Is wrestling real or fake? What’s just show, what’s real?

Wrestling is currently more popular than ever. WWE is breaking record after record and in AEW there is at least one serious competitor. Those who aren’t really into what’s happening may wonder if wrestling is real or if the fights are just fake.

Wrestling became particularly popular in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Characters such as Undertaker, Doink, Bam Bam Bigelow and other legends were also able to inspire in Germany. In the current decade, wrestling in the premier league WWE is a bit more serious. Comic-like figures hardly appear in the ring anymore, instead real athletes can be seen in normal outfits.

Is the winner in wrestling known in advance?

Is it all about them Results and match outcomes, wrestling is purely a show. The stars usually don’t step into the ring under their real names. In terms of character, too, they only take on one role (“gimmick”), which can change over the course of their career. So a fighter can initially be on the “good” side. Then he is called “faces” designated. As in real life, attitudes can change. If an actor resorts to unfair means or otherwise behaves in a problematic manner, he becomes a “heels‘ to be booed by the fans.

The procedure in the ring, the moves and the results are agreed beforehand. The actions will be like punches not really done. So it’s not like a bar fight in the ring. It’s also not a fight like in mixed martial arts (MMA) events, such as in the ufc. The punches, kicks and other moves are executed in such a way that they look as real as possible, but should not hurt the opponent. In the foreground does not stand to knock out the opponent, but to deliver an entertaining show. In WWE, the term “wrestling” (German: Ringen) is avoided as a sport. The actors are not officially “wrestlers” but “superstars”. You don’t sell yourself as a competitive sport, but as “sports entertainment(Sports Entertainment).

Is it all just show & acting in wrestling?

The matches should no real fights show, but entertain. The fights are framed in different stories that story lines. The fights thus develop from various acted events in advance. Especially with the WWE shows Raw and Smackdown, the actual events in the ring only take up a small part of the programs. There are different ones around the matches Interviews, promos and video clipswhich tell the history of matches or other stories about the superstars.

You can think of “sports entertainment” as a type of action “good times, bad times” in which conflicts and arguments between individuals or groups (“stables”) are resolved in the ring. The results are mostly determined by one person. In the case of WWE it’s Triple H or former owner Vince McMahon, in the case of AEW it’s business man Tony Khan, who built his own league as a wealthy fan. Above all, these set the direction. The stories themselves will by authors written, which the superstars should then implement. The matches will beproducers“ (also called “Road Agents”). These are often former wrestlers with a lot of experience in the ring. The better known a superstar is, the more he can influence his development and develop his own stories. Depending on experience, the match actions are specified more or less concretely. Experienced performers tend to act more spontaneously, while newcomers tend to work more according to a choreography.

Wrestling: Played, but dangerous – “Don’t try this at home!”

Even if the results have been agreed, not everything is just a fake, of course. It’s not enough to be a good actor. The actions require one Excellent fitness, top form, tactical understanding and a lot of endurance. It is not for nothing that there is an overlay before every WWE show, not to imitate the actions shown (“Don’t try this at home”).

Sometimes blossoms the superstars in the ring. If this is the case on the forehead, the bleeding is usually self-inflicted by “blading”. This should make matches look more real and brutal. The WWE resorted to such means, especially in the late 1990s, but has now avoided doing so in order to protect the athletes on the one hand and to maintain its family-friendly orientation on the other. In the AEW, on the other hand, blood can be seen regularly in the ring. Although punches are not followed through, there are many painful and spectacular stunts in the ring. Injuries are sometimes unavoidable, but are never deliberately provoked by opponents. In the summer of 2022, for example, the former champion “Big E” ended up unlucky outside the ring after an action. He sustained a serious neck injury. It is uncertain whether he will ever be able to step back into the ring.

Real events are sometimes integrated into the storylines. After all, secrets can no longer be kept, especially in the world of social media. For example, if a wrestler injures himself in real life, a story idea is usually also thought up to explain why he will be out in the near future.

If you want to see up close how “real” or “fake” wrestling is, you don’t just have to watch it on TV. There are also some leagues in Germany that provide a lot of entertainment with exciting stories and sporty athletes. Here you can find dates and tickets for well-known organizations such as wXw and GWF:

All in all, wrestling is a colorful show that mixes elements of a soap opera, a circus, real martial arts and more to keep fans hooked.

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