News

All Elite Wrestling (Aew) and its weekly Wednesday night show “Dynamite” are set to pass a major milestone in the pro wrestling world.

The April 16 episode of “Dynamite” on TBS will mark the show’s 289th, meaning it has officially aired longer than the 288 episodes produced by WCW’s “Monday Nitro,” which aired on fellow Turner network TNT from 1995-2001.

“It had a major influence on anyone that was watching wrestling at that time,” Aew president, CEO and general manager Tony Khan said of “Nitro” in an interview with Variety. “Some of the real highlights of ’90s professional wrestling happened on that show.”

“Nitro” is one of the most important shows in wrestling history, having fueled the so-called Monday Night Wars against WWE and “Monday Night Raw” in the mid 1990s. A dedicated fan and student of pro wrestling, Khan in particular praised early “Nitro” storylines like “Macho Man,” Randy Savage...

Aew Dynamite has had a pretty, well, dynamite run when you consider this milestone: Wednesday, April 16, 2025 will mark the 289th Dynamite episode, making Aew’s flagship program the longest-running weekly primetime pro-wrestling show in TNT or TBS (it’s on TBS) history.

What are we really saying with that mouthful of qualifiers? Tony Khan’s main Aew series has now officially lasted longer than Ted Turner’s WCW Monday Nitro. And that’s noteworthy.

You remember WCW Monday Nitro, don’t you? Nitro went head to head with WWE’s Monday Night Raw in an era pro-wrestling fans refer to as the “Monday Night Wars.” And as former Nitro showrunner Eric Bischoff will never let us forget, for 83 weeks, it was WCW over what was then WWF on the Nielsen TV ratings sheets. Unfortunately for Bischoff, it didn’t last. Though Aew hasn’t gotten there, it has clearly carved...

WWE is hands down the biggest wrestling promotion on the planet, but during the Monday Night Wars, it was almost overtaken by WCW. World Championship Wrestling was first born in 1988, and while it had a respectable amount of success as one of the bigger wrestling brands at the time, there was still a significant gap between them and WWE, with WCW being consider more like a large regional promotion, popular in the South of the United States, while WWE had a national, and global, reach.

That perception would change during the Monday Night Wars. Starting from September 4, 1995, WCW's Monday Nitro would air on TNT at the same time as WWE's Monday Night Raw would air at the same time on USA Network. Under Eric Bischoff's booking and supervision, WCW would nearly end the WWE for good after winning the ratings war for 83 weeks straight. Just as there are key...

Eric Bischoff helped change the game of pro wrestling. As executive producer and senior vice president of World Championship Wrestling (WCW), he took the company to new heights with big moves that shook up the industry. Among them turning Hulk Hogan bad to lead the New World Order (nWo), leveraging celebrity involvement including Dennis Rodman and Jay Leno, and making Monday night appointment television with the flagship live show WCW Nitro. After the once Ted Turner-owned promotion was bought by Vince McMahon and shuttered, Bischoff continued to do the unexpected joining the once rival WWE as an onscreen character working alongside “Stone Cold” Steve Austin. He’d also bring his wealth of knowledge as an executive producer for Tna Wrestling. That’s not even counting the success he had in the reality TV realm with his business partner Jason Hervey of The Wonder Years fame. Today it seemed Bischoff...

As crazy as many of WWE's storylines would be, they still have nothing on WCW's worst (or some will say best) moments. Granted, maybe that is a good thing, considering that some of WCW's craziest angles were not so positively received. In fact, some of WCW's craziest segments are ranked as some of the worst moments in wrestling history.

However, as much as WCW's bad reputation has become widespread in the wrestling community, some of the craziness found in WCW isn't always bad. Some of WCW's craziest moments have been genuinely shocking in the positive sense of the word. Not unlike the Atitude Era over in WWE, a lot of that same craziness is what had audiences coming back for more every week. It's worth celebrating the good kind of crazy that WCW would offer, as much as the kind of crazy that is so cringe-worthy that it still makes fans laugh today.

