Division</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_France" title="Professional wrestling in France">French catch</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Hardcore_wrestling" title="Hardcore wrestling">Hardcore</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Intergender_wrestling" title="Intergender wrestling">Intergender</a></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Lucha_libre" title="Lucha libre">Lucha libre</a></i></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Midget_wrestling" title="Midget wrestling">Midget</a> <ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/Mini-Estrella" title="Mini-Estrella">Mini-Estrella</a></i></li></ul></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Puroresu" title="Puroresu">Puroresu</a></i></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Shoot_wrestling" title="Shoot wrestling">Shoot style</a> <ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/U-Kei_(martial_arts)" title="U-Kei (martial arts)">U-Kei</a></i></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Women%27s_professional_wrestling" title="Women's professional wrestling">Women's</a></li></ul></div></div></td> </tr><tr><td class="sidebar-content"> <div class="sidebar-list mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><div class="sidebar-list-title" style="background:transparent; border-top:1px solid #3633FF; text-align:center;;color: var(--color-base)">Concepts</div><div class="sidebar-list-content mw-collapsible-content hlist" style="padding-top:0;"> <ul><li>Attire <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Wrestling_mask" title="Wrestling mask">Masks</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wrestling_singlet" title="Wrestling singlet">Wrestling singlet</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wrestling_shoe" title="Wrestling shoe">Wrestling shoe</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Blading_(professional_wrestling)" title="Blading (professional wrestling)">Blading</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_championship" title="Professional wrestling championship">Championship</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Category:World_heavyweight_wrestling_championships" title="Category:World heavyweight wrestling championships">World Heavyweight</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Dirt_sheet" title="Dirt sheet">Dirt sheet</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Glossary_of_professional_wrestling_terms" title="Glossary of professional wrestling terms">Glossary of terms</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Kayfabe" title="Kayfabe">Kayfabe</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Gimmick_(professional_wrestling)" title="Gimmick (professional wrestling)">Gimmick</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Face_(professional_wrestling)" title="Face (professional wrestling)">Face</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Heel_(professional_wrestling)" title="Heel (professional wrestling)">Heel</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Shoot_(professional_wrestling)" title="Shoot (professional wrestling)">Shoot</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Heat_(professional_wrestling)" title="Heat (professional wrestling)">Heat</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Job_(professional_wrestling)" title="Job (professional wrestling)">Job</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Push_(professional_wrestling)" title="Push (professional wrestling)">Push</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/House_show" title="House show">House show</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_match_types" title="Professional wrestling match types">Match types</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Music_in_professional_wrestling" title="Music in professional wrestling">Music</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ring_name" title="Ring name">Ring name</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sports_entertainment" title="Sports entertainment">Sports entertainment</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tag_team" title="Tag team">Tag team</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Category:Professional_wrestling_weight_classes" title="Category:Professional wrestling weight classes">Weight classes</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wrestling_ring" title="Wrestling ring">Wrestling ring</a></li></ul></div></div></td> </tr><tr><td class="sidebar-content"> <div class="sidebar-list mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><div class="sidebar-list-title" style="background:transparent; border-top:1px solid #3633FF; text-align:center;;color: var(--color-base)">Culture</div><div class="sidebar-list-content mw-collapsible-content hlist" style="padding-top:0;"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Backyard_wrestling" title="Backyard wrestling">Backyard wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Cauliflower_Alley_Club" title="Cauliflower Alley Club">Cauliflower Alley Club</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Cauliflower_ear" title="Cauliflower ear">Cauliflower ear</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_wrestling-based_comic_books" title="List of wrestling-based comic books">Comic books</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Fantasy_wrestling" title="Fantasy wrestling">Fantasy wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Category:Professional_wrestling_films" title="Category:Professional wrestling films">Films</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Lucha_libre_films" title="Category:Lucha libre films">Luchador films</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_magazines" title="List of professional wrestling magazines">Magazines</a></li> <li>Paintings <ul><li><a href="/wiki/The_Wrestlers_(Courbet)" title="The Wrestlers (Courbet)">Gustave Courbet</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wrestlers_(Eakins)" title="Wrestlers (Eakins)">Thomas Eakins</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/The_Wrestlers_(Etty)" title="The Wrestlers (Etty)">William Etty</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/The_Wrestlers_(Luks)" title="The Wrestlers (Luks)">George Luks</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Rib_(professional_wrestling)" title="Rib (professional wrestling)">Rib</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ribera_Steakhouse" title="Ribera Steakhouse">Ribera Steakhouse</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ten-bell_salute" title="Ten-bell salute">Ten-bell salute</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_video_games" title="List of professional wrestling video games">Video games</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_personalities_in_politics" title="Professional wrestling personalities in politics">Wrestling personalities in politics</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Zubaz" title="Zubaz">Zubaz</a></li></ul></div></div></td> </tr><tr><td class="sidebar-content"> <div class="sidebar-list mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><div class="sidebar-list-title" style="background:transparent; border-top:1px solid #3633FF; text-align:center;;color: var(--color-base)">Media outlets</div><div class="sidebar-list-content mw-collapsible-content hlist" style="padding-top:0;"> <ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/Botchamania" title="Botchamania">Botchamania</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Box_y_Lucha" title="Box y Lucha">Box y Lucha</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Dark_Side_of_the_Ring" title="Dark Side of the Ring">Dark Side of the Ring</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Fighting_Spirit_Magazine" title="Fighting Spirit Magazine">Fighting Spirit Magazine</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Live_Audio_Wrestling" title="Live Audio Wrestling">Live Audio Wrestling</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/OSW_Review" title="OSW Review">OSW Review</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Power_Slam" title="Power Slam">Power Slam</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Pro_Wrestling_Illustrated" title="Pro Wrestling Illustrated">Pro Wrestling Illustrated</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Solowrestling.com" title="Solowrestling.com">Solowrestling</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/S%C3%BAper_Luchas" title="Súper Luchas">Súper Luchas</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/WrestleCrap" title="WrestleCrap">WrestleCrap</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Wrestling_Observer_Newsletter" title="Wrestling Observer Newsletter">Wrestling Observer Newsletter</a></i></li></ul></div></div></td> </tr><tr><td class="sidebar-content"> <div class="sidebar-list mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><div class="sidebar-list-title" style="background:transparent; border-top:1px solid #3633FF; text-align:center;;color: var(--color-base)">Controversies</div><div class="sidebar-list-content mw-collapsible-content hlist" style="padding-top:0;"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Animals_in_professional_wrestling" title="Animals in professional wrestling">Animals in professional wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Chris_Benoit_double-murder_and_suicide" title="Chris Benoit double-murder and suicide">Chris Benoit double-murder and suicide</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Owen_Hart#Death" title="Owen Hart">Death of Owen Hart</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mass_Transit_incident_(professional_wrestling)" title="Mass Transit incident (professional wrestling)">Mass Transit incident</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Montreal_Screwjob" title="Montreal Screwjob">Montreal Screwjob</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bruiser_Brody#Death" title="Bruiser Brody">Murder of Bruiser Brody</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Murder_of_Rikid%C5%8Dzan" title="Murder of Rikidōzan">Murder of Rikidōzan</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_premature_professional_wrestling_deaths" title="List of premature professional wrestling deaths">Premature deaths</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ring_boy_scandal" title="Ring boy scandal">Ring boy scandal</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Speaking_Out_movement" title="Speaking Out movement">Speaking Out</a></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/United_States_v._McMahon" title="United States v. McMahon">United States v. McMahon</a></i></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Vince_McMahon_sex_trafficking_scandal" title="Vince McMahon sex trafficking scandal">Vince McMahon sex trafficking scandal</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/WWE_in_Saudi_Arabia" title="WWE in Saudi Arabia">WWE–Saudi Arabia relationship</a></li></ul></div></div></td> </tr><tr><td class="sidebar-content"> <div class="sidebar-list mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><div class="sidebar-list-title" style="background:transparent; border-top:1px solid #3633FF; text-align:center;;color: var(--color-base)">Lists</div><div class="sidebar-list-content mw-collapsible-content hlist" style="padding-top:0;"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_attendance_records" title="List of professional wrestling attendance records">Attendance records</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Category:Professional_wrestling_championships_by_promotion" title="Category:Professional wrestling championships by promotion">Championships</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_halls_of_fame" title="List of professional wrestling halls of fame">Halls of fame</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_matches_rated_5_or_more_stars_by_Dave_Meltzer" title="List of professional wrestling matches rated 5 or more stars by Dave Meltzer">Matches rated 5 or more stars by Dave Meltzer</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Category:Professional_wrestling_moves" title="Category:Professional wrestling moves">Moves</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_promotions" title="List of professional wrestling promotions">Promotions</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Category:Professional_wrestling_rivalries" title="Category:Professional wrestling rivalries">Rivalries</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Lists_of_professional_wrestling_personnel" title="Lists of professional wrestling personnel">Rosters</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_television_series" title="List of professional wrestling television series">TV shows</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Category:Professional_wrestling_families" title="Category:Professional wrestling families">Wrestling families</a></li></ul></div></div></td> </tr><tr><td class="sidebar-content"> <div class="sidebar-list mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><div class="sidebar-list-title" style="background:transparent; border-top:1px solid #3633FF; text-align:center;;color: var(--color-base)">Related topics</div><div class="sidebar-list-content mw-collapsible-content hlist" style="padding-top:0;"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Combat_sport" title="Combat sport">Combat sport</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Comparison_of_professional_wrestling_and_mixed_martial_arts" title="Comparison of professional wrestling and mixed martial arts">Comparison of professional wrestling and mixed martial arts</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Martial_arts" title="Martial arts">Martial arts</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mock_combat" title="Mock combat">Mock combat</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Pankration" title="Pankration">Pankration</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Shootfighting" title="Shootfighting">Shootfighting</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sport_wrestling" class="mw-redirect" title="Sport wrestling">Sport wrestling</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Amateur_wrestling" title="Amateur wrestling">Amateur</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Catch_wrestling" title="Catch wrestling">Catch</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Shoot_wrestling" title="Shoot wrestling">Shoot</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Submission_wrestling" title="Submission wrestling">Submission</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Lancashire_wrestling" title="Lancashire wrestling">Lancashire</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Luta_Livre" title="Luta Livre">Luta Livre</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Pehlwani" title="Pehlwani">Pehlwani</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Stage_combat" title="Stage combat">Stage combat</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Theatre" title="Theatre">Theatre</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Theatresports" title="Theatresports">Theatresports</a></li></ul></li></ul></div></div></td> </tr><tr><td class="sidebar-navbar"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1239400231">.mw-parser-output .navbar{display:inline;font-size:88%;font-weight:normal}.mw-parser-output .navbar-collapse{float:left;text-align:left}.mw-parser-output .navbar-boxtext{word-spacing:0}.mw-parser-output .navbar ul{display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;line-height:inherit}.mw-parser-output .navbar-brackets::before{margin-right:-0.125em;content:"[ "}.mw-parser-output .navbar-brackets::after{margin-left:-0.125em;content:" ]"}.mw-parser-output .navbar li{word-spacing:-0.125em}.mw-parser-output .navbar a>span,.mw-parser-output .navbar a>abbr{text-decoration:inherit}.mw-parser-output .navbar-mini abbr{font-variant:small-caps;border-bottom:none;text-decoration:none;cursor:inherit}.mw-parser-output .navbar-ct-full{font-size:114%;margin:0 7em}.mw-parser-output .navbar-ct-mini{font-size:114%;margin:0 4em}html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .navbar li a abbr{color:var(--color-base)!important}@media(prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .navbar li a abbr{color:var(--color-base)!important}}@media print{.mw-parser-output .navbar{display:none!important}}</style><div class="navbar plainlinks hlist navbar-mini"><ul><li class="nv-view"><a href="/wiki/Template:Professional_wrestling_sidebar" title="Template:Professional wrestling sidebar"><abbr title="View this template">v</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-talk"><a href="/wiki/Template_talk:Professional_wrestling_sidebar" title="Template talk:Professional wrestling sidebar"><abbr title="Discuss this template">t</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-edit"><a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Template:Professional_wrestling_sidebar" title="Special:EditPage/Template:Professional wrestling sidebar"><abbr title="Edit this template">e</abbr></a></li></ul></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <p><b>Professional wrestling</b> (often referred to as <b>pro wrestling</b>, or simply, <b>wrestling</b><sup id="cite_ref-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-2"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>n 1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup>) is a form of athletic <a href="/wiki/Theater" class="mw-redirect" title="Theater">theater</a><sup id="cite_ref-:4_3-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:4-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>2<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> centered around <a href="/wiki/Mock_combat" title="Mock combat">mock combat</a> and based on the premise that its <a href="/wiki/Performer" class="mw-redirect" title="Performer">performers</a> are competitive wrestlers. Professional wrestling is distinguished from <a href="/wiki/Amateur_wrestling" title="Amateur wrestling">amateur wrestling</a> by its <a href="/wiki/Play_(theatre)" title="Play (theatre)">scripted</a> outcomes and emphasis on entertainment and <a href="/wiki/Storytelling" title="Storytelling">storytelling</a> over genuine competition.<sup id="cite_ref-:2_4-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:2-4"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The staged nature of matches is an <a href="/wiki/Open_secret" title="Open secret">open secret</a>: through a practice known as <a href="/wiki/Kayfabe" title="Kayfabe">kayfabe</a>, both wrestlers and spectators—as well as <a href="/wiki/Sports_commentator" title="Sports commentator">commentators</a>—maintain the pretense that the performances are <i><a href="/wiki/Good_faith" title="Good faith">bona fide</a></i> competitions,<sup id="cite_ref-:5_5-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:5-5"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>4<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> which is likened to the <a href="/wiki/Suspension_of_disbelief" title="Suspension of disbelief">suspension of disbelief</a> employed when engaging with fiction.<sup id="cite_ref-:2_4-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:2-4"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Professional wrestlers <a href="/wiki/Acting" title="Acting">perform</a> as characters and usually maintain what is known in the industry as a "<a href="/wiki/Gimmick_(professional_wrestling)" title="Gimmick (professional wrestling)">gimmick</a>" — the <a href="/wiki/Persona" title="Persona">persona</a>, style and traits conveyed by distinctive attire, <a href="/wiki/Stage_name" title="Stage name">stage name</a>, <a href="/wiki/Theme_music" title="Theme music">entrance theme</a> music, and other distinguished characteristics and creative flourishes. <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_match_types" title="Professional wrestling match types">Matches</a> are the primary vehicle for advancing storylines, which typically center on interpersonal conflicts, or <a href="/wiki/Feud_(professional_wrestling)" title="Feud (professional wrestling)">feuds</a>, between heroic "<a href="/wiki/Face_(professional_wrestling)" title="Face (professional wrestling)">faces</a>" and villainous "<a href="/wiki/Heel_(professional_wrestling)" title="Heel (professional wrestling)">heels</a>". A <a href="/wiki/Wrestling_ring" title="Wrestling ring">wrestling ring</a>, akin to the platform used in <a href="/wiki/Boxing_ring" title="Boxing ring">boxing</a>, serves as the <a href="/wiki/Main_stage" title="Main stage">main stage</a>. Additional scenes may be recorded for television in backstage areas of the venue, in a format similar to <a href="/wiki/Reality_television" title="Reality television">reality television</a>. Performers generally integrate authentic wrestling techniques and fighting styles with <a href="/wiki/Choreography" title="Choreography">choreography</a>, <a href="/wiki/Stunt" title="Stunt">stunts</a>, <a href="/wiki/Improvisational_theatre" title="Improvisational theatre">improvisation</a>, and <a href="/wiki/Dramatic_convention" title="Dramatic convention">dramatic conventions</a> designed to maximize entertainment value and audience engagement.<sup id="cite_ref-:3_1-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:3-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Professional wrestling as a <a href="/wiki/Performing_art" class="mw-redirect" title="Performing art">performing art</a> evolved from the common practice of <a href="/wiki/Match_fixing" title="Match fixing">match-fixing</a> among American wrestlers in the 19th century, who later sought to make matches shorter, more entertaining, and less physically taxing. As the public gradually realized and accepted that matches were predetermined, wrestlers responded by increasingly adding melodrama, gimmickry, and outlandish stunt work to their performances to further enhance the <a href="/wiki/Spectacle" title="Spectacle">spectacle</a>. By at least the early 20th century, professional wrestling had diverged from the competitive sport to become an artform and genre of <a href="/wiki/Sports_entertainment" title="Sports entertainment">sports entertainment</a>. </p><p>Professional wrestling is performed around the world through various "<a href="/wiki/Promotion_(professional_wrestling)" class="mw-redirect" title="Promotion (professional wrestling)">promotions</a>", which are roughly analogous to <a href="/wiki/Production_company" title="Production company">production companies</a> or <a href="/wiki/Sports_league" title="Sports league">sports leagues</a>. Promotions vary considerably in size, scope, and creative approach, ranging from local shows on the <a href="/wiki/Independent_circuit" title="Independent circuit">independent circuit</a>, to internationally broadcast events at major arenas. The largest and most influential promotions are in the <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_the_United_States" title="Professional wrestling in the United States">United States</a>,<sup id="cite_ref-:4_3-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:4-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>2<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_Mexico" class="mw-redirect" title="Professional wrestling in Mexico">Mexico</a>, <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_Japan" title="Professional wrestling in Japan">Japan</a>, and Europe (particularly the <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_the_United_Kingdom" title="Professional wrestling in the United Kingdom">United Kingdom</a>, <a href="/wiki/Catch_Wrestling_Association" title="Catch Wrestling Association">Germany/Austria</a> and <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_France" title="Professional wrestling in France">France</a>),<sup id="cite_ref-:5_5-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:5-5"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>4<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> which have each developed distinct styles, traditions, and subgenres within professional wrestling.<sup id="cite_ref-6" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-6"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>5<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Many professional wrestlers also perform as <a href="/wiki/Freelancer" title="Freelancer">freelancers</a> and make appearances for different promotions. </p><p>Professional wrestling has developed its own <a href="/wiki/Fandom" title="Fandom">culture and community</a>, including a distinct <a href="/wiki/Glossary_of_professional_wrestling_terms" title="Glossary of professional wrestling terms">vernacular</a>. It has achieved mainstream success and influence within <a href="/wiki/Popular_culture" title="Popular culture">popular culture</a>, with many terms and jargon, <a href="/wiki/Trope_(literature)" title="Trope (literature)">tropes</a>, and concepts being referenced in <a href="/wiki/Colloquialism" title="Colloquialism">everyday language</a> and in <a href="/wiki/Film" title="Film">film</a>, <a href="/wiki/Music" title="Music">music</a>, <a href="/wiki/Television" title="Television">television</a>, and <a href="/wiki/Video_games" class="mw-redirect" title="Video games">video games</a>. Numerous professional wrestlers have become national or international sports icons with recognition by the broader public, with some finding further fame and success through other performing arts, such as acting. </p> <meta property="mw:PageProp/toc" /> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Context">Context</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=1" title="Edit section: Context"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>In the United States, authentic <a href="/wiki/Wrestling" title="Wrestling">wrestling</a> is generally practiced in an <a href="/wiki/Amateur" title="Amateur">amateur</a> context. There is no professional league for competitive wrestling<sup id="cite_ref-Cejudo2012p32_7-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Cejudo2012p32-7"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>6<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> due to a lack of popularity.<sup id="cite_ref-8" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>7<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> As a case in point, <a href="/wiki/Real_Pro_Wrestling" title="Real Pro Wrestling">Real Pro Wrestling</a>, an American professional <a href="/wiki/Freestyle_wrestling" title="Freestyle wrestling">freestyle wrestling</a> league, dissolved in 2007 after just two seasons. In other countries, such as <a href="/wiki/Iran" title="Iran">Iran</a> and <a href="/wiki/India" title="India">India</a>, wrestling enjoys widespread popularity as a genuine sport, and the phrase "professional wrestling" therefore has a more literal meaning in those places.<sup id="cite_ref-9" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-9"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> A notable example is India's <a href="/wiki/Pro_Wrestling_League" title="Pro Wrestling League">Pro Wrestling League</a>. </p><p>In numerous American states, professional wrestling is legally defined as a non-sport. For instance, New York defines professional wrestling as: </p> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1244412712">.mw-parser-output .templatequote{overflow:hidden;margin:1em 0;padding:0 32px}.mw-parser-output .templatequotecite{line-height:1.5em;text-align:left;margin-top:0}@media(min-width:500px){.mw-parser-output .templatequotecite{padding-left:1.6em}}</style><blockquote class="templatequote"><p><i>Professional wrestling</i> means an activity in which participants struggle hand-in-hand primarily for the purpose of providing entertainment to spectators and which does not comprise a <i>bona fide</i> athletic contest or competition. <i>Professional wrestling</i> is not a combative sport. Wrestling constituting <i>bona fide</i> athletic contests and competitions, which may be professional or amateur combative sport, shall not be deemed <i>professional wrestling</i> under this Part. <i>Professional wrestling</i> as used in this Part shall not depend on whether the individual wrestlers are paid or have been paid for their performance in a <i>professional wrestling</i> exhibition. All engagements of <i>professional wrestling</i> shall be referred to as exhibitions, and not as matches.</p><div class="templatequotecite">— <cite>19 CRR-NY 213.2</cite></div></blockquote> <p>In the industry's slang, a fixed match is referred to as a <i>worked</i> match, derived from the slang word for manipulation, as in "working the crowd". A <i>shoot</i> match is a genuine contest where both wrestlers fight to win and are therefore "straight shooters", which comes from a carny term for a shooting gallery gun whose sights were not deliberately misaligned.<sup id="cite_ref-10" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-10"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>9<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="History_in_the_United_States">History in the United States</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=2" title="Edit section: History in the United States"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">See also: <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_the_United_States" title="Professional wrestling in the United States">Professional wrestling in the United States</a>, <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_Japan" title="Professional wrestling in Japan">Professional wrestling in Japan</a>, <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_Mexico" class="mw-redirect" title="Professional wrestling in Mexico">Professional wrestling in Mexico</a>, and <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_the_United_Kingdom" title="Professional wrestling in the United Kingdom">Professional wrestling in the United Kingdom</a></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="From_sport_to_performance_art">From sport to performance art</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=3" title="Edit section: From sport to performance art"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Wrestling in the United States blossomed in popularity after the <a href="/wiki/American_Civil_War" title="American Civil War">Civil War</a>, with <a href="/wiki/Catch_wrestling" title="Catch wrestling">catch wrestling</a> eventually becoming the most popular style. At first, professional wrestlers were genuine competitive fighters, but they struggled to draw audiences because Americans did not find real wrestling to be very entertaining, so the wrestlers quietly began faking their matches so that they could give their audiences a satisfying spectacle. Fixing matches was also convenient for scheduling. A real ("shoot") match could sometimes last hours,<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="white-space:nowrap;">[<i><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed"><span title="Largely a myth resulting from Joe Stecher and Strangler Lewis's five hour draw in Omaha 1915, which was in fact a work and a gambling scam gone hideously wrong. (October 2023)">citation needed</span></a></i>]</sup> whereas a fixed ("worked") match can be made short, which was convenient for wrestlers on tour who needed to keep appointments or share venues. It also suited wrestlers who were aging and therefore lacked the stamina for an hours-long fight. Audiences also preferred short matches. Worked matches also carried less risk of injury, which meant shorter recovery.<sup id="cite_ref-11" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-11"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>10<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Altogether, worked matches proved more profitable than shoots. By the end of the 19th century, nearly all professional wrestling matches were worked.<sup id="cite_ref-Beekman2006p40_12-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Beekman2006p40-12"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>11<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>A major influence on professional wrestling was carnival culture. Wrestlers in the late 19th century worked in carnival shows. For a fee, a visitor could challenge the wrestler to a quick match. If the challenger defeated the champion in a short time frame, usually 15 minutes, he won a prize. To encourage challenges, the carnival operators staged rigged matches in which an accomplice posing as a visitor challenged the champion and won, giving the audience the impression that the champion was easy to beat. This practice taught wrestlers the art of staging rigged matches and fostered a mentality that spectators were marks to be duped.<sup id="cite_ref-13" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-13"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>12<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The term <i><a href="/wiki/Kayfabe" title="Kayfabe">kayfabe</a></i> comes from <a href="/wiki/Carny" title="Carny">carny</a> slang.<sup id="cite_ref-14" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-14"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>13<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>By the turn of the 20th century, most professional wrestling matches were "worked" and some journalists exposed the practice:<sup id="cite_ref-Beekman2006p40_12-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Beekman2006p40-12"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>11<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1244412712"><blockquote class="templatequote"><p>American wrestlers are notorious for the amount of faking they do. It is because of this fact that suspicion attaches to so many bouts that the game is not popular here. Nine out of ten bouts, it has been said, are pre-arranged affairs, and it would be no surprise if the ratio of fixed matches to honest ones was really so high.</p><div class="templatequotecite">— <cite><i>The National Police Gazette</i>. July 22, 1905<sup id="cite_ref-15" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-15"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>14<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup></cite></div></blockquote> <p>Wrestler <a href="/wiki/Lou_Thesz" title="Lou Thesz">Lou Thesz</a> recalled that between 1915 and 1920, a series of exposés in the newspapers about the integrity of professional wrestling alienated many fans, sending the industry "into a tailspin". But rather than perform more shoot matches, professional wrestlers instead committed themselves wholesale to fakery.<sup id="cite_ref-:0_16-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:0-16"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>15<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Several reasons explain why professional wrestling became fake, whereas boxing endured as a legitimate sport despite similar issues with fraud and match-fixing. Firstly, wrestling was more entertaining when it was faked, whereas fakery did not make boxing any more entertaining. Secondly, in a rigged boxing match, the designated loser must take a real beating for his "defeat" to be convincing, but wrestling holds can be faked convincingly without inflicting injury. This meant that boxers were less willing to "take dives"; they wanted to have a victory for all the pain to which they subjected themselves. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Cartelization">Cartelization</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=4" title="Edit section: Cartelization"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>In the 1910s, promotional cartels for professional wrestling emerged in the <a href="/wiki/East_Coast_of_the_United_States" title="East Coast of the United States">East Coast</a>, outside its traditional heartland in the <a href="/wiki/Midwestern_United_States" title="Midwestern United States">Midwest</a>. These promoters sought to make long-term plans with their wrestlers, and to ensure their more charismatic and crowd-pleasing wrestlers received championships, further entrenching the desire for worked matches.<sup id="cite_ref-17" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-17"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>16<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>The primary rationale for shoot matches at this point was challenges from independent wrestlers. But a cartelized wrestler, if challenged, could credibly use his contractual obligations to his promoter as an excuse to refuse the challenge. Promotions would sometimes respond to challenges with "policemen": powerful wrestlers who lacked the charisma to become stars, but could defeat and often seriously injure any challenger in a shoot match. As the industry trend continued, there were fewer independent wrestlers to make such challenges in the first place.<sup id="cite_ref-18" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-18"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>17<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>"Double-crosses", where a wrestler agreed to lose a match but then fought to win, remained a problem in the early cartel days. At times a promoter would even award a victorious double-crosser the title of champion to preserve the facade of sport. But promoters punished such wrestlers by blacklisting them, making it quite challenging to find work.<sup id="cite_ref-19" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-19"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>18<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Double-crossers could also be sued for breach of contract, such as <a href="/wiki/Dick_Shikat" title="Dick Shikat">Dick Shikat</a> in 1936. In the trial, witnesses testified that most of the "big matches" and all of the championship bouts were fixed.<sup id="cite_ref-20" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-20"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>19<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Transition_towards_pure_entertainment">Transition towards pure entertainment</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=5" title="Edit section: Transition towards pure entertainment"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>By the 1930s, with the exception of the occasional double-cross or business dispute,<sup id="cite_ref-21" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-21"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>20<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> shoot matches were essentially nonexistent. In April 1930, the New York State Athletic Commission decreed that all professional wrestling matches held in the state had to be advertised as exhibitions unless certified as contests by the commission. This requirement did not apply to amateur wrestling, which the commission had no authority over.<sup id="cite_ref-22" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-22"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>21<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The Commission did, on very rare occasions, hand out such authorizations, such as for a championship match between <a href="/wiki/Jim_Londos" title="Jim Londos">Jim Londos</a> and <a href="/wiki/Jim_Browning_(wrestler)" title="Jim Browning (wrestler)">Jim Browning</a> in June 1934.<sup id="cite_ref-23" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-23"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>22<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Wrestling fans widely suspected that professional wrestling was fake, but generally did not care as long as it entertained. </p> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1244412712"><blockquote class="templatequote"><p>Not the least interesting of all the minor phenomena produced by the current fashion of wrestling is the universal discussion as to the honesty of the matches. And certainly the most interesting phrase of this discussion is the unanimous agreement: "Who cares if they're fixed or not—the show is good."</p><div class="templatequotecite">— <cite>Morris Markey. <i>The New Yorker</i>. April 18, 1931<sup id="cite_ref-24" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-24"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>23<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup></cite></div></blockquote> <p>In 1933, wrestling promoter <a href="/wiki/Jack_Pfefer" title="Jack Pfefer">Jack Pfefer</a> divulged the inner workings of the industry with <i><a href="/wiki/New_York_Daily_Mirror" title="New York Daily Mirror">New York Daily Mirror</a></i>, maintaining no pretense that wrestling was real and sharing planned results just before the matches took place. While fans were neither surprised nor alienated, traditionalists like <a href="/wiki/Jack_Curley" title="Jack Curley">Jack Curley</a> were furious, and most promoters tried to maintain the facade of <i>kayfabe</i> as best they could.<sup id="cite_ref-25" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-25"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>24<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Newspapers tended to eschew coverage of professional wrestling, as journalists refused to support its pretense to being a true sport.<sup id="cite_ref-26" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-26"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>25<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> In 1935, <i><a href="/wiki/Toronto_Star" title="Toronto Star">Toronto Star</a></i> sports editor <a href="/wiki/Lou_Marsh" title="Lou Marsh">Lou Marsh</a> was among the first to use the term "sportive entertainment" to describe professional wrestling.<sup id="cite_ref-27" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-27"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>26<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Eventually promoters resorted to publishing their own magazines in order to get press coverage and communicate with fans.<sup id="cite_ref-28" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-28"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>27<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The first professional wrestling magazine, <i>Wrestling As You Like It</i>, printed its first issue in 1946. These magazines were faithful to <i>kayfabe</i> and helped sustain the pretense of professional wrestling as a sport. </p><p>By the late 1950s, professional wrestling had largely completed its shift from sport to theater.<sup id="cite_ref-29" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-29"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>28<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> In 1989,<sup id="cite_ref-30" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-30"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>29<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> <a href="/wiki/Vince_McMahon" title="Vince McMahon">Vince McMahon</a>—who sought to exempt his promotion, the <a href="/wiki/World_Wrestling_Federation" class="mw-redirect" title="World Wrestling Federation">World Wrestling Federation</a>, from sports licensing fees—testified before the <a href="/wiki/New_Jersey_State_Athletic_Control_Board" title="New Jersey State Athletic Control Board">New Jersey State Athletic Control Board</a> that professional wrestling is not a real sport because its matches have predetermined outcomes.<sup id="cite_ref-31" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-31"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>30<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> New Jersey subsequently deregulated professional wrestling,<sup id="cite_ref-32" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-32"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>31<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-33" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-33"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>32<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> and the WWF rebranded itself as a "<a href="/wiki/Sports_entertainment" title="Sports entertainment">sports entertainment</a>" company. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Evolution_in_television_age">Evolution in television age</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=6" title="Edit section: Evolution in television age"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Professional wrestling's fanbase had traditionally largely consisted of children, the elderly, blue-collar workers, and minorities. The rise of <a href="/wiki/Television_in_the_United_States" title="Television in the United States">television</a> in the 1940s brought unprecedented national exposure to a broader audience,<sup id="cite_ref-:6_34-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:6-34"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>33<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> as networks were short on content.<sup id="cite_ref-:7_35-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:7-35"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>34<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Professional wrestling enjoyed a period of mainstream popularity that was buoyed by the visual spectacles and showmanship of performers such as Gorgeous George and Buddy Rogers.<sup id="cite_ref-:6_34-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:6-34"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>33<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Beginning in the 1960s, however, networks increasingly shifted to more mainstream interests such as baseball, and professional wrestling was dropped from primetime slots, if not altogether; the core audience then shrunk back to a profile similar to that of the 1930s.<sup id="cite_ref-36" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-36"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>35<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-:7_35-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:7-35"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>34<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Nevertheless, this period saw some a brief boost in ratings and signs of strength; the <a href="/wiki/American_Wrestling_Association" title="American Wrestling Association">American Wrestling Association</a>'s (AWA), which had emerged as an independent promotion in 1960, was setting new standards in how professional wrestling was presented on television, while the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) maintained a strong following in the South.