Exclusive: The rise and fall of World Championship Wrestling (WCW) is to be explored in a new docuseries for Vice TV.

Dwayne Johnson and Dany Garcia, founders of Seven Bucks Productions, are exec producing Who Killed WCW?

WCW was founded by Ted Turner in 1988 after his Turner Broadcasting System acquired the assets of National Wrestling Alliance territory Jim Crockett Productions. It competed aggressively with the then-titled WWF (now WWE), regularly beating it in the ratings on Monday nights where its Monday Nitro outrated Monday Night Raw. However, it endured significant losses and suffered from the merger between Turner parent Tim Warner and AOL and was shut down in 2001.

The series, which premieres on June 4, will explore the complex factors that led to the promotion’s downfall, including management challenges, creative decisions, and the intense competition during the infamous Monday Night Wars. It will feature exclusive, in-depth interviews with wrestlers, executives,...

After over 30 years and 1500 episodes, it was announced today that WWE's flagship program, "Raw," (or "Monday Night Raw") is exiting the linear television landscape and becoming a streaming exclusive for Netflix. The streaming juggernaut will become the exclusive new home for "Raw" starting in January 2025 in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Latin America, among other territories. Over time, more regions will be added as part of the deal. Eventually, the other WWE weekly programs like "SmackDown" and "Nxt" will also join the Netflix family once their existing deals with USA Network and The CW expire, as will additional programming like documentaries, original series, and other future projects.

Considering WWE has its own production studio, it would be unsurprising if Netflix became the new exclusive distributor of WWE Studios, although this has yet to be confirmed. But what is potentially the biggest get outside of "Raw" is...

Netflix is reportedly spending $5 billion for 10 years of WWE programming; the streaming giant might want to avoid fighting the NFL for viewers.

For essentially the whole of its over 30-year reign as one of cable television’s most popular programs, WWE’s flagship show “Monday Night Raw” has lived on Monday nights — but now that sports entertainment's marquee show is moving from cable to Netflix is a move to a different day on the table? In all of Netflix’s press materials announcing the move, the show was only referred to as “Raw,” removing any reference to its traditional air date. Does that mean that when the WWE moves to the world’s largest streamer in 2025 that “Raw” could be on a new night?

WWE CEO Nick Khan appeared on “The Pat McAfee Show” to discuss the WWE’s new deal with Netflix. Starting in January 2025, “WWE Raw” will exclusively...

Paul Heyman and Eric Bischoff have been placed in charge of WWE TV, with the first running “Raw” as executive director and the second handling the same duties for “SmackDown Live,” an individual with knowledge of the promotions confirmed for TheWrap. WWE later sent out a press release announcing the moves.

Both the Ecw founder and the former WCW president will report directly to WWE chairman and CEO Vince McMahon.

In their newly created executive roles, Heyman and Bischoff will oversee the creative development of WWE’s flagship programming and ensure integration across all platforms and lines of business, in WWE’s verbiage.

Also Read: Evolve Wrestling's 10th Anniversary Celebration to Stream Live on WWE Network (Exclusive)

The weekly shows currently air on USA Network, though “SmackDown” is moving to Fox’s broadcast channel — and from Tuesdays to Fridays — this October. “Raw” will stay put on Mondays and at its longtime cable home.

Right now, it’s probably safe to say that each and every fan of Arrow knows Oliver Queen will still be behind bars when the new season picks up in just a few hours. And though the Emerald Archer will remain at the forefront of everyone’s minds, it’s only natural questions be raised regarding what his former cohorts are up to.

Well, two weeks from tonight, it sounds like we can expect to see one Curtis Holt in a very different position. As it turns out, episode 7×03 likely features Mr. Terrific going the way of black ops or, at least, that’s what the following synopsis for “Crossing Lines” tells us:

Curtis Goes Undercover For Argus — Still in prison, Oliver (Stephen Amell) faces his biggest challenge yet. Meanwhile, Felicity (Emily Bett Rickards) gets an intriguing offer, and Diggle (David Ramsey) asks Curtis (Echo Kellum) to go undercover for Argus.