<sup id="cite_ref-:6_34-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:6-34"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>33<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>However, by the 1970s, professional wrestling entered a more pronounced and sustained decline that persisted into the 1980s. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Development_of_stylistic_conventions">Development of stylistic conventions</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=7" title="Edit section: Development of stylistic conventions"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>In the early 20th century, the style of wrestling used in professional wrestling matches was <a href="/wiki/Catch_wrestling" title="Catch wrestling">catch wrestling</a>. Promoters wanted their matches to look realistic and so preferred to recruit wrestlers with real grappling skills. </p><p>In the 1920s, a group of wrestlers and promoters known as the <a href="/wiki/Gold_Dust_Trio" title="Gold Dust Trio">Gold Dust Trio</a> introduced moves that have since become staples of the mock combat of professional wrestling, such as body slams, <a href="/wiki/Suplex" title="Suplex">suplexes</a>, punches, finishing moves, and out-of-ring count-outs.<sup id="cite_ref-Beekman2006p57_37-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Beekman2006p57-37"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>36<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>By the early 1930s, most wrestlers had adopted personas to generate public interest. These personas could broadly be characterized as either <i>faces</i> (likeable) or <i>heels</i> (villainous). Native Americans, cowboys, and English aristocrats were staple characters in the 1930s and 1940s.<sup id="cite_ref-38" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-38"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>37<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Some wrestlers played different personas depending on the region they were performing in; with the rise of television and thus national exposure, most wrestlers maintained a single persona and narrative. </p><p>Wrestlers also often used some sort of gimmick, such as a finishing move, eccentric mannerisms, or out-of-control behavior (in the case of heels). The matches could also be gimmicky sometimes, with wrestlers fighting in mud and piles of tomatoes and so forth. The most successful and enduring gimmick to emerge from the 1930s were tag-team matches. Promoters noticed that matches slowed down as the wrestlers in the ring tired, so they gave them partners to relieve them. It also gave heels another way to misbehave by double-teaming.<sup id="cite_ref-39" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-39"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>38<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Towards the end of the 1930s, faced with declining revenues, promoters chose to focus on grooming charismatic wrestlers with no regard for their skill because it was charisma that drew the crowds, and wrestlers who were both skilled at grappling and charismatic were hard to come by. Since most of the public by this time knew and accepted that professional wrestling was fake, realism was no longer paramount and a background in authentic wrestling no longer mattered. After this time, matches became more outlandish and gimmickier and any semblance professional wrestling had to catch wrestling faded. The personas of the wrestlers likewise grew more outlandish.<sup id="cite_ref-:1_40-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:1-40"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>39<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p><a href="/wiki/Gorgeous_George" title="Gorgeous George">Gorgeous George</a>, who performed throughout the 1940s and 1950s, was the first wrestler whose entrance into the arena was accompanied by a theme song played over the arena's loudspeakers,<sup id="cite_ref-:6_34-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:6-34"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>33<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> his being <i><a href="/wiki/Pomp_and_Circumstance" class="mw-redirect" title="Pomp and Circumstance">Pomp and Circumstance</a></i>. He also wore a costume—a robe and hairnet, which he removed after getting in the ring—and had a pre-match ritual where his "butler" would spray the ring with perfume. In the 1980s, <a href="/wiki/Vince_McMahon" title="Vince McMahon">Vince McMahon</a> made entrance songs, costumes, and rituals standard for his star wrestlers; for instance, McMahon's top star, <a href="/wiki/Hulk_Hogan" title="Hulk Hogan">Hulk Hogan</a>, would delight the audience by tearing his shirt off before each match.<sup id="cite_ref-41" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-41"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>40<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Rise_and_fall_of_promoter_cartels">Rise and fall of promoter cartels</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=8" title="Edit section: Rise and fall of promoter cartels"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-right" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:NWA_Professional_Wrestling_Territories.png" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/af/NWA_Professional_Wrestling_Territories.png/220px-NWA_Professional_Wrestling_Territories.png" decoding="async" width="220" height="173" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/af/NWA_Professional_Wrestling_Territories.png/330px-NWA_Professional_Wrestling_Territories.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/af/NWA_Professional_Wrestling_Territories.png/440px-NWA_Professional_Wrestling_Territories.png 2x" data-file-width="2147" data-file-height="1687" /></a><figcaption>The National Wrestling Alliance territories.</figcaption></figure> <p>The first major promoter <a href="/wiki/Cartel" title="Cartel">cartel</a> emerged on the East Coast, although up to that point, wrestling's heartland had been in the Midwest. Notable members of this cartel included <a href="/wiki/Jack_Curley" title="Jack Curley">Jack Curley</a>, Lou Daro, <a href="/wiki/Paul_Bowser" title="Paul Bowser">Paul Bowser</a> and <a href="/wiki/Tom_Packs" title="Tom Packs">Tom</a> and Tony Packs. The promoters colluded to solve a number of problems that hurt their profits. Firstly, they could force their wrestlers to perform for less money. As the cartel grew, there were fewer independent promoters where independent wrestlers could find work, and many were forced to sign a contract with the cartel to receive steady work. The contracts forbade them from performing at independent venues. A wrestler who refused to play by the cartel's rules was barred from performing at its venues. A second goal of the wrestling cartels was to establish an authority to decide who was the "world champion". Before the cartels, there were multiple wrestlers in the U.S. simultaneously calling themselves the "world champion", and this sapped public enthusiasm for professional wrestling. Likewise, the cartel could agree on a common set of match rules that the fans could keep track of. The issue over who got to be the champion and who controlled said champion was a major point of contention among the members of wrestling cartels as the champion drew big crowds wherever he performed, and this would occasionally lead to schisms. </p><p>By 1925, this cartel had divided the country up into territories which were the exclusive domains of specific promoters. This system of territories endured until Vince McMahon drove the fragmented cartels out of the market in the 1980s. This cartel fractured in 1929 after one of its members, <a href="/wiki/Paul_Bowser" title="Paul Bowser">Paul Bowser</a>, bribed Ed "Strangler" Lewis to lose his championship in a match against Gus Sonnenberg in January 1929.<sup id="cite_ref-42" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-42"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>41<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Bowser then broke away to form his own cartel, the Boston-based American Wrestling Association, in September 1930, declaring Sonnenberg as AWA champion. Curley reacted to this move by convincing the National Boxing Association to form the <a href="/wiki/National_Wrestling_Association" title="National Wrestling Association">National Wrestling Association</a>, which in turn crowned a champion that Curley put forth: <a href="/wiki/Dick_Shikat" title="Dick Shikat">Dick Shikat</a>. </p><p>In 1948, several promoters from across the country came together to form the <a href="/wiki/National_Wrestling_Alliance" title="National Wrestling Alliance">National Wrestling Alliance</a> (NWA); Bowser's AWA would join the following.The NWA recognized one "world champion", voted on by its members, but allowed member promoters to crown their own local champions in their territories.<sup id="cite_ref-43" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-43"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>42<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-44" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-44"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>43<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> If a member poached wrestlers from another member, or held matches in another member's territory, they risked being ejected from the NWA, at which point his territory became fair game for everyone.<sup id="cite_ref-45" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-45"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>44<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The NWA would blacklist wrestlers who worked for independent promoters or who publicly criticized an NWA promoter or who did not throw a match on command. If an independent promoter tried to establish himself in a certain area, the NWA would send their star performers to perform for the local NWA promoter to draw the customers away from the independent.<sup id="cite_ref-46" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-46"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>45<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>By 1956, the NWA controlled 38 promotions in the United States and several more in Canada, Mexico, Australia and New Zealand.<sup id="cite_ref-47" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-47"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>46<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The NWA's monopolistic practices became so stifling that independent promotions appealed to the government for help. In October 1956 the U.S. Attorney General's office filed an antitrust lawsuit against the NWA in an Iowa federal district court.<sup id="cite_ref-48" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-48"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>47<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The NWA settled with the government: It pledged to stop allocating exclusive territories to its promoters, to stop blacklisting wrestlers who worked for outsider promoters, and to admit any promoter into the Alliance. </p><p>The NWA would flout many of these promises, but its power was nonetheless weakened by the lawsuit.<sup id="cite_ref-49" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-49"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>48<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> In 1957, just one year after settlement, the AWA withdrew from the Alliance and renamed itself the Atlantic Athletic Corporation (AAC);<sup id="cite_ref-50" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-50"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>49<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> the AAC shut down in 1960. </p><p>In 1958, Omaha promoter and NWA member <a href="/wiki/Joe_Dusek" class="mw-redirect" title="Joe Dusek">Joe Dusek</a> recognized Gagne as the world champion without the approval of the NWA. Gagne asked for a match against the recognized NWA champion Pat O'Connor. The NWA refused to honor the request, so Gagne and Minneapolis promoter <a href="/wiki/Wally_Karbo" title="Wally Karbo">Wally Karbo</a> established the American Wrestling Association in 1960.<sup id="cite_ref-51" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-51"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>50<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> This AWA should not be confused with Paul Bowser's AWA, which ceased operations just two months prior.<sup id="cite_ref-52" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-52"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>51<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Gagne's AWA operated out of <a href="/wiki/Minnesota" title="Minnesota">Minnesota</a>. Unlike the NWA, which only allowed faces to be champions,<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="white-space:nowrap;">[<i><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed"><span title="Dick Hutton and Buddy Rogers were heel champions around this time - Thesz also often played the heel against the local babyface challenger while visiting promotions (September 2023)">citation needed</span></a></i>]</sup> Gagne occasionally allowed heels to win the AWA championship so that they could serve as foils for him.<sup id="cite_ref-53" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-53"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>52<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Consolidation_and_renewed_growth">Consolidation and renewed growth</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=9" title="Edit section: Consolidation and renewed growth"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">See also: <a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_television_series" title="List of professional wrestling television series">List of professional wrestling television series</a></div><p>In August 1983, the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), a promotion in the <a href="/wiki/Northeastern_United_States" title="Northeastern United States">northeast</a>, withdrew from the NWA; Vince McMahon then took over as its boss. No longer bound by the territorial pact of the NWA, McMahon began expanding his promotion into the territories of his former NWA peers, now his rivals. By the end of the 1980s, the WWF would become the sole national wrestling promotion in the U.S. This was in part made possible by the rapid spread of <a href="/wiki/Cable_television" title="Cable television">cable television</a> in the 1980s. The national broadcast networks generally regarded professional wrestling as too niche an interest, and had not broadcast any national wrestling shows since the 1950s.<sup id="cite_ref-54" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-54"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>53<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-55" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-55"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>54<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Before cable TV, a typical American household only received four national channels by antenna, and ten to twelve local channels via <a href="/wiki/UHF_television_broadcasting" title="UHF television broadcasting">UHF broadcasting</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-56" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-56"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>55<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Cable television could carry a much larger selection of channels and therefore had room for niche interests. The WWF started with a show called <i><a href="/wiki/WWF_All_American_Wrestling" title="WWF All American Wrestling">All-American Wrestling</a></i> on the <a href="/wiki/USA_Network" title="USA Network">USA Network</a> in September 1983. McMahon's TV shows made his wrestlers national celebrities, so when he held matches in a new city, attendance was high because there was a waiting fanbase cultivated in advance by the cable TV shows. The NWA's traditional anti-competitive tricks were no match for this. The NWA attempted to centralize and create their own national cable television shows to counter McMahon's rogue promotion, but it failed in part because the members of the NWA, ever protective of their territories, could not stomach submitting themselves to a central authority.<sup id="cite_ref-57" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-57"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>56<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Nor could any of them stomach the idea of leaving the NWA themselves to compete directly with McMahon, for that would mean their territories would become fair game for the other NWA members.<sup id="cite_ref-58" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-58"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>57<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> McMahon also had a creative flair for TV that his rivals lacked. For instance, the AWA's TV productions during the 1980s were amateurish, low-budget, and out-of-touch with contemporary culture, which lead to the promotion's closing in 1991.<sup id="cite_ref-59" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-59"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>58<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>In the spring of 1984, the WWF purchased Georgia Championship Wrestling (GCW), which had been ailing for some time due to financial mismanagement and internal squabbles. In the deal, the WWF acquired the GCW's timeslot on <a href="/wiki/TBS_(American_TV_channel)" title="TBS (American TV channel)">TBS</a>. McMahon agreed to keep showing Georgia wrestling matches in that timeslot, but he was unable to get his staff to Atlanta every Saturday to fulfill this obligation, so he sold GCW and its TBS timeslot to <a href="/wiki/Jim_Crockett_Promotions" title="Jim Crockett Promotions">Jim Crockett Promotions</a> (JCP). JCP started informally calling itself <a href="/wiki/World_Championship_Wrestling" title="World Championship Wrestling">World Championship Wrestling</a> (WCW). In 1988, Ted Turner bought JCP and formally renamed it World Championship Wrestling. </p><p>During the 1990s, WCW became a credible rival to the WWF, but by end it suffered from a series of creative missteps that led to its failure and purchase by the WWF. One of its mistakes was that it diminished the glamor of its <a href="/wiki/WCW_World_Heavyweight_Championship" title="WCW World Heavyweight Championship">World Heavyweight Championship</a>. Between January 2000 and March 2001, the title changed hands eighteen times, which sapped fan enthusiasm, particularly for the climactic pay-per-view matches.<sup id="cite_ref-Beekman_2006_p._138_60-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Beekman_2006_p._138-60"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>59<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Industry_conventions">Industry conventions</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=10" title="Edit section: Industry conventions"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1251242444"><table class="box-Unreferenced_section plainlinks metadata ambox ambox-content ambox-Unreferenced" role="presentation"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image"><div class="mbox-image-div"><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Question_book-new.svg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/50px-Question_book-new.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="39" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/75px-Question_book-new.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/100px-Question_book-new.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="512" data-file-height="399" /></a></span></div></td><td class="mbox-text"><div class="mbox-text-span">This section <b>does not <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sources" title="Wikipedia:Citing sources">cite</a> any <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">sources</a></b>.<span class="hide-when-compact"> Please help <a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Professional_wrestling" title="Special:EditPage/Professional wrestling">improve this section</a> by <a href="/wiki/Help:Referencing_for_beginners" title="Help:Referencing for beginners">adding citations to reliable sources</a>. Unsourced material may be challenged and <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability#Burden_of_evidence" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">removed</a>.</span> <span class="date-container"><i>(<span class="date">September 2018</span>)</i></span><span class="hide-when-compact"><i> (<small><a href="/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal" title="Help:Maintenance template removal">Learn how and when to remove this message</a></small>)</i></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <p>Professional wrestling performances are governed primarily by a <a href="/wiki/Script_(theater)" class="mw-redirect" title="Script (theater)">script</a> and overarching storyline devised by producers, who often are professional wrestlers themselves.<sup id="cite_ref-:10_61-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:10-61"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>60<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Real-life events, such as a performer's contract status and legitimate injuries, may be incorporated into storylines, and some wrestlers integrate elements of their genuine personalities or background into their performances or personas; for example, <a href="/wiki/Kurt_Angle" title="Kurt Angle">Kurt Angle</a>, who performed his <a href="/wiki/Kurt_Angle#Professional_wrestling_style_and_persona" title="Kurt Angle">fictional persona eponymously</a>, often utilized his genuine Olympic gold medal in wrestling as a defining aspect of his character. The actions of the character in shows are considered fictional and wholly separate from the life of the performer, although some performers will remain in character outside the ring, such as in promotional videos, interviews, and even social media;<sup id="cite_ref-:11_62-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:11-62"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>61<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> consequently, the line between real-life and scripted events and personas are often blurred.<sup id="cite_ref-63" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-63"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>62<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-64" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-64"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>63<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> For example, <a href="/wiki/Maxwell_Jacob_Friedman" title="Maxwell Jacob Friedman">Maxwell Jacob Friedman</a> is well known for staying in character at all times while in public, going so far as to insult his fans, often to their delight as they are aware of his persona. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Kayfabe">Kayfabe</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=11" title="Edit section: Kayfabe"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1251242444"><table class="box-More_citations_needed_section plainlinks metadata ambox ambox-content ambox-Refimprove" role="presentation"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image"><div class="mbox-image-div"><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Question_book-new.svg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/50px-Question_book-new.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="39" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/75px-Question_book-new.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/100px-Question_book-new.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="512" data-file-height="399" /></a></span></div></td><td class="mbox-text"><div class="mbox-text-span">This section <b>needs additional citations for <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">verification</a></b>.<span class="hide-when-compact"> Please help <a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Professional_wrestling" title="Special:EditPage/Professional wrestling">improve this article</a> by <a href="/wiki/Help:Referencing_for_beginners" title="Help:Referencing for beginners">adding citations to reliable sources</a> in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.</span> <span class="date-container"><i>(<span class="date">September 2018</span>)</i></span><span class="hide-when-compact"><i> (<small><a href="/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal" title="Help:Maintenance template removal">Learn how and when to remove this message</a></small>)</i></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main articles: <a href="/wiki/Kayfabe" title="Kayfabe">Kayfabe</a> and <a href="/wiki/Shoot_(professional_wrestling)" title="Shoot (professional wrestling)">Shoot (professional wrestling)</a></div> <p><i>Kayfabe</i> is the practice of pretending that professional wrestling is a true sport.<sup id="cite_ref-:12_65-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:12-65"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>64<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Wrestlers would at all times flatly deny allegations that they fixed their matches, and they often remained in-character in public even when not performing.<sup id="cite_ref-:11_62-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:11-62"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>61<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> When in public, wrestlers would sometimes say "kayfabe" to each other as a coded signal that there were fans present for whom they needed to be in character. Professional wrestlers in the past strongly believed that if they admitted the truth, their audiences would desert them; accordingly, promotions have often disciplined or punished performers for breaking kayafabe.<sup id="cite_ref-:12_65-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:12-65"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>64<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1244412712"><blockquote class="templatequote"><p>Today's performers don't "protect" the industry like we did, but that's primarily because they've already exposed it by relying on silly or downright ludicrous characters and gimmicks to gain popularity with the fans. It was different in my day, when our product was presented as an authentic, competitive sport. We protected it because we believed it would collapse if we ever so much as implied publicly that it was something other than what it appeared to be. I'm not sure now the fear was ever justified given the fact that the industry is still in existence today, but the point is no one questioned the need then. "Protecting the business" in the face of criticism and skepticism was the first and most important rule a pro wrestler learned. No matter how aggressive or informed the questioner, you never admitted the industry was anything but a competitive sport.</p><div class="templatequotecite">— <cite><a href="/wiki/Lou_Thesz" title="Lou Thesz">Lou Thesz</a>, <i>Hooker</i></cite></div></blockquote> <p>The first wrestling promoter to publicly admit to routinely fixing matches was <a href="/wiki/Jack_Pfefer" title="Jack Pfefer">Jack Pfefer</a>. In 1933, he started talking about the industry's inner workings to the <i>New York Daily Mirror</i>, resulting in a huge exposé. The exposé neither surprised nor alienated most wrestling fans, although some promoters like Jack Curley were furious and tried to restore the facade of kayfabe as best as they could. In 1989, Vince McMahon testified before the New Jersey government that professional wrestling was not a true sport and therefore should be exempted from sports-related taxes. Many wrestlers and fans resented McMahon for this, but <a href="/wiki/Lou_Thesz" title="Lou Thesz">Lou Thesz</a> accepted it as the smart move as it gave the industry more freedom to do as it pleased, and because by that point professional wrestling no longer attempted to appear real.<sup id="cite_ref-66" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-66"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>65<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>The demise of WCW in 2001 provided some evidence that <i>kayfabe</i> still mattered to a degree. Vince Russo, the boss of WCW in 2000, completely disregarded <i>kayfabe</i> by routinely discussing business matters and office politics in public, which alienated fans.<sup id="cite_ref-Beekman_2006_p._138_60-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Beekman_2006_p._138-60"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>59<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Sports_entertainment">Sports entertainment</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=12" title="Edit section: Sports entertainment"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Vince_McMahon,_1986.png" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/97/Vince_McMahon%2C_1986.png/220px-Vince_McMahon%2C_1986.png" decoding="async" width="220" height="298" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/97/Vince_McMahon%2C_1986.png/330px-Vince_McMahon%2C_1986.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/97/Vince_McMahon%2C_1986.png/440px-Vince_McMahon%2C_1986.png 2x" data-file-width="491" data-file-height="666" /></a><figcaption><a href="/wiki/Vince_McMahon" title="Vince McMahon">Vince McMahon</a> as a commentator, c. 1986</figcaption></figure> <p>The wrestling industry convention of <i>kayfabe</i> has increasingly been challenged by the modern concept of <a href="/wiki/Sports_entertainment" title="Sports entertainment">sports entertainment</a>, which openly acknowledges professional wrestling's predetermined nature and celebrates its roots in both <a href="/wiki/Sports_competition" class="mw-redirect" title="Sports competition">competitive sport</a> and dramatic theater. The term "sports entertainment" was coined by <a href="/wiki/WWE" title="WWE">World Wrestling Federation</a> (WWF, now WWE) chairman <a href="/wiki/Vince_McMahon" title="Vince McMahon">Vince McMahon</a> during the 1980s as a <a href="/wiki/List_of_marketing_terms" title="List of marketing terms">marketing term</a> to describe the professional wrestling industry, primarily to potential advertisers;<sup id="cite_ref-67" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-67"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>66<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> however, precursors date back to at least February 1935, when <i><a href="/wiki/Toronto_Star" title="Toronto Star">Toronto Star</a></i> sports editor <a href="/wiki/Lou_Marsh" title="Lou Marsh">Lou Marsh</a> described professional wrestling as "sportive entertainment". In 1989, the WWF used the phrase in a case before the <a href="/wiki/New_Jersey_Senate" title="New Jersey Senate">New Jersey Senate</a> to classify professional wrestling as "sports entertainment" and thus not subject to regulation like a directly competitive sport. </p><p>In subsequent years, WWE insisted that its talent use "sports entertainment" rather than "pro wrestling" to describe its business, to the point that the term was sometimes used in other promotions to generate "<a href="/wiki/Heat_(professional_wrestling)" title="Heat (professional wrestling)">heat</a>" (fan reaction and engagement).<sup id="cite_ref-wrestlinginc-sportsent-disassoc_68-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-wrestlinginc-sportsent-disassoc-68"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>67<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-69" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-69"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>68<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The line between sports entertainment and competitive sports was further blurred in 2023, when WWE <a href="/wiki/TKO_Group_Holdings" title="TKO Group Holdings">merged with the parent company</a> of <a href="/wiki/Ultimate_Fighting_Championship" title="Ultimate Fighting Championship">Ultimate Fighting Championship</a> (UFC), a genuinely competitive mixed martial arts promotion, in what was officially announced as an effort to "bring together two leading pureplay sports and entertainment companies" and provide "significant operating synergies" between them.<sup id="cite_ref-70" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-70"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>69<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The following year, WWE moved away from its insistence on being a sports entertainment company after Vince McMahon's departure from the company,<sup id="cite_ref-71" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-71"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>70<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> but still uses "sports entertainment" in some contexts.<sup id="cite_ref-wrestlinginc-sportsent-disassoc_68-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-wrestlinginc-sportsent-disassoc-68"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>67<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-72" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-72"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>71<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p> Whether professional wrestling is a genuine sport often reflects a broader debate as to the nature and qualities of a sport categorically. Some commentators and analysts identify baseline commonalities between professional wrestling and other sports, such as performance entailing "physical activity governed by a set of rules of customs" and there still being competition among pro wrestlers with respect to their performances.<sup id="cite_ref-:15_73-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:15-73"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>72<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><blockquote><p>Just because there's a script involved it doesn't take away from the competitive environment of professional wrestling. Ask any former wrestler, read an autobiography on a wrestler or use common sense. There is tremendous competition within the WWE. Not performing to the high standards in the ring? "You're Fired". Not getting over with the fans? "You're Fired." Being a nuisance and refusing to be a team player? "You're fired." Don't want to continually train, live the grueling road schedule and establish connections...see where I'm going with all this? While NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB and overseas soccer players (football, I know, I apologize) are getting paid ridiculous contracts (with a lump sum up front, and a lot of the contract guaranteed), professional wrestlers do much more work for a lot less. We can safely take the competition argument out of the discussion. So ultimately, if you can look past the script, then professional wrestling is a sport. — William Gullo, <i>Bleacher Report</i> (Sep. 6, 2011)<sup id="cite_ref-:15_73-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:15-73"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>72<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup></p></blockquote><p>Others retort that while professional wrestling is comparable in its physical and athletic requirements—including "shared values of resilience and excellence" and similar risks of bodily injury—its scripted nature preempts one of the purported defining characteristics of a sport: genuine competition over the outcome.<sup id="cite_ref-74" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-74"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>73<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>The ambiguity of professional wrestling as a form of sports entertainment is further heightened by news media, which often cover professional wrestling matches and events as if they were genuine sports; for example, in 2024, <i>Forbes</i> ranked professional wrestling promotions WWE and All Elite Wrestling (AEW) among the world's "most valuable combat sports promotions" alongside bona fide competitive sport organizations UFC, <a href="/wiki/ONE_Championship" title="ONE Championship">ONE Championship</a>, and <a href="/wiki/Matchroom_Sport" title="Matchroom Sport">Matchroom Boxing</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-75" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-75"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>74<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-76" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-76"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>75<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Performance_aspects">Performance aspects</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=13" title="Edit section: Performance aspects"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1244412712"><blockquote class="templatequote"><p>I watch <a href="/wiki/Championship_Wrestling_from_Florida" title="Championship Wrestling from Florida">championship wrestling from Florida</a> with wrestling commentator <a href="/wiki/Gordon_Solie" title="Gordon Solie">Gordon Solie</a>. Is this all "fake"? If so, they deserve an <a href="/wiki/Academy_Awards" title="Academy Awards">Oscar</a>.</p><div class="templatequotecite">— <cite>S. R. Welborn of <a href="/wiki/High_Point,_North_Carolina" title="High Point, North Carolina">High Point, North Carolina</a>, question posed to sports Q&A column written by <a href="/wiki/Murray_Olderman" title="Murray Olderman">Murray Olderman</a>, 1975<sup id="cite_ref-77" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-77"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>76<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup></cite></div></blockquote> <p>Professional wrestling shows can be considered a form of <a href="/wiki/Theater_in_the_round" class="mw-redirect" title="Theater in the round">theater in the round</a>, with the ring, ringside area, and entryway comprising a <a href="/wiki/Stage_(theater)" class="mw-redirect" title="Stage (theater)">stage</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-78" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-78"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>77<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> There is less of a <a href="/wiki/Fourth_wall" title="Fourth wall">fourth wall</a> than in most theatric performances; like <a href="/wiki/Pantomime" title="Pantomime">pantomime</a>, audience involvement is expected and encouraged. Attendees are recognized and acknowledged by performers as <a href="/wiki/Spectator_sport" title="Spectator sport">spectators</a> to the sporting event being portrayed and are encouraged to interact as such; their reactions can dictate how the performance unfolds, leading to a high level of audience participation.<sup id="cite_ref-Barthes_79-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Barthes-79"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>78<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Often, individual matches will be part of a longer storyline conflict between "<a href="/wiki/Face_(professional_wrestling)" title="Face (professional wrestling)">babyfaces</a>" (often shortened to just "faces") and "<a href="/wiki/Heel_(professional_wrestling)" title="Heel (professional wrestling)">heels</a>". "Faces" (the "good guys") are those whose actions are intended to encourage the audience to cheer, while "heels" (the "bad guys") act to draw the spectators' ire.<sup id="cite_ref-HSW_80-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-HSW-80"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>79<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>In pro wrestling matches, performers often execute a series of pre-planned moves and attacks, ranging from grappling and throws found in some traditional <a href="/wiki/Wrestling#Modern_international_disciplines" title="Wrestling">forms of wrestling</a>, to more spectacular stunts, sometimes involving <a href="/wiki/Prop" title="Prop">props</a> and <a href="/wiki/Special_effect" title="Special effect">special effects</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-:10_61-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:10-61"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>60<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Although match outcomes and narratives are predetermined, wrestlers are expected to improvise and weave elements of their character.<sup id="cite_ref-:10_61-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:10-61"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>60<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Attacks are designed to appear dramatic while reducing the risk of serious injury as much as possible; the overall aim is to minimize the actual injurious impact of their moves while maximizing their entertainment value. Shows produced by the largest <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_promotion" class="mw-redirect" title="Professional wrestling promotion">professional wrestling promotions</a> like <a href="/wiki/WWE" title="WWE">WWE</a> are traditionally performed in indoor venues, while flagship events like <a href="/wiki/WrestleMania" title="WrestleMania">WrestleMania</a> are sometimes taking place at outdoor venues; these shows are generally video recorded for live or delayed broadcasting. Additionally filmed footage known as "segments" or "promos" are usually used to accompany the drama in these shows.<sup id="cite_ref-81" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-81"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>80<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Prior experience in legitimate wrestling is not a requirement for aspiring professional wrestlers but is seen as an advantageous background. Despite its scripted format, several notable performers have had prior experience in legitimate wrestling before transitioning to its theatrical form. A popular performer, <a href="/wiki/Kurt_Angle" title="Kurt Angle">Kurt Angle</a>, is the first <a href="/wiki/Olympic_gold_medal" class="mw-redirect" title="Olympic gold medal">Olympic gold medalist</a> in professional wrestling history, having won his gold medal at the <a href="/wiki/1996_Summer_Olympic_Games" class="mw-redirect" title="1996 Summer Olympic Games">1996 Summer Olympic Games</a> in <a href="/wiki/Freestyle_wrestling" title="Freestyle wrestling">freestyle wrestling</a>. Another prominent performer is <a href="/wiki/Brock_Lesnar" title="Brock Lesnar">Brock Lesnar</a>,<sup id="cite_ref-82" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-82"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>81<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> a former NCAA Wrestler who won the <a href="/wiki/NCAA_Division_I_Wrestling_Championships" title="NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships">NCAA Division I National Championship</a> in 2000.<sup id="cite_ref-83" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-83"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>82<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-84" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-84"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>83<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Rules_and_other_dramatic_elements">Rules and other dramatic elements</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=14" title="Edit section: Rules and other dramatic elements"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1251242444"><table class="box-More_citations_needed_section plainlinks metadata ambox ambox-content ambox-Refimprove" role="presentation"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image"><div class="mbox-image-div"><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Question_book-new.svg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/50px-Question_book-new.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="39" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/75px-Question_book-new.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/100px-Question_book-new.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="512" data-file-height="399" /></a></span></div></td><td class="mbox-text"><div class="mbox-text-span">This section <b>needs additional citations for <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">verification</a></b>.<span class="hide-when-compact"> Please help <a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Professional_wrestling" title="Special:EditPage/Professional wrestling">improve this article</a> by <a href="/wiki/Help:Referencing_for_beginners" title="Help:Referencing for beginners">adding citations to reliable sources</a> in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.</span> <span class="date-container"><i>(<span class="date">November 2010</span>)</i></span><span class="hide-when-compact"><i> (<small><a href="/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal" title="Help:Maintenance template removal">Learn how and when to remove this message</a></small>)</i></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <p>Professional wrestlers nominally compete under rules promulgated by wrestling promotions. However, the rules are not legitimate standards for sporting activity, instead serving as a basis to advance plotlines, similar to the artificial constraints imposed in other <a href="/wiki/Fictional_universe" title="Fictional universe">fictional universes</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-fakerules_85-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-fakerules-85"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>84<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Sociologist <a href="/wiki/Thomas_S._Henricks" title="Thomas S. Henricks">Thomas S. Henricks</a> has argued the rules serve as a basis for a <a href="/wiki/Structuralist_sociology" class="mw-redirect" title="Structuralist sociology">structuralist</a> moral order, serving to advance plot lines involving charismatic heroes applying an <a href="/wiki/Instrumental_and_value-rational_action" title="Instrumental and value-rational action">instrumentally rationalist</a> approach to social conflicts.<sup id="cite_ref-86" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-86"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>85<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Professional wrestlers do not follow an industry-standard set of rules, unlike most sporting events, which generally have a governing body to regulate competitions. While each promoter can set his own standards, promoters have long understood that fans enjoy professional wrestling more when all matches appear to follow a consistent set of rules. The rules described in this section represent common standards but may not precisely align with the ruleset of any specific promotion. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Structure_of_performances">Structure of performances</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=15" title="Edit section: Structure of performances"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Stadium_is_filled_for_the_Inoki_pro-wrestling_friendship_games_(16077363195).jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0b/Stadium_is_filled_for_the_Inoki_pro-wrestling_friendship_games_%2816077363195%29.jpg/170px-Stadium_is_filled_for_the_Inoki_pro-wrestling_friendship_games_%2816077363195%29.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="96" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0b/Stadium_is_filled_for_the_Inoki_pro-wrestling_friendship_games_%2816077363195%29.jpg/255px-Stadium_is_filled_for_the_Inoki_pro-wrestling_friendship_games_%2816077363195%29.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0b/Stadium_is_filled_for_the_Inoki_pro-wrestling_friendship_games_%2816077363195%29.jpg/340px-Stadium_is_filled_for_the_Inoki_pro-wrestling_friendship_games_%2816077363195%29.jpg 2x" data-file-width="4912" data-file-height="2760" /></a><figcaption>Spectators gather in <a href="/wiki/Pyongyang,_North_Korea" class="mw-redirect" title="Pyongyang, North Korea">Pyongyang, North Korea</a> for <a href="/wiki/Antonio_Inoki" title="Antonio Inoki">Antonio Inoki</a>'s Pro Wrestling Friendship Games. A traditional <a href="/wiki/Wrestling_ring" title="Wrestling ring">wrestling ring</a> can be seen in the lower left corner</figcaption></figure> <p>Matches are staged between two or more sides ("corners"). Each corner may consist of one wrestler, or a team of two or more. Most team matches are nominally governed by tag team rules. Other matches present under the premise of a free-for-alls, with multiple combatants but no teams. In all variants, there can be only one winning team or wrestler. </p><p>Matches generally take place within a <a href="/wiki/Wrestling_ring" title="Wrestling ring">wrestling ring</a>, an elevated square <a href="/wiki/Canvas" title="Canvas">canvas</a> mat with posts on each corner. A cloth apron hangs over the edges of the ring. Three horizontal ropes or cables surround the ring, suspended with turnbuckles which are connected to the posts. For safety, the ropes are padded at the turnbuckles and cushioned mats surround the floor outside the ring. Guardrails or a similar barrier enclose this area from the audience. Wrestlers are generally expected to stay within the confines of the ring, though matches sometimes end up moving outside the ring, and even into the audience. </p><p>The standard method of scoring is the "fall", which, is premised as being accomplished by: </p> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Pin_(professional_wrestling)" title="Pin (professional wrestling)">Pinning</a> the opponent's shoulders to the mat, typically for three seconds (though other times have been used)</li> <li>Forcing the opponent to <a href="#Submission">submit</a></li> <li><a href="#Disqualification">Disqualification</a> of the opponent</li> <li>The opponent remaining outside the ring for too long (<a href="#Countout">countout</a>)</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Knockout" title="Knockout">Knocking out</a> or otherwise incapacitating the opponent</li></ul> <p>These are each explained in greater detail below. Pinfalls and submissions must occur within the ring unless stipulated otherwise. </p><p>Most wrestling matches last for a set number of falls, with the first side to achieve the majority number of pinfalls, submissions, or countouts being the kayfabe winner. Historically, the matches went to 3 falls ("best 2 out of 3") or 5 falls ("best 3 out of 5"). For modern wrestling, the <a href="/wiki/Genre_convention" class="mw-redirect" title="Genre convention">genre convention</a> is 1 fall. These matches have a time limit; if not enough falls are scored by the end of the time limit, the match is presented as draw. Modern matches are generally given a 10- to 30-minute time limit for standard matches; title matches can go for up to one hour. British wrestling matches held under <a href="/wiki/Admiral-Lord_Mountevans_rules" title="Admiral-Lord Mountevans rules">Admiral-Lord Mountevans rules</a> (and similar systems across Europe) consist of a series of rounds – typically six rounds each lasting three minutes or until a fall or submission is scored, with a thirty-second break between each round and can either be two-out-of-three falls, one fall to a finish (mostly for low-priority warmup matches) or the wrestler with the most falls wins at the end of the final round.<sup id="cite_ref-87" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-87"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>86<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>An alternative <a href="/wiki/Subgenre" class="mw-redirect" title="Subgenre">subgenre</a> involves is a match set for a prescribed length of time, with a running tally of falls. The entrant with the most falls at the end of the time limit is declared the winner. This is usually for 20, 30 or 60 minutes, and is commonly called an <a href="/wiki/Iron_Man_match" class="mw-redirect" title="Iron Man match">Iron Man match</a>. This type of match can be modified so that fewer types of falls are allowed. </p><p>In performances staged with multiple competitors, an elimination system may be used. Any wrestler who has a fall scored against them is forced out of the match, and the match continues until only one remains. It is much more common when more than two wrestlers are involved to simply go one fall, with the one scoring the fall, regardless of who they scored it against, being the winner. In championship matches, this means that, unlike one-on-one matches (where the champion can simply disqualify himself or get himself counted out to retain the title via the <b>Champion's Advantage</b>), the champion does <i>not</i> have to be pinned or involved in the decision to lose the championship. <a href="/wiki/Heel_(professional_wrestling)" title="Heel (professional wrestling)">Heel</a> champions often find advantages, not in Champion's Advantage, but in the use of weapons and outside interference, as these poly-sided matches tend to involve <a href="/wiki/Hardcore_wrestling" title="Hardcore wrestling">no holds barred</a> rules. </p> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-left" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Professional_wrestling_ladder_match.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d3/Professional_wrestling_ladder_match.jpg/170px-Professional_wrestling_ladder_match.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="105" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d3/Professional_wrestling_ladder_match.jpg/255px-Professional_wrestling_ladder_match.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d3/Professional_wrestling_ladder_match.jpg/340px-Professional_wrestling_ladder_match.jpg 2x" data-file-width="2660" data-file-height="1644" /></a><figcaption>A WWE <a href="/wiki/Money_in_the_Bank_ladder_match" title="Money in the Bank ladder match">Money in the Bank ladder match</a> in 2009</figcaption></figure> <p>Some wrestling performances are staged with unique winning conditions, often to allow a <a href="/wiki/Thing_theory" title="Thing theory">thing theoristic</a> plot construction. An example is the <a href="/wiki/Ladder_match" title="Ladder match">ladder match</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-88" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-88"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>87<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>In the basic ladder match, the premise is wrestlers or teams of wrestlers must climb a ladder to obtain a prize that is hoist above the ring. The key to winning this match is that the wrestler or team of wrestlers must try to incapacitate each other long enough for one wrestler to climb the ladder and secure that prize for their team. As a result, the ladder can be used as a weapon. The prizes include, but are not limited to, any given championship belt (the traditional prize), a document granting the winner the right to a future title shot, or any document that matters to the wrestlers involved in the match (such as one granting the winner a cash prize). Something that is also common in pro wrestling is the <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_match_type" class="mw-redirect" title="Professional wrestling match type">cage match</a> which comes with the added rule that victory can be achieved by escaping the cage. Another common specialty match is known as the <a href="/wiki/Battle_royal_(professional_wrestling)" title="Battle royal (professional wrestling)">battle royal</a>. In a battle royal, all the wrestlers enter the ring to the point that there are 20–30 wrestlers in the ring at one time. When the match begins, the simple objective is to throw the opponent over the top rope and out of the ring with both feet on the floor to eliminate that opponent. The last wrestler standing is declared the winner. A variant on this type of match is the <a href="/wiki/WWE" title="WWE">WWE</a>'s <a href="/wiki/Royal_Rumble" title="Royal Rumble">Royal Rumble</a> where two wrestlers enter the ring to start the match and other wrestlers follow in 90 second intervals (previously 2 minutes) until 30–40 wrestlers have entered the ring. All other rules stay the same. </p> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Tommy_Seigler_%26_Nick_Kozak.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f0/Tommy_Seigler_%26_Nick_Kozak.jpg/170px-Tommy_Seigler_%26_Nick_Kozak.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="132" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f0/Tommy_Seigler_%26_Nick_Kozak.jpg/255px-Tommy_Seigler_%26_Nick_Kozak.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f0/Tommy_Seigler_%26_Nick_Kozak.jpg/340px-Tommy_Seigler_%26_Nick_Kozak.jpg 2x" data-file-width="5623" data-file-height="4354" /></a><figcaption><a href="/wiki/Tommy_Seigler" title="Tommy Seigler">Tommy Seigler</a> applies a hold to Nick Kozak while a <a href="/wiki/Referee_(professional_wrestling)" title="Referee (professional wrestling)">referee</a> looks on</figcaption></figure> <p>Almost every professional wrestling match features <a href="/wiki/Referee_(professional_wrestling)" title="Referee (professional wrestling)">referee</a>, who is the final arbitrator of the fictional rules, which may vary from promotion to promotion. In multi-man <a href="/wiki/Lucha_libre" title="Lucha libre">lucha libre</a> matches, two referees are used, one inside the ring and one outside. </p><p>Due to the <a href="/wiki/Shoot_(professional_wrestling)" title="Shoot (professional wrestling)">legitimate</a> role that referees play in wrestling of serving as liaison between the bookers backstage and the wrestlers in the ring (the role of being a final arbitrator is merely <a href="/wiki/Kayfabe" title="Kayfabe">kayfabe</a>), the referee is present, even in matches that do not at first glance appear to require a referee (such as a ladder match, as it is no holds barred, and the criteria for victory could theoretically be assessed from afar). Although their actions are also frequently scripted for dramatic effect, referees are subject to certain general rules and requirements to maintain the theatrical appearance of unbiased authority. The most basic rule is that an action must be seen by a referee to be declared for a fall or disqualification. This allows for <a href="/wiki/Heel_(professional_wrestling)" title="Heel (professional wrestling)">heel</a> characters to gain a scripted advantage by distracting or disabling the referee to perform some ostensibly illegal maneuver on their opponent. Most referees are unnamed and essentially anonymous, though some wrestling promotions, most notably in the present <a href="/wiki/All_Elite_Wrestling" title="All Elite Wrestling">All Elite Wrestling</a>, have made officials known by their names (and there are some cases where fans have called their names during matches). </p><p>Special <a href="/wiki/Referee_(professional_wrestling)#Special_referees" title="Referee (professional wrestling)">guest referees</a> may be used from time to time; by virtue of their celebrity status, they are often scripted to dispense with the appearance of neutrality and use their influence to unfairly influence the outcome of the match for added dramatic impact. Face special referees will often fight back against hostile heel wrestlers, particularly if the special referee is either a wrestler himself or a famous martial artist (such as <a href="/wiki/Tito_Ortiz" title="Tito Ortiz">Tito Ortiz</a> at the main event at <a href="/wiki/Hard_Justice_(2005)" title="Hard Justice (2005)">Hard Justice 2005</a>). </p><p>For dramatic effect, heel referees may assist a heel wrestler.<sup id="cite_ref-fakerules_85-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-fakerules-85"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>84<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Several common plot devices involve the heel referee assisting the heel wrestler. </p> <ul><li>Counting fast whenever the face wrestler is being pinned, while counting slow, faking a wrist or eye injury, or even refusing to count at all, when the heel wrestler is being pinned.</li> <li>Allowing heel wrestlers to use blatantly illegal tactics that most normal referees would instantly disqualify for, while not extending these relaxed rules to face wrestlers.</li> <li>Disqualifying the face wrestler for unfair reasons, such as an accidental attack on the referee or a maneuver that appears to be an illegal attack.</li> <li>Feigning unconsciousness far longer than they would normally otherwise be out, or using convenient distractions to look away from the wrestlers for a prolonged period of time. This allows for greater opportunities for run-ins or use of illegal weapons and tactics, or can be used as an excuse to avoid counting a pinfall or calling a submission in the face's favor. The referee often instantly up the moment the heel wrestler seems to have an advantage, usually the moment the heel goes for the pinfall or applies a submission finisher.</li> <li>Actually assisting in attacking the face wrestler.</li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Tag_rules">Tag rules</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=16" title="Edit section: Tag rules"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1251242444"><table class="box-Unreferenced_section plainlinks metadata ambox ambox-content ambox-Unreferenced" role="presentation"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image"><div class="mbox-image-div"><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Question_book-new.svg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/50px-Question_book-new.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="39" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/75px-Question_book-new.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/100px-Question_book-new.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="512" data-file-height="399" /></a></span></div></td><td class="mbox-text"><div class="mbox-text-span">This section <b>does not <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sources" title="Wikipedia:Citing sources">cite</a> any <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">sources</a></b>.<span class="hide-when-compact"> Please help <a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Professional_wrestling" title="Special:EditPage/Professional wrestling">improve this section</a> by <a href="/wiki/Help:Referencing_for_beginners" title="Help:Referencing for beginners">adding citations to reliable sources</a>. Unsourced material may be challenged and <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability#Burden_of_evidence" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">removed</a>.</span> <span class="date-container"><i>(<span class="date">September 2018</span>)</i></span><span class="hide-when-compact"><i> (<small><a href="/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal" title="Help:Maintenance template removal">Learn how and when to remove this message</a></small>)</i></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a href="/wiki/Tag_team" title="Tag team">Tag team</a></div> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-left" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Jeff-Hardy-Dropkick,-RLA-Melb-10.11.2007_filtered.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/Jeff-Hardy-Dropkick%2C-RLA-Melb-10.11.2007_filtered.jpg/170px-Jeff-Hardy-Dropkick%2C-RLA-Melb-10.11.2007_filtered.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="113" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/Jeff-Hardy-Dropkick%2C-RLA-Melb-10.11.2007_filtered.jpg/255px-Jeff-Hardy-Dropkick%2C-RLA-Melb-10.11.2007_filtered.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/Jeff-Hardy-Dropkick%2C-RLA-Melb-10.11.2007_filtered.jpg/340px-Jeff-Hardy-Dropkick%2C-RLA-Melb-10.11.2007_filtered.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1000" data-file-height="667" /></a><figcaption>A tag team match in progress: <a href="/wiki/Jeff_Hardy" title="Jeff Hardy">Jeff Hardy</a> kicks <a href="/wiki/Umaga_(wrestler)" title="Umaga (wrestler)">Umaga</a>, while their respective partners, <a href="/wiki/Triple_H" title="Triple H">Triple H</a> and <a href="/wiki/Randy_Orton" title="Randy Orton">Randy Orton</a>, encourage them and reach for the tags</figcaption></figure> <p>In some team matches, there is a fictional premise that only one entrant from each team may be designated as the "legal" or "active" wrestler at any given moment. Two wrestlers must make physical contact in the corner (typically palm-to-palm) to transfer this legal status. This is known as a "tag", with the participants "tagging out" and "tagging in". Typically, the wrestler who is tagging out has a five count to leave the ring, whereas the one tagging in can enter the ring at any time, resulting in heels legally double-teaming a face. </p><p>The non-legal wrestlers must remain outside the ring or other legal area at all times (and avoid purposeful contact with the opposing wrestlers) or face reprimand from the referee. In most promotions, the wrestler to be tagged in must be touching the turnbuckle on his corner, or a cloth strap attached to the turnbuckle. </p><p>Some multi-wrestler matches allow for a set number of legal wrestlers; this rule is commonplace in four-way tag team matches, where only two wrestlers are legal in the match, meaning two teams will have both members on the outside at any given time. In these matches, tags can be made between any two teams regardless if they are on the same team or not. As a result of this stipulation, tags between different teams are not usually mutual effort; a non-legal wrestler will usually tag themselves in against the legal wrestler's will. A legal wrestler will only voluntarily tag themselves out to another team if their own partner is incapacitated, or are being held in a submission hold and are closer to another tag team than their own. </p> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Tara_tags_in_Gail_Kim.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ea/Tara_tags_in_Gail_Kim.jpg/170px-Tara_tags_in_Gail_Kim.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="204" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ea/Tara_tags_in_Gail_Kim.jpg/255px-Tara_tags_in_Gail_Kim.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ea/Tara_tags_in_Gail_Kim.jpg/340px-Tara_tags_in_Gail_Kim.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1868" data-file-height="2243" /></a><figcaption><a href="/wiki/Lisa_Marie_Varon" title="Lisa Marie Varon">Tara</a> (right) tags her partner, <a href="/wiki/Gail_Kim" title="Gail Kim">Gail Kim</a>, into a match</figcaption></figure> <p>Sometimes, poly-sided matches that pit every man for himself will incorporate tagging rules. Outside of kayfabe, this is done to give wrestlers a break from the action (as these matches tend to go on for long periods of time), and to make the action in the ring easier to choreograph. One of the most mainstream examples of this is the Four-Corner match, the most common type of match in the <a href="/wiki/WWE" title="WWE">WWE</a> before it was replaced with its equivalent Fatal Four-Way; four wrestlers, each for himself, fight in a match, but only two wrestlers can be in the match at any given time. The other two are positioned in the corner, and tags can be made between any two wrestlers. </p><p>In a Texas Tornado Tag Team match, all the competitors are legal in the match, and tagging in and out is not necessary. All matches fought under <a href="/wiki/Hardcore_wrestling" title="Hardcore wrestling">hardcore rules</a> (such as no disqualification, no holds barred, <a href="/wiki/Ladder_match" title="Ladder match">ladder match</a>, etc.) are all contested under <i><a href="/wiki/De_facto" title="De facto">de facto</a></i> Texas Tornado rules, since the lack of ability of a referee to issue a disqualification renders any tagging requirements moot. </p><p>Regardless of rules of tagging, a wrestler cannot pin his or her own tag team partner, even if it is technically possible from the rules of the match (e.g. Texas Tornado rules, or a three-way tag team match). This is called the "Outlaw Rule" because the first team to attempt to use that (in an attempt to unfairly retain their tag team titles) was the <a href="/wiki/New_Age_Outlaws" title="New Age Outlaws">New Age Outlaws</a>. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Victory">Victory</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=17" title="Edit section: Victory"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1251242444"><table class="box-Unreferenced_section plainlinks metadata ambox ambox-content ambox-Unreferenced" role="presentation"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image"><div class="mbox-image-div"><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Question_book-new.svg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/50px-Question_book-new.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="39" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/75px-Question_book-new.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/100px-Question_book-new.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="512" data-file-height="399" /></a></span></div></td><td class="mbox-text"><div class="mbox-text-span">This section <b>does not <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sources" title="Wikipedia:Citing sources">cite</a> any <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">sources</a></b>.<span class="hide-when-compact"> Please help <a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Professional_wrestling" title="Special:EditPage/Professional wrestling">improve this section</a> by <a href="/wiki/Help:Referencing_for_beginners" title="Help:Referencing for beginners">adding citations to reliable sources</a>. Unsourced material may be challenged and <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability#Burden_of_evidence" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">removed</a>.</span> <span class="date-container"><i>(<span class="date">September 2018</span>)</i></span><span class="hide-when-compact"><i> (<small><a href="/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal" title="Help:Maintenance template removal">Learn how and when to remove this message</a></small>)</i></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <p>Although scripted and choreographed, wrestling matches are presented as being legitimate athletic competitions decided on one of several possible outcomes. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Pinfall">Pinfall</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=18" title="Edit section: Pinfall"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a href="/wiki/Pin_(professional_wrestling)" title="Pin (professional wrestling)">Pin (professional wrestling)</a></div> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-left" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Ed_Strangler_Lewis_Signed_1929_8x10.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/13/Ed_Strangler_Lewis_Signed_1929_8x10.jpg/170px-Ed_Strangler_Lewis_Signed_1929_8x10.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="112" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/13/Ed_Strangler_Lewis_Signed_1929_8x10.jpg/255px-Ed_Strangler_Lewis_Signed_1929_8x10.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/13/Ed_Strangler_Lewis_Signed_1929_8x10.jpg/340px-Ed_Strangler_Lewis_Signed_1929_8x10.jpg 2x" data-file-width="987" data-file-height="651" /></a><figcaption><a href="/wiki/Ed_Lewis_(wrestler)" title="Ed Lewis (wrestler)">Ed "Strangler" Lewis</a> pins an opponent in 1929</figcaption></figure> <p>A match's fictional premise may allow a score by pinfall, in which a wrestling performer must pin both his opponent's shoulders against the mat while the referee slaps the mat three times (referred to as a "three count"). This is the most common form presented a defeat. The pinned wrestler must also be on his back and, if they're lying on his stomach, it usually does not count. A count may be started at any time that a wrestler's shoulders are down (both shoulders touching the mat), back-first and any part of the opponent's body is lying over the wrestler. This often results in pins that can easily be kicked out of, if the defensive wrestler is even slightly conscious. For example, an attacking wrestler who is half-conscious may simply drape an arm over an opponent, or a cocky wrestler may place his foot gently on the opponent's body, prompting a three-count from the referee. </p><p>In some promotions, there is a premise that certain pinning methods are disallowed, including using the ropes for leverage and hooking the opponent's clothing. As a plot device, disallowed pinning methods can be depicted as a cheating method for <a href="/wiki/Heel_(professional_wrestling)" title="Heel (professional wrestling)">heels</a>. Pins such as these are rarely seen by the referee and are often used by heels and on occasion by cheating faces to win matches. Even if it is noticed, storylines rarely result in a disqualification and instead it simply results in nullification of the pin attempt, so the wrestler rarely has anything to lose. </p><p>Occasionally, there are instances where a pinfall is presented as being made where both wrestlers' shoulders were on the mat for the three-count. This situation will most likely lead to a draw, and in some cases a continuation of the match or a future match to determine the winner. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Submission">Submission</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=19" title="Edit section: Submission"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>To score by submission, the performer must make their opponent give up, usually by putting them in a submission hold (e.g. figure four leg-lock, arm-lock, sleeper-hold). </p> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Tajiri_camel_clutch.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d5/Tajiri_camel_clutch.jpg/170px-Tajiri_camel_clutch.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="255" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d5/Tajiri_camel_clutch.jpg/255px-Tajiri_camel_clutch.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d5/Tajiri_camel_clutch.jpg/340px-Tajiri_camel_clutch.jpg 2x" data-file-width="2592" data-file-height="3888" /></a><figcaption><a href="/wiki/Yoshihiro_Tajiri" title="Yoshihiro Tajiri">Tajiri</a> performs a <a href="/wiki/Camel_clutch" class="mw-redirect" title="Camel clutch">camel clutch</a> submission hold on <a href="/wiki/Rene_Bonaparte" class="mw-redirect" title="Rene Bonaparte">Rene Bonaparte</a>.</figcaption></figure> <p>A performer may appear to voluntarily submit by verbally informing the referee (usually used in moves such as the Mexican Surfboard, where all four limbs are incapacitated, making tapping impossible). Since <a href="/wiki/Ken_Shamrock" title="Ken Shamrock">Ken Shamrock</a> popularized it in 1997, a wrestler can indicate a voluntary submission by "<a href="/wiki/Submission_(combat_sports)" title="Submission (combat sports)">tapping out</a>",<sup id="cite_ref-89" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-89"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>88<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> that is, tapping a free hand against the mat or against an opponent. Submission was initially a large factor in professional wrestling, but following the decline of the submission-oriented <a href="/wiki/Catch_wrestling" title="Catch wrestling">catch-as-catch-can</a> style from mainstream professional wrestling, the submission largely faded. Despite this, some wrestlers, such as <a href="/wiki/Chris_Jericho" title="Chris Jericho">Chris Jericho</a>, <a href="/wiki/Ric_Flair" title="Ric Flair">Ric Flair</a>, <a href="/wiki/Bret_Hart" title="Bret Hart">Bret Hart</a>, <a href="/wiki/Kurt_Angle" title="Kurt Angle">Kurt Angle</a>, <a href="/wiki/Ken_Shamrock" title="Ken Shamrock">Ken Shamrock</a>, <a href="/wiki/Dean_Malenko" title="Dean Malenko">Dean Malenko</a>, <a href="/wiki/Chris_Benoit" title="Chris Benoit">Chris Benoit</a>, <a href="/wiki/Bryan_Danielson" title="Bryan Danielson">Bryan Danielson</a>, and <a href="/wiki/Tazz" class="mw-redirect" title="Tazz">Tazz</a>, became famous for their fictional depictions of winning matches via submission. A wrestler with a signature submission technique is portrayed as better at applying the hold, making it more painful or more difficult to get out of than others, or can be falsely credited as inventing the hold (such as when Tazz popularized the <a href="/wiki/Kata_ha_jime" title="Kata ha jime">kata ha jime</a> judo choke in pro wrestling as the "Tazzmission"). </p><p>Under wrestling nominal rules, all contact between the wrestlers must cease if any part of the body is touching or underneath the ropes. As such, many performances will attempt to break submission holds by deliberately grabbing the bottom ropes. This is called a "rope break", and it is one of the most common ways to break a submission hold. Most holds leave an arm or leg free, so that the person can tap out if they want. Instead, they use these free limbs to either grab one of the ring ropes or drape their foot across or underneath one. Once this has been accomplished and witnessed by the referee, the referee will demand that the offending wrestler break the hold and start counting to five if the wrestler does not. If the referee reaches the count of five and the wrestler still does not break the hold, they are disqualified. </p><p>If a <a href="/wiki/Manager_(professional_wrestling)" title="Manager (professional wrestling)">manager</a> decides that their wrestler presented as their client should tap out, but cannot convince the wrestler to do so, they may "throw in the towel" (by literally taking a gym towel and hurling it into the ring where the referee can see it). This is the same as a submission, as in <a href="/wiki/Kayfabe" title="Kayfabe">kayfabe</a> the manager is considered the wrestler's <a href="/wiki/Law_of_agency" title="Law of agency">agent</a> and therefore authorized to make formal decisions (such as forfeiting a match) on the client's behalf. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Knockout">Knockout</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=20" title="Edit section: Knockout"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Some wrestling performances are presented as resulting in a knockout, mirroring legitimate martial arts and concluding with a <a href="/wiki/Technical_knockout" class="mw-redirect" title="Technical knockout">technical knockout</a> or <a href="/wiki/Submission_(combat_sport)" class="mw-redirect" title="Submission (combat sport)">technical submission</a>. To determine if a wrestler has passed out in WWE, the referee usually picks up and drops his hand. If it drops to the mat or floor one or three consecutive times without the wrestler having the strength to hold it up, the wrestler is considered to have passed out. </p><p>A performer can also be presented as winning by technical knockout even if he does not resort to submission holds, but still beats the opponent to the point of unconsciousness or to the impossibility to defend himself. To check for a technical knockout in this manner a referee would wave his hand in front of the wrestler's face and, if this produces no reaction of any kind, the referee would award the victory to the other wrestler. </p><p>A wrestler can also request a ten-count from the referee when, under the event's fictional premise, they think an opponent is sufficiently incapacitated to not be able to stand before the count of ten. Except in traditional European promotions where following down on a fallen opponent was prohibited, these knockouts are rarely used or mentioned as logically it makes more sense for a wrestler to actively pin an opponent for three seconds rather than leaving an opponent the chance to stand up before ten. In such European promotions, countouts as described below are treated as a variant of a knockout. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Countout">Countout</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=21" title="Edit section: Countout"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>A performance can be depicted as ending in a countout (alternatively "count-out" or "count out"), where wrestler is out of the ring long enough for the referee to count to ten (twenty in some promotions) and thus, under the event's fictional premise, is disqualified. The count is broken and restarted when a wrestler in the ring exits the ring. Playing into this, some wrestlers are depicted as "milking" the count by sliding in the ring and immediately sliding back out. As he was technically inside the ring for a split second before exiting again, it is sufficient to restart the count. This is often referred to by commentators as "breaking the count". Heels often use this tactic in order to buy themselves more time to catch their breath, or to attempt to frustrate their <a href="/wiki/Face_(professional_wrestling)" title="Face (professional wrestling)">babyface</a> opponents. </p><p>If all the active wrestlers in a match are down inside the ring at the same time, the referee begins a count (usually ten seconds, twenty in Japan). If nobody rises to their feet by the end of the count, the match is ruled a draw. Any participant who stands up in time ends the count for everyone else, while in a Last Man Standing match this form of a countout is the only way that the match can end, so the referee counts when one or more wrestlers are down and one wrestler standing up before the 10-count does not stop the count for another wrestler who is still down. </p><p>In most major modern promotions, championships are not permitted to change hands via a countout, unless the on-screen authority figure declares otherwise; this rule varies in some promotions, however. In some storylines, heels are presented take advantage of this and will intentionally get counted out when facing difficult opponents while defending championships. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Disqualification">Disqualification</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=22" title="Edit section: Disqualification"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Disqualification (sometimes abbreviated as "DQ") occurs when a wrestler violates the rules established as part of the performance's fictional premise, thus losing automatically. Although a countout can technically be considered a disqualification (as it is, for all intents and purposes, an automatic loss suffered as a result of violating a match rule), the two concepts are often distinct in wrestling. A no disqualification match can still end by countout (although this is rare). Typically, a match must be declared a "no holds barred" match, a "street fight" or some other term, in order for both disqualifications and countouts to be waived. </p> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Anthony_Darko_low_blow.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/25/Anthony_Darko_low_blow.jpg/170px-Anthony_Darko_low_blow.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="131" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/25/Anthony_Darko_low_blow.jpg/255px-Anthony_Darko_low_blow.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/25/Anthony_Darko_low_blow.jpg/340px-Anthony_Darko_low_blow.jpg 2x" data-file-width="4472" data-file-height="3456" /></a><figcaption>A <a href="/wiki/Groin_attack" title="Groin attack">low blow</a> typically results in a disqualification</figcaption></figure> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Jimmy_Jacobs_steel_chair_2012.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/42/Jimmy_Jacobs_steel_chair_2012.jpg/170px-Jimmy_Jacobs_steel_chair_2012.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="226" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/42/Jimmy_Jacobs_steel_chair_2012.jpg/255px-Jimmy_Jacobs_steel_chair_2012.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/42/Jimmy_Jacobs_steel_chair_2012.jpg/340px-Jimmy_Jacobs_steel_chair_2012.jpg 2x" data-file-width="395" data-file-height="526" /></a><figcaption><a href="/wiki/Jimmy_Jacobs" title="Jimmy Jacobs">Jimmy Jacobs</a> strikes <a href="/wiki/El_Generico" class="mw-redirect" title="El Generico">El Generico</a> with a <a href="/wiki/Folding_chair" title="Folding chair">folding chair</a>. Within wrestling's fictional storylines, such attacks will get a wrestler disqualified in most matches</figcaption></figure> <p>Disqualification from a match is called when the fictional storyline involves: </p> <ul><li>Performing any illegal holds or maneuvers, such as refusing to break a hold when an opponent is in the ropes, hair-pulling, choking or biting an opponent, or repeatedly punching with a closed fist. These violations are usually subject to a referee-administered five count and will result in disqualification if the wrestler does not cease the offending behavior in time. Note that the ban on closed fists does not apply if the attacker is in midair when the punch connects, like with <a href="/wiki/Jerry_Lawler" title="Jerry Lawler">Jerry Lawler</a>'s diving fist drop or <a href="/wiki/Roman_Reigns" title="Roman Reigns">Roman Reigns</a>'s <a href="/wiki/Superman_Punch" class="mw-redirect" title="Superman Punch">Superman Punch</a>.</li> <li>Deliberate injury of an opponent, such as attacking an opponent's eye, such as raking it, poking it, <a href="/wiki/Eye-gouging" title="Eye-gouging">gouging it</a>, punching it or other severe attacks to the eye. This was imposed when <a href="/wiki/Sexy_Star" title="Sexy Star">Sexy Star</a> was disqualified for a legitimate injury on <a href="/wiki/Rosemary_(wrestler)" title="Rosemary (wrestler)">Rosemary</a> at AAA <a href="/wiki/Tripleman%C3%ADa_XXV" title="Triplemanía XXV">Triplemanía XXV</a> by popping her arm out of the socket. This type of disqualification can also be grounds for stripping a wrestler of a championship, as AAA overturned the result of that <a href="/wiki/AAA_Reina_de_Reinas_Championship" title="AAA Reina de Reinas Championship">AAA Women's Championship</a> match, stripping her of the title.</li> <li>Any outside interference involving a person not involved in the match striking or holding a wrestler. Sometimes (depending on the promotion and uniqueness of the situation), if a heel attempts to interfere but is <a href="/wiki/Ejection_(sports)" title="Ejection (sports)">ejected</a> from the ring by a wrestler or referee before this occurs, there may not be a disqualification (<a href="/wiki/All_Elite_Wrestling" title="All Elite Wrestling">All Elite Wrestling</a> is known to use ejections, as AEW referees <a href="/wiki/Earl_Hebner" title="Earl Hebner">Earl Hebner</a> and <a href="/wiki/Aubrey_Edwards" title="Aubrey Edwards">Aubrey Edwards</a> have ejected numerous wrestlers during events, all for outside interference). In this disqualification method, the wrestler being attacked by the foreign member is awarded the win. Sometimes this can work in heels' favor. In February 2009, <a href="/wiki/Shawn_Michaels" title="Shawn Michaels">Shawn Michaels</a>, who was under the <a href="/wiki/Kayfabe" title="Kayfabe">kayfabe</a> employment of <a href="/wiki/John_Layfield" title="John Layfield">John "Bradshaw" Layfield</a>, interfered in a match and super kicked JBL in front of the referee to get his employer the win via "outside interference".</li> <li>Striking an opponent with a <a href="/wiki/Glossary_of_professional_wrestling_terms#Foreign_object" title="Glossary of professional wrestling terms">foreign object</a> (an object not permitted by the rules of the match; see <a href="/wiki/Hardcore_wrestling" title="Hardcore wrestling">hardcore wrestling</a>). Sometimes the win decision can be reversed if the referee spots the weapon before pin attempt or after the match because a wrestler tried to strike when the referee was either distracted or knocked out.<sup id="cite_ref-90" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-90"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>89<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup></li> <li>Using any kind of "banned" move (see below for details).</li> <li>A direct <a href="/wiki/Groin_attack" title="Groin attack">low blow to the groin</a> (unless the rules of the match specifically allow this).</li> <li>Intentionally laying hands on the referee.</li> <li>Pulling an opponent's mask off during a match (this is illegal in Mexico, and sometimes in Japan).</li> <li>Throwing an opponent over the top rope during a match (illegal in the <a href="/wiki/National_Wrestling_Alliance" title="National Wrestling Alliance">National Wrestling Alliance</a>).</li> <li>In a mixed tag team match, a male wrestler hitting a female wrestler (intergender), or a normal sized wrestler attacking an opposing midget wrestler (tag team matches involving teams with one normal-sized and one midget wrestler).</li></ul> <p>In the fictional universe of some promotions, not all rule violations result in a disqualification as the referee may be depicted as using his own judgement and is not obligated to stop the match. Usually, the only offenses that the referee will see and immediately disqualify a wrestler for (as opposed to having multiple offenses) are <a href="/wiki/Groin_attack" title="Groin attack">low blows</a>, <a href="/wiki/Glossary_of_professional_wrestling_terms#foreign_object" title="Glossary of professional wrestling terms">weapon usage</a>, interference, or assaulting the referee. In WWE, the plot convention is that a referee must see the violation with his own eyes to rule that the match end in a disqualification (simply watching the video tape is usually not enough) and the referee's ruling is almost always final, although "Dusty finishes" (named after, and made famous by, <a href="/wiki/Dusty_Rhodes" title="Dusty Rhodes">Dusty Rhodes</a>) will often result in the referee's decision being overturned. It is not uncommon for the referees themselves to get knocked out during a match, which is commonly referred to by the term "ref bump". While the referee remains "unconscious", wrestlers are free to violate rules until he is revived or replaced. In some cases, a referee might disqualify a person under the presumption that it was that wrestler who knocked him out; most referee knockouts are arranged to allow a wrestler, usually a heel, to gain an advantage. For example, a wrestler may get whipped into a referee at a slower speed, knocking the ref down for short amount of time; during that interim period, one wrestler may pin his opponent for a three-count and would have won the match but for the referee being down (sometimes, another referee will sprint to the ring from backstage to attempt to make the count, but by then, the other wrestler has had enough time to kick out on his own accord). In most promotions, a championship title cannot normally change hands via disqualification; this rule is explicitly enforced in a title match under special circumstances. </p><p>In traditional European promotions, severe or persistent infractions of the rules result in a formal caution, called a "public warning" in the U.K., "avertissement" (warning) in France and a <a href="/wiki/Soccer" class="mw-redirect" title="Soccer">soccer</a>-style <a href="/wiki/Yellow_card_(sport)" class="mw-redirect" title="Yellow card (sport)">yellow card</a> in Germany. Three of these will result in disqualification (a <a href="/wiki/Red_card_(sport)" class="mw-redirect" title="Red card (sport)">red card</a> in Germany). One major North American promotion – <a href="/wiki/Stampede_Wrestling" title="Stampede Wrestling">Stampede Wrestling</a> of <a href="/wiki/Calgary" title="Calgary">Calgary</a> – also used the German card system from the late 1970s onward. </p><p>If all participants in a match continue to breach the referee's instructions, the staged performance may presented as ending in a double disqualification, where both wrestlers and/or teams (in a <a href="/wiki/Tag_team" title="Tag team">tag team</a> match) have been disqualified. The match is essentially nullified and called a draw or in some cases a restart or the same match being held at a pay-per-view or next night's show. Sometimes, in a match to determine the challenger for a heel champion's title, the champion is forced to face both opponents simultaneously for the title. Usually, the double disqualification is caused by the heel wrestler's associates in a match between two face wrestlers to determine his opponent. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Forfeit">Forfeit</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=23" title="Edit section: Forfeit"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Although extremely rare, some fictional storylines involve a match ending in a forfeit if the opponent is depicted as either does not show up for the match, or shows up but refuses to compete. Although the plot premise is that championship usually cannot change hands except by pinfall or submission, a forfeit victory is enough to crown a new champion. A famous example of this happened on the December 8, 1997, episode of <i><a href="/wiki/WWE_Raw" title="WWE Raw">Raw is War</a></i>, when <a href="/wiki/Stone_Cold_Steve_Austin" title="Stone Cold Steve Austin">Stone Cold Steve Austin</a> handed the <a href="/wiki/WWE_Intercontinental_Championship" title="WWE Intercontinental Championship">WWE Intercontinental Championship</a> to <a href="/wiki/Dwayne_Johnson" title="Dwayne Johnson">The Rock</a> after refusing to defend the title. </p><p>When a pay-per-view match is booked and one wrestler is unable to make it for one reason or another, the <a href="/wiki/Genre_convention" class="mw-redirect" title="Genre convention">genre convention</a> is to insert a last-minute replacement rather than award a wrestler a victory by forfeit. Forfeit victories are almost always reserved for when the story the promotion is telling specifically requires such an ending. </p><p>Despite being, statistically, an extremely rare occurrence, <a href="/wiki/The_Godfather_(wrestler)#The_Godfather_(1998–2000)" title="The Godfather (wrestler)">Charles Wright</a> is one wrestler who is famous performances in which forfeit victories were turned into his own gimmick. During the late 1990s, Wright called himself "The Godfather" and portrayed the gimmick of a pimp. He often brought multiple women, whom he referred to as "hos", to the ring with him, and offered them to his opponents in exchange for their forfeit. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Draw">Draw</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=24" title="Edit section: Draw"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>A professional wrestling match can be depicted as ending in a draw. A draw occurs if both opponents are simultaneously disqualified (e.g. <a href="/wiki/Brock_Lesnar" title="Brock Lesnar">Brock Lesnar</a> vs. <a href="/wiki/The_Undertaker" title="The Undertaker">The Undertaker</a> at <a href="/wiki/Unforgiven_(2002)" title="Unforgiven (2002)">Unforgiven in 2002</a>), neither opponent is able to answer a ten-count (e.g. <a href="/wiki/Shawn_Michaels" title="Shawn Michaels">Shawn Michaels</a> vs. <a href="/wiki/Triple_H" title="Triple H">Triple H</a> at the <a href="/wiki/Royal_Rumble_(2004)" title="Royal Rumble (2004)">Royal Rumble in 2004</a>), or both opponents simultaneously win the match. The latter can occur if, for example, both wrestlers pin each other (e.g. <a href="/wiki/MJF" class="mw-redirect" title="MJF">MJF</a> vs. <a href="/wiki/Adam_Cole" title="Adam Cole">Adam Cole</a> at <a href="/wiki/All_In_(2023)" title="All In (2023)">All In in 2023</a>, before the match was restarted), or one competitor scores a submission victory while the other scores a pinfall victory (e.g. <a href="/wiki/Kurt_Angle" title="Kurt Angle">Kurt Angle</a> being pinned while successfully applying the <a href="/wiki/Triangle_choke" title="Triangle choke">triangle choke</a> to The Undertaker on a 2002 episode of <i><a href="/wiki/SmackDown" class="mw-redirect" title="SmackDown">SmackDown</a></i>). Traditionally, a championship may not change hands in the event of a draw. </p><p>A variant of the draw is the time-limit draw, where the match does not have a winner by a specified time period; a one-hour draw, which was once common, is known in wrestling circles as a "Broadway". In European promotions where wrestling is traditionally timed in rounds, a best of three falls match is stopped and declared a one-fall-each draw if an equalizing pinfall or submission is scored in the final round. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="No_contest">No contest</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=25" title="Edit section: No contest"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>A wrestling match may be declared a no contest if, under the fictional storyline, the winning conditions are unable to occur. The storyline may attribute such an outcome to factors such as excessive interference, the loss of referee's control over the match, an injury unrelated to the fictitious storyline, or other fictional circumstances presenting the scheduled match to even begin. A no contest is a state separate and distinct from a draw — a draw indicates winning conditions were met. Although the terms are sometimes used interchangeably in practice, this usage is technically incorrect. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Other_dramatic_elements">Other dramatic elements</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=26" title="Edit section: Other dramatic elements"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1251242444"><table class="box-More_citations_needed_section plainlinks metadata ambox ambox-content ambox-Refimprove" role="presentation"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image"><div class="mbox-image-div"><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Question_book-new.svg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/50px-Question_book-new.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="39" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/75px-Question_book-new.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/100px-Question_book-new.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="512" data-file-height="399" /></a></span></div></td><td class="mbox-text"><div class="mbox-text-span">This section <b>needs additional citations for <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">verification</a></b>.<span class="hide-when-compact"> Please help <a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Professional_wrestling" title="Special:EditPage/Professional wrestling">improve this article</a> by <a href="/wiki/Help:Referencing_for_beginners" title="Help:Referencing for beginners">adding citations to reliable sources</a> in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.</span> <span class="date-container"><i>(<span class="date">November 2010</span>)</i></span><span class="hide-when-compact"><i> (<small><a href="/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal" title="Help:Maintenance template removal">Learn how and when to remove this message</a></small>)</i></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <p>While each wrestling match is ostensibly a competition of athletics and strategy, the goal from a business standpoint is to excite and entertain the audience. Although the competition is staged, dramatic emphasis draws out the most intense reaction. Heightened interest results in higher attendance, increased ticket sales, higher ratings on television broadcasts (greater ad revenue), higher <a href="/wiki/Pay-per-view" title="Pay-per-view">pay-per-view</a> buyrates, and sales of branded merchandise and recorded video footage. All of these contribute to the profit of the promotion company. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Character_gimmicks">Character gimmicks</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=27" title="Edit section: Character gimmicks"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a href="/wiki/Gimmick_(professional_wrestling)" title="Gimmick (professional wrestling)">Gimmick (professional wrestling)</a></div> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-left" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:El_Hijo_De_Santo_vs_Blue_Demon_Jr.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/34/El_Hijo_De_Santo_vs_Blue_Demon_Jr.jpg/170px-El_Hijo_De_Santo_vs_Blue_Demon_Jr.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="254" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/34/El_Hijo_De_Santo_vs_Blue_Demon_Jr.jpg/255px-El_Hijo_De_Santo_vs_Blue_Demon_Jr.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/34/El_Hijo_De_Santo_vs_Blue_Demon_Jr.jpg 2x" data-file-width="334" data-file-height="500" /></a><figcaption>Mexican wrestlers <a href="/wiki/Blue_Demon_Jr." title="Blue Demon Jr.">Blue Demon Jr.</a> (in blue) and <a href="/wiki/El_Hijo_del_Santo" title="El Hijo del Santo">El Hijo del Santo</a>. Both parents of these performers were two of the early luchadores to have a gimmick. <a href="/wiki/El_Santo" title="El Santo">El Santo</a> was known as "El Enmascarado de Plata" (The Silver Masked) and <a href="/wiki/Blue_Demon" title="Blue Demon">Blue Demon</a> was his long time <a href="/wiki/Frenemy" title="Frenemy">frenemy</a></figcaption></figure> <p>In Latin America and English-speaking countries, most wrestlers (and other on-stage performers) portray <a href="/wiki/Persona" title="Persona">character</a> roles, sometimes with personalities wildly different from their own. These personalities are a <a href="/wiki/Gimmick_(professional_wrestling)" title="Gimmick (professional wrestling)">gimmick</a> intended to heighten interest in a wrestler without regard to athletic ability. Some can be unrealistic and <a href="/wiki/Cartoon" title="Cartoon">cartoon-like</a> (such as <a href="/wiki/Doink_the_Clown" title="Doink the Clown">Doink the Clown</a>), while others carry more verisimilitude (such as <a href="/wiki/Chris_Jericho" title="Chris Jericho">Chris Jericho</a>, <a href="/wiki/Dwayne_Johnson" title="Dwayne Johnson">The Rock</a>, <a href="/wiki/John_Cena" title="John Cena">John Cena</a>, <a href="/wiki/Stone_Cold_Steve_Austin" title="Stone Cold Steve Austin">Steve Austin</a>, and <a href="/wiki/CM_Punk" title="CM Punk">CM Punk</a>). In <a href="/wiki/Lucha_libre" title="Lucha libre">lucha libre</a>, many characters wear masks, adopting a <a href="/wiki/Secret_identity" title="Secret identity">secret identity</a> akin to a <a href="/wiki/Superhero" title="Superhero">superhero</a> or a <a href="/wiki/Supervillain" title="Supervillain">supervillain</a>, a near-sacred tradition.<sup id="cite_ref-SS1_91-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-SS1-91"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>90<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>An individual wrestler may use their real name, or a minor variation of it, for much of their career, such as <a href="/wiki/Bret_Hart" title="Bret Hart">Bret Hart</a>, <a href="/wiki/John_Cena" title="John Cena">John Cena</a> and <a href="/wiki/Randy_Orton" title="Randy Orton">Randy Orton</a>. Others can keep one ring name for their entire career (<a href="/wiki/Shawn_Michaels" title="Shawn Michaels">Shawn Michaels</a>, <a href="/wiki/CM_Punk" title="CM Punk">CM Punk</a> and <a href="/wiki/Ricky_Steamboat" title="Ricky Steamboat">Ricky Steamboat</a>), or may change from time to time to better suit the demands of the audience or company. Sometimes a character is owned and trademarked by the company, forcing the wrestler to find a new one when he leaves (although a simple typeset change, such as changing <a href="/wiki/Rhyno" title="Rhyno">Rhyno</a> to <b>Rhino</b>, can get around this), and sometimes a character is owned by the wrestler. Sometimes, a wrestler may change their legal name to obtain ownership of their ring name (<a href="/wiki/Test_(wrestler)" title="Test (wrestler)">Andrew Martin</a> and <a href="/wiki/The_Ultimate_Warrior" title="The Ultimate Warrior">Warrior</a>). Many wrestlers (such as <a href="/wiki/Dwayne_Johnson" title="Dwayne Johnson">The Rock</a> and <a href="/wiki/The_Undertaker" title="The Undertaker">The Undertaker</a>) are strongly identified with their character, even responding to the name in public or between friends. Proper decorum is for wrestlers to refer to each other by their stage names/characters rather than their birth/legal names, unless otherwise introduced.<sup id="cite_ref-92" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-92"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>91<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> A character can become so popular that it appears in other media (<a href="/wiki/Hulk_Hogan" title="Hulk Hogan">Hulk Hogan</a> and <a href="/wiki/El_Santo" title="El Santo">El Santo</a>) or even gives the performer enough visibility to enter <a href="/wiki/Politics" title="Politics">politics</a> (<a href="/wiki/Antonio_Inoki" title="Antonio Inoki">Antonio Inoki</a> and <a href="/wiki/Jesse_Ventura" title="Jesse Ventura">Jesse Ventura</a>). </p> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Gorgeous_George_robe.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dd/Gorgeous_George_robe.jpg/170px-Gorgeous_George_robe.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="193" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dd/Gorgeous_George_robe.jpg/255px-Gorgeous_George_robe.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dd/Gorgeous_George_robe.jpg/340px-Gorgeous_George_robe.jpg 2x" data-file-width="833" data-file-height="945" /></a><figcaption><a href="/wiki/Gorgeous_George" title="Gorgeous George">Gorgeous George</a>'s flamboyant gimmick made him one of the most famous wrestlers of his era</figcaption></figure> <p>Typically, matches are staged between a <a href="/wiki/Protagonist" title="Protagonist">protagonist</a> (historically an audience favorite, known as a <a href="/wiki/Face_(professional_wrestling)" title="Face (professional wrestling)">babyface</a>, or "the good guy") and an <a href="/wiki/Antagonist" title="Antagonist">antagonist</a> (historically a villain with arrogance, a tendency to break rules, or other unlikable qualities, called a <a href="/wiki/Heel_(professional_wrestling)" title="Heel (professional wrestling)">heel</a>, or "the bad guy"). In recent years, <a href="/wiki/Antihero" title="Antihero">antiheroes</a> have also become prominent in professional wrestling. There is also a less common role of a "tweener", who is neither fully face nor fully heel yet able to play either role effectively (case in point, <a href="/wiki/Samoa_Joe" title="Samoa Joe">Samoa Joe</a> during his first run in <a href="/wiki/Impact_Wrestling" class="mw-redirect" title="Impact Wrestling">Impact Wrestling</a> from June 2005 to November 2006). </p><p>At times, a character may "<a href="/wiki/Glossary_of_professional_wrestling_terms#Turn" title="Glossary of professional wrestling terms">turn</a>", altering their face/heel alignment. This may be an abrupt, surprising event, or it may slowly build over time. It is almost always accomplished with a markable change in behavior. Some turns become defining points in a career, as when <a href="/wiki/New_World_Order_(professional_wrestling)" title="New World Order (professional wrestling)">Hulk Hogan turned heel</a> after being a top face for over a decade. Others may have no noticeable effect on the character's status. If a character repeatedly switches between face and heel, this lessens the effect of such turns, and may result in apathy from the audience. <a href="/wiki/Big_Show" title="Big Show">Big Show</a> is a good example of having more heel and face turns than anyone in WWE history. Sometimes a character's heel turn will become so popular that eventually the audience response will alter the character's heel-face cycle to the point where the heel persona will, in practice, become a face persona, and what was previously the face persona, will turn into the heel persona, such as when <a href="/wiki/Dwayne_Johnson" title="Dwayne Johnson">Dwayne Johnson</a> first began using "The Rock" persona as a heel character, as opposed to his original "Rocky Maivia" babyface persona. Another legendary example is <a href="/wiki/Stone_Cold_Steve_Austin" title="Stone Cold Steve Austin">Stone Cold Steve Austin</a>, who was originally booked as a heel, with such mannerisms as drinking on the job, using <a href="/wiki/Profanity" title="Profanity">profanity</a>, breaking company property, and even <a href="/wiki/Brian_Pillman#World_Wrestling_Federation_(1996–1997)" title="Brian Pillman">breaking into people's private homes</a>. The fans' response to Austin was so positive that he effectively became one of the most popular antiheroes in professional wrestling. Austin, along with the stable of <a href="/wiki/D-Generation_X" title="D-Generation X">D-Generation X</a>, Bret Hart and his <a href="/wiki/Hart_Foundation" title="Hart Foundation">Hart Foundation</a>, is generally credited with ushering <a href="/wiki/The_Attitude_Era" class="mw-redirect" title="The Attitude Era">the Attitude Era</a> of WWF programming. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Story">Story</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=28" title="Edit section: Story"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>While real exhibition matches are now not uncommon, most matches tell a story analogous to an episode of a serial drama: the face will from time to time win (triumph) or from time to time lose (tragedy), and longer story arcs can result from a couple of matches. Since most promotions have a championship title, opposition for the championship is a frequent impetus for stories. For added stakes, anything from a character's own hair to their job can be wagered in a match. </p><p>Some matches are designed to further the story of only one participant. It could be intended to portray an unstoppable force, a lucky underdog, a sore loser, or any other characterization. Sometimes non-wrestling <a href="/wiki/Vignette_(literature)" title="Vignette (literature)">vignettes</a> are shown to enhance a character's image without the need for matches. </p> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-left" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Rockaustinxix_b.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f7/Rockaustinxix_b.jpg/170px-Rockaustinxix_b.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="123" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f7/Rockaustinxix_b.jpg/255px-Rockaustinxix_b.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f7/Rockaustinxix_b.jpg/340px-Rockaustinxix_b.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1213" data-file-height="876" /></a><figcaption><a href="/wiki/Stone_Cold_Steve_Austin" title="Stone Cold Steve Austin">Stone Cold Steve Austin</a> and <a href="/wiki/Dwayne_Johnson" title="Dwayne Johnson">The Rock</a> were frequent rivals throughout WWF's <a href="/wiki/Attitude_Era" title="Attitude Era">Attitude Era</a></figcaption></figure> <p>Other stories result from a natural rivalry. Outside of performance, these are referred to as <a href="/wiki/Feud_(professional_wrestling)" title="Feud (professional wrestling)">feuds</a>. A feud can exist between any number of participants and can last from a few days to decades. The feud between <a href="/wiki/Ric_Flair" title="Ric Flair">Ric Flair</a> and <a href="/wiki/Ricky_Steamboat" title="Ricky Steamboat">Ricky Steamboat</a> lasted from the late 1970s into the early 1990s and allegedly spanned over two thousand matches (although most of those matches were mere <a href="/wiki/Glossary_of_professional_wrestling_terms#D" title="Glossary of professional wrestling terms">dark matches</a>). The career-spanning history between characters <a href="/wiki/Mike_Awesome" title="Mike Awesome">Mike Awesome</a> and <a href="/wiki/Masato_Tanaka" title="Masato Tanaka">Masato Tanaka</a> is another example of a long-running feud, as is the case of <a href="/wiki/Stone_Cold_Steve_Austin" title="Stone Cold Steve Austin">Steve Austin</a> vs. <a href="/wiki/Vince_McMahon" title="Vince McMahon">Vince McMahon</a>, one of the most lucrative feuds in the World Wrestling Federation during 1998 and 1999. </p><p>In theory, the longer a feud is built up, the more audience interest (aka <a href="/wiki/Heat_(professional_wrestling)" title="Heat (professional wrestling)">heat</a>) lasts. The <a href="/wiki/Card_(sports)" title="Card (sports)">main event</a> of a wrestling show is generally the most heated. Commonly, a heel will hold the upper hand over a face until a final showdown, heightening dramatic tension as the face's fans desire to see them win. </p><p>Throughout the history of professional wrestling, many other elements of media have been utilized in professional wrestling storytelling: pre- and post-match interviews, "backstage" skits, positions of authority and <a href="/wiki/Work_(professional_wrestling)" class="mw-redirect" title="Work (professional wrestling)">worked</a> behind-the-scenes feuds, division rankings (typically the #1-contendership spot), contracts, lotteries, news stories on websites, and in recent years <a href="/wiki/Social_media" title="Social media">social media</a>. </p><p>Anything that can be used as an element of drama can exist in professional wrestling stories: <a href="/wiki/Romance_(love)" title="Romance (love)">romantic relationships</a> (including love triangles and marriage), racism, classism, nepotism, favoritism, corporate corruption, family bonds, personal histories, grudges, theft, cheating, assault, betrayal, bribery, seduction, stalking, confidence tricks, extortion, blackmail, substance abuse, self-doubt, self-sacrifice; even kidnapping, sexual fetishism, necrophilia, <a href="/wiki/Misogyny" title="Misogyny">misogyny</a>, rape and death have been portrayed in wrestling. Some promotions have included supernatural elements such as magic, curses, the <a href="/wiki/Undead" title="Undead">undead</a> and <a href="/wiki/Satanism" title="Satanism">Satanic</a> imagery (most notably <a href="/wiki/The_Undertaker" title="The Undertaker">the Undertaker</a> and his <a href="/wiki/Ministry_of_Darkness" title="Ministry of Darkness">Ministry of Darkness</a>, a <a href="/wiki/Glossary_of_professional_wrestling_terms#Stable" title="Glossary of professional wrestling terms">stable</a> that regularly performed evil rituals and <a href="/wiki/Human_sacrifice" title="Human sacrifice">human sacrifice</a> in Satanic-like worship of a hidden power figure). </p><p>Commentators have become important in communicating the relevance of the characters' actions to the story at hand, filling in past details and pointing out subtle actions that may otherwise go unnoticed. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading5"><h5 id="Promos">Promos</h5><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=29" title="Edit section: Promos"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Undertaker,_Vince_McMahon,_Brock_Lesnar,_%26_Sable_in_a_WWE_ring.JPG" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/50/Undertaker%2C_Vince_McMahon%2C_Brock_Lesnar%2C_%26_Sable_in_a_WWE_ring.JPG/170px-Undertaker%2C_Vince_McMahon%2C_Brock_Lesnar%2C_%26_Sable_in_a_WWE_ring.JPG" decoding="async" width="170" height="128" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/50/Undertaker%2C_Vince_McMahon%2C_Brock_Lesnar%2C_%26_Sable_in_a_WWE_ring.JPG/255px-Undertaker%2C_Vince_McMahon%2C_Brock_Lesnar%2C_%26_Sable_in_a_WWE_ring.JPG 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/50/Undertaker%2C_Vince_McMahon%2C_Brock_Lesnar%2C_%26_Sable_in_a_WWE_ring.JPG/340px-Undertaker%2C_Vince_McMahon%2C_Brock_Lesnar%2C_%26_Sable_in_a_WWE_ring.JPG 2x" data-file-width="920" data-file-height="692" /></a><figcaption><a href="/wiki/The_Undertaker" title="The Undertaker">The Undertaker</a> cuts a promo with <a href="/wiki/Vince_McMahon" title="Vince McMahon">Vince McMahon</a>, <a href="/wiki/Brock_Lesnar" title="Brock Lesnar">Brock Lesnar</a> and <a href="/wiki/Sable_(wrestler)" title="Sable (wrestler)">Sable</a> looking on</figcaption></figure> <p>A main part of storytelling in wrestling is a <a href="/wiki/Glossary_of_professional_wrestling_terms#P" title="Glossary of professional wrestling terms">promo</a>, short for promotional interview. Promos are performed, or "cut" in wrestling jargon, for a variety of reasons, including to heighten interest in a wrestler, or to hype an upcoming match. </p><p>Since the crowd is often too loud or the venue too large for promos to be heard naturally, wrestlers generally use amplification when speaking in the ring. Unlike most stage acting, large and highly visible handheld microphones are typically used and wrestlers frequently speak directly to the audience. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Championships">Championships</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=30" title="Edit section: Championships"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_championship" title="Professional wrestling championship">Professional wrestling championship</a></div> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-left" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Sting_flair_big_gold.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/44/Sting_flair_big_gold.jpg/170px-Sting_flair_big_gold.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="210" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/44/Sting_flair_big_gold.jpg/255px-Sting_flair_big_gold.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/44/Sting_flair_big_gold.jpg/340px-Sting_flair_big_gold.jpg 2x" data-file-width="2204" data-file-height="2728" /></a><figcaption><a href="/wiki/Sting_(wrestler)" title="Sting (wrestler)">Sting</a> and <a href="/wiki/Ric_Flair" title="Ric Flair">Ric Flair</a> holding a replica of the <a href="/wiki/Big_Gold_Belt" title="Big Gold Belt">Big Gold Belt</a>, which represented six different <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_championship" title="Professional wrestling championship">championships</a></figcaption></figure> <p>Professional wrestling mimics the structure of <a href="/wiki/Champion" title="Champion">title match</a> <a href="/wiki/Combat_sport" title="Combat sport">combat sports</a>. Participants compete for a <a href="/wiki/Championship_(professional_wrestling)" class="mw-redirect" title="Championship (professional wrestling)">championship</a> and must defend it after winning it. These titles are represented physically by a <a href="/wiki/Championship_belt" title="Championship belt">title belt</a> that can be worn by the champion. In the case of team wrestling, there is a title belt for each member of the team. </p><p>Almost all <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_promotion" class="mw-redirect" title="Professional wrestling promotion">professional wrestling promotions</a> have at least one title, and some have more. Championships are designated by divisions of weight, height, gender, wrestling style and other qualifications. </p><p>Typically, each promotion only recognizes the "legitimacy" of their own titles, although <a href="/wiki/Cross-promotion" title="Cross-promotion">cross-promotion</a> does happen. When one promotion absorbs or purchases another, the titles from the defunct promotion may continue to be defended in the new promotion or be decommissioned. <a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/behind_the_scenes" class="extiw" title="wikt:behind the scenes">Behind the scenes</a>, the <a href="/wiki/Glossary_of_professional_wrestling_terms#Book" title="Glossary of professional wrestling terms">bookers</a> in a company will place the title on the most accomplished performer, or those the bookers believe will generate <a href="/wiki/Fandom" title="Fandom">fan</a> interest in terms of event attendance and television viewership. Historically, a world champion was typically a legit shooter/hooker who had the skills to prevent double crosses by shooters who would deviate from the planned finish for personal glory. Lower ranked titles may also be used on the performers who show potential, thus allowing them greater exposure to the audience. Other circumstances may also determine the use of a championship. A combination of a championship's lineage, the caliber of performers as champion, and the frequency and manner of title changes, dictates the audience's perception of the title's quality, significance and reputation. </p> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:%E3%82%AA%E3%82%AB%E3%83%80%E3%83%BB%E3%82%AB%E3%82%BA%E3%83%81%E3%82%AB.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/08/%E3%82%AA%E3%82%AB%E3%83%80%E3%83%BB%E3%82%AB%E3%82%BA%E3%83%81%E3%82%AB.jpg/170px-%E3%82%AA%E3%82%AB%E3%83%80%E3%83%BB%E3%82%AB%E3%82%BA%E3%83%81%E3%82%AB.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="173" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/08/%E3%82%AA%E3%82%AB%E3%83%80%E3%83%BB%E3%82%AB%E3%82%BA%E3%83%81%E3%82%AB.jpg/255px-%E3%82%AA%E3%82%AB%E3%83%80%E3%83%BB%E3%82%AB%E3%82%BA%E3%83%81%E3%82%AB.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/08/%E3%82%AA%E3%82%AB%E3%83%80%E3%83%BB%E3%82%AB%E3%82%BA%E3%83%81%E3%82%AB.jpg/340px-%E3%82%AA%E3%82%AB%E3%83%80%E3%83%BB%E3%82%AB%E3%82%BA%E3%83%81%E3%82%AB.jpg 2x" data-file-width="821" data-file-height="836" /></a><figcaption><a href="/wiki/Kazuchika_Okada" title="Kazuchika Okada">Kazuchika Okada</a> held the <a href="/wiki/IWGP_Heavyweight_Championship" title="IWGP Heavyweight Championship">IWGP Heavyweight Championship</a> (the former world championship of <a href="/wiki/New_Japan_Pro-Wrestling" title="New Japan Pro-Wrestling">New Japan Pro-Wrestling</a>) five times and holds the record for longest reign</figcaption></figure> <p>A wrestler's championship accomplishments can be central to their career, becoming a measure of their performance ability and <a href="/wiki/Glossary_of_professional_wrestling_terms#Draw" title="Glossary of professional wrestling terms">drawing</a> power. In general, a wrestler with multiple title reigns or an extended title reign is indicative of a wrestler's ability to maintain audience interest or a wrestler's ability to perform in the ring. As such, the most accomplished or decorated wrestlers tend to be revered as legends due to the amount of title reigns they hold. American wrestler <a href="/wiki/Ric_Flair" title="Ric Flair">Ric Flair</a> has had multiple <a href="/wiki/World_heavyweight_championship_(professional_wrestling)" class="mw-redirect" title="World heavyweight championship (professional wrestling)">world heavyweight championship</a> reigns spanning over three decades. Japanese wrestler <a href="/wiki/%C3%9Altimo_Drag%C3%B3n" title="Último Dragón">Último Dragón</a> once held and defended a record ten titles simultaneously. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Ring_entrance">Ring entrance</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=31" title="Edit section: Ring entrance"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Melina_Split_Entrance_Milwaukee_031008.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f0/Melina_Split_Entrance_Milwaukee_031008.jpg/220px-Melina_Split_Entrance_Milwaukee_031008.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="62" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f0/Melina_Split_Entrance_Milwaukee_031008.jpg/330px-Melina_Split_Entrance_Milwaukee_031008.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f0/Melina_Split_Entrance_Milwaukee_031008.jpg/440px-Melina_Split_Entrance_Milwaukee_031008.jpg 2x" data-file-width="4546" data-file-height="1286" /></a><figcaption><a href="/wiki/Melina_Perez" title="Melina Perez">Melina Perez</a> performs a <a href="/wiki/Split_(gymnastics)" title="Split (gymnastics)">split</a> in order to enter into the ring. This is one of the signature things this wrestler does while doing her entrance</figcaption></figure> <p>While the wrestling matches themselves are the primary focus of professional wrestling, a key dramatic element of the business can be entrances of the wrestlers to the arena and ring. It is typical for a wrestler to get their biggest crowd reaction (or "pop") for their ring entrance, rather than for anything they do in the wrestling match itself, especially if former main event stars are returning to a promotion after a long absence. </p><p>All notable wrestlers now enter the ring accompanied by music, and regularly add other elements to their entrance. The music played during the ring entrance will usually mirror the wrestler's personality. Many wrestlers, particularly in the U.S., have music and lyrics specially written for their ring entrance. While invented long before, the practice of including music with the entrance gained rapid popularity during the 1980s, largely as a result of the huge success of <a href="/wiki/Hulk_Hogan" title="Hulk Hogan">Hulk Hogan</a> and the WWF, and their <a href="/wiki/1980s_professional_wrestling_boom" title="1980s professional wrestling boom">Rock 'n' Wrestling Connection</a>. When a match is won, the victor's theme music is usually also played in celebration. </p> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Ric_Flair%27s_AEW_debut,_October_25,_2023.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f6/Ric_Flair%27s_AEW_debut%2C_October_25%2C_2023.jpg/220px-Ric_Flair%27s_AEW_debut%2C_October_25%2C_2023.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="165" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f6/Ric_Flair%27s_AEW_debut%2C_October_25%2C_2023.jpg/330px-Ric_Flair%27s_AEW_debut%2C_October_25%2C_2023.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f6/Ric_Flair%27s_AEW_debut%2C_October_25%2C_2023.jpg/440px-Ric_Flair%27s_AEW_debut%2C_October_25%2C_2023.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1857" data-file-height="1389" /></a><figcaption><a href="/wiki/Ric_Flair" title="Ric Flair">Ric Flair</a>'s entrance video plays on the screen during his <a href="/wiki/All_Elite_Wrestling" title="All Elite Wrestling">AEW</a> debut</figcaption></figure> <p>Because wrestling is predetermined, a wrestler's entrance music will play as they enter the arena, even if they are, in <a href="/wiki/Kayfabe" title="Kayfabe">kayfabe</a>, not supposed to be there. For example, in 2012 through 2014, <a href="/wiki/The_Shield_(professional_wrestling)" title="The Shield (professional wrestling)">The Shield</a> was a trio of wrestlers who were (in kayfabe) not at the time under contract with WWE (hence their gimmick of entering the ring through the crowd), but they still had entrance music which was played whenever they entered the arena, despite the fact that they were kayfabe invaders. </p><p>With the introduction of the Titantron entrance screen in 1997, WWF wrestlers also had entrance videos play along with their music. </p><p>Other dramatic elements of a ring entrance can include: </p> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Kane_at_Wrestlemania_XXVIII_(7206018352).jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bd/Kane_at_Wrestlemania_XXVIII_%287206018352%29.jpg/220px-Kane_at_Wrestlemania_XXVIII_%287206018352%29.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="124" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bd/Kane_at_Wrestlemania_XXVIII_%287206018352%29.jpg/330px-Kane_at_Wrestlemania_XXVIII_%287206018352%29.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bd/Kane_at_Wrestlemania_XXVIII_%287206018352%29.jpg/440px-Kane_at_Wrestlemania_XXVIII_%287206018352%29.jpg 2x" data-file-width="2880" data-file-height="1623" /></a><figcaption><a href="/wiki/Kane_(wrestler)" title="Kane (wrestler)">Kane</a> is known for using fire <a href="/wiki/Pyrotechnics" title="Pyrotechnics">pyrotechnics</a> in his ring entrance</figcaption></figure> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Pyrotechnics" title="Pyrotechnics">Pyrotechnics</a> such as a ring of fire for <a href="/wiki/The_Brood_(professional_wrestling)" title="The Brood (professional wrestling)">The Brood</a> when they ascend to the stage, multi-colour fireworks (most notably for <a href="/wiki/Edge_(wrestler)" title="Edge (wrestler)">Edge</a>), fire for <a href="/wiki/Kane_(wrestler)" title="Kane (wrestler)">Kane</a> and <a href="/wiki/Seth_Rollins" title="Seth Rollins">Seth Rollins</a>, a stage of smoke for <a href="/wiki/Finn_B%C3%A1lor" title="Finn Bálor">Finn Bálor</a> and (for a short period of time) falling fireworks for <a href="/wiki/Christian_Cage" title="Christian Cage">Christian Cage</a>.</li> <li>Additional visual graphics or staging props to complement the entrance video/routine or further emphasize the character. For instance, <a href="/wiki/Kane_(wrestler)" title="Kane (wrestler)">Kane</a>'s entrance graphics employ heavy use of fire-themed visuals, <a href="/wiki/The_Undertaker" title="The Undertaker">The Undertaker</a>'s entrance features dark lighting, fire, fog and dry ice, and lightning-themed effects, and <a href="/wiki/Goldust" class="mw-redirect" title="Goldust">Goldust</a> has been known to use on-screen visual effects in his entrance to simulate the presentation of a feature film (i.e. widescreen, production company credits), as to emphasize his Hollywood-themed film aficionado character. <a href="/wiki/Adam_Page" title="Adam Page">Adam Page</a> is usually accompanied by humerous sub-headings such as "Anxious Millenial Cowboy", "New Boot Goofin<span style="padding-right:.15em;">'</span>", "Finally Showed Up To Work", and "For The Love Of God, Give Me A Lower Third This Week Even If It's For 1 Frame".</li> <li>A distinct sound or opening note in the music (used to elicit a <a href="/wiki/Classical_conditioning" title="Classical conditioning">Pavlovian</a> response from the crowd). For example, the glass shattering in <a href="/wiki/WWF_The_Music,_Vol._3" class="mw-redirect" title="WWF The Music, Vol. 3">Steve Austin's entrance theme</a>, <a href="/wiki/The_Undertaker" title="The Undertaker">The Undertaker</a>'s signature <a href="/wiki/Funeral_toll" title="Funeral toll">bell toll</a>, sirens, such as used by <a href="/wiki/Scott_Steiner" title="Scott Steiner">Scott Steiner</a> or <a href="/wiki/Right_to_Censor" title="Right to Censor">Right to Censor</a>, <a href="/wiki/Bret_Hart" title="Bret Hart">Bret Hart's</a> electric guitar stinger, the <a href="/wiki/New_York_Stock_Exchange#Opening_and_closing_bells" title="New York Stock Exchange">NYSE trading bell</a> and a cow's moo in JBL's theme.</li> <li>Darkening of the arena, often accompanied by <a href="/wiki/Stage_lighting" title="Stage lighting">mood lighting</a> or <a href="/wiki/Strobe_light" title="Strobe light">strobe lighting</a>, such as in The Undertaker's, <a href="/wiki/Triple_H" title="Triple H">Triple H</a>'s, or <a href="/wiki/Sting_(wrestler)" title="Sting (wrestler)">Sting</a>'s entrances. Certain colors of lighting have been associated with specific wrestlers; for instance, blue lighting for <a href="/wiki/The_Undertaker" title="The Undertaker">The Undertaker</a> and <a href="/wiki/Alexa_Bliss" title="Alexa Bliss">Alexa Bliss</a>, green lighting for Triple H, <a href="/wiki/D-Generation_X" title="D-Generation X">D-Generation X</a>, and <a href="/wiki/Shane_McMahon" title="Shane McMahon">Shane McMahon</a>, a mixture of red and yellow lighting for <a href="/wiki/Brock_Lesnar" title="Brock Lesnar">Brock Lesnar</a>, a lot of red for <a href="/wiki/Seth_Rollins" title="Seth Rollins">Seth Rollins</a> (mainly for his "Embrace The Vision" character, also known by his theme named "Visionary"), a mixture of red and orange lighting for <a href="/wiki/Kane_(wrestler)" title="Kane (wrestler)">Kane</a>, multicolored lighting for <a href="/wiki/John_Morrison_(wrestler)" title="John Morrison (wrestler)">John Morrison</a>, gold lighting for <a href="/wiki/Dustin_Rhodes" title="Dustin Rhodes">Goldust</a>, pink lighting for <a href="/wiki/Sean_Morley" class="mw-redirect" title="Sean Morley">Val Venis</a> and <a href="/wiki/Trish_Stratus" title="Trish Stratus">Trish Stratus</a>, and so forth.</li> <li>Driving a vehicle into the arena. For example, <a href="/wiki/Eddie_Guerrero" title="Eddie Guerrero">Eddie Guerrero</a> arrived in a lowrider, The Undertaker (in his "American Bad Ass" biker gimmick), <a href="/wiki/Chuck_Palumbo" title="Chuck Palumbo">Chuck Palumbo</a>, <a href="/wiki/Lisa_Marie_Varon" title="Lisa Marie Varon">Tara</a>, and the <a href="/wiki/Disciples_of_Apocalypse" title="Disciples of Apocalypse">Disciples of Apocalypse</a> on motorcycles, <a href="/wiki/The_Mexicools" class="mw-redirect" title="The Mexicools">The Mexicools</a> on riding lawn mowers, JBL in his limousine, <a href="/wiki/Alberto_Del_Rio" title="Alberto Del Rio">Alberto Del Rio</a> arriving into the arena in various luxury cars, Steve Austin driving an <a href="/wiki/All-terrain_vehicle" title="All-terrain vehicle">all-terrain vehicle</a>, and <a href="/wiki/Camacho_(wrestler)" class="mw-redirect" title="Camacho (wrestler)">Camacho</a> and <a href="/wiki/Hunico" class="mw-redirect" title="Hunico">Hunico</a> entering on a lowrider bicycle. <a href="/wiki/Darby_Allin" title="Darby Allin">Darby Allin</a> in similar fashion rides a skateboard down to the ring, which is occasionally used as a weapon if the match type permits.</li> <li>Talking to the crowd using a distinctive <a href="/wiki/Patter" title="Patter">patter</a>. For instance, chanting or rapping along with the music (i.e. <a href="/wiki/Road_Dogg" title="Road Dogg">Road Dogg</a>, <a href="/wiki/Ron_Killings" class="mw-redirect" title="Ron Killings">R-Truth</a>). Another example is <a href="/wiki/Vickie_Guerrero" title="Vickie Guerrero">Vickie Guerrero</a> entering to no music, but announcing her arrival with the words "Excuse me!". <a href="/wiki/The_Acclaimed" title="The Acclaimed">The Acclaimed</a>'s <a href="/wiki/Max_Caster" title="Max Caster">Max Caster</a> will perform a freestyle rap, usually at the expense of the opponent or a real life figure that has been brought up in recent news.</li> <li>Alternative forms of announcing one's entrance. <a href="/wiki/Orange_Cassidy" title="Orange Cassidy">Orange Cassidy</a>, whose persona is a carefree individual, has his weight billed as "whatever", and being billed from "wherever". In similar fashion, <a href="/wiki/Danhausen_(wrestler)" title="Danhausen (wrestler)">Danhausen (wrestler)</a> is billed as "claiming to stand 6 ft 7 in. tall, and over 300 lbs", despite being nowhere near either of those statistics. <a href="/wiki/Ken_Anderson_(wrestler)" title="Ken Anderson (wrestler)">Mr. Kennedy</a> would enter with his theme music, but would notably have a microphone descend from the ceiling when he reached the ring, where he would announce himself, rather than the traditional announcer. <a href="/wiki/Maxwell_Jacob_Friedman" title="Maxwell Jacob Friedman">Maxwell Jacob Friedman</a> during his heel persona would occasionally have the announcer begrudgingly announce him as "He's better than you, and you know it...", generally after a large victory for the character, or being surrounded by henchman of his that threaten to harm the announcer if they do not read off the card verbatim.</li> <li>Many <a href="/wiki/Heel_(professional_wrestling)" title="Heel (professional wrestling)">heels</a> with narcissistic gimmicks (<a href="/wiki/Lex_Luger" title="Lex Luger">Lex Luger</a>, <a href="/wiki/Shawn_Michaels" title="Shawn Michaels">Shawn Michaels</a>, <a href="/wiki/Cody_Rhodes" title="Cody Rhodes">Cody Rhodes</a>, <a href="/wiki/Paul_Orndorff" title="Paul Orndorff">Paul Orndorff</a>, etc.) admired themselves in mirrors on their way to the ring.</li> <li>Coming through the audience, such as <a href="/wiki/The_Sandman_(wrestler)" title="The Sandman (wrestler)">The Sandman's</a> beer drinking and can smashing entrance, or <a href="/wiki/Diamond_Dallas_Page" title="Diamond Dallas Page">Diamond Dallas Page</a>'s exit through the crowd, or Jon Moxley entering through the crowd.</li> <li>Accompaniment by a <a href="/wiki/Cornerman" title="Cornerman">ringside crew</a> or personal security, as Goldberg did.</li> <li>Entering the arena by a lift in the stage, such as <a href="/wiki/Kurt_Angle" title="Kurt Angle">Kurt Angle</a>, <a href="/wiki/The_Brood_(professional_wrestling)" title="The Brood (professional wrestling)">The Brood</a> and <a href="/wiki/Rey_Mysterio" title="Rey Mysterio">Rey Mysterio</a>.</li></ul> <p>Special ring entrances are also developed for big occasions, most notably the <a href="/wiki/WrestleMania" title="WrestleMania">WrestleMania</a> event. For example, WrestleMania III and VI both saw all wrestlers enter the arena on motorized miniature wrestling rings. Live bands are sometimes hired to perform live entrance music at special events. <a href="/wiki/John_Cena" title="John Cena">John Cena</a> and <a href="/wiki/Triple_H" title="Triple H">Triple H</a> are particularly notable in recent years for their highly theatrical entrances at WrestleMania. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Training_and_qualifications">Training and qualifications</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=32" title="Edit section: Training and qualifications"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Physical fitness is considered the minimum requirement for entry in the field, with most professional wrestlers having at least some athletic background or training.<sup id="cite_ref-:8_93-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:8-93"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>92<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Professional wrestlers receive at least some formal training in specialized professional wrestling schools or academies; these institutions can be independent or associated with a specific promotion.<sup id="cite_ref-94" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-94"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>93<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-:9_95-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:9-95"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>94<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-:8_93-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:8-93"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>92<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Candidates are typically trained and coached by experienced professional wrestlers; training regimens encompass both the <a href="/wiki/Athlete" title="Athlete">athletic</a> and performative aspects of professional wrestling, including <a href="/wiki/Physical_fitness" title="Physical fitness">physical fitness</a>, <a href="/wiki/Choreography" title="Choreography">choreography</a>, and <a href="/wiki/Dramatization" title="Dramatization">dramatization</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-:9_95-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:9-95"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>94<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Trainees are often pitted against one another or with their instructors in matches before small crowds to demonstrate and refine their skill in improvisation, mock combat, and stage presence.<sup id="cite_ref-:9_95-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:9-95"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>94<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Occupational_hazards">Occupational hazards</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=33" title="Edit section: Occupational hazards"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">See also: <a href="/wiki/List_of_premature_professional_wrestling_deaths" title="List of premature professional wrestling deaths">List of premature professional wrestling deaths</a></div> <p>Professional wrestling has been characterized by endemic and widespread health risks from its very inception in the 19th century.<sup id="cite_ref-:13_96-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:13-96"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>95<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Although choreographed, the inherently physical nature of the performances, combined with its emphasis on spectacle and showmanship, results in a high chance of injury and even death.