2K have today released details on two new features for WWE 2K18 – MyPLAYER and Road To Glory, which is a completely new online experience where MyPLAYERS from all over the world battle against each other. As well as the updated Universe Mode which, in WWE 2K18, features new rivalry types, Intensity, Power Rankings, updated calendars and several other additions and improvements.

MyPLAYER

This year, players will create their MyPLAYER characters, which get stronger and more powerful along with player progression, to use in both MyCAREER and Road To Glory.A MyPLAYER is an upgradable character that gets stronger and more powerful along with the player’s progression in both Road to Glory and MyCAREER. On the MyPLAYER home screen, there are several customization and upgrade options for your MyPLAYER – in addition to being the portal to MyCAREER and Road to Glory. The MyPLAYER Wizard makes it super easy and quick to create a basic MyPLAYER.

The pro wrestling world is in mourning today after the loss of one of sports entertainment's most colorful and iconic managers and entertainers. Bobby Heenan, a.k.a. "The Brain," passed away at age 73. While no cause of death was announced, the famous loudmouth manager had been in poor health for years, after he was diagnosed with throat cancer back in 2002. He died at his home in Largo, Florida. Here's part of the WWE's statement on Bobby "The Brain" Heenan.

"WWE is saddened to learn that WWE Hall of Famer Bobby Heenan, regarded by many as the greatest manager in sports-entertainment history, has passed away at age 73. With a career spanning more than four decades, Heenan was the "The Brain" behind some of the most prolific Superstars in sports-entertainment history. Heenan plied his trade as their mischievous manager by running his mouth on their behalf with a sarcastic wit...

The world of sports entertainment is in mourning today, as it was confirmed this morning that legendary WWE Superstar George 'The Animal' Steele, a.k.a. William James Myers, has passed away at the age of 79. The pro wrestler's death was confirmed by his wife Patricia, who revealed that he passed from kidney failure last night in Florida. The wrestling legend had been in and out of hospice care since April.

TMZ broke the news of George 'The Animal' Steele's passing last night, although wrestling promoter Eric Simms of Ess Promotions had previously shared that the late wrestler had entered hospice care, asking fans to pray for him, before he ultimately passed. This morning, a number of WWE Superstars took to Twitter to pay tribute to this wrestling legend, and the WWE released a statement, confirming George 'The Animal' Steele's death. Here's the full statement below, which reveals how he...

This time of year the WWE makes every effort they can to step up their performance. With Wrestlemania around the corner, they want to make sure as many eyes as possible are watching the Granddaddy of Them All. It’s also a time to reflect and honor the past as this is usually the time of year they start announcing the next WWE Hall of Fame class. Thanks to Bryan Alvarez from the Wrestling Observer, we may have some clue as to who will be a part of the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2017. Let’s discuss the picks now but remember, until they’re confirmed by the WWE, these choices are strictly rumor at this point.

Diamond Dallas Page

A deserving choice if there ever was one. Starting off as a manager, he worked his way up in his late 30’s to become a wrestler and eventual WCW World Champion.

WWE 2K17 has made the announcement for its collector’s edition for the latest release for the franchise game. WWE 2K17 Nxt Edition will be available for Xbox One and PS4 at the price of $99.99. Now for that you get these add ons.

Copy of WWE 2K17 video game;

Exclusive premium packaging;

Nxt Enhancement Pack:

Playable Nxt Superstars: Shinsuke Nakamura, Nia Jax and Apollo Crews;

50 percent boost in points earned for a player’s MyCareer Superstar while in Nxt;

Exclusive Canvas 2 Canvas lithograph designed by WWE artist Rob Schamberger and autographed by Nxt Superstar Shinsuke Nakamura;

Exclusive eight-inch “Demon” Finn Bálor collectible figurine;

Exclusive Topps Nxt TakeOver: London Mat Relics Card:

All cards will include a piece of authentic ring canvas from the event;

All cards will feature one of 14 featured Superstars from event;

Each Superstar’s card will have one of 10 different rarity levels;

Goldberg Pack: access to two...