<sup id="cite_ref-:13_96-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:13-96"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>95<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-OTE_Facts_97-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-OTE_Facts-97"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>96<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Strikes are often <a href="/wiki/Glossary_of_professional_wrestling_terms#Stiff" title="Glossary of professional wrestling terms">stiff</a>, especially in Japan, and in independent wrestling promotions such as <a href="/wiki/Combat_Zone_Wrestling" title="Combat Zone Wrestling">Combat Zone Wrestling</a>. The ring is often made out of 2-by-12-inch (5 by 30 cm) timber planks. There have been many brutal accidents, hits and injuries.<sup id="cite_ref-98" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-98"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>97<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Injuries are commonly sustained on the shoulders, knees, back, neck, and ribs. Professional wrestler <a href="/wiki/Davey_Richards" title="Davey Richards">Davey Richards</a> said in 2015, "We train to take damage, we know we are going to take damage and we accept that."<sup id="cite_ref-99" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-99"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>98<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Occupational hazards have also been attributed to professional wrestling's uniquely ambiguous nature—as neither a true sport nor a formal performing art, yet still some combination of the two—which makes it difficult to regulate; as noted by Claire Warden, Professor of Performance and Physical Culture at <a href="/wiki/Loughborough_University" title="Loughborough University">Loughborough University</a>, "Set up a rugby club tomorrow and the Rugby Football Union would soon be knocking on your door to ask about concussion protocol or safeguarding. Set up a wrestling school or promotion and, well, no-one will demand anything."<sup id="cite_ref-:14_100-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:14-100"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>99<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Warden also identifies related issues and practices in the industry, such as inadequate health and safety provisions among promotions, lack of unionization or labor representation, and the fact that most professional wrestlers are employed as <a href="/wiki/Independent_contractors" class="mw-redirect" title="Independent contractors">independent contractors</a>, thereby typically lacking healthcare access while remaining economically precarious.<sup id="cite_ref-:14_100-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:14-100"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>99<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-101" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-101"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>100<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Some wrestling performers <a href="/wiki/Doping_in_sport" title="Doping in sport">use steroids</a> and suffer from associated health issues. In 2007, American Congressman <a href="/wiki/Cliff_Stearns" title="Cliff Stearns">Cliff Stearns</a> noted that between 1985 and 2006, 89 performers had died under the age of 50.<sup id="cite_ref-BaltSun_102-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-BaltSun-102"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>101<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> <a href="/wiki/Chronic_traumatic_encephalopathy" title="Chronic traumatic encephalopathy">Chronic traumatic encephalopathy</a> (CTE), a brain disorder often caused by repeated concussions and head injury, may have been a factor in <a href="/wiki/Chris_Benoit_double-murder_and_suicide" title="Chris Benoit double-murder and suicide">the 2007 double homicide</a> committed by wrestler <a href="/wiki/Chris_Benoit" title="Chris Benoit">Chris Benoit</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-BaltSun_102-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-BaltSun-102"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>101<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-rtysonsmith_103-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-rtysonsmith-103"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>102<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> A 2014 study of male professional wrestlers active between 1985 and 2011 found a "very high premature mortality rate" compared to the generation population; cardiovascular disease was by far the leading cause, while deaths related to drug overdoses and cancer were likewise substantially high, at 122.7 and 6.4 times greater than the general population.<sup id="cite_ref-104" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-104"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>103<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Wrestling performers frequently experience real pain during routine performances. Sociologist R. Tyson Smith attributes wrestlers' willingness to endure occupational injury to the <a href="/wiki/Substantivism" title="Substantivism">substantivism</a> of their socioeconomic viewpoint: From this viewpoint, Smith argues, wrestlers are willing to accept bodily pain by both practicing <a href="/wiki/Denialism" title="Denialism">denialism</a> and the <a href="/wiki/Embeddedness" title="Embeddedness">sociologic embedded</a> desire for authenticity, solidarity, and dominance.<sup id="cite_ref-rtysonsmith_103-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-rtysonsmith-103"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>102<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> These findings are corroborated by the U.K.-based "Health and Wellbeing in Professional Wrestling" project, which interviewed professional wrestlers and identified common risks such as "downplaying injury to secure that important spot on the card, performing a macho-masculine sense of resilience ... [and] acknowledging that there are always physical risks associated with contact sports."<sup id="cite_ref-:14_100-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:14-100"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>99<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Regional_variations_and_subgenres">Regional variations and subgenres</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=34" title="Edit section: Regional variations and subgenres"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>The United States/Canada, northwest Europe (specifically the U.K, Germany/Austria and France), Japan, and Mexico are the four largest and most popular markets for professional wrestling and known for their distinctive styles and independent development. </p><p>Professional wrestling in the U.S., which overlaps into Canada, tends to focus heavily on history building and the establishment of characters and their personalities. There is a story for each match, and often a longer story for successive matches. Stories usually contain characters like <a href="/wiki/Face_(professional_wrestling)" title="Face (professional wrestling)">faces</a>, <a href="/wiki/Heel_(professional_wrestling)" title="Heel (professional wrestling)">heels</a>, and—less often—"tweeners" (<a href="/wiki/Antihero" title="Antihero">antiheroes</a>). It is a "triumph" if the face wins and a "tragedy" if the heel wins. The characters usually have strong and sharp personalities. The opposition between faces and heels is very intense in the story, and the heels may even attack the faces during TV interviews. The relationship between different characters can also be very complex. </p> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-left" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:CMLL_November_30_Los_Guerreros_Triple_Team.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/af/CMLL_November_30_Los_Guerreros_Triple_Team.jpg/220px-CMLL_November_30_Los_Guerreros_Triple_Team.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="192" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/af/CMLL_November_30_Los_Guerreros_Triple_Team.jpg/330px-CMLL_November_30_Los_Guerreros_Triple_Team.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/af/CMLL_November_30_Los_Guerreros_Triple_Team.jpg/440px-CMLL_November_30_Los_Guerreros_Triple_Team.jpg 2x" data-file-width="811" data-file-height="709" /></a><figcaption>Mexican wrestlers: <a href="/wiki/Gran_Guerrero" title="Gran Guerrero">Gran Guerrero</a>, <a href="/wiki/%C3%9Altimo_Guerrero" title="Último Guerrero">Último Guerrero</a> and <a href="/wiki/Euforia_(wrestler)" title="Euforia (wrestler)">Euforia</a> performing a triple team move on their opponents. This is a characteristic in Lucha Libre, wrestlers can enter into the ring without being disqualified on time if it is a tag team match, something that in American wrestling is illegal and a cause of losing by disqualification</figcaption></figure> <p>Professional wrestling in Mexico, known as <a href="/wiki/Lucha_libre" title="Lucha libre">Lucha libre</a>, also has stories and characters but with less emphasis. Mexican professional wrestling tradition repeats very usually brutal tactics, specially more <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_holds" title="Professional wrestling holds">aerial holds</a> than <a href="/wiki/History_of_professional_wrestling_in_the_United_States" class="mw-redirect" title="History of professional wrestling in the United States">professional wrestlers in the U.S.</a> who, more often, rely on power moves and strikes to subdue their opponents.<sup id="cite_ref-SS1_91-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-SS1-91"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>90<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The difference in styles is due to the independent evolution of the sport in Mexico beginning in the 1930s and the fact that wrestlers in the <a href="/wiki/Cruiserweight_(professional_wrestling)" title="Cruiserweight (professional wrestling)">cruiserweight</a> division (<a href="/wiki/Spanish_language" title="Spanish language">Spanish</a>: <i lang="es">peso semicompleto</i>) are often the most popular wrestlers in Mexican lucha libre. Wrestlers often execute high flying moves characteristic of lucha libre by utilizing the <a href="/wiki/Wrestling_ring" title="Wrestling ring">wrestling ring</a>'s ropes to catapult themselves towards their opponents, using intricate combinations in rapid-fire succession, and applying complex submission holds.<sup id="cite_ref-105" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-105"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>104<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Lucha libre is also known for its <a href="/wiki/Tag_team" title="Tag team">tag team</a> wrestling matches, in which the teams are often made up of three members, instead of two as is common in the U.S.<sup id="cite_ref-106" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-106"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>105<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Japanese professional wrestling (<a href="/wiki/Puroresu" title="Puroresu">puroresu</a>) also developed distinctively, initially drawing from traditional American style wrestling and becoming an entity in itself.<sup id="cite_ref-107" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-107"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>106<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> While the outcome of matches are predetermined, the <a href="/wiki/Sport_psychology" title="Sport psychology">psychology</a> and presentation of performances differ markedly: Among the largest promotions, such as <a href="/wiki/New_Japan_Pro-Wrestling" title="New Japan Pro-Wrestling">New Japan Pro-Wrestling</a>, <a href="/wiki/All_Japan_Pro_Wrestling" title="All Japan Pro Wrestling">All Japan Pro Wrestling</a> and <a href="/wiki/Pro_Wrestling_Noah" title="Pro Wrestling Noah">Pro Wrestling Noah</a>, professional wrestling is treated as a <a href="/wiki/Contact_sport#Full-contact_sport" title="Contact sport">full contact</a> <a href="/wiki/Combat_sport" title="Combat sport">combat sport</a> that mixes hard hitting <a href="/wiki/Martial_arts" title="Martial arts">martial arts</a> strikes with <a href="/wiki/Shoot_wrestling" title="Shoot wrestling">shoot style</a> <a href="/wiki/Submission_(combat_sports)" title="Submission (combat sports)">submission holds</a>,<sup id="cite_ref-108" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-108"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>107<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> while in the U.S. it is rather more regarded as an entertainment show. Wrestlers incorporate kicks and strikes from <a href="/wiki/Martial_arts" title="Martial arts">martial arts</a> disciplines, and a strong emphasis is placed on <a href="/wiki/Submission_wrestling" title="Submission wrestling">submission wrestling</a>, and unlike the use of involved storylines in the U.S., they are not as intricate in Japan; more emphasis is placed on the concept of "fighting spirit", meaning the wrestlers' display of physical and mental stamina are valued a lot more than theatrics. Many of Japan's wrestlers including top stars such as <a href="/wiki/Shinya_Hashimoto" title="Shinya Hashimoto">Shinya Hashimoto</a>, <a href="/wiki/Riki_Ch%C5%8Dsh%C5%AB" class="mw-redirect" title="Riki Chōshū">Riki Chōshū</a> and <a href="/wiki/Keiji_Mutoh" class="mw-redirect" title="Keiji Mutoh">Keiji Mutoh</a> came from a legitimate martial arts background and many Japanese wrestlers in the 1990s began to pursue careers in mixed martial arts organizations such as Pancrase and Shooto which at the time retained the original look of puroresu but were actual competitions. Other companies, such as Michinoku Pro Wrestling and <a href="/wiki/Dragon_Gate_(wrestling)" class="mw-redirect" title="Dragon Gate (wrestling)">Dragon Gate</a>, wrestle in a style similar to Mexican companies like AAA and CMLL. This is known as "Lucharesu". </p><p>Much of the more serious style of Japanese wrestling derives from wrestling in Europe, particularly traditional <a href="/wiki/British_wrestling" class="mw-redirect" title="British wrestling">British wrestling</a>, which strongly emphasizes pure technical skill (particularly chain sequences of counters/reversals/escapes from holds) and high proportion of clean sportsmanly scientific matches between two "blue-eyes" as babyfaces were called there. This spread across mainland Europe (where it was known as "Catch" in non-English speaking countries) but in the Mediterranean south it soon died out after an initial flush of popularity, with the major league promotions of Italy and Spain closing in 1965 and 1975 respectively and Greece's annual stadium show last held in 1980 although some low-grade house shows limped on until 1991. This left the <a href="/wiki/U.K." class="mw-redirect" title="U.K.">U.K.</a>, <a href="/wiki/France" title="France">France</a> and <a href="/wiki/West_Germany" title="West Germany">West Germany</a>/<a href="/wiki/Austria" title="Austria">Austria</a> as the three strongholds of European wrestling by the 1980s. In Germany and Austria, wrestling shows—particularly major trophy tournaments in <a href="/wiki/Graz" title="Graz">Graz</a>, <a href="/wiki/Hamburg" title="Hamburg">Hamburg</a>, <a href="/wiki/Bremen" title="Bremen">Bremen</a>, <a href="/wiki/Vienna" title="Vienna">Vienna</a> and other cities featuring visiting wrestlers from around the world—were a key part of the celebrations of various cultural festivals. Champion and promoter <a href="/wiki/Otto_Wanz" title="Otto Wanz">Otto Wanz</a> maintained strong links with American promotions, frequently importing U.S. talent and even briefly winning the <a href="/wiki/AWA_World_Heavyweight_Championship" title="AWA World Heavyweight Championship">AWA World Heavyweight Championship</a> in 1982. Meanwhile, in both the U.K. and France, national television coverage from the 1950s to the late 1980s made household names of top stars.<sup id="cite_ref-lister_109-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-lister-109"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>108<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-Vice_110-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Vice-110"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>109<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> In the U.K. in the late 1970s and through the 1980s, the dominant <a href="/wiki/Joint_Promotions" class="mw-redirect" title="Joint Promotions">Joint Promotions</a> underwent a major boom by rebranding as family entertainment centred around superheavyweight lead blue-eye <a href="/wiki/Shirley_Crabtree" title="Shirley Crabtree">Big Daddy</a>. Eventually however the sheer lopsided nature of his victories over heels alienated fellow wrestlers and adult fans alike to the point where both groups defected in droves to opposition promoter <a href="/wiki/All_Star_Wrestling" title="All Star Wrestling">All Star Wrestling</a> which expanded (taking a share of the final two years of TV coverage) until it eclipsed Joint as dominant promotion,<sup id="cite_ref-lister_109-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-lister-109"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>108<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> a position it still holds in 2025. During the same period, <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_France" title="Professional wrestling in France">professional wrestling in France</a> moved to a more acrobatic style of action and colourful gimmick-led presentation, as exemplified by lead babyface <a href="https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flesh_Gordon_(catch)" class="extiw" title="fr:Flesh Gordon (catch)">Flesh Gordon (Gerard Hervé)</a> who had learned his craft in 1970s Mexico.<sup id="cite_ref-Vice_110-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Vice-110"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>109<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> By the beginning of the 1990s in all three countries, local styles of wrestling were largely supplanted in mainstream popular culture by the WWF and WCW. While the traditional styles survive at grassroots level they face stiff competition not only from the major American wrestling corporations but also from homegrown "American style" promotions conforming to the general pattern of the contemporary U.S. independent wrestling scene.<sup id="cite_ref-lister_109-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-lister-109"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>108<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-Vice_110-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Vice-110"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>109<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Women's_wrestling"><span id="Women.27s_wrestling"></span>Women's wrestling</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=35" title="Edit section: Women's wrestling"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a href="/wiki/Women%27s_professional_wrestling" title="Women's professional wrestling">Women's professional wrestling</a></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">See also: <a href="/wiki/Women_in_WWE" title="Women in WWE">Women in WWE</a> and <a href="/wiki/Impact_Knockouts" class="mw-redirect" title="Impact Knockouts">Impact Knockouts</a></div> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Cholita_wrestling_bolivia3_Joel_Alvarez.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1b/Cholita_wrestling_bolivia3_Joel_Alvarez.jpg/170px-Cholita_wrestling_bolivia3_Joel_Alvarez.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="255" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1b/Cholita_wrestling_bolivia3_Joel_Alvarez.jpg/255px-Cholita_wrestling_bolivia3_Joel_Alvarez.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1b/Cholita_wrestling_bolivia3_Joel_Alvarez.jpg 2x" data-file-width="277" data-file-height="416" /></a><figcaption>The <a href="/wiki/Fighting_Cholitas" title="Fighting Cholitas">Fighting Cholitas</a> in Bolivia</figcaption></figure> <p>The women's division of professional wrestling has maintained a recognized world champion since 1937, when <a href="/wiki/Mildred_Burke" title="Mildred Burke">Mildred Burke</a> won the original World Women's title. She then formed the World Women's Wrestling Association in the early 1950s and recognized herself as the first champion, although the championship was vacated upon her retirement in 1956. The NWA ceased to acknowledge Burke as the Women's World champion in 1954 and instead acknowledged <a href="/wiki/June_Byers" title="June Byers">June Byers</a> as champion after a controversial finish to a high-profile match between Burke and Byers that year. Upon Byers's retirement in 1964, <a href="/wiki/The_Fabulous_Moolah" title="The Fabulous Moolah">The Fabulous Moolah</a>, who won a junior heavyweight version of the <a href="/wiki/NWA_World_Women%27s_Championship" title="NWA World Women's Championship">NWA World Women's Championship</a> (the predecessor to the <a href="/wiki/WWE_Women%27s_Championship" title="WWE Women's Championship">WWE Women's Championship</a>) in a tournament back in 1958, was recognized by most NWA promoters as champion by default. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Intergender">Intergender</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=36" title="Edit section: Intergender"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a href="/wiki/Intergender_wrestling" title="Intergender wrestling">Intergender wrestling</a></div> <p>For most of its history, men and women rarely worked against each other in professional wrestling, as it was deemed to be unfair and unchivalrous. <a href="/wiki/Andy_Kaufman" title="Andy Kaufman">Andy Kaufman</a> used this to gain notoriety when he created an Intergender Championship and declared it open to any female challenger. This led to a long (worked) feud with <a href="/wiki/Jerry_Lawler" title="Jerry Lawler">Jerry Lawler</a>. </p> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-left" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Debbie_Harry_places_Andy_Kaufman_in_the_%22Mexican_surfboard%22_hold,_1983.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d2/Debbie_Harry_places_Andy_Kaufman_in_the_%22Mexican_surfboard%22_hold%2C_1983.jpg/220px-Debbie_Harry_places_Andy_Kaufman_in_the_%22Mexican_surfboard%22_hold%2C_1983.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="143" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d2/Debbie_Harry_places_Andy_Kaufman_in_the_%22Mexican_surfboard%22_hold%2C_1983.jpg/330px-Debbie_Harry_places_Andy_Kaufman_in_the_%22Mexican_surfboard%22_hold%2C_1983.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d2/Debbie_Harry_places_Andy_Kaufman_in_the_%22Mexican_surfboard%22_hold%2C_1983.jpg/440px-Debbie_Harry_places_Andy_Kaufman_in_the_%22Mexican_surfboard%22_hold%2C_1983.jpg 2x" data-file-width="4823" data-file-height="3133" /></a><figcaption>Comedian <a href="/wiki/Andy_Kaufman" title="Andy Kaufman">Andy Kaufman</a> became notorious in professional wrestling for his matches against women.</figcaption></figure> <p><a href="/wiki/Cathy_Davis" title="Cathy Davis">Cathy Davis</a> sued the <a href="/wiki/New_York_State_Athletic_Commission" title="New York State Athletic Commission">New York State Athletic Commission</a> (NYSAC) in 1977 because she was denied a boxing license because she was a woman, and the case was decided in her favor later that year, with the judge invalidating New York State rule number 205.15, which stated, "No woman may be licensed as a boxer or second or licensed to compete in any wrestling <a href="/wiki/Exhibition_fight" title="Exhibition fight">exhibition</a> with men."<sup id="cite_ref-auto1_111-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-auto1-111"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>110<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-112" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-112"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>111<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> In his opinion the judge cited the precedent set by <i><a href="/wiki/Jackie_Tonawanda" title="Jackie Tonawanda">Garrett</a> v. New York State Athletic Commission</i> (1975), which "found the regulation invalid under the equal protection clauses of the State and Federal Constitutions". The NYSAC filed an appeal of the ruling but later dropped it.<sup id="cite_ref-auto_113-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-auto-113"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>112<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-auto1_111-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-auto1-111"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>110<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>In the 1980s, mixed tag team matches began to take place, with a male and female on each team and a rule stating that each wrestler could only attack the opponent of the same gender. If a tag was made, the other team had to automatically switch their legal wrestler as well. Despite these restrictions, many mixed tag matches do feature some physical interaction between participants of different genders. For example, a heel may take a cheap shot at the female wrestler of the opposing team to draw a negative crowd reaction. In lucha libre, cheap shots and male-female attacks are not uncommon.<sup id="cite_ref-SS1_91-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-SS1-91"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>90<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p><a href="/wiki/Intergender_wrestling" title="Intergender wrestling">Intergender</a> singles bouts were first fought on a national level in the 1990s. This began with <a href="/wiki/Luna_Vachon" title="Luna Vachon">Luna Vachon</a>, who faced men in <a href="/wiki/Extreme_Championship_Wrestling" title="Extreme Championship Wrestling">Extreme Championship Wrestling</a> (ECW) and WWF. Later, <a href="/wiki/Chyna" title="Chyna">Chyna</a> became the first female to hold a belt that was not exclusive to women when she won the <a href="/wiki/WWE_Intercontinental_Championship" title="WWE Intercontinental Championship">WWF Intercontinental Championship</a>. Intergender wrestling was uncommon in <a href="/wiki/Impact_Wrestling" class="mw-redirect" title="Impact Wrestling">Impact Wrestling</a>. <a href="/wiki/ODB_(wrestler)" title="ODB (wrestler)">ODB</a>, had participated in intergender matches and once held the <a href="/wiki/Impact_Knockouts_Tag_Team_Championship" class="mw-redirect" title="Impact Knockouts Tag Team Championship">Impact Knockouts Tag Team Championship</a> with <a href="/wiki/Eric_Young_(wrestler)" title="Eric Young (wrestler)">Eric Young</a> for a record 478 days. Other notable Impact Knockouts that competed in intergender matches include <a href="/wiki/Scarlett_Bordeaux" title="Scarlett Bordeaux">Scarlett Bordeaux</a>; <a href="/wiki/Tessa_Blanchard" title="Tessa Blanchard">Tessa Blanchard</a>, who became the first woman to win the <a href="/wiki/Impact_World_Championship" class="mw-redirect" title="Impact World Championship">Impact World Championship</a>; and <a href="/wiki/Jordynne_Grace" title="Jordynne Grace">Jordynne Grace</a>, who became the inaugural <a href="/wiki/Impact_Digital_Media_Championship" class="mw-redirect" title="Impact Digital Media Championship">Impact Digital Media Championship</a>. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Midget_wrestling">Midget wrestling</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=37" title="Edit section: Midget wrestling"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Further information: <a href="/wiki/Midget_wrestling" title="Midget wrestling">Midget wrestling</a></div> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:CMLL_November_30_Microman_and_Perico.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a7/CMLL_November_30_Microman_and_Perico.jpg/170px-CMLL_November_30_Microman_and_Perico.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="183" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a7/CMLL_November_30_Microman_and_Perico.jpg/255px-CMLL_November_30_Microman_and_Perico.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a7/CMLL_November_30_Microman_and_Perico.jpg/340px-CMLL_November_30_Microman_and_Perico.jpg 2x" data-file-width="641" data-file-height="691" /></a><figcaption>Mexican midget wrestlers <a href="/wiki/Microman_(wrestler)" title="Microman (wrestler)">Microman</a> (in blue) and <a href="/wiki/Zacar%C3%ADas_el_Perico" title="Zacarías el Perico">Zacarías el Perico</a> during a match</figcaption></figure> <p>Midget wrestling can be traced to professional wrestling's carnival and vaudeville origins. In recent years, the popularity and prevalence of midgets in wrestling has greatly decreased due to wrestling companies depriving midget divisions of storyline or feud. WWE has made a few attempts to enter this market with their "minis" in the 1990s and the "junior's league" as recent as 2006. It is still a popular form of entertainment in Mexican wrestling, mostly as a "sideshow". </p><p>Some wrestlers may have their own specific "mini me", like <a href="/wiki/Mascarita_Sagrada" title="Mascarita Sagrada">Mascarita Sagrada</a>, Alebrije has Quije, etc. There are also cases in which midgets can become valets for a wrestler, and even get physically involved in matches, like <a href="/wiki/KeMonito" title="KeMonito">Alushe</a>, who often accompanies <a href="/wiki/Tinieblas" title="Tinieblas">Tinieblas</a>, or <a href="/wiki/KeMonito" title="KeMonito">KeMonito</a>, who is portrayed as Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre's mascot and is also a valet for Mistico. <a href="/wiki/Dave_Finlay" class="mw-redirect" title="Dave Finlay">Dave Finlay</a> was often aided in his matches by a midget known mainly as <a href="/wiki/Hornswoggle" title="Hornswoggle">Hornswoggle</a> while in WWE, who hid under the ring and gave a <a href="/wiki/Shillelagh_(club)" class="mw-redirect" title="Shillelagh (club)">shillelagh</a> to Finlay to use on his opponent. Finlay also occasionally threw him at his opponents. Hornswoggle was given a run with the <a href="/wiki/NXT_Cruiserweight_Championship" title="NXT Cruiserweight Championship">WWE Cruiserweight Championship</a> and feuded with <a href="/wiki/D-Generation_X" title="D-Generation X">D-X</a> in 2009. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Culture_and_sociology">Culture and sociology</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=38" title="Edit section: Culture and sociology"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Frank-gotch.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/15/Frank-gotch.jpg/170px-Frank-gotch.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="270" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/15/Frank-gotch.jpg/255px-Frank-gotch.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/15/Frank-gotch.jpg/340px-Frank-gotch.jpg 2x" data-file-width="514" data-file-height="816" /></a><figcaption><a href="/wiki/Frank_Gotch" title="Frank Gotch">Frank Gotch</a>, 20th century professional wrestler</figcaption></figure> <p>Professional wrestling has developed its own unique culture among both spectators and performers.<sup id="cite_ref-114" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-114"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>113<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Professional wrestlers have developed a kind of global <a href="/wiki/Secret_society" title="Secret society">fraternity</a>, with familial bonds, <a href="/wiki/Glossary_of_professional_wrestling_terms" title="Glossary of professional wrestling terms">shared language</a> and passed-down traditions. New performers are expected to "pay their dues" for a few years by working in lower-profile promotions and working as ring crew before working their way upward.<sup id="cite_ref-115" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-115"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>114<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-116" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-116"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>115<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The permanent rosters of most promotions develop a backstage <a href="/wiki/Pecking_order" class="mw-redirect" title="Pecking order">pecking order</a>, with veterans mediating conflicts and mentoring younger wrestlers.<sup id="cite_ref-Unions_117-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Unions-117"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>116<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> For many decades (and still to a lesser extent today) performers were expected to keep the illusions of wrestling's legitimacy alive even while not performing, essentially acting in character any time they were in public.<sup id="cite_ref-Kreit_118-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Kreit-118"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>117<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Some veterans speak of a "sickness" among wrestling performers, an inexplicable pull to remain active in the wrestling world despite the devastating effects the job can have on one's life and health.<sup id="cite_ref-119" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-119"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>118<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Fans of professional wrestling likewise have their own subculture, comparable to <a href="/wiki/Fandom" title="Fandom">those of science fiction, video games, or comic books</a>. Like <a href="/wiki/Sports_fan" class="mw-redirect" title="Sports fan">sports fans</a>, many enthusiasts not only attend and view events but take an active interest in backstage occurrences, future storylines, and reasonings behind company decisions; they are catered to by a large and diverse industry of newsletters written by journalists with insider ties to the wrestling industry.<sup id="cite_ref-Kreit_118-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Kreit-118"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>117<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-Lipscomb_120-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Lipscomb-120"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>119<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Known in the subculture as "rags" or "<a href="/wiki/Glossary_of_professional_wrestling_terms#Dirt_sheet" title="Glossary of professional wrestling terms">dirt sheets</a>", these sources have proliferated online and sometimes provide <a href="/wiki/Breaking_news" title="Breaking news">breaking news</a>; some have expanded into <a href="/wiki/Radio" title="Radio">radio</a> shows.<sup id="cite_ref-121" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-121"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>120<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Some fans enjoy collecting recordings of wrestling shows from specific companies, of certain wrestlers, or of specific genres. Since the 1990s, many companies have been founded which deal primarily in wrestling footage. When the WWE purchased both WCW and ECW in 2001, they also obtained the entire past video libraries of both productions and have released many past matches online and on home video.<sup id="cite_ref-122" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-122"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>121<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Additionally, the internet has exposed fans to previously unavailable variations of wrestling from around the world.<sup id="cite_ref-Bollom_123-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Bollom-123"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>122<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>As in competitive sports, <a href="/wiki/Fantasy_sport" title="Fantasy sport">fantasy leagues</a> have developed around professional wrestling. Some take this concept further by creating <a href="/wiki/Fantasy_wrestling" title="Fantasy wrestling">E-feds</a> (electronic federations), where a user can create their own fictional wrestling character, and <a href="/wiki/Role-playing" title="Role-playing">role-playing</a> storylines with other users, leading to scheduled "shows" where match results are determined by the organizers, usually based on a combination of the characters' statistics and the players' roleplaying aptitude, sometimes with audience voting.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="white-space:nowrap;">[<i><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed"><span title="This claim needs references to reliable sources. (September 2018)">citation needed</span></a></i>]</sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Mainstream_popularity">Mainstream popularity</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=39" title="Edit section: Mainstream popularity"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1251242444"><table class="box-Unreferenced_section plainlinks metadata ambox ambox-content ambox-Unreferenced" role="presentation"><tbody><tr><td class="mbox-image"><div class="mbox-image-div"><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Question_book-new.svg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/50px-Question_book-new.svg.png" decoding="async" width="50" height="39" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/75px-Question_book-new.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/99/Question_book-new.svg/100px-Question_book-new.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="512" data-file-height="399" /></a></span></div></td><td class="mbox-text"><div class="mbox-text-span">This section <b>does not <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sources" title="Wikipedia:Citing sources">cite</a> any <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">sources</a></b>.<span class="hide-when-compact"> Please help <a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Professional_wrestling" title="Special:EditPage/Professional wrestling">improve this section</a> by <a href="/wiki/Help:Referencing_for_beginners" title="Help:Referencing for beginners">adding citations to reliable sources</a>. Unsourced material may be challenged and <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Verifiability#Burden_of_evidence" title="Wikipedia:Verifiability">removed</a>.</span> <span class="date-container"><i>(<span class="date">September 2018</span>)</i></span><span class="hide-when-compact"><i> (<small><a href="/wiki/Help:Maintenance_template_removal" title="Help:Maintenance template removal">Learn how and when to remove this message</a></small>)</i></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-left" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:US_Navy_050519-N-7130B-003_Professional_wrestling_champion_and_actor_Bill_Goldberg_takes_a_moment_to_pose_with_the_photographers_of_Operations_Department%27s_OP_Division_during_his_tour_of_USS_Ronald_Reagan_(CVN_76).jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/US_Navy_050519-N-7130B-003_Professional_wrestling_champion_and_actor_Bill_Goldberg_takes_a_moment_to_pose_with_the_photographers_of_Operations_Department%27s_OP_Division_during_his_tour_of_USS_Ronald_Reagan_%28CVN_76%29.jpg/170px-thumbnail.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="113" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/US_Navy_050519-N-7130B-003_Professional_wrestling_champion_and_actor_Bill_Goldberg_takes_a_moment_to_pose_with_the_photographers_of_Operations_Department%27s_OP_Division_during_his_tour_of_USS_Ronald_Reagan_%28CVN_76%29.jpg/255px-thumbnail.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/US_Navy_050519-N-7130B-003_Professional_wrestling_champion_and_actor_Bill_Goldberg_takes_a_moment_to_pose_with_the_photographers_of_Operations_Department%27s_OP_Division_during_his_tour_of_USS_Ronald_Reagan_%28CVN_76%29.jpg/340px-thumbnail.jpg 2x" data-file-width="4500" data-file-height="3000" /></a><figcaption><a href="/wiki/Bill_Goldberg" title="Bill Goldberg">Bill Goldberg</a> during his tour of <a href="/wiki/USS_Ronald_Reagan_(CVN-76)" class="mw-redirect" title="USS Ronald Reagan (CVN-76)">USS <i>Ronald Reagan</i></a></figcaption></figure> <p>From the first established world championship, the top professional wrestlers have garnered fame within mainstream society.<sup id="cite_ref-124" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-124"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>123<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-125" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-125"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>124<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Each successive generation has produced a number of wrestlers who extend their careers into the realms of music, acting, writing, business, politics or public speaking, and are known to those who are unfamiliar with wrestling in general. Conversely, celebrities from other sports or general pop culture also become involved with wrestling for brief periods of time. A prime example of this is <a href="/wiki/1980s_professional_wrestling_boom" title="1980s professional wrestling boom">The Rock 'n' Wrestling Connection</a> of the 1980s, which combined wrestling with <a href="/wiki/MTV" title="MTV">MTV</a>. </p><p>Professional wrestling is often portrayed within other works using parody, and its general elements have become familiar <a href="/wiki/Trope_(literature)" title="Trope (literature)">tropes</a> and <a href="/wiki/Internet_meme" title="Internet meme">memes</a> in American culture.<sup id="cite_ref-126" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-126"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>125<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-127" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-127"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>126<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Some terminology originating in professional wrestling has found its way into the common vernacular. Phrases such as "body slam", "sleeper hold" and "tag team" are used by those who do not follow professional wrestling. The term "smackdown", popularized by <a href="/wiki/Dwayne_Johnson" title="Dwayne Johnson">The Rock</a> and <i><a href="/wiki/WWE_SmackDown" title="WWE SmackDown">SmackDown!</a></i> in the 1990s, has been included in <a href="/wiki/Merriam-Webster" title="Merriam-Webster">Merriam-Webster</a> dictionaries since 2007. </p> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:El_Santo_statue.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d9/El_Santo_statue.jpg/170px-El_Santo_statue.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="309" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d9/El_Santo_statue.jpg/255px-El_Santo_statue.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d9/El_Santo_statue.jpg/340px-El_Santo_statue.jpg 2x" data-file-width="677" data-file-height="1232" /></a><figcaption>Mexican wrestler <a href="/wiki/El_Santo" title="El Santo">El Santo</a> became a <a href="/wiki/Folk_hero" title="Folk hero">folk hero</a> in that country and a statue of him stands in his home city of <a href="/wiki/Tulancingo" title="Tulancingo">Tulancingo</a></figcaption></figure> <p>Many television shows and films have been produced which portray in-character professional wrestlers as protagonists, such as <i><a href="/wiki/Ready_to_Rumble" title="Ready to Rumble">Ready to Rumble</a></i>, <i><a href="/wiki/%C2%A1Mucha_Lucha!" title="¡Mucha Lucha!">¡Mucha Lucha!</a></i>, <i><a href="/wiki/Nacho_Libre" title="Nacho Libre">Nacho Libre</a></i>, and the Santo film series. </p><p>There have been multiple stage plays set in the world of pro wrestling: <i>The Baron</i> is a comedy that retells the life of an actual performer known as <a href="/wiki/James_Raschke" class="mw-redirect" title="James Raschke">Baron von Raschke</a>. <i>From Parts Unknown...</i> is an award-nominated Canadian drama about the rise and fall of a fictional wrestler. <i><a href="/wiki/Trafford_Tanzi" title="Trafford Tanzi">Trafford Tanzi</a></i> is a play set in a wrestling ring and divided into ten rounds, in which all the cast members participate in wrestling. <i><a href="/wiki/The_Elaborate_Entrance_of_Chad_Deity" title="The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity">The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity</a></i> is a dramatic comedy about a fictional wrestler, which involves scenes of professional wrestling that take place in a wrestling ring. <i>Mythos: Ragnarök</i> adapts <a href="/wiki/Norse_mythology" title="Norse mythology">Norse mythology</a> for the stage by combining dramatic dialogue with scenes of professional wrestling, in the first example of wrestling being used as theatrical stage combat. </p><p>The 2009 <i><a href="/wiki/South_Park" title="South Park">South Park</a></i> episode "<a href="/wiki/W.T.F._(South_Park)" title="W.T.F. (South Park)">W.T.F.</a>" played on the soap operatic elements of professional wrestling. One of the lead characters on the Disney Channel series <i><a href="/wiki/Kim_Possible" title="Kim Possible">Kim Possible</a></i> was a huge fan of pro wrestling and actually featured it on an episode (with two former WWE wrestlers voicing the two fictitious wrestlers featured in the episode). The 2008 film <i><a href="/wiki/The_Wrestler_(2008_film)" title="The Wrestler (2008 film)">The Wrestler</a></i>, about a washed-up professional wrestler, garnered several Oscar nominations. The 2017 TV series <a href="/wiki/GLOW_(TV_series)" title="GLOW (TV series)">GLOW</a>, based on the <a href="/wiki/Gorgeous_Ladies_of_Wrestling" title="Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling">Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling</a> promotion, gained critical acclaim, including a nomination for <a href="/wiki/Primetime_Emmy_Award_for_Outstanding_Comedy_Series" title="Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series">Outstanding Comedy Series</a> at the <a href="/wiki/70th_Primetime_Emmy_Awards" title="70th Primetime Emmy Awards">70th Primetime Emmy Awards</a>. </p><p>The 1950 <a href="/wiki/Film_noir" title="Film noir">film noir</a> <i><a href="/wiki/Night_and_the_City" title="Night and the City">Night and the City</a></i>, directed by <a href="/wiki/Jules_Dassin" title="Jules Dassin">Jules Dassin</a> and starring <a href="/wiki/Richard_Widmark" title="Richard Widmark">Richard Widmark</a> and <a href="/wiki/Gene_Tierney" title="Gene Tierney">Gene Tierney</a>, told the story of a promoter in <a href="/wiki/London" title="London">London</a> trying to make it big, and featured a match involving real professional wrestler <a href="/wiki/Stanislaus_Zbyszko" title="Stanislaus Zbyszko">Stanislaus Zbyszko</a>. The 2019 <i><a href="/wiki/Fighting_with_My_Family" title="Fighting with My Family">Fighting with My Family</a></i> is a <a href="/wiki/Biographical" class="mw-redirect" title="Biographical">biographical</a> <a href="/wiki/Sports" class="mw-redirect" title="Sports">sports</a> <a href="/wiki/Comedy-drama" class="mw-redirect" title="Comedy-drama">comedy-drama</a> film that depicts the career of English professional wrestler <a href="/wiki/Saraya_Bevis" title="Saraya Bevis">Paige</a>. <a href="/wiki/Walk_Like_a_Panther_(film)" class="mw-redirect" title="Walk Like a Panther (film)">Walk Like A Panther</a> is 2018 British comedy film about a group of 1980s wrestlers staging one final show to raise money to save their pub. </p><p>Many professional wrestlers have also become mainstream in their own right, including <a href="/wiki/John_Cena" title="John Cena">John Cena</a>, <a href="/wiki/Dave_Bautista" title="Dave Bautista">Dave Bautista</a>, and <a href="/wiki/Dwayne_Johnson" title="Dwayne Johnson">Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson</a>, mainly for acting in major films, as well as <a href="/wiki/Chris_Jericho" title="Chris Jericho">Chris Jericho</a> and <a href="/wiki/Randy_Savage" title="Randy Savage">"Macho Man" Randy Savage</a> for their musical ventures. </p><p>Wrestling has also gained a major following on <a href="/wiki/YouTube" title="YouTube">YouTube</a>, with <a href="/wiki/WWE" title="WWE">WWE</a> being the most subscribed wrestling channel and sixth most subscribed channel in the world. Other promotions, such as <a href="/wiki/All_Elite_Wrestling" title="All Elite Wrestling">All Elite Wrestling</a>, <a href="/wiki/Major_League_Wrestling" title="Major League Wrestling">Major League Wrestling</a>, <a href="/wiki/Impact_Wrestling" class="mw-redirect" title="Impact Wrestling">Impact Wrestling</a> and the <a href="/wiki/National_Wrestling_Alliance" title="National Wrestling Alliance">National Wrestling Alliance</a> have distributed their own weekly programming on the platform. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Measures_of_popularity">Measures of popularity</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=40" title="Edit section: Measures of popularity"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-left" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Street_televisions_in_Japan.JPG" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e3/Street_televisions_in_Japan.JPG/170px-Street_televisions_in_Japan.JPG" decoding="async" width="170" height="132" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e3/Street_televisions_in_Japan.JPG/255px-Street_televisions_in_Japan.JPG 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e3/Street_televisions_in_Japan.JPG/340px-Street_televisions_in_Japan.JPG 2x" data-file-width="1378" data-file-height="1071" /></a><figcaption>A crowd gathers to watch a <a href="/wiki/Rikid%C5%8Dzan" title="Rikidōzan">Rikidōzan</a> match in 1955</figcaption></figure> <p>Professional wrestling has become especially prominent in North America, Japan and Europe (<a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_the_United_Kingdom" title="Professional wrestling in the United Kingdom">especially the United Kingdom</a>).<sup id="cite_ref-128" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-128"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>127<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> In <a href="/wiki/Brazil" title="Brazil">Brazil</a>, there was a very popular wrestling television program that aired from the 1960s to the early 1980s called <i><a href="/wiki/Telecatch" title="Telecatch">Telecatch</a></i>.<sup id="cite_ref-129" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-129"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>128<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-130" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-130"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>129<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> High-profile figures in the sport have become celebrities and even <a href="/wiki/Cultural_icon" title="Cultural icon">cultural icons</a> in their home countries. </p><p>Although professional wrestling started out as a small <a href="/wiki/Sideshow" title="Sideshow">sideshow</a> in traveling <a href="/wiki/Circus" title="Circus">circuses</a> and <a href="/wiki/Traveling_carnival" title="Traveling carnival">carnivals</a>, today it is a multi-billion-dollar industry. Revenue is drawn from ticket sales, network television broadcasts, <a href="/wiki/Pay-per-view" title="Pay-per-view">pay-per-view</a> broadcasts, branded merchandise and home video.<sup id="cite_ref-131" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-131"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>130<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Wrestling was instrumental in making pay-per-view a viable method of content delivery. Annual shows such as <a href="/wiki/WrestleMania" title="WrestleMania">WrestleMania</a>, <a href="/wiki/All_In_(professional_wrestling)" title="All In (professional wrestling)">All In</a>, <a href="/wiki/Bound_for_Glory_(wrestling_pay-per-view)" title="Bound for Glory (wrestling pay-per-view)">Bound for Glory</a>, <a href="/wiki/Wrestle_Kingdom" title="Wrestle Kingdom">Wrestle Kingdom</a> and formerly <a href="/wiki/Starrcade" title="Starrcade">Starrcade</a> are among the highest-selling pay-per-view programming each year. In modern day, internet programming has been utilized by a number of companies to air web shows, internet pay per views (IPPVs) or on-demand content, helping to generate internet-related revenue earnings from the evolving <a href="/wiki/World_Wide_Web" title="World Wide Web">World Wide Web</a>. </p><p>Home video sales dominate the <a href="/wiki/Billboard_charts" title="Billboard charts">Billboard charts</a> Recreational Sports DVD sales, with wrestling holding anywhere from 3 to 9 of the top 10 spots every week.<sup id="cite_ref-132" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-132"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>131<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:WrestleMania_32_2016-04-03_18-55-46_ILCE-6000_9123_DxO_(27799110291).jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4f/WrestleMania_32_2016-04-03_18-55-46_ILCE-6000_9123_DxO_%2827799110291%29.jpg/170px-WrestleMania_32_2016-04-03_18-55-46_ILCE-6000_9123_DxO_%2827799110291%29.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="96" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4f/WrestleMania_32_2016-04-03_18-55-46_ILCE-6000_9123_DxO_%2827799110291%29.jpg/255px-WrestleMania_32_2016-04-03_18-55-46_ILCE-6000_9123_DxO_%2827799110291%29.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4f/WrestleMania_32_2016-04-03_18-55-46_ILCE-6000_9123_DxO_%2827799110291%29.jpg/340px-WrestleMania_32_2016-04-03_18-55-46_ILCE-6000_9123_DxO_%2827799110291%29.jpg 2x" data-file-width="6001" data-file-height="3376" /></a><figcaption><a href="/wiki/AT%26T_Stadium" title="AT&T Stadium">AT&T Stadium</a> during <a href="/wiki/WrestleMania_32" title="WrestleMania 32">WrestleMania 32</a>. WWE claims a record attendance of 101,763 for the event</figcaption></figure> <p>Due to its persistent cultural presence and to its novelty within the performing arts, wrestling constitutes <a href="#Study_and_analysis">a recurring topic in both academia and the media</a>. Several documentaries have been produced looking at professional wrestling, most notably <i><a href="/wiki/Beyond_the_Mat" title="Beyond the Mat">Beyond the Mat</a></i> directed by Barry W. Blaustein, and <i><a href="/wiki/Hitman_Hart:_Wrestling_with_Shadows" title="Hitman Hart: Wrestling with Shadows">Wrestling with Shadows</a></i> featuring retired wrestler <a href="/wiki/Bret_Hart" title="Bret Hart">Bret Hart</a> and directed by Paul Jay. There have also been many fictional depictions of wrestling; the 2008 film <i><a href="/wiki/The_Wrestler_(2008_film)" title="The Wrestler (2008 film)">The Wrestler</a></i> received several <a href="/wiki/Academy_Award" class="mw-redirect" title="Academy Award">Oscar</a> nominations and began a career revival for its star <a href="/wiki/Mickey_Rourke" title="Mickey Rourke">Mickey Rourke</a>. </p><p>Currently, the largest professional wrestling company worldwide is the United States–based <a href="/wiki/WWE" title="WWE">WWE</a>, which bought out many smaller regional companies in the late 20th century, as well as primary competitors <a href="/wiki/World_Championship_Wrestling" title="World Championship Wrestling">World Championship Wrestling</a> (WCW) and ECW in early 2001. Other major companies worldwide include <a href="/wiki/All_Elite_Wrestling" title="All Elite Wrestling">All Elite Wrestling</a> (AEW) in the United States, <a href="/wiki/Consejo_Mundial_de_Lucha_Libre" title="Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre">Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre</a> (CMLL), and <a href="/wiki/Lucha_Libre_AAA_Worldwide" title="Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide">Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide</a> (AAA) in Mexico; and <a href="/wiki/New_Japan_Pro-Wrestling" title="New Japan Pro-Wrestling">New Japan Pro-Wrestling</a> (NJPW), <a href="/wiki/All_Japan_Pro_Wrestling" title="All Japan Pro Wrestling">All Japan Pro Wrestling</a> (AJPW), and <a href="/wiki/Pro_Wrestling_Noah" title="Pro Wrestling Noah">Pro Wrestling Noah</a> in Japan. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Study_and_analysis">Study and analysis</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=41" title="Edit section: Study and analysis"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-left" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Mick_Foley07.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5f/Mick_Foley07.jpg/170px-Mick_Foley07.jpg" decoding="async" width="170" height="227" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5f/Mick_Foley07.jpg/255px-Mick_Foley07.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5f/Mick_Foley07.jpg/340px-Mick_Foley07.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1752" data-file-height="2340" /></a><figcaption><a href="/wiki/Mick_Foley" title="Mick Foley">Mick Foley</a>, who was one of the subjects of the <i><a href="/wiki/Beyond_the_Mat" title="Beyond the Mat">Beyond the Mat</a></i> documentary, became a <a href="/wiki/The_New_York_Times_Best_Seller_list" title="The New York Times Best Seller list"><i>New York Times</i> best-selling</a> author for his books about professional wrestling</figcaption></figure> <p>With its growing popularity, professional wrestling has attracted attention as a subject of serious <a href="/wiki/Academia" class="mw-redirect" title="Academia">academic</a> study and <a href="/wiki/Journalism" title="Journalism">journalistic</a> criticism. Many courses, theses, essays and dissertations have analyzed wrestling's <a href="/wiki/Convention_(norm)" title="Convention (norm)">conventions</a>, content, and its role in modern society. It is often included as part of studies on theater, sociology, performance, and media.<sup id="cite_ref-133" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-133"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>132<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-134" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-134"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>133<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The <a href="/wiki/Massachusetts_Institute_of_Technology" title="Massachusetts Institute of Technology">Massachusetts Institute of Technology</a> developed a course of study on the cultural significance of professional wrestling,<sup id="cite_ref-135" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-135"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>134<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> and anthropologist <a href="/wiki/Heather_Levi" title="Heather Levi">Heather Levi</a> has written an ethnography about the culture of lucha libre in Mexico.<sup id="cite_ref-136" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-136"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>135<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>In the early 20th century, once it became apparent that the "sport" was worked, pro wrestling was looked down on as a cheap entertainment for the uneducated working class,<sup id="cite_ref-Kreit_118-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Kreit-118"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>117<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> an attitude that still exists to varying degrees today.<sup id="cite_ref-Lipscomb_120-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Lipscomb-120"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>119<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The French theorist <a href="/wiki/Roland_Barthes" title="Roland Barthes">Roland Barthes</a> was among the first to propose that wrestling was worthy of deeper analysis, in his essay "The World of Wrestling" from his book <i><a href="/wiki/Mythologies_(book)" title="Mythologies (book)">Mythologies</a></i>, first published in 1957.<sup id="cite_ref-Barthes_79-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Barthes-79"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>78<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-Kreit_118-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Kreit-118"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>117<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Barthes argued that it should be looked at not as a scamming of the ignorant, but as <a href="/wiki/Spectacle" title="Spectacle">spectacle</a>; a mode of theatric performance for a willing, if bloodthirsty, audience. Wrestling is described as performed art which demands an immediate reading of the juxtaposed meanings. The logical conclusion is given least importance over the theatrical performers of the wrestlers and the referee. According to Barthes, the function of a wrestler is not to win: it is to go exactly through the motions which are expected of him and to give the audience a theatrical spectacle. This work is considered a foundation of all later study.<sup id="cite_ref-137" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-137"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>136<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>While pro wrestling is often described simplistically as a "<a href="/wiki/Soap_opera" title="Soap opera">soap opera</a> for males", it has also been cited as filling the role of past forms of <a href="/wiki/Literature" title="Literature">literature</a> and <a href="/wiki/Theater" class="mw-redirect" title="Theater">theater</a>; a <a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/synthesis" class="extiw" title="wikt:synthesis">synthesis</a> of <a href="/wiki/Classics" title="Classics">classical</a> <a href="/wiki/Hero" title="Hero">heroics</a>,<sup id="cite_ref-138" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-138"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>137<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> <a href="/wiki/Commedia_dell%27arte" title="Commedia dell'arte">commedia dell'arte</a>,<sup id="cite_ref-139" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-139"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>138<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> <a href="/wiki/Revenge_play" title="Revenge play">revenge tragedies</a>,<sup id="cite_ref-Mazer_140-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Mazer-140"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>139<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> <a href="/wiki/Morality_play" title="Morality play">morality plays</a>,<sup id="cite_ref-Mazer_140-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Mazer-140"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>139<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> and <a href="/wiki/American_burlesque" title="American burlesque">burlesque</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-141" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-141"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>140<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The characters and storylines portrayed by a successful promotion are seen to reflect the current <a href="/wiki/Mood_(psychology)" title="Mood (psychology)">mood</a>, <a href="/wiki/Attitude_(psychology)" title="Attitude (psychology)">attitudes</a>, and concerns of that promotion's <a href="/wiki/Society" title="Society">society</a><sup id="cite_ref-Lipscomb_120-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Lipscomb-120"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>119<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-Bollom_123-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Bollom-123"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>122<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> and can in turn influence those same things.<sup id="cite_ref-142" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-142"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>141<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> For example, wrestling's high levels of <a href="/wiki/Violence" title="Violence">violence</a> and <a href="/wiki/Masculinity" title="Masculinity">masculinity</a> make it a vicarious outlet for <a href="/wiki/Aggression" title="Aggression">aggression</a> during <a href="/wiki/Peacetime" class="mw-redirect" title="Peacetime">peacetime</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-143" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-143"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>142<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The displays of masculinity are said to incorporate <a href="/wiki/Homoerotic" class="mw-redirect" title="Homoerotic">homoerotic</a> elements and elements of pageantry that have been compared to <a href="/wiki/Drag_queen" title="Drag queen">drag</a> or <a href="/wiki/Ball_culture" title="Ball culture">Ball culture</a>;<sup id="cite_ref-144" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-144"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>143<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> some scholars posit that the homoerotic undertones target the desires of ostensibly heterosexual male viewers, "[allowing] them the vicarious pleasure of transgressing gender norms"<sup id="cite_ref-145" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-145"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>144<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> by identifying with "wrestlers who perform culturally transgressive notions of masculinity including flamboyance, attention to physical appearance, and ambiguous sexual identity".<sup id="cite_ref-146" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-146"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>145<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p><a href="/wiki/Documentary_film" title="Documentary film">Documentary</a> <a href="/wiki/Film_director" title="Film director">filmmakers</a> have studied the lives of wrestlers and the effects the profession has on them and their families. The 1999 theatrical documentary <i><a href="/wiki/Beyond_the_Mat" title="Beyond the Mat">Beyond the Mat</a></i> focused on <a href="/wiki/Terry_Funk" title="Terry Funk">Terry Funk</a>, a wrestler nearing <a href="/wiki/Retirement" title="Retirement">retirement</a>; <a href="/wiki/Mick_Foley" title="Mick Foley">Mick Foley</a>, a wrestler within his prime; <a href="/wiki/Jake_Roberts" title="Jake Roberts">Jake Roberts</a>, a former star fallen from grace; and <a href="/wiki/Glossary_of_professional_wrestling_terms#School" title="Glossary of professional wrestling terms">a school of wrestling students</a> trying to break into the business. The 2005 release <i><a href="/wiki/Lipstick_and_Dynamite,_Piss_and_Vinegar:_The_First_Ladies_of_Wrestling" title="Lipstick and Dynamite, Piss and Vinegar: The First Ladies of Wrestling">Lipstick and Dynamite, Piss and Vinegar: The First Ladies of Wrestling</a></i> chronicled the development of women's wrestling throughout the 20th century. Pro wrestling has been featured several times on <a href="/wiki/HBO" title="HBO">HBO</a>'s <i><a href="/wiki/Real_Sports_with_Bryant_Gumbel" title="Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel">Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel</a></i>. MTV's documentary series <i><a href="/wiki/True_Life" title="True Life">True Life</a></i> featured two episodes titled "I'm a Professional Wrestler" and "I Want to Be a Professional Wrestler". Other documentaries have been produced by <a href="/wiki/TLC_(TV_channel)" class="mw-redirect" title="TLC (TV channel)">The Learning Channel</a> (<i>The Secret World of Professional Wrestling</i>) and <a href="/wiki/A%26E_(TV_channel)" class="mw-redirect" title="A&E (TV channel)">A&E</a> (<i><a href="/wiki/Hitman_Hart:_Wrestling_with_Shadows" title="Hitman Hart: Wrestling with Shadows">Hitman Hart: Wrestling with Shadows</a></i>). <i><a href="/wiki/Bloodstained_Memoirs" title="Bloodstained Memoirs">Bloodstained Memoirs</a></i> explored the careers of several pro wrestlers, including <a href="/wiki/Chris_Jericho" title="Chris Jericho">Chris Jericho</a>, <a href="/wiki/Rob_Van_Dam" title="Rob Van Dam">Rob Van Dam</a> and <a href="/wiki/Roddy_Piper" title="Roddy Piper">Roddy Piper</a>.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="white-space:nowrap;">[<i><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed"><span title="This claim needs references to reliable sources. (September 2018)">citation needed</span></a></i>]</sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="See_also">See also</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=42" title="Edit section: See also"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/History_of_professional_wrestling" title="History of professional wrestling">History of professional wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Independent_circuit" title="Independent circuit">Independent circuit</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_video_games" title="List of professional wrestling video games">List of professional wrestling video games</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_moves_(disambiguation)" class="mw-redirect mw-disambig" title="Professional wrestling moves (disambiguation)">Professional wrestling moves (disambiguation)</a></li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Terminology">Terminology</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=43" title="Edit section: Terminology"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Glossary_of_professional_wrestling_terms" title="Glossary of professional wrestling terms">Glossary of professional wrestling terms</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_match_types" title="Professional wrestling match types">Professional wrestling match types</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_tag_team_match_types" title="Professional wrestling tag team match types">Professional wrestling tag team match types</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_tournament" title="Professional wrestling tournament">Professional wrestling tournament</a></li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Lists_of_wrestlers">Lists of wrestlers</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=44" title="Edit section: Lists of wrestlers"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/List_of_family_relations_in_professional_wrestling" title="List of family relations in professional wrestling">List of family relations in professional wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_rosters" class="mw-redirect" title="List of professional wrestling rosters">List of professional wrestling rosters</a></li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Types_of_professional_wrestling">Types of professional wrestling</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=45" title="Edit section: Types of professional wrestling"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/All-in_professional_wrestling" title="All-in professional wrestling">All-in professional wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Backyard_wrestling" title="Backyard wrestling">Backyard wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Fantasy_wrestling" title="Fantasy wrestling">Fantasy wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Hardcore_wrestling" title="Hardcore wrestling">Hardcore wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Lucha_libre" title="Lucha libre">Lucha libre</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Admiral-Lord_Mountevans_rules" title="Admiral-Lord Mountevans rules">Modern Freestyle Wrestling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Puroresu" title="Puroresu">Puroresu</a></li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Related_genres_and_topics">Related genres and topics</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=46" title="Edit section: Related genres and topics"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/1950s_quiz_show_scandals" title="1950s quiz show scandals">1950s quiz show scandals</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Scripted_reality" title="Scripted reality">Scripted reality</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Docufiction" title="Docufiction">Docufiction</a></li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Radio_programs">Radio programs</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=47" title="Edit section: Radio programs"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/Live_Audio_Wrestling" title="Live Audio Wrestling">Live Audio Wrestling</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Talksport" title="Talksport">Talksport</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/Dave_Meltzer#Wrestling_Observer_Live" title="Dave Meltzer">Wrestling Observer Live</a></i></li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="In_fiction">In fiction</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=48" title="Edit section: In fiction"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/List_of_wrestling-based_comic_books" title="List of wrestling-based comic books">List of wrestling-based comic books</a></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/GLOW_(TV_series)" title="GLOW (TV series)">GLOW</a></i></li> <li><i><a href="/wiki/The_Wrestler_(2008_film)" title="The Wrestler (2008 film)">The Wrestler</a></i></li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="References">References</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=49" title="Edit section: References"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Notes">Notes</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=50" title="Edit section: Notes"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <div class="mw-references-wrap"><ol class="references"> <li id="cite_note-2"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-2">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">The term "wrestling" is most often widely used to specifically refer to modern scripted professional wrestling, though it is also used to refer to <a href="/wiki/Real_life" title="Real life">real-life</a> <a href="/wiki/Wrestling" title="Wrestling">wrestling</a> combat.</span> </li> </ol></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Citations">Citations</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=51" title="Edit section: Citations"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1239543626">.mw-parser-output .reflist{margin-bottom:0.5em;list-style-type:decimal}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .reflist{font-size:90%}}.mw-parser-output .reflist .references{font-size:100%;margin-bottom:0;list-style-type:inherit}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns-2{column-width:30em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns-3{column-width:25em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns{margin-top:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns ol{margin-top:0}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns li{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .reflist-upper-alpha{list-style-type:upper-alpha}.mw-parser-output .reflist-upper-roman{list-style-type:upper-roman}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-alpha{list-style-type:lower-alpha}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-greek{list-style-type:lower-greek}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-roman{list-style-type:lower-roman}</style><div class="reflist"> <div class="mw-references-wrap mw-references-columns"><ol class="references"> <li id="cite_note-:3-1"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-:3_1-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-:3_1-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1238218222">.mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit;word-wrap:break-word}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"\"""\"""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation:target{background-color:rgba(0,127,255,0.133)}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-free.id-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Lock-green.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited.id-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration.id-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription.id-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg")right 0.1em center/12px no-repeat}body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-free a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background-size:contain;padding:0 1em 0 0}.mw-parser-output .cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:none;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;color:var(--color-error,#d33)}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{color:var(--color-error,#d33)}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#085;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right{padding-right:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .citation .mw-selflink{font-weight:inherit}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{color:#18911f}}@media screen and (prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{color:#18911f}}</style><cite id="CITEREFLevi2001" class="citation thesis cs1">Levi, Heather J. (2001). <i>Masked struggle: An ethnography of Lucha Libre</i> (PhD thesis). New York University. p. 57. <q>In the [flying crossbody] ... [the defender] lift her arms slightly, in order to catch her opponent and minimize the impact of the technique.</q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adissertation&rft.title=Masked+struggle%3A+An+ethnography+of+Lucha+Libre&rft.degree=PhD&rft.inst=New+York+University&rft.date=2001&rft.aulast=Levi&rft.aufirst=Heather+J.&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-:4-3"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-:4_3-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-:4_3-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text">Eero Laine (2017). "Stadium-sized theatre: WWE and the world of professional wrestling". In <a href="#refChowEtAl2017">Chow et al. (2017). <i>Performance and Professional Wrestling</i></a>, p. 39: "The business of professional wrestling is the business of theatre. Even if on the surface professional wrestling seems anathema to theatrical sensibilities, it is hard to deny the formal similarities. After all, professional wrestling is scripted entertainment performed live in front of an audience by actors portraying characters."</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-:2-4"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-:2_4-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-:2_4-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation news cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-10-04/its-all-fake-right-a-professional-wrestler-explains-everything/9010474">"It's all fake, right? A professional wrestler explains everything"</a>. <i>ABC News</i>. 2017-10-04. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20221116091523/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-10-04/its-all-fake-right-a-professional-wrestler-explains-everything/9010474">Archived</a> from the original on 2022-11-16<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2024-01-30</span></span>. <q><span class="cs1-kern-left"></span>"Fake" is the wrong word. You don't call Wuthering Heights or Star Wars "fake", you call it fiction.</q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=ABC+News&rft.atitle=It%27s+all+fake%2C+right%3F+A+professional+wrestler+explains+everything&rft.date=2017-10-04&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.abc.net.au%2Fnews%2F2017-10-04%2Fits-all-fake-right-a-professional-wrestler-explains-everything%2F9010474&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-:5-5"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-:5_5-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-:5_5-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a href="#refShoemaker2013">Shoemaker (2013). <i>Benjamin</i></a>, p. 27: "... the people who were clued in were happy to play along to further their enjoyment."</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-6"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-6">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.cagematch.net/?id=8&view=promotions">"Promotions Database"</a>. <i>Cagematch.net</i>. 12 July 2024<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">12 July</span> 2024</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Cagematch.net&rft.atitle=Promotions+Database&rft.date=2024-07-12&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cagematch.net%2F%3Fid%3D8%26view%3Dpromotions&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Cejudo2012p32-7"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Cejudo2012p32_7-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Cejudo (2012). <i>Wrestling for Dummies</i>. p. 32</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-8"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-8">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Archer & Svinth (2001). <i>Martial Arts of the World</i> vol. 1. p. 743: "...there is still no easy way to explain why millions of people enjoy watching professional wrestling and yet dislike watching amateur wrestling."</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-9"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-9">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Rudraneil Sengupta (2016). <i>Enter the Dangal</i></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-10"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-10">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.wrestlingperspective.com/UnrealVideo.html">"Unreal Stories Review In Wrestling Perspective"</a>. <a href="/wiki/Wrestling_Perspective" class="mw-redirect" title="Wrestling Perspective">Wrestling Perspective</a>. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20170426064651/http://www.wrestlingperspective.com/UnrealVideo.html">Archived</a> from the original on 2017-04-26<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2015-11-08</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=Unreal+Stories+Review+In+Wrestling+Perspective&rft.pub=Wrestling+Perspective&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wrestlingperspective.com%2FUnrealVideo.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-11"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-11">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a href="#refBeekman2006">Beekman (2006). <i>Ringside</i></a>, p. 39: "[William] Muldoon instituted time limits in his touring matches, a practice that became increasingly common, as a means of keeping his troupe on schedule and to limit the potential for defeat or injury. From this relatively benign alteration, professional wrestling slowly became an exercise in pure entertainment."</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Beekman2006p40-12"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-Beekman2006p40_12-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Beekman2006p40_12-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a href="#refBeekman2006">Beekman (2006). <i>Ringside</i></a>, p. 40</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-13"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-13">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a href="#refBeekman2006">Beekman (2006). <i>Ringside</i></a>, pp. 39–40</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-14"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-14">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a href="#refGrasso2014">Grasso (2014). <i>Historical Dictionary of Wrestling</i></a>, p. 162</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-15"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-15">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation magazine cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/sim_national-police-gazette_1905-07-22_87_1458/page/10/mode/2up">"Hart Says He's Champion, Public Ignores His Claim"</a>. <i>The National Police Gazette</i>. New York: Richard K. Fox. 22 July 1905. p. 10.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=The+National+Police+Gazette&rft.atitle=Hart+Says+He%27s+Champion%2C+Public+Ignores+His+Claim&rft.pages=10&rft.date=1905-07-22&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Farchive.org%2Fdetails%2Fsim_national-police-gazette_1905-07-22_87_1458%2Fpage%2F10%2Fmode%2F2up&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-:0-16"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-:0_16-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Thesz (2011). <i>Hooker</i>: "Between 1915 and 1920, pro wrestling went into a tailspin thanks in part to widespread newspaper publicity that for the first time was questioning pro wrestling's authenticity as a legitimate, competitive sport. [...] What they did was simply get rid of competitive wrestling at the professional level. The fans craved excitement and dramatic action, so the promoters decided to give it to them by performing every match."</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-17"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-17">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a href="#refBeekman2006">Beekman (2006). <i>Ringside</i></a>, p. 54: "As the controlling force in wrestling, promoters could maximize profits by carefully establishing new stars and through selective scheduling of matches."</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-18"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-18">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a href="#refBeekman2006">Beekman (2006). <i>Ringside</i></a>, p. 61</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-19"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-19">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a href="#refBeekman2006">Beekman (2006). <i>Ringside</i></a>, pp. 59–60</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-20"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-20">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a href="#refFleischer1936">Fleischer (1936). <i>From Milo to Londos</i>, p. 307</a>: "Charges which were substantiated, were made in court to the effect that most of the big matches, and all of the championship bouts, were fixed affairs, with the challenger chosen by the promoters and the champion assured of victory."<br />See <i>Joe Alvarez v. Richard Shikat and Al Haft, U.S. District Court, Southern District of Ohio, Eastern Division, No. 1180, April 27, 1936</i></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-21"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-21">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Thesz (2011). <i>Hooker</i>: "Most of the contests I saw during my career took place in the gym during workouts, and the ones staged in front of paying customers were done to settle business disputes among rival wrestling groups."</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-22"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-22">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation news cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.nytimes.com/1930/04/09/archives/wrestling-placed-under-new-status-commission-rules-clubs-must-list.html">"Wrestling Placed Under New Status; Commission Rules Clubs Must List Matches as Shows or Exhibitions"</a>. <i>The New York Times</i>. April 9, 1930. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20230510185245/https://www.nytimes.com/1930/04/09/archives/wrestling-placed-under-new-status-commission-rules-clubs-must-list.html">Archived</a> from the original on May 10, 2023<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">May 10,</span> 2023</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=The+New+York+Times&rft.atitle=Wrestling+Placed+Under+New+Status%3B+Commission+Rules+Clubs+Must+List+Matches+as+Shows+or+Exhibitions&rft.date=1930-04-09&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F1930%2F04%2F09%2Farchives%2Fwrestling-placed-under-new-status-commission-rules-clubs-must-list.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span>: "Professional wrestling under the jurisdiction of the State Athletic Commission yesterday passed into the status of theatrical classification, except in isolated cases. The commission in a bulletin notified clubs that future wrestling bouts must not be advertised as matches but as shows or exhibitions, except in connection with events which have the specific approval of the commission as certified matches. The ruling was passed at a meeting attended by Commissioners William Muldoon and John J. Phelan."</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-23"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-23">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Hornbaker (2015). <i>Capitol Revolution</i></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-24"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-24">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">quoted in <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation magazine cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/per_atlanta-constitution_1931-04-27_63_316/page/n5/mode/2up?q=wrestling+fixed">"Is Wrestling Fixed?"</a>. <i>The Atlanta Constitution</i>. 27 April 1931. p. 6.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=The+Atlanta+Constitution&rft.atitle=Is+Wrestling+Fixed%3F&rft.pages=6&rft.date=1931-04-27&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Farchive.org%2Fdetails%2Fper_atlanta-constitution_1931-04-27_63_316%2Fpage%2Fn5%2Fmode%2F2up%3Fq%3Dwrestling%2Bfixed&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-25"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-25">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a href="#refShoemaker2013">Shoemaker (2013). <i>The Squared Circle</i>, p. 27</a>: "Traditionalists like Curley were peeved, insistent on protecting the realism of the sport above all else. And through the next fifty-five years or so—more or less until Vince McMahon began admitting to the WWF's illegitimacy to get around state athletic commission fees in the late '80s—they were able to keep up the facade to some extent because the marks were always willing to accept the violence at face value, and the people who were clued in were happy to play along to further their enjoyment."</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-26"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-26">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a href="#refShoemaker2013">Shoemaker (2013). <i>The Squared Circle</i></a>: "In 1931, Grantland Rice recounted how when he wrote a snippet about wrestling for his syndicated column <i>fifteen years prior</i>, a number of his editors around the country wrote back telling him that they had no interest in printing anything about such a nonsport."</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-27"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-27">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFReporter2017" class="citation web cs1">Reporter, Kerry Gillespie Sports reporter, Doug Smith Sports (2017-06-29). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.thestar.com/sports/capturing-a-country-through-sport-the-voices/article_56876e55-bccb-55ed-be71-d76954a43660.html">"Capturing a country through sport: The voices"</a>. <i>Toronto Star</i><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2024-12-17</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Toronto+Star&rft.atitle=Capturing+a+country+through+sport%3A+The+voices&rft.date=2017-06-29&rft.aulast=Reporter&rft.aufirst=Kerry+Gillespie+Sports+reporter%2C+Doug+Smith+Sports&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thestar.com%2Fsports%2Fcapturing-a-country-through-sport-the-voices%2Farticle_56876e55-bccb-55ed-be71-d76954a43660.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span><span class="cs1-maint citation-comment"><code class="cs1-code">{{<a href="/wiki/Template:Cite_web" title="Template:Cite web">cite web</a>}}</code>: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (<a href="/wiki/Category:CS1_maint:_multiple_names:_authors_list" title="Category:CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list">link</a>)</span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-28"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-28">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a href="#refBeekman2006">Beekman (2006). <i>Ringside</i></a>, p. 97</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-29"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-29">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFHester" class="citation web cs1">Hester, Matthew. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/436373-the-history-of-pro-wrestling-in-the-us-part-2">"The History Of Pro Wrestling In The U.S (part 2)"</a>. <i>Bleacher Report</i><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2024-12-17</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Bleacher+Report&rft.atitle=The+History+Of+Pro+Wrestling+In+The+U.S+%28part+2%29&rft.aulast=Hester&rft.aufirst=Matthew&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fbleacherreport.com%2Farticles%2F436373-the-history-of-pro-wrestling-in-the-us-part-2&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-30"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-30">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a class="mw-selflink-fragment" href="#refShoemaker2013">Shoemaker (2013). <i>The Squared Circle</i>, p. 27</a>: "Traditionalists like Curley were peeved, insistent on protecting the realism of the sport above all else. And through the next fifty-five years or so—more or less until Vince McMahon began admitting to the WWF's illegitimacy to get around state athletic commission fees in the late '80s—they were able to keep up the facade to some extent because the marks were always willing to accept the violence at face value, and the people who were clued in were happy to play along to further their enjoyment."