WWE 2K17 has made the announcement for its collector’s edition for the latest release for the franchise game. WWE 2K17 Nxt Edition will be available for Xbox One and PS4 at the price of $99.99. Now for that you get these add ons.

Copy of WWE 2K17 video game;

Exclusive premium packaging;

Nxt Enhancement Pack:

Playable Nxt Superstars: Shinsuke Nakamura, Nia Jax and Apollo Crews;

50 percent boost in points earned for a player’s MyCareer Superstar while in Nxt;

Exclusive Canvas 2 Canvas lithograph designed by WWE artist Rob Schamberger and autographed by Nxt Superstar Shinsuke Nakamura;

Exclusive eight-inch “Demon” Finn Bálor collectible figurine;

Exclusive Topps Nxt TakeOver: London Mat Relics Card:

All cards will include a piece of authentic ring canvas from the event;

All cards will feature one of 14 featured Superstars from event;

Each Superstar’s card will have one of 10 different rarity levels;

Goldberg Pack: access to two...

If you have been following the WWE, and I still am, for some reason, you may have noticed them teasing a mysterious #Hatch announcement on their social media channels. Well, they have officially revealed what was in the building, and surprisingly, it was WCW Legend Bill Goldberg, as well as the announcement of WWE 2K17.

Set to launch in its traditional October release slot, the latest entry in the popular pro-wrestling franchise will hit the Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. Although not the cover-star, Goldberg will serve as the title’s pre-order bonus this year. Those that do choose to pre-order the title will receive two versions of the wrestler, representing his WCW and WWE years, as well as two arenas, WCW Monday Nitro and Halloween Havoc.

Having been absent from the franchise for several years, as well as pro wrestling in general, the return of Goldberg is a...

A legend of the squared circle is returning in WWE 2K17!  Come inside to find out more about how you can play as Goldberg!

The last time we saw Goldberg in a WWE ring was about twelve years ago, at Wrestlemania Xx.  Since then, he's enjoyed a moderately successful acting/hosting career.  However, 2K Games has announced that, as of October 2016, Goldberg is set to make his return in WWE 2K17!

Goldberg will be available in two variations, WCW and WWE versions.  In order to add him to your roster, all you have to do is pre-order WWE 2K17 and you'll receive a code to add both versions.  Plus, WCW Monday Nitro and Halloween Havoc arenas! 

WWE 2K17 is set to hit stores this October but pre-ordering is already available.

What do you think about Goldberg's return?

WWE 2K17GOLDBERGWrestling2K GAMES2kVIDEO GAMESvideo game newsROSTERWWE...

WWE.com

Verbally tearing right through men like Ted Turner, Buff Bagwell and Jeff Jarrett, Vince McMahon appeared to be having an absolute blast on the March 26, 2001 edition of Raw Is War. Complete with a wholly smug grin, the WWF’s head honcho opened up a simulcast between Raw and WCW’s Monday Nitro, declaring that he was appearing on the rival show because he had, in fact, purchased World Championship Wrestling.

Whilst news didn’t travel quite as fast back then in 2001 as it does now, many in the wrestling community were already aware that McMahon had purchased 24 talent contracts, the WCW tape library and numerous WCW trademarks for around $2.5 million by the time Nitro and Raw hit the air. Still, it was quite the shock to see Vince callously declare that the fate of WCW was now in his hands.

Later, WCW would sadly become a mere pawn...

El Rey Network/WWE.com

Back in November, I wrote an article that looked at just how permeable the walls between the world’s biggest wrestling promotions had become. Johnny Gargano, Tommaso Ciampa and New Japan legend Jushin “Thunder” Liger showed up to wrestle in Nxt. Alberto Del Rio, then the reigning Aaa Mega Champion, showed up on WWE television and pinned United States Champion John Cena.

You’d think that was the climax, but no.

On the heels of New Japan’s WrestleKingdom 10, another international shake-up occurred as WWE lured away four of that promotion’s top stars. Aj Styles has already made an impact in WWE, while Shinsuke Nakamura is Nxt-bound and a healthy fraction of the Bullet Club are waiting in the wings.

Simply put, the matches on this list aren’t mere fantasy anymore. The time-honored smark tradition of hypothetically matching up rivals from different promotions...

WWE.com

With just six days until SuperBrawl, things are heating up on Nitro and throughout the whole show the commentators remind us that Hollywood Hogan and the Macho Man will need to co-exist to take on Sting and Lex Luger. That’s a huge main event, folks!

There’s some fun undercard developments with Chris Jericho, Ddp and Raven while we also see a few recognisable if not baffling faces turn up, too.

With three hours to fill, WCW are already starting to struggle to have exciting segments and matches throughout the whole show but there is a nice trend of every half hour or so giving the audience a big development to sink their teeth into and keep them watching, hopefully until the end.

Finally, Bret Hart makes his return to Monday Nitro and he’s still intent on getting his hands on Hollywood Hogan, while a familiar...

So, as you might have noticed, I've missed a couple of weeks. True to form, since I mentioned my on-again/off-again love/hate relationship with pro wrestling in my first column, I couldn't even work up enough inspiration to follow up my initial column on the subject. I was going to write about it every Wednesday night throughout the Road to WrestleMania, and my interest wasn't even sustained long enough to make it to Week 2. 

Until tonight...

I caught some of last night's WWE Fastlane pay-per-view, and I had some interest in how Raw would follow things up. Still, I was just going to wait until my wife went to sleep (we're currently watching HBO's The Wire. Yes, I know. We're very, very behind), then skim through Raw on my DVR. But then I suddenly got a series of texts from one of my best friends that made me have...

YouTube

He was there when ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin infamously filled Vince McMahon’s Corvette with concrete, he watched in awe as Vince ‘screwed’ Bret Hart at the 1997 Survivor Series pay-per-view, and he was sat in an emergency room with a broken and battered Mick Foley following his infamous Hell In A Cell match with The Undertaker.

Vince Russo has had quite the career in pro wrestling as a television writer, producer and even an occasional on-screen performer.

The man has courted controversy throughout his association with the wrestling world, but people never seem to stop talking about him. Recently, he sat down with Sean Oliver of Kayfabe Commentaries to discuss a time which preceded his disastrous WCW run and eventual problems with Tna. 1998 was a time of jubilation for Russo.

At least, it should have been.

As the man himself tells, there was little time for reflection in the...

WWE Network

The hype for SuperBrawl VIII continues this week on Nitro as we see the fallout from Hollywood Hogan essentially turning his back on his nWo comrade Randy Savage last week. Meanwhile, The Steiner Brothers continue to try and put their differences aside as they get a shot at The Outsiders’ WCW Tag Team titles.

The more I watch these shows, the more clear is becomes that the three hour format is going to be a problem long-term as it’s tough to keep the fans engaged for that amount of time. To WCW’s credit, they still do a much better job of making three hours pass by than WWE does these days.

Perhaps WWE creative should be watching these old shows back when they get the chance?

Once again there’s no appearance by Bret Hart, which is strange to me given that he’s wanting to...

WWE.com

In the fall of 1998, WCW and WWE were at war. Each week, Nitro and Raw would vie for ratings dominance, and despite the fact that Raw would win more often than not, the overall results were staggering: nearly 10 million people were tuning into wrestling each week, opposite Monday Night Football.