</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-31"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-31">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a class="mw-selflink-fragment" href="#refBeekman2006">Beekman (2006). <i>Ringside</i></a>, p. 131</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-32"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-32">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://casetext.com/statute/new-jersey-statutes/title-5-amusements-public-exhibitions-and-meetings/chapter-52a/section-52a-1-definitions">New Jersey Statutes 5:2A-1</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20220806093429/https://casetext.com/statute/new-jersey-statutes/title-5-amusements-public-exhibitions-and-meetings/chapter-52a/section-52a-1-definitions">Archived</a> 2022-08-06 at the <a href="/wiki/Wayback_Machine" title="Wayback Machine">Wayback Machine</a>: "Professional wrestling" means an activity in which participants struggle hand-in-hand primarily for the purpose of providing entertainment to spectators rather than conducting a bona fide athletic contest."</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-33"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-33">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFPeter_Kerr1989" class="citation news cs1">Peter Kerr (10 February 1989). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.nytimes.com/1989/02/10/nyregion/now-it-can-be-told-those-pro-wrestlers-are-just-having-fun.html">"Now It Can Be Told: Those Pro Wrestlers Are Just Having Fun"</a>. <i>The New York Times</i>. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210404142748/https://www.nytimes.com/1989/02/10/nyregion/now-it-can-be-told-those-pro-wrestlers-are-just-having-fun.html">Archived</a> from the original on 4 April 2021<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">31 July</span> 2022</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=The+New+York+Times&rft.atitle=Now+It+Can+Be+Told%3A+Those+Pro+Wrestlers+Are+Just+Having+Fun&rft.date=1989-02-10&rft.au=Peter+Kerr&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F1989%2F02%2F10%2Fnyregion%2Fnow-it-can-be-told-those-pro-wrestlers-are-just-having-fun.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-:6-34"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-:6_34-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-:6_34-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-:6_34-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-:6_34-3"><sup><i><b>d</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFHester" class="citation web cs1">Hester, Matthew. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://bleacherreport.com/articles/436373-the-history-of-pro-wrestling-in-the-us-part-2">"The History Of Pro Wrestling In The U.S (part 2)"</a>. <i>Bleacher Report</i><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2024-12-17</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Bleacher+Report&rft.atitle=The+History+Of+Pro+Wrestling+In+The+U.S+%28part+2%29&rft.aulast=Hester&rft.aufirst=Matthew&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fbleacherreport.com%2Farticles%2F436373-the-history-of-pro-wrestling-in-the-us-part-2&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-:7-35"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-:7_35-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-:7_35-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text">Andersen (2017). <i>Fantasyland</i>. chpt. 27: "It had a brief renaissance in the 1950s, thanks to the new medium of TV, which needed content, and all the networks started airing matches. [...] pro wrestling's fakery was still a fundamental problem; it was a niche taste; as TV got flush and respectable, the networks moved on."</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-36"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-36">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a href="#refBeekman2006">Beekman (2006). <i>Ringside</i></a>, p. 105: "When the national audience of the early 1950s ebbed, wrestling found itself buoyed by a fan-base similar to that of the pretelevision era. The very young, the very old, blue-collar workers, and minorities became wrestling's core audience."</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Beekman2006p57-37"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Beekman2006p57_37-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a href="#refBeekman2006">Beekman (2006). <i>Ringside</i>. p.57</a></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-38"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-38">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a href="#refBeekman2006">Beekman (2006). <i>Ringside</i></a>, p. 76</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-39"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-39">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a href="#refBeekman2006">Beekman (2006). <i>Ringside</i></a>, pp. 78–79</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-:1-40"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-:1_40-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a href="#refBeekman2006">Beekman (2006). <i>Ringside</i></a>, p. 71: "Many worried promoters did not have any wrestlers under contract who combined mat skills with drawing power [...] Faced with declining revenues, the promoters made the fateful decision to focus on developing wrestlers who possessed drawing power, with increasingly little regard given to knowledge of holds. [...] Recognizing that much of the public now viewed professional wrestling as an entertainment form rather than an honest sport, the promoters simply gave the public what they believed it wanted. 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December 2020. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20220918074706/https://itrwrestling.com/news/a-kid-believes-british-rounds-rules-are-perfect-for-the-modern-fan/">Archived</a> from the original on 2022-09-18<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2022-04-23</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=A-Kid+Believes+British+Rounds+Rules+Are+Perfect+for+the+Modern+Fan&rft.date=2020-12&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fitrwrestling.com%2Fnews%2Fa-kid-believes-british-rounds-rules-are-perfect-for-the-modern-fan%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-88"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-88">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">ROBERTS, JH, and DOMINIC SEVIERI. 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Orlando: SleuthSayers. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20130626025807/http://www.sleuthsayers.org/2013/04/lord-of-rings.html">Archived</a> from the original on 2013-06-26<span class="reference-accessdate">. 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Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2025-01-03</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=The+Times+of+India&rft.atitle=How+to+become+a+WWE+wrestler%3A+Criteria%2C+hiring+process+and+more+explained&rft.date=2024-07-29&rft.issn=0971-8257&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Ftimesofindia.indiatimes.com%2Fsports%2Fwwe%2Ftop-stories%2Fhow-to-become-a-wwe-wrestler-criteria-hiring-process-and-more-explained%2Farticleshow%2F112109875.cms&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-94"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-94">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFStaff2020" class="citation web cs1">Staff, Last Word (2020-08-08). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://lastwordonsports.com/prowrestling/2020/08/08/education-requirements-professional-wrestling/">"Education Requirements for Professional Wrestling"</a>. <i>Last Word on Pro Wrestling</i><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2025-01-03</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Last+Word+on+Pro+Wrestling&rft.atitle=Education+Requirements+for+Professional+Wrestling&rft.date=2020-08-08&rft.aulast=Staff&rft.aufirst=Last+Word&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Flastwordonsports.com%2Fprowrestling%2F2020%2F08%2F08%2Feducation-requirements-professional-wrestling%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-:9-95"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-:9_95-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-:9_95-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-:9_95-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation news cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-42981915">"How to become a professional wrestler"</a>. 2018-02-13<span class="reference-accessdate">. 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Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2025-01-27</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=The+Conversation&rft.atitle=Wrestlers%E2%80%99+welfare+has+improved+since+the+1990s+%E2%80%93+but+they+still+have+a+fight+on+their+hands&rft.date=2025-01-14&rft.aulast=Warden&rft.aufirst=Claire&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Ftheconversation.com%2Fwrestlers-welfare-has-improved-since-the-1990s-but-they-still-have-a-fight-on-their-hands-245974&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-OTE_Facts-97"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-OTE_Facts_97-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20181216205358/http://hoffco-inc.com/wwe/ppv/ppv/ote99.html">"Under the Edge 1999 results"</a>. Hoffco. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.hoffco-inc.com/wwe/ppv/ppv/ote99.html">the original</a> on 2018-12-16<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2008-01-05</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=Under+the+Edge+1999+results&rft.pub=Hoffco&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.hoffco-inc.com%2Fwwe%2Fppv%2Fppv%2Fote99.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-98"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-98">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFDavid2013" class="citation book cs1">David, Shoemaker (2013). <i>The squared circle : life, death, and professional wrestling</i>. New York. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-101-60974-3" title="Special:BookSources/978-1-101-60974-3"><bdi>978-1-101-60974-3</bdi></a>. <a href="/wiki/OCLC_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="OCLC (identifier)">OCLC</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://search.worldcat.org/oclc/861696350">861696350</a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=The+squared+circle+%3A+life%2C+death%2C+and+professional+wrestling&rft.place=New+York&rft.date=2013&rft_id=info%3Aoclcnum%2F861696350&rft.isbn=978-1-101-60974-3&rft.aulast=David&rft.aufirst=Shoemaker&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span><span class="cs1-maint citation-comment"><code class="cs1-code">{{<a href="/wiki/Template:Cite_book" title="Template:Cite book">cite book</a>}}</code>: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (<a href="/wiki/Category:CS1_maint:_location_missing_publisher" title="Category:CS1 maint: location missing publisher">link</a>)</span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-99"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-99">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFGriffiths2015" class="citation news cs1">Griffiths, Andrew (2015-02-12). <span class="id-lock-subscription" title="Paid subscription required"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/active/11400619/What-it-takes-to-become-a-pro-wrestler.html">"What it takes to become a pro wrestler"</a></span>. <i><a href="/wiki/The_Daily_Telegraph" title="The Daily Telegraph">The Daily Telegraph</a></i>. <a href="/wiki/London,_UK" class="mw-redirect" title="London, UK">London</a>. <a href="/wiki/ISSN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISSN (identifier)">ISSN</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0307-1235">0307-1235</a>. <a href="/wiki/OCLC_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="OCLC (identifier)">OCLC</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://search.worldcat.org/oclc/49632006">49632006</a>. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/active/11400619/What-it-takes-to-become-a-pro-wrestler.html">Archived</a> from the original on 2022-01-10<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">13 February</span> 2015</span>. <q>We train to take damage, we know we are going to take damage and we accept that," he<sup class="noprint Inline-Template" style="white-space:nowrap;">[<i><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Manual_of_Style/Words_to_watch#Unsupported_attributions" title="Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Words to watch"><span title="The material near this tag possibly uses too-vague attribution or weasel words. (January 2024)">who?</span></a></i>]</sup> says, adopting the air of a very muscular guru. "We know we are going to be slammed and we're going to be hit and we're going to be fallen on. We know we're going to dive onto concrete floors. We are tempting fate every time and it is a very tough sport. It is only for tough people who are brave enough and who can accept that pain.</q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=The+Daily+Telegraph&rft.atitle=What+it+takes+to+become+a+pro+wrestler&rft.date=2015-02-12&rft_id=info%3Aoclcnum%2F49632006&rft.issn=0307-1235&rft.aulast=Griffiths&rft.aufirst=Andrew&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.telegraph.co.uk%2Fmen%2Factive%2F11400619%2FWhat-it-takes-to-become-a-pro-wrestler.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-:14-100"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-:14_100-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-:14_100-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-:14_100-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFWarden2025" class="citation web cs1">Warden, Claire (2025-01-14). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://theconversation.com/wrestlers-welfare-has-improved-since-the-1990s-but-they-still-have-a-fight-on-their-hands-245974">"Wrestlers' welfare has improved since the 1990s – but they still have a fight on their hands"</a>. <i>The Conversation</i><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2025-01-27</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=The+Conversation&rft.atitle=Wrestlers%E2%80%99+welfare+has+improved+since+the+1990s+%E2%80%93+but+they+still+have+a+fight+on+their+hands&rft.date=2025-01-14&rft.aulast=Warden&rft.aufirst=Claire&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Ftheconversation.com%2Fwrestlers-welfare-has-improved-since-the-1990s-but-they-still-have-a-fight-on-their-hands-245974&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-101"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-101">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://wrestling-research.lboro.ac.uk/">"Wrestling research – Health and wellbeing in professional wrestling"</a>. <i>wrestling-research.lboro.ac.uk</i><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2025-01-27</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=wrestling-research.lboro.ac.uk&rft.atitle=Wrestling+research+%E2%80%93+Health+and+wellbeing+in+professional+wrestling&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwrestling-research.lboro.ac.uk%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-BaltSun-102"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-BaltSun_102-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-BaltSun_102-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFBarker2007" class="citation news cs1">Barker, Jeff (July 10, 2007). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.newspapers.com/image/248557946/">"Congressman urges hearings on Steroids"</a>. <i>Baltimore Sun</i>. p. 6C. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20240125211036/https://www.newspapers.com/image/248557946/">Archived</a> from the original on January 25, 2024<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">January 25,</span> 2024</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=Baltimore+Sun&rft.atitle=Congressman+urges+hearings+on+Steroids&rft.pages=6C&rft.date=2007-07-10&rft.aulast=Barker&rft.aufirst=Jeff&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.newspapers.com%2Fimage%2F248557946%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-rtysonsmith-103"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-rtysonsmith_103-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-rtysonsmith_103-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFSmith2008" class="citation journal cs1">Smith, R. Tyson (June 1, 2008). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s11133-008-9098-9">"Pain in the Act: The Meanings of Pain Among Professional Wrestlers"</a>. <i>Qualitative Sociology</i>. <b>31</b> (2): <span class="nowrap">129–</span>148. <a href="/wiki/Doi_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="Doi (identifier)">doi</a>:<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://doi.org/10.1007%2Fs11133-008-9098-9">10.1007/s11133-008-9098-9</a>. <a href="/wiki/ISSN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISSN (identifier)">ISSN</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0162-0436">0162-0436</a>. <a href="/wiki/S2CID_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="S2CID (identifier)">S2CID</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:145713868">145713868</a>. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20240316031622/https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11133-008-9098-9">Archived</a> from the original on March 16, 2024<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">January 25,</span> 2024</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=Qualitative+Sociology&rft.atitle=Pain+in+the+Act%3A+The+Meanings+of+Pain+Among+Professional+Wrestlers&rft.volume=31&rft.issue=2&rft.pages=%3Cspan+class%3D%22nowrap%22%3E129-%3C%2Fspan%3E148&rft.date=2008-06-01&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fapi.semanticscholar.org%2FCorpusID%3A145713868%23id-name%3DS2CID&rft.issn=0162-0436&rft_id=info%3Adoi%2F10.1007%2Fs11133-008-9098-9&rft.aulast=Smith&rft.aufirst=R.+Tyson&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Flink.springer.com%2F10.1007%2Fs11133-008-9098-9&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-104"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-104">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Herman CW, Conlon ASC, Rubenfire M, Burghardt AR, McGregor SJ (2014) The Very High Premature Mortality Rate among Active Professional Wrestlers Is Primarily Due to Cardiovascular Disease. PLoS ONE 9(11): e109945. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0109945</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-105"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-105">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1 cs1-prop-unfit"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.today/20120714074851/http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Wrestling/2006/06/17/1638198.html">"CANOE – SLAM! Sports – Wrestling – Lucha Libre 101"</a>. Slam.canoe.ca. Archived from the original on 2012-07-14<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2012-06-10</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=CANOE+%E2%80%93+SLAM%21+Sports+%E2%80%93+Wrestling+%E2%80%93+Lucha+Libre+101&rft.pub=Slam.canoe.ca&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fslam.canoe.ca%2FSlam%2FWrestling%2F2006%2F06%2F17%2F1638198.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-106"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-106">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFBekman" class="citation web cs1">Bekman, Stas. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://stason.org/TULARC/sports/pro-wrestling/8-6-Lucha-Libre-confuses-me-what-are-the-rules.html">"8.6. Lucha Libre confuses me, what are the rules?"</a>. Stason.org. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20130820162247/http://stason.org/TULARC/sports/pro-wrestling/8-6-Lucha-Libre-confuses-me-what-are-the-rules.html">Archived</a> from the original on 2013-08-20<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2012-06-10</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=8.6.+Lucha+Libre+confuses+me%2C+what+are+the+rules%3F&rft.pub=Stason.org&rft.aulast=Bekman&rft.aufirst=Stas&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fstason.org%2FTULARC%2Fsports%2Fpro-wrestling%2F8-6-Lucha-Libre-confuses-me-what-are-the-rules.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-107"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-107">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.dmoz.org/Sports/Wrestling/Professional/Puroresu/desc.html">"Open Directory category description"</a>. Open Directory. 1995. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090620235459/http://www.dmoz.org/Sports/Wrestling/Professional/Puroresu/desc.html">Archived</a> from the original on 2009-06-20<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2009-07-15</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=Open+Directory+category+description&rft.pub=Open+Directory&rft.date=1995&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dmoz.org%2FSports%2FWrestling%2FProfessional%2FPuroresu%2Fdesc.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-108"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-108">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.puroresu.com/intro.html">"Puroresu Dojo Introduction"</a>. Puroresu.com. 1995. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090616112650/http://www.puroresu.com/intro.html">Archived</a> from the original on 2009-06-16<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2009-07-08</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=Puroresu+Dojo+Introduction&rft.pub=Puroresu.com&rft.date=1995&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.puroresu.com%2Fintro.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-lister-109"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-lister_109-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-lister_109-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-lister_109-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.houseofdeception.com/British_Wrestling_History.html">"History of British Wrestling, John Lister, House of Deception Retrieved September 27 2023"</a>. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20230708220417/https://www.houseofdeception.com/British_Wrestling_History.html">Archived</a> from the original on 2023-07-08<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2023-09-27</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=History+of+British+Wrestling%2C+John+Lister%2C+House+of+Deception+Retrieved+September+27+2023&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.houseofdeception.com%2FBritish_Wrestling_History.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Vice-110"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-Vice_110-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Vice_110-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Vice_110-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFGaillard2017" class="citation news cs1 cs1-prop-foreign-lang-source">Gaillard, Barthélémy (13 June 2017). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.vice.com/fr/article/z4jm59/le-catch-francais-tente-de-ressusciter">"Le catch français tente de ressusciter"</a> [French wrestling tries to resuscitate]. <i><a href="/wiki/Vice.com" class="mw-redirect" title="Vice.com">Vice.com</a></i> (in French). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20221201215111/https://www.vice.com/fr/article/z4jm59/le-catch-francais-tente-de-ressusciter">Archived</a> from the original on 1 December 2022<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">22 August</span> 2022</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=Vice.com&rft.atitle=Le+catch+fran%C3%A7ais+tente+de+ressusciter&rft.date=2017-06-13&rft.aulast=Gaillard&rft.aufirst=Barth%C3%A9l%C3%A9my&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.vice.com%2Ffr%2Farticle%2Fz4jm59%2Fle-catch-francais-tente-de-ressusciter&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-auto1-111"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-auto1_111-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-auto1_111-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFSmith2014" class="citation book cs1">Smith, Malissa (2014). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=_ErHAwAAQBAJ&dq=%22justice+helman%22+%22cathy+davis%22&pg=PA169"><i>A History of Women's Boxing</i></a>. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 168, 169. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781442229952" title="Special:BookSources/9781442229952"><bdi>9781442229952</bdi></a>. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20230406042803/https://books.google.com/books?id=_ErHAwAAQBAJ&dq=%22justice+helman%22+%22cathy+davis%22&pg=PA169">Archived</a> from the original on April 6, 2023<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">May 15,</span> 2022</span> – via Google Books.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=A+History+of+Women%27s+Boxing&rft.pages=168%2C+169&rft.pub=Rowman+%26+Littlefield&rft.date=2014&rft.isbn=9781442229952&rft.aulast=Smith&rft.aufirst=Malissa&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fbooks.google.com%2Fbooks%3Fid%3D_ErHAwAAQBAJ%26dq%3D%2522justice%2Bhelman%2522%2B%2522cathy%2Bdavis%2522%26pg%3DPA169&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-112"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-112">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation news cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.nytimes.com/1975/01/22/archives/people-in-sports-hills-football-plans-tied-to-hawaii-deal.html">"People in Sports"</a>. <i>The New York Times</i>. January 22, 1975. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20220507175917/https://www.nytimes.com/1975/01/22/archives/people-in-sports-hills-football-plans-tied-to-hawaii-deal.html">Archived</a> from the original on May 7, 2022<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">May 7,</span> 2022</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=The+New+York+Times&rft.atitle=People+in+Sports&rft.date=1975-01-22&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F1975%2F01%2F22%2Farchives%2Fpeople-in-sports-hills-football-plans-tied-to-hawaii-deal.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-auto-113"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-auto_113-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20230227151128/https://cite.case.law/misc-2d/82/524/">"Garrett v. New York State Athletic Commission, 82 Misc. 2d 524 (1975)"</a>. <i>cite.case.law</i>. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://cite.case.law/misc-2d/82/524/">the original</a> on 2023-02-27.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=cite.case.law&rft.atitle=Garrett+v.+New+York+State+Athletic+Commission%2C+82+Misc.+2d+524+%281975%29&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fcite.case.law%2Fmisc-2d%2F82%2F524%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-114"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-114">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation news cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-10-04/its-all-fake-right-a-professional-wrestler-explains-everything/9010474">"It's all fake, right? A professional wrestler explains everything"</a>. <i>ABC News</i>. 4 Oct 2017. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20221116091523/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-10-04/its-all-fake-right-a-professional-wrestler-explains-everything/9010474">Archived</a> from the original on 2022-11-16<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2022-11-16</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=ABC+News&rft.atitle=It%27s+all+fake%2C+right%3F+A+professional+wrestler+explains+everything&rft.date=2017-10-04&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.abc.net.au%2Fnews%2F2017-10-04%2Fits-all-fake-right-a-professional-wrestler-explains-everything%2F9010474&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-115"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-115">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFGrabianowski2006" class="citation web cs1">Grabianowski, Ed (13 January 2006). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/pro-wrestling5.htm">"Wrestling School"</a>. <i>How Professional Wrestling Works</i>. HowStuffWorks.com. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20080224100026/http://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/pro-wrestling5.htm">Archived</a> from the original on 2008-02-24<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2008-03-21</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=How+Professional+Wrestling+Works&rft.atitle=Wrestling+School&rft.date=2006-01-13&rft.aulast=Grabianowski&rft.aufirst=Ed&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fentertainment.howstuffworks.com%2Fpro-wrestling5.htm&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-116"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-116">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFRyan2007" class="citation web cs1">Ryan, Derek (2007-08-11). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20080411141859/http://oratory.rajah.com/index.php?archive=3281">"Discovery: Accidental Perfection"</a>. The Wrestling Oratory. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://oratory.rajah.com/index.php?archive=3281">the original</a> on 2008-04-11. <q>Dragon Gate is a unique promotion as they still follow many of wrestling's biggest traditions, one being that veterans get theirs first because rookies need to "pay their dues" like they did.</q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=Discovery%3A+Accidental+Perfection&rft.pub=The+Wrestling+Oratory&rft.date=2007-08-11&rft.aulast=Ryan&rft.aufirst=Derek&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Foratory.rajah.com%2Findex.php%3Farchive%3D3281&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Unions-117"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Unions_117-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFGadd2006" class="citation web cs1">Gadd, Mitchell (2006-07-13). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20080412003958/http://www.wrestlezone.com/column.php?articleid=154797119">"Unions"</a>. <i>Reading Between the Ropes</i>. WrestleZone.com. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.wrestlezone.com/column.php?articleid=154797119">the original</a> on 2008-04-12<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2008-03-21</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Reading+Between+the+Ropes&rft.atitle=Unions&rft.date=2006-07-13&rft.aulast=Gadd&rft.aufirst=Mitchell&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wrestlezone.com%2Fcolumn.php%3Farticleid%3D154797119&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Kreit-118"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-Kreit_118-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Kreit_118-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Kreit_118-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Kreit_118-3"><sup><i><b>d</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFKreit1998" class="citation web cs1">Kreit, Alex (1998). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.solie.org/articles/pwandfans.html">"Professional Wrestling and Its Fans: A Sociological Study of the Sport of Pro-Wrestling"</a>. <i>Solie's Vintage Wrestling</i>. Jump City Productions. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20080326191826/http://www.solie.org/articles/pwandfans.html">Archived</a> from the original on 2008-03-26<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2008-03-19</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Solie%27s+Vintage+Wrestling&rft.atitle=Professional+Wrestling+and+Its+Fans%3A+A+Sociological+Study+of+the+Sport+of+Pro-Wrestling&rft.date=1998&rft.aulast=Kreit&rft.aufirst=Alex&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.solie.org%2Farticles%2Fpwandfans.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-119"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-119">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFKamchen2008" class="citation web cs1 cs1-prop-unfit">Kamchen, Richard (2008-02-05). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.today/20120715140112/http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Wrestling/2008/02/05/4862052.html">"Retro review: Piper's tale scrappy as he is"</a>. <i>SLAM! Wrestling</i>. SLAM! Sports. Archived from the original on July 15, 2012<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2008-03-21</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=SLAM%21+Wrestling&rft.atitle=Retro+review%3A+Piper%27s+tale+scrappy+as+he+is&rft.date=2008-02-05&rft.aulast=Kamchen&rft.aufirst=Richard&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fslam.canoe.ca%2FSlam%2FWrestling%2F2008%2F02%2F05%2F4862052.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Lipscomb-120"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-Lipscomb_120-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Lipscomb_120-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Lipscomb_120-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFLipscomb2005" class="citation web cs1">Lipscomb, William (May 2005). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20090324222906/http://etd.lsu.edu/docs/available/etd-01252005-152153/unrestricted/Lipscomb__III_dis.pdf">"The Operational Aesthetic in the Performance of Professional Wrestling"</a> <span class="cs1-format">(PDF)</span>. Department of Communications Studies, Louisiana State University. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://etd.lsu.edu/docs/available/etd-01252005-152153/unrestricted/Lipscomb__III_dis.pdf">the original</a> <span class="cs1-format">(PDF)</span> on 2009-03-24.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=The+Operational+Aesthetic+in+the+Performance+of+Professional+Wrestling&rft.pub=Department+of+Communications+Studies%2C+Louisiana+State+University&rft.date=2005-05&rft.aulast=Lipscomb&rft.aufirst=William&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fetd.lsu.edu%2Fdocs%2Favailable%2Fetd-01252005-152153%2Funrestricted%2FLipscomb__III_dis.pdf&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-121"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-121">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">One large list of such shows, analog and online, exists at <a rel="nofollow" class="external free" href="https://tunein.com/radio/Wrestling-c100002783/">https://tunein.com/radio/Wrestling-c100002783/</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20200304030808/https://tunein.com/radio/Wrestling-c100002783/">Archived</a> 2020-03-04 at the <a href="/wiki/Wayback_Machine" title="Wayback Machine">Wayback Machine</a></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-122"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-122">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.wwe.com/classics/wcw-ecw-invasion">"Remembering the WCW/ECW Invasion"</a>. <i>WWE</i><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2025-01-21</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=WWE&rft.atitle=Remembering+the+WCW%2FECW+Invasion&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wwe.com%2Fclassics%2Fwcw-ecw-invasion&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Bollom-123"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-Bollom_123-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Bollom_123-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFBollom2004" class="citation web cs1">Bollom, Brandon W. (2004-05-07). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20080409100045/http://www.burninghammer.com/academic/puroresu.pdf">"Professional Wrestling Migration: Puroresu in America"</a> <span class="cs1-format">(PDF)</span>. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.burninghammer.com/academic/puroresu.pdf">the original</a> <span class="cs1-format">(PDF)</span> on 2008-04-09<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2008-03-20</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=Professional+Wrestling+Migration%3A+Puroresu+in+America&rft.date=2004-05-07&rft.aulast=Bollom&rft.aufirst=Brandon+W.&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.burninghammer.com%2Facademic%2Fpuroresu.pdf&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-124"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-124">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/pop-culture-news/sid-eudy-sid-vicious-wrestler-dies-63-rcna168321">"Pro wrestling legend Sid Eudy, known to fans as Sid Vicious, dies at 63"</a>. <i>NBC News</i>. 2024-08-26<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2025-01-03</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=NBC+News&rft.atitle=Pro+wrestling+legend+Sid+Eudy%2C+known+to+fans+as+Sid+Vicious%2C+dies+at+63&rft.date=2024-08-26&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nbcnews.com%2Fpop-culture%2Fpop-culture-news%2Fsid-eudy-sid-vicious-wrestler-dies-63-rcna168321&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-125"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-125">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://itrwrestling.com/news/hulk-hogan-recalls-the-moment-he-knew-hulkamania-had-gone-mainstream/">"Hulk Hogan Recalls The Moment He Knew Hulkamania Had Gone Mainstream"</a>. <i>itrwrestling.com</i>. 2024-11-11<span class="reference-accessdate">. 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Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://superluchas.com/lucha-libre-entre-los-5-deportes-populares-en-mexico/">the original</a> on January 11, 2020<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">September 5,</span> 2009</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=S%C3%BAper+Luchas&rft.atitle=Encuesta+De+Mitofsky+Revela+Que+La+Lucha+No+Es+El+Segundo+Deporte+Mas+Popular+En+Mexico&rft.date=2007-10-22&rft.au=Yoav&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fsuperluchas.com%2Flucha-libre-entre-los-5-deportes-populares-en-mexico%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-129"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-129">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFShahafOren2013" class="citation book cs1 cs1-prop-foreign-lang-source">Shahaf, Sharon; Oren, Tasha (2013). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=Qs9pAtQeBA0C&q=brazil+telecatch&pg=PT223"><i>Global Television Formats: Understanding Television Across Borders</i></a> (in Dutch). Routledge. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-135-88950-0" title="Special:BookSources/978-1-135-88950-0"><bdi>978-1-135-88950-0</bdi></a>. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20230406042803/https://books.google.com/books?id=Qs9pAtQeBA0C&q=brazil+telecatch&pg=PT223">Archived</a> from the original on 2023-04-06<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2020-11-19</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Global+Television+Formats%3A+Understanding+Television+Across+Borders&rft.pub=Routledge&rft.date=2013&rft.isbn=978-1-135-88950-0&rft.aulast=Shahaf&rft.aufirst=Sharon&rft.au=Oren%2C+Tasha&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fbooks.google.com%2Fbooks%3Fid%3DQs9pAtQeBA0C%26q%3Dbrazil%2Btelecatch%26pg%3DPT223&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-130"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-130">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation audio-visual cs1 cs1-prop-foreign-lang-source">Marc Dourdin (2015). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5204834/?ref_=ttls_li_tt"><i>Monstros do Ringue</i></a> [<i>Wrestlers</i>] (Documentary) (in Portuguese). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20230406042803/https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5204834/?ref_=ttls_li_tt">Archived</a> from the original on 2023-04-06<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2020-10-27</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=Monstros+do+Ringue&rft.date=2015&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.imdb.com%2Ftitle%2Ftt5204834%2F%3Fref_%3Dttls_li_tt&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-131"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-131">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Nicholas Sammond, ed., <i>Steel Chair to the Head: The Pleasure and Pain of Professional Wrestling</i> (Durham NC: Duke University Press, 2005). <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/9780822334385" title="Special:BookSources/9780822334385">9780822334385</a></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-132"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-132">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Billboard Recreational Sports Weekly Top 10 – <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.letstalkwrestling.com/search/label/Billboard%20Recrational%20Sports%20DVD%20charts">Billboard Sports Weekly DVD Sales</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20151107004140/http://www.letstalkwrestling.com/search/label/Billboard%20Recrational%20Sports%20DVD%20charts">Archived</a> 2015-11-07 at the <a href="/wiki/Wayback_Machine" title="Wayback Machine">Wayback Machine</a></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-133"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-133">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFErnesto_Cruz2005" class="citation conference cs1">Ernesto Cruz, Caceres (2005). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.today/20050613082746/http://www.popularculture.org/2005%20PAGES/2005%20Program.htm"><i>Monday Night Identity Wars: The Evolution of Performance Conventions in Professional Wrestling</i></a>. Popular Culture Association/American Culture Association National Conference Program. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.popularculture.org/2005%20PAGES/2005%20Program.htm">the original</a> on 2005-06-13<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2008-03-19</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=conference&rft.btitle=Monday+Night+Identity+Wars%3A+The+Evolution+of+Performance+Conventions+in+Professional+Wrestling&rft.place=Popular+Culture+Association%2FAmerican+Culture+Association+National+Conference+Program&rft.date=2005&rft.aulast=Ernesto+Cruz&rft.aufirst=Caceres&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.popularculture.org%2F2005%2520PAGES%2F2005%2520Program.htm&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-134"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-134">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFLedford" class="citation conference cs1">Ledford, Brian. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20080409100044/http://www.siue.edu/CAS/COLLOQUIA/MasculProgramFINAL.pdf"><i>Grappling with Masculinity: Representation and Reception of Televised Professional Wrestling Imagery</i></a> <span class="cs1-format">(PDF)</span>. Spring Colloquium: Thinking About Masculinity: SIUE College of Arts and Sciences. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.siue.edu/CAS/COLLOQUIA/MasculProgramFINAL.pdf">the original</a> <span class="cs1-format">(PDF)</span> on 2008-04-09.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=conference&rft.btitle=Grappling+with+Masculinity%3A+Representation+and+Reception+of+Televised+Professional+Wrestling+Imagery&rft.place=Spring+Colloquium%3A+Thinking+About+Masculinity&rft.pub=SIUE+College+of+Arts+and+Sciences&rft.aulast=Ledford&rft.aufirst=Brian&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.siue.edu%2FCAS%2FCOLLOQUIA%2FMasculProgramFINAL.pdf&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-135"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-135">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Massachusetts Institute of Technology: Comparative Media Studies course on Professional Wrestling – <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://mitcmsprowrestling.blogspot.com/2006/12/this-class-will-explore-cultural.html">Official Course weblog</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20110708053415/http://mitcmsprowrestling.blogspot.com/2006/12/this-class-will-explore-cultural.html">Archived</a> 2011-07-08 at the <a href="/wiki/Wayback_Machine" title="Wayback Machine">Wayback Machine</a></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-136"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-136">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">The World of Lucha Libre: Secrets, Revelations, and Mexican National Identity – <a href="/wiki/The_World_of_Lucha_Libre" title="The World of Lucha Libre">The World of Lucha Libre</a></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-137"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-137">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFLagorio2005" class="citation web cs1">Lagorio, Christine (2005-01-04). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20080705180645/http://villagevoice.com/arts/0502,lagorio,59937,12.html">"Wrestling With The Margins"</a>. <i>Education Supplement 2005</i>. The Village Voice. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.villagevoice.com/arts/0502,lagorio,59937,12.html">the original</a> on 2008-07-05<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2008-03-21</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Education+Supplement+2005&rft.atitle=Wrestling+With+The+Margins&rft.date=2005-01-04&rft.aulast=Lagorio&rft.aufirst=Christine&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.villagevoice.com%2Farts%2F0502%2Clagorio%2C59937%2C12.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-138"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-138">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFPlank" class="citation web cs1">Plank, William. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20080411141551/http://www.msubillings.edu/CASFaculty/Plank/THE%20ATHELETE%20AS%20BUFFOON.htm">"The Athlete as Buffoon: Cultural and Philosophical Considerations on Professional Wrestling"</a>. Montana State University-Billings. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.msubillings.edu/CASFaculty/Plank/THE%20ATHELETE%20AS%20BUFFOON.htm">the original</a> on 2008-04-11.