Even in the first half of 1999, when WCW began to fall to a distant second in the war, Nitro was still drawing more viewers than Raw does today.

In the late 90s, wrestling was cool. On Tuesday mornings grade school classrooms, college dormitories, and corporate offices would be filled with talk about what Stone Cold, The Rock, and Goldberg were up to the night before. Even though mainstream media wasn’t extensively covering pro wrestling, it didn’t matter – it seemed like everybody was watching it, anyway. Wrestling was its own media force.

Today, things are quite different.

WWE Network

This is just the second 3 hour edition of the flagship show and it’s interesting to see how the company fill the extra hour. The influx of WWF stars like the British Bulldog and Jim Neidhart has propped up the mid card to flesh it out a little more and the ongoing saga of the new World order and the beginning of them crumbling has some more time to play out on each episode.

Going into this week’s show, the big advertisement was the main event of Sting going one on one with Randy Savage, as well as the fallout from Kevin Nash using the illegal jacknife powerbomb the week before.

Neither Bret Hart or Ric Flair made appearances this week, which seemed slightly strange. Last week, Bret made his intention to challenge the winner of Sting and Hogan for the WCW World Title but all we...

WWE.com

There’s no doubts about it, Roman Reigns is the man hand-picked to be World Wrestling Entertainment’s big babyface sensation from here on out. In the picture above, it’s perhaps no accident that Reigns is in the foreground whilst John Cena takes up much of the background. Despite his continued popularity with WWE’s core demographic, Cena is no longer the sole apple of WWE’s eye.

Incredibly, things nearly didn’t work for Roman Reigns. In this week’s article, the reason why is revealed by none other than WWE Hall Of Fame announcer Jim Ross. That’s what this list is all about, exploring the pro wrestling world to deliver 10 different facts that weren’t exactly common knowledge last week.

Joining Reigns, there are facts related to the likes of Mick Foley’s Mankind character, Aj Styles, The Rockers and even Paul London. In addition to that,...

WWE.com

With Souled Out in the history books and Sting & Hogan’s showdown set for SuperBrawl, it’s time to strap in for another ride through an episode of WCW Monday Nitro from early 1998. The good news for those of you who are enjoying this series is that the WWE Network have updated the Nitros through to August 1999, so we can reminisce for the weeks and months to come!

I may need some of you to hold me in order to get through the darker days of WCW that will turn up in the near future, however.

But for now, we’re looking at January 26th, 1998 where there’s hope for Bret Hart in WCW, Sting is a megastar, Goldberg’s on the rise and the nWo is still hugely popular.

Before we get into the episode, I had to share the above picture with you. Now while you...

WWE.com

Eddie Guerrero had been pitching a feud with Rey Mysterio to WWE creative/management practically since the masked marvel arrived in WWE in the summer of 2002, a few short months after Eddie’s own return to the promotion following a very public firing and a battle with substance abuse.

The new and improved Eddie, both inside the ring and out, knew that he and Rey could produce magic if they were only given the chance to do so. The two men were constants in the cruiserweight division in WCW and stole countless PPVs and episodes of Nitro with their unique blend of Mexican, American and Japanese wrestling styles.

Who could forget their five-star Mask versus Title match at Halloween Havoc 1997, or Eddie’s quest to get Rey to join the Luchador World Order (lWo) a year later? Whenever Rey and Eddie were in the same ring at the same time,...

WWE Network

It’s time once again to hop in the DeLorean and head back to January of 1998, for another look at some Wtf moments from the Superdome in New Orleans on Monday Nitro on January 19th, 1998.

One of the biggest takeaways (compared to watching a current episode of Monday Night Raw) is that on this Nitro, there are around fifteen stars who are all pushed, heavily-featured and feel like big names. There’s also a feeling of chaos throughout the show where anything could happen, which enhances the viewing experience tenfold.

This episode is also the go-home Nitro for the upcoming weekend’s Souled Out pay per-view, which oddly enough took place on a Saturday. Going into this edition of WCW’s prime time show, there were more questions about the dissension of the New World Order along with the final build towards The Giant facing Kevin Nash and...

wwe.com

WWE Raw recently turned twenty three years old, which is a remarkable feat when you consider just how close it came to extinction in its first five years. Bouncing back from a tumultuous beginning, it has gone on to become one of the longest running episodic shows in television history.

This feature will chart the important episodes which pushed Raw to where it is today. The key ratings and turning points will be analysed, explaining how Vince McMahon established his monday night powerhouse to the point where it is now USA Network’s crown jewel.

Indeed, even with recent ratings drops, Raw is still an industry heavyweight in weekly broadcast television. Around four million viewers each week in primetime? USA can only dream of more shows having that kind of appeal.

Many of the fans bemoaning current Raw ratings weren’t even alive when the show began. That...

WWE Network

Back in 1997, the new World order were a happy bunch, taking over WCW, winning all the titles and generally making all the babyfaces’ lives a misery.

But after the fallout from Starrcade 1997 and last week’s Nitro Wtf Moments from the January 5th, 1998 episode where Savage inadvertently knocked out Bischoff, causing Savage to slap Hogan for questioning him which led to Nash laying out the Macho Man, this was going to be an interesting episode to view and dissect.

On the January 12th, 1998 edition of Monday Nitro we see the new World order try to become a united front again in the battle for WCW. On the debut edition of Thunder, Jj Dillon stripped Sting of the WCW World Title and the belt is vacant until the big grudge match with Sting and Hollywood Hogan to determine the Undisputed WCW Champion. That match will take place at Superbrawl in about six weeks.

WWE.com

When I got the call to be given the task of compiling Wtf moments for WCW Monday Nitro from 1998, I was ecstatic since I’d watched these shows as a kid, but couldn’t remember the specifics. The Monday Night Wars were in full swing and in January of 1998, WCW had been number one in the ratings for almost 70 consecutive weeks.

The main thing I noticed when watching this show back is the variety of action going on, some good, some bad, but for whatever reason, my attention never wavered in the whole two hours of the show. There was such a wide range of characters and a massive stack of star power, it’s easy to see why Nitro was number one while over on Raw, they were still tweaking their format to become a player in the Monday Night Wars again.

So with that in mind,...

wwe.com

WWE Raw is having a tough time with viewership. The October 12 episode did a record seventeen year non-holiday low of 3.27 millions viewers, a number that provoked talk of “crisis” in the internet wrestling community. In fact, the “crisis” word has been looming for weeks now, with each episode being a creative dud.

The truth is that “crisis” is an over-reaction. Granted, you have to go back to 1997, when Raw had WCW Nitro to contend with, to find a non-holiday number as bad as the October 12 2015 show. But analysis of the bigger picture, shows that Vince McMahon won’t be crying his eyes out just yet.

WWE Raw is, and for the foreseeable future will be, a television powerhouse. Here’s the eleven reasons why it isn’t in a crisis.

11. WWE Business Is Healthy – Record Revenues Last Year wwe.com

As a business, WWE is in very good health.

WWE.com

World Championship Wrestling, for all its faults, is a loss to the pro wrestling industry. Ever since the promotion closed doors and was eaten alive by Vince McMahon’s deep pockets, WWE hasn’t really had any competition to speak of. That’s a shame, because it’s fair to say that competition is something the juggernaut has thrived on over the years. McMahon is at his best when he’s being pushed to be, in other words.

Rewind to 1995 and WCW wasn’t quite ready to compete yet. Since effectively taking over a few years before, Eric Bischoff had managed to somewhat turn the company around. Money was now in a much more plentiful supply, which led to the signing of free agent Hulk Hogan in 1994. The likes of ‘Macho Man’ Randy Savage and Lex Luger would follow before the end of ’95.

That year was a big one,...