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=The+Athlete+as+Buffoon%3A+Cultural+and+Philosophical+Considerations+on+Professional+Wrestling&rft.pub=Montana+State+University-Billings&rft.aulast=Plank&rft.aufirst=William&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.msubillings.edu%2FCASFaculty%2FPlank%2FTHE%2520ATHELETE%2520AS%2520BUFFOON.htm&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-139"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-139">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFAdams2006" class="citation web cs1">Adams, Jonathan (2006-11-09). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://thescope.ca/?p=576">"Foreign Objects Included"</a>. <i>The Scope magazine</i>. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20230406042846/http://thescope.ca/?p=576">Archived</a> from the original on 2023-04-06<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2008-03-19</span></span>. <q>There is a sense in which wrestling resembles nothing if not a kind of postmodern commedia dell'arte</q></cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=The+Scope+magazine&rft.atitle=Foreign+Objects+Included&rft.date=2006-11-09&rft.aulast=Adams&rft.aufirst=Jonathan&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fthescope.ca%2F%3Fp%3D576&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Mazer-140"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-Mazer_140-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Mazer_140-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFMazer1998" class="citation book cs1"><a href="/wiki/Sharon_Mazer" title="Sharon Mazer">Mazer, Sharon</a> (1998). <i>Professional Wrestling: Sport and Spectacle</i>. 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Harvard University. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20080419024730/http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=508906">Archived</a> from the original on 2008-04-19<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2008-03-19</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=The+Harvard+Crimson&rft.atitle=Et+tu%2C+Steve+Austin%3F&rft.date=2005&rft.aulast=Garvin&rft.aufirst=Diana&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thecrimson.com%2Farticle.aspx%3Fref%3D508906&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-142"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-142">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation episode cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/cool/">"Merchants of Cool"</a>. <i>Frontline</i>. Season 2001. 2001-02-27. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210628010309/https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/cool/">Archived</a> from the original on 2021-06-28<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2017-09-08</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=Frontline&rft.series=Season+2001&rft.date=2001-02-27&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pbs.org%2Fwgbh%2Fpages%2Ffrontline%2Fshows%2Fcool%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-143"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-143">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFFarley" class="citation web cs1">Farley, Frank. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20071208172727/http://www.ratbloodsoup.com/cow.html">"CZW: Blood, Philadelphia and Fun"</a>. <i>Rat Blood Soup magazine</i>. 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Masters Thesis, Smith College, Northampon, MA.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-146"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-146">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text">Mazer, S. (1998). <a href="//doi.org/10.2307/j.ctvx5w9pw" class="extiw" title="doi:10.2307/j.ctvx5w9pw">Professional Wrestling: Sport and Spectacle</a>. Jackson, Mississippi: University Press of Mississippi. </span> </li> </ol></div></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Sources">Sources</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=52" title="Edit section: Sources"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation audio-visual cs1"><i>Catch: The Hold Not Taken</i> (DVD). 2005.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=Catch%3A+The+Hold+Not+Taken&rft.date=2005&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="refChowEtAl2017" class="citation book cs1">Broderick Chow; Eero Laine; Claire Warden, eds. (2017). <i>Performance and Professional Wrestling</i>. Routledge. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-138-93723-9" title="Special:BookSources/978-1-138-93723-9"><bdi>978-1-138-93723-9</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Performance+and+Professional+Wrestling&rft.pub=Routledge&rft.date=2017&rft.isbn=978-1-138-93723-9&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="refBeekman2006" class="citation book cs1">Scott M. Beekman (2006). <i>Ringside: A History of Professional Wrestling in America</i>. Praeger. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-275-98401-X" title="Special:BookSources/0-275-98401-X"><bdi>0-275-98401-X</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Ringside%3A+A+History+of+Professional+Wrestling+in+America&rft.pub=Praeger&rft.date=2006&rft.isbn=0-275-98401-X&rft.au=Scott+M.+Beekman&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="refFleischer1936" class="citation book cs1">Nat Fleischer (1936). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://archive.org/details/FromMiloToLondos1936WrestlingHistory/mode/2up"><i>From Milo to Londos</i></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=From+Milo+to+Londos&rft.date=1936&rft.au=Nat+Fleischer&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Farchive.org%2Fdetails%2FFromMiloToLondos1936WrestlingHistory%2Fmode%2F2up&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="refShoemaker2013" class="citation book cs1">David Shoemaker (2013). <i>The Squared Circle: Life, Death and Professional Wrestling</i>. Penguin Group. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-592-40767-5" title="Special:BookSources/978-1-592-40767-5"><bdi>978-1-592-40767-5</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=The+Squared+Circle%3A+Life%2C+Death+and+Professional+Wrestling&rft.pub=Penguin+Group&rft.date=2013&rft.isbn=978-1-592-40767-5&rft.au=David+Shoemaker&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="refCejudo2012" class="citation book cs1">Henry Cejudo (2012). <i>Wrestling for Dummies</i>. John Wiley and Sons, Inc. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-118-22450-2" title="Special:BookSources/978-1-118-22450-2"><bdi>978-1-118-22450-2</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Wrestling+for+Dummies&rft.pub=John+Wiley+and+Sons%2C+Inc.&rft.date=2012&rft.isbn=978-1-118-22450-2&rft.au=Henry+Cejudo&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="refHornbaker2015" class="citation book cs1">Tim Hornbaker (2015). <i>Capitol Revolution: The Rise of the McMahon Wrestling Empire</i>. ECW Press. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-77090-689-1" title="Special:BookSources/978-1-77090-689-1"><bdi>978-1-77090-689-1</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Capitol+Revolution%3A+The+Rise+of+the+McMahon+Wrestling+Empire&rft.pub=ECW+Press&rft.date=2015&rft.isbn=978-1-77090-689-1&rft.au=Tim+Hornbaker&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="refAndersen2017" class="citation book cs1">Kurt Andersen (2017). <i>Fantasyland: How America Went Haywire: A 500-Year History</i>. Random House Publishing. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-588-36687-0" title="Special:BookSources/978-1-588-36687-0"><bdi>978-1-588-36687-0</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Fantasyland%3A+How+America+Went+Haywire%3A+A+500-Year+History&rft.pub=Random+House+Publishing&rft.date=2017&rft.isbn=978-1-588-36687-0&rft.au=Kurt+Andersen&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="refThesz2011" class="citation book cs1">Lou Thesz; Kit Bauman (2011). <i>Hooker</i>. Crowbar Press. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-9844090-4-4" title="Special:BookSources/978-0-9844090-4-4"><bdi>978-0-9844090-4-4</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Hooker&rft.pub=Crowbar+Press&rft.date=2011&rft.isbn=978-0-9844090-4-4&rft.au=Lou+Thesz&rft.au=Kit+Bauman&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="refSengupta2016" class="citation book cs1">Rudraneil Sengupta (2016). <i>Enter the Dangal</i>. Harper Sport. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-93-5029-770-4" title="Special:BookSources/978-93-5029-770-4"><bdi>978-93-5029-770-4</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Enter+the+Dangal&rft.pub=Harper+Sport&rft.date=2016&rft.isbn=978-93-5029-770-4&rft.au=Rudraneil+Sengupta&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFThomas_A._Green2001" class="citation book cs1">Thomas A. Green, ed. (2001). <i>Martial Arts of the World: An Encyclopedia: Volume One: A–Q</i>. ABC-CLIO. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/1-57607-556-7" title="Special:BookSources/1-57607-556-7"><bdi>1-57607-556-7</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Martial+Arts+of+the+World%3A+An+Encyclopedia%3A+Volume+One%3A+A%E2%80%93Q&rft.pub=ABC-CLIO&rft.date=2001&rft.isbn=1-57607-556-7&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Further_reading">Further reading</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=53" title="Edit section: Further reading"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFFargiorgo2014" class="citation thesis cs1">Fargiorgo, Joseph (2014). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://atrium.lib.uoguelph.ca/xmlui/handle/10214/8022"><i>WWE: Wrestling, Wellness & Entertainment – An Analysis of Work and Health in Professional Wrestling</i></a> (MA). Department of Sociology and Anthropology, University of Guelph<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">September 7,</span> 2021</span> – via The Atrium at University of Guelpgh.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adissertation&rft.title=WWE%3A+Wrestling%2C+Wellness+%26+Entertainment+%E2%80%93+An+Analysis+of+Work+and+Health+in+Professional+Wrestling&rft.inst=Department+of+Sociology+and+Anthropology%2C+University+of+Guelph&rft.date=2014&rft.aulast=Fargiorgo&rft.aufirst=Joseph&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fatrium.lib.uoguelph.ca%2Fxmlui%2Fhandle%2F10214%2F8022&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFOlsonReinhard2021" class="citation book cs1">Olson, Cristopher; Reinhard, Carrie Lynn D. (2021). "Wrestling with Eating Disorders: Transmedia Depictions of Body Issues in WWE's Women's Professional Wrestling". In Johnson, Malynnda; Olson, Cristopher (eds.). <i>Normalizing Mental Illness and Neurodiversity in Entertainment Media</i> (1st E-book ed.). London: Routledge. <a href="/wiki/Doi_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="Doi (identifier)">doi</a>:<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://doi.org/10.4324%2F9781003011668-15">10.4324/9781003011668-15</a>. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-00-301166-8" title="Special:BookSources/978-1-00-301166-8"><bdi>978-1-00-301166-8</bdi></a>. <a href="/wiki/S2CID_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="S2CID (identifier)">S2CID</a> <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:233598773">233598773</a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle=Wrestling+with+Eating+Disorders%3A+Transmedia+Depictions+of+Body+Issues+in+WWE%27s+Women%27s+Professional+Wrestling&rft.btitle=Normalizing+Mental+Illness+and+Neurodiversity+in+Entertainment+Media&rft.place=London&rft.edition=1st+E-book&rft.pub=Routledge&rft.date=2021&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fapi.semanticscholar.org%2FCorpusID%3A233598773%23id-name%3DS2CID&rft_id=info%3Adoi%2F10.4324%2F9781003011668-15&rft.isbn=978-1-00-301166-8&rft.aulast=Olson&rft.aufirst=Cristopher&rft.au=Reinhard%2C+Carrie+Lynn+D.&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFVerma2020" class="citation thesis cs1">Verma, D. S. (2020). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210907114035/https://dspace.library.uu.nl/handle/1874/399263"><i>Wresting Fans as Players, Performers as Characters: Conceptualizing WWE Storytelling and Production in Terms of Games and Play</i></a> (Master). Faculty of Humanities Theses, Utrecht University. <a href="/wiki/Hdl_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="Hdl (identifier)">hdl</a>:<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://hdl.handle.net/1874%2F399263">1874/399263</a>. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://dspace.library.uu.nl/handle/1874/399263">the original</a> on September 7, 2021<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">September 7,</span> 2021</span> – via Utrecht University Repository.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adissertation&rft.title=Wresting+Fans+as+Players%2C+Performers+as+Characters%3A+Conceptualizing+WWE+Storytelling+and+Production+in+Terms+of+Games+and+Play&rft.inst=Faculty+of+Humanities+Theses%2C+Utrecht+University&rft.date=2020&rft_id=info%3Ahdl%2F1874%2F399263&rft.aulast=Verma&rft.aufirst=D.+S.&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fdspace.library.uu.nl%2Fhandle%2F1874%2F399263&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AProfessional+wrestling" class="Z3988"></span></li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="External_links">External links</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Professional_wrestling&action=edit&section=54" title="Edit section: External links"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style 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.navbar{display:block;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .navbox-title .navbar{float:left;text-align:left;margin-right:0.5em}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .navbox-image img{max-width:none!important}@media print{body.ns-0 .mw-parser-output .navbox{display:none!important}}</style></div><div role="navigation" class="navbox" aria-labelledby="Professional_wrestling_by_country197" style="padding:3px"><table class="nowraplinks mw-collapsible mw-collapsed navbox-inner" style="border-spacing:0;background:transparent;color:inherit"><tbody><tr><th scope="col" class="navbox-title" colspan="2"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1239400231"><div class="navbar plainlinks hlist navbar-mini"><ul><li class="nv-view"><a href="/wiki/Template:Professional_wrestling_by_country" title="Template:Professional wrestling by country"><abbr title="View this template">v</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-talk"><a href="/wiki/Template_talk:Professional_wrestling_by_country" title="Template talk:Professional wrestling by country"><abbr title="Discuss this template">t</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-edit"><a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Template:Professional_wrestling_by_country" title="Special:EditPage/Template:Professional wrestling by country"><abbr title="Edit this template">e</abbr></a></li></ul></div><div id="Professional_wrestling_by_country197" style="font-size:114%;margin:0 4em"><a class="mw-selflink selflink">Professional wrestling</a> by country</div></th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Americas</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><span class="flagicon"><span class="mw-image-border" typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/Mexico" title="Mexico"><img alt="Mexico" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fc/Flag_of_Mexico.svg/23px-Flag_of_Mexico.svg.png" decoding="async" width="23" height="13" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fc/Flag_of_Mexico.svg/35px-Flag_of_Mexico.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fc/Flag_of_Mexico.svg/46px-Flag_of_Mexico.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="980" data-file-height="560" /></a></span></span> <a href="/wiki/Lucha_libre" title="Lucha libre">Professional wrestling in Mexico</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_promotions_in_Mexico" title="List of professional wrestling promotions in Mexico">promotions</a></li></ul></li> <li><span class="flagicon"><span class="mw-image-border" typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/United_States" title="United States"><img alt="United States" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/a/a4/Flag_of_the_United_States.svg/23px-Flag_of_the_United_States.svg.png" decoding="async" width="23" height="12" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/a/a4/Flag_of_the_United_States.svg/35px-Flag_of_the_United_States.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/a/a4/Flag_of_the_United_States.svg/46px-Flag_of_the_United_States.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="1235" data-file-height="650" /></a></span></span> <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_the_United_States" title="Professional wrestling in the United States">Professional wrestling in the United States</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/List_of_independent_wrestling_promotions_in_the_United_States" title="List of independent wrestling promotions in the United States">independent promotions</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_women%27s_wrestling_promotions_in_the_United_States" title="List of women's wrestling promotions in the United States">women's promotions</a></li> <li><span class="flagicon"><span class="mw-image-border" typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/Puerto_Rico" title="Puerto Rico"><img alt="Puerto Rico" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/28/Flag_of_Puerto_Rico.svg/23px-Flag_of_Puerto_Rico.svg.png" decoding="async" width="23" height="15" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/28/Flag_of_Puerto_Rico.svg/35px-Flag_of_Puerto_Rico.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/28/Flag_of_Puerto_Rico.svg/45px-Flag_of_Puerto_Rico.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="900" data-file-height="600" /></a></span></span> <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_Puerto_Rico" title="Professional wrestling in Puerto Rico">Professional wrestling in Puerto Rico</a></li></ul></li> <li><span class="flagicon"><span class="mw-image-border" typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/Canada" title="Canada"><img alt="Canada" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d9/Flag_of_Canada_%28Pantone%29.svg/23px-Flag_of_Canada_%28Pantone%29.svg.png" decoding="async" width="23" height="12" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d9/Flag_of_Canada_%28Pantone%29.svg/35px-Flag_of_Canada_%28Pantone%29.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d9/Flag_of_Canada_%28Pantone%29.svg/46px-Flag_of_Canada_%28Pantone%29.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="1200" data-file-height="600" /></a></span></span> <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_Canada" title="Professional wrestling in Canada">Professional wrestling in Canada</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/List_of_independent_wrestling_promotions_in_Canada" title="List of independent wrestling promotions in Canada">independent promotions</a></li></ul></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Asia</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><span class="flagicon"><span class="mw-image-border" typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/China" title="China"><img alt="China" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fa/Flag_of_the_People%27s_Republic_of_China.svg/23px-Flag_of_the_People%27s_Republic_of_China.svg.png" decoding="async" width="23" height="15" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fa/Flag_of_the_People%27s_Republic_of_China.svg/35px-Flag_of_the_People%27s_Republic_of_China.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fa/Flag_of_the_People%27s_Republic_of_China.svg/45px-Flag_of_the_People%27s_Republic_of_China.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="900" data-file-height="600" /></a></span></span> <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_China" title="Professional wrestling in China">Professional wrestling in China</a></li> <li><span class="flagicon"><span class="mw-image-border" typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/Israel" title="Israel"><img alt="Israel" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d4/Flag_of_Israel.svg/21px-Flag_of_Israel.svg.png" decoding="async" width="21" height="15" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d4/Flag_of_Israel.svg/32px-Flag_of_Israel.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d4/Flag_of_Israel.svg/41px-Flag_of_Israel.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="1100" data-file-height="800" /></a></span></span> <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_Israel" title="Professional wrestling in Israel">Professional wrestling in Israel</a></li> <li><span class="flagicon"><span class="mw-image-border" typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/Saudi_Arabia" title="Saudi Arabia"><img alt="Saudi Arabia" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0d/Flag_of_Saudi_Arabia.svg/23px-Flag_of_Saudi_Arabia.svg.png" decoding="async" width="23" height="15" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0d/Flag_of_Saudi_Arabia.svg/35px-Flag_of_Saudi_Arabia.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0d/Flag_of_Saudi_Arabia.svg/45px-Flag_of_Saudi_Arabia.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="900" data-file-height="600" /></a></span></span> <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_Saudi_Arabia" class="mw-redirect" title="Professional wrestling in Saudi Arabia">Professional wrestling in Saudi Arabia</a></li> <li><span class="flagicon"><span class="mw-image-border" typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/Japan" title="Japan"><img alt="Japan" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/9e/Flag_of_Japan.svg/23px-Flag_of_Japan.svg.png" decoding="async" width="23" height="15" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/9e/Flag_of_Japan.svg/35px-Flag_of_Japan.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/9e/Flag_of_Japan.svg/45px-Flag_of_Japan.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="900" data-file-height="600" /></a></span></span> <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_Japan" title="Professional wrestling in Japan">Professional wrestling in Japan</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_promotions_in_Japan" title="List of professional wrestling promotions in Japan">promotions</a></li></ul></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_promotions_in_Europe" title="List of professional wrestling promotions in Europe">Europe</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><span class="flagicon"><span class="mw-image-border" typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/United_Kingdom" title="United Kingdom"><img alt="United Kingdom" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/a/ae/Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg/23px-Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg.png" decoding="async" width="23" height="12" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/a/ae/Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg/35px-Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/a/ae/Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg/46px-Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="1200" data-file-height="600" /></a></span></span> <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_the_United_Kingdom" title="Professional wrestling in the United Kingdom">Professional wrestling in the United Kingdom</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_promotions_in_the_Great_Britain_and_Ireland" class="mw-redirect" title="List of professional wrestling promotions in the Great Britain and Ireland">promotions</a></li></ul></li> <li><span class="flagicon"><span class="mw-image-border" typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/France" title="France"><img alt="France" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/c/c3/Flag_of_France.svg/23px-Flag_of_France.svg.png" decoding="async" width="23" height="15" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/c/c3/Flag_of_France.svg/35px-Flag_of_France.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/c/c3/Flag_of_France.svg/45px-Flag_of_France.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="900" data-file-height="600" /></a></span></span> <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_France" title="Professional wrestling in France">Professional wrestling in France</a></li> <li><span class="flagicon"><span class="mw-image-border" typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/Russia" title="Russia"><img alt="Russia" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/f3/Flag_of_Russia.svg/23px-Flag_of_Russia.svg.png" decoding="async" width="23" height="15" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/f3/Flag_of_Russia.svg/35px-Flag_of_Russia.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/f/f3/Flag_of_Russia.svg/45px-Flag_of_Russia.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="900" data-file-height="600" /></a></span></span> <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_Russia" title="Professional wrestling in Russia">Professional wrestling in Russia</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Oceania</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><span class="flagicon"><span class="mw-image-border" typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/Australia" title="Australia"><img alt="Australia" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/88/Flag_of_Australia_%28converted%29.svg/23px-Flag_of_Australia_%28converted%29.svg.png" decoding="async" width="23" height="12" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/88/Flag_of_Australia_%28converted%29.svg/35px-Flag_of_Australia_%28converted%29.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/88/Flag_of_Australia_%28converted%29.svg/46px-Flag_of_Australia_%28converted%29.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="512" data-file-height="256" /></a></span></span> <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_Australia" title="Professional wrestling in Australia">Professional wrestling in Australia</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_organisations_in_Australia" title="List of professional wrestling organisations in Australia">promotions</a></li></ul></li> <li><span class="flagicon"><span class="mw-image-border" typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/New_Zealand" title="New Zealand"><img alt="New Zealand" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3e/Flag_of_New_Zealand.svg/23px-Flag_of_New_Zealand.svg.png" decoding="async" width="23" height="12" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3e/Flag_of_New_Zealand.svg/35px-Flag_of_New_Zealand.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3e/Flag_of_New_Zealand.svg/46px-Flag_of_New_Zealand.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="1200" data-file-height="600" /></a></span></span> <a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_in_New_Zealand" title="Professional wrestling in New Zealand">Professional wrestling in New Zealand</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_promotions_in_New_Zealand" title="List of professional wrestling promotions in New Zealand">promotions</a></li></ul></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_attendance_records" title="List of professional wrestling attendance records">Attendance records</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_attendance_records_in_Europe" title="List of professional wrestling attendance records in Europe">Europe</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_attendance_records_in_Japan" title="List of professional wrestling attendance records in Japan">Japan</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_attendance_records_in_Mexico" title="List of professional wrestling attendance records in Mexico">Mexico</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_attendance_records_in_Puerto_Rico" title="List of professional wrestling attendance records in Puerto Rico">Puerto Rico</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_attendance_records_in_the_United_Kingdom" title="List of professional wrestling attendance records in the United Kingdom">United Kingdom</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Related</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_promotions" title="List of professional wrestling promotions">Promotions</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/List_of_women%27s_wrestling_promotions" title="List of women's wrestling promotions">women's</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_professional_wrestling_promotions_in_South_America" title="List of professional wrestling promotions in South America">South America</a></li></ul></li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table></div> <div class="navbox-styles"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236075235"></div><div role="navigation" class="navbox" aria-labelledby="Professional_wrestling_maneuvers267" style="padding:3px"><table class="nowraplinks mw-collapsible autocollapse navbox-inner" style="border-spacing:0;background:transparent;color:inherit"><tbody><tr><th scope="col" class="navbox-title" colspan="2"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1239400231"><div class="navbar plainlinks hlist navbar-mini"><ul><li class="nv-view"><a href="/wiki/Template:Wrestling_moves" title="Template:Wrestling moves"><abbr title="View this template">v</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-talk"><a href="/wiki/Template_talk:Wrestling_moves" title="Template talk:Wrestling moves"><abbr title="Discuss this template">t</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-edit"><a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Template:Wrestling_moves" title="Special:EditPage/Template:Wrestling moves"><abbr title="Edit this template">e</abbr></a></li></ul></div><div id="Professional_wrestling_maneuvers267" style="font-size:114%;margin:0 4em"><a class="mw-selflink selflink">Professional wrestling</a> maneuvers</div></th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_strikes" title="Professional wrestling strikes">Strikes</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Dropkick" title="Dropkick">Dropkick</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Leg_drop" title="Leg drop">Leg drop</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_throws" title="Professional wrestling throws">Throws</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Backbreaker" title="Backbreaker">Backbreaker</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Brainbuster" title="Brainbuster">Brainbuster</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Chokeslam" title="Chokeslam">Chokeslam</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Cutter_(professional_wrestling)" title="Cutter (professional wrestling)">Cutter</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/DDT_(professional_wrestling)" title="DDT (professional wrestling)">DDT</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Facebuster" title="Facebuster">Facebuster</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Neckbreaker" title="Neckbreaker">Neckbreaker</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Piledriver_(professional_wrestling)" title="Piledriver (professional wrestling)">Piledriver</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Powerbomb" title="Powerbomb">Powerbomb</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Powerslam" title="Powerslam">Powerslam</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Spinebuster" title="Spinebuster">Spinebuster</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Stunner_(professional_wrestling)" title="Stunner (professional wrestling)">Stunner</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Suplex" title="Suplex">Suplex</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_holds" title="Professional wrestling holds">Holds</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Boston_crab" title="Boston crab">Boston crab</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Nelson_hold" title="Nelson hold">Nelson hold</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Pin_(professional_wrestling)" title="Pin (professional wrestling)">Pin</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sharpshooter_(professional_wrestling)" title="Sharpshooter (professional wrestling)">Sharpshooter</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_aerial_techniques" title="Professional wrestling aerial techniques">Aerial</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Moonsault" title="Moonsault">Moonsault</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Professional_wrestling_double-team_maneuvers" title="Professional wrestling double-team maneuvers">Double-team</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Doomsday_device_(wrestling)" title="Doomsday device (wrestling)">Doomsday device</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table></div> <div class="navbox-styles"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236075235"></div><div role="navigation" class="navbox" aria-labelledby="Years_in_professional_wrestling35" style="padding:3px"><table class="nowraplinks mw-collapsible autocollapse navbox-inner" style="border-spacing:0;background:transparent;color:inherit"><tbody><tr><th scope="col" class="navbox-title" colspan="2"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1239400231"><div class="navbar plainlinks hlist navbar-mini"><ul><li class="nv-view"><a href="/wiki/Template:Years_in_professional_wrestling" title="Template:Years in professional wrestling"><abbr title="View this template">v</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-talk"><a href="/wiki/Template_talk:Years_in_professional_wrestling" title="Template talk:Years in professional wrestling"><abbr title="Discuss this template">t</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-edit"><a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Template:Years_in_professional_wrestling" title="Special:EditPage/Template:Years in professional wrestling"><abbr title="Edit this template">e</abbr></a></li></ul></div><div id="Years_in_professional_wrestling35" style="font-size:114%;margin:0 4em">Years in <a class="mw-selflink selflink">professional wrestling</a></div></th></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/1933_in_professional_wrestling" title="1933 in professional wrestling">1933</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1934_in_professional_wrestling" title="1934 in professional wrestling">1934</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1935_in_professional_wrestling" title="1935 in professional wrestling">1935</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1936_in_professional_wrestling" title="1936 in professional wrestling">1936</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1937_in_professional_wrestling" title="1937 in professional wrestling">1937</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1938_in_professional_wrestling" title="1938 in professional wrestling">1938</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1939_in_professional_wrestling" title="1939 in professional wrestling">1939</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="navbox-list navbox-even hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/1940_in_professional_wrestling" title="1940 in professional wrestling">1940</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1941_in_professional_wrestling" title="1941 in professional wrestling">1941</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1942_in_professional_wrestling" title="1942 in professional wrestling">1942</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1943_in_professional_wrestling" title="1943 in professional wrestling">1943</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1944_in_professional_wrestling" title="1944 in professional wrestling">1944</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1945_in_professional_wrestling" title="1945 in professional wrestling">1945</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1946_in_professional_wrestling" title="1946 in professional wrestling">1946</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1947_in_professional_wrestling" title="1947 in professional wrestling">1947</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1948_in_professional_wrestling" title="1948 in professional wrestling">1948</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1949_in_professional_wrestling" title="1949 in professional wrestling">1949</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/1950_in_professional_wrestling" title="1950 in professional wrestling">1950</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1951_in_professional_wrestling" title="1951 in professional wrestling">1951</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1952_in_professional_wrestling" title="1952 in professional wrestling">1952</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1953_in_professional_wrestling" title="1953 in professional wrestling">1953</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1954_in_professional_wrestling" title="1954 in professional wrestling">1954</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1955_in_professional_wrestling" title="1955 in professional wrestling">1955</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1956_in_professional_wrestling" title="1956 in professional wrestling">1956</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1957_in_professional_wrestling" title="1957 in professional wrestling">1957</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1958_in_professional_wrestling" title="1958 in professional wrestling">1958</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1959_in_professional_wrestling" title="1959 in professional wrestling">1959</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="navbox-list navbox-even hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/1960_in_professional_wrestling" title="1960 in professional wrestling">1960</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1961_in_professional_wrestling" title="1961 in professional wrestling">1961</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1962_in_professional_wrestling" title="1962 in professional wrestling">1962</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1963_in_professional_wrestling" title="1963 in professional wrestling">1963</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1964_in_professional_wrestling" title="1964 in professional wrestling">1964</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1965_in_professional_wrestling" title="1965 in professional wrestling">1965</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1966_in_professional_wrestling" title="1966 in professional wrestling">1966</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1967_in_professional_wrestling" title="1967 in professional wrestling">1967</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1968_in_professional_wrestling" title="1968 in professional wrestling">1968</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1969_in_professional_wrestling" title="1969 in professional wrestling">1969</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/1970_in_professional_wrestling" title="1970 in professional wrestling">1970</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1971_in_professional_wrestling" title="1971 in professional wrestling">1971</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1972_in_professional_wrestling" title="1972 in professional wrestling">1972</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1973_in_professional_wrestling" title="1973 in professional wrestling">1973</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1974_in_professional_wrestling" title="1974 in professional wrestling">1974</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1975_in_professional_wrestling" title="1975 in professional wrestling">1975</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1976_in_professional_wrestling" title="1976 in professional wrestling">1976</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1977_in_professional_wrestling" title="1977 in professional wrestling">1977</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1978_in_professional_wrestling" title="1978 in professional wrestling">1978</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1979_in_professional_wrestling" title="1979 in professional wrestling">1979</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="navbox-list navbox-even hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/1980_in_professional_wrestling" title="1980 in professional wrestling">1980</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1981_in_professional_wrestling" title="1981 in professional wrestling">1981</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1982_in_professional_wrestling" title="1982 in professional wrestling">1982</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1983_in_professional_wrestling" title="1983 in professional wrestling">1983</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1984_in_professional_wrestling" title="1984 in professional wrestling">1984</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1985_in_professional_wrestling" title="1985 in professional wrestling">1985</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1986_in_professional_wrestling" title="1986 in professional wrestling">1986</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1987_in_professional_wrestling" title="1987 in professional wrestling">1987</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1988_in_professional_wrestling" title="1988 in professional wrestling">1988</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1989_in_professional_wrestling" title="1989 in professional wrestling">1989</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/1990_in_professional_wrestling" title="1990 in professional wrestling">1990</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1991_in_professional_wrestling" title="1991 in professional wrestling">1991</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1992_in_professional_wrestling" title="1992 in professional wrestling">1992</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1993_in_professional_wrestling" title="1993 in professional wrestling">1993</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1994_in_professional_wrestling" title="1994 in professional wrestling">1994</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1995_in_professional_wrestling" title="1995 in professional wrestling">1995</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1996_in_professional_wrestling" title="1996 in professional wrestling">1996</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1997_in_professional_wrestling" title="1997 in professional wrestling">1997</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1998_in_professional_wrestling" title="1998 in professional wrestling">1998</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1999_in_professional_wrestling" title="1999 in professional wrestling">1999</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="navbox-list navbox-even hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/2000_in_professional_wrestling" title="2000 in professional wrestling">2000</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2001_in_professional_wrestling" title="2001 in professional wrestling">2001</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2002_in_professional_wrestling" title="2002 in professional wrestling">2002</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2003_in_professional_wrestling" title="2003 in professional wrestling">2003</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2004_in_professional_wrestling" title="2004 in professional wrestling">2004</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2005_in_professional_wrestling" title="2005 in professional wrestling">2005</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2006_in_professional_wrestling" title="2006 in professional wrestling">2006</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2007_in_professional_wrestling" title="2007 in professional wrestling">2007</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2008_in_professional_wrestling" title="2008 in professional wrestling">2008</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2009_in_professional_wrestling" title="2009 in professional wrestling">2009</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/2010_in_professional_wrestling" title="2010 in professional wrestling">2010</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2011_in_professional_wrestling" title="2011 in professional wrestling">2011</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2012_in_professional_wrestling" title="2012 in professional wrestling">2012</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2013_in_professional_wrestling" title="2013 in professional wrestling">2013</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2014_in_professional_wrestling" title="2014 in professional wrestling">2014</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2015_in_professional_wrestling" title="2015 in professional wrestling">2015</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2016_in_professional_wrestling" title="2016 in professional wrestling">2016</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2017_in_professional_wrestling" title="2017 in professional wrestling">2017</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2018_in_professional_wrestling" title="2018 in professional wrestling">2018</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2019_in_professional_wrestling" title="2019 in professional wrestling">2019</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="navbox-list navbox-even hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/2020_in_professional_wrestling" title="2020 in professional wrestling">2020</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2021_in_professional_wrestling" title="2021 in professional wrestling">2021</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2022_in_professional_wrestling" title="2022 in professional wrestling">2022</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2023_in_professional_wrestling" title="2023 in professional wrestling">2023</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2024_in_professional_wrestling" title="2024 in professional wrestling">2024</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/2025_in_professional_wrestling" title="2025 in professional wrestling">2025</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table></div> <div class="navbox-styles"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" 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