WWE.com

For fourteen years now, WWE has tended towards burying World Championship Wrestling as often as possible, in a backhanded manner: after all, this is the promotion that almost killed the competition, beating and demoralising the WWF (as was) 84 weeks in a row, and no one holds a grudge quite like Vincent Kennedy McMahon.

That being said, when it comes to making money out of his ownership of WCW’s video library and trademarks, McMahon isn’t backward about coming forward – all of WCW’s pay-per-views, from Starrcade 1983 (before the company was even called WCW) to the very last one, Greed in 2001, are available on the WWE Network, along with (to date) the first 134 episodes of Monday Nitro.

But that presents modern fans who didn’t watch WCW (or who are too young to remember the era) with a dilemma… if WCW wasn’t worth watching back in the day,...

I will admit I was much more of a WWE fan than WCW, but even with that being the case I remember some classic matches from Nitro that caught my interest. With The Best Of WCW Monday Night Nitro – Volume 3 being released I was wondering if we’d get some, but the cracks are starting to show, and a lack of focus is at play.

My problem with this release may come from the fact that over the last month or so I’ve reviewed WWE: The Kliq Rules, and WWE: Monday Night Wars Vol. 1 which had a focus on the Nwo. This wasn’t a bad thing, it showed them at their best and when they were entertaining. The problem is The Best Of WCW Monday Night Nitro – Volume 3 decides to once again give their years a focus, which weren’t some of Nitro’s best.

With the fact...

WWE.com

World Championship Wrestling did a lot of good for the grappling industry. Monday Nitro kick-started the ‘Monday Night Wars’ that hooked fans, and the promotion provided wrestlers with a genuine alternative workplace to the then-wwf. However, for all the good that WCW did, the last few years of the group’s existence proved to be a miserable failure.

Creatively, WCW was in the toilet by 1999. Bereft of fresh ideas, the writing team decided to keep plowing on with the tired New World Order shtick. Even as calendars turned to the year 2000, the organisation’s brain trust thought simply rehashing the nWo and calling it ‘nWo 2000’ would fix all their problems. The entire place was a mess, and parts of the product were unwatchable.

If (the second half) of 1996, 1997 and 1998 had been high points, 1999 into 2000 proved to be a crushing low. It’s those years which scoop most attention in this article.

WWE

The WWE Network currently has WCW fever, what with the recent content dump of Nitro, the reappearance of Eric Bischoff on Legends With Jbl and whatnot. WWE may have won the war almost fifteen years ago, but they’re certainly not above flaunting the WCW brand in a bid to attract lapsed fans and (hopefully) turn them into Network subscribers.

Personally, I find watching vintage WCW product beyond refreshing, given the creative lull that WWE finds itself in at present. Why would I want to watch Corporate Kane and a half-baked ‘Divas Revolution’ when I can just as easily check out some really fun cruiserweight action or see how the nWo was turning the business on its head?

One of the best things about having access to all of this WCW material, however, is checking out the work of some of those whose praised perhaps aren’t as highly sung as your Goldbergs,...

WWE.com

Professional wrestling is, fundamentally, little more than entertainment. The job of the various men and women who have been employed over the years as writing staff is to delight and entertain those who tune in. Alongside that core premise, there’s the need to occasionally shock and stun the watching audience. Over the years, shocking moments have proved vital in sustaining interest.

For example, when Scott Hall first appeared on WCW’s Monday Nitro program in 1996, wrestling fans were left open-mouthed. It is happenings such as that which this article aims to focus on. Shocking moments doesn’t just stop in the realm of kayfabe however, there have also been many born out of reality.

Often, reality have been used by wrestling promotions to try and add credibility to a major match or angle. Occasionally, things can get out of hand, just like they did in the Vince Russo...

WWE.com

WWE is planning on using Ric Flair more often in the coming weeks, according to a report from PWInsider. He’s not expected to be on Raw next Monday, but should be back in the month of September.

It makes sense to use Flair since he’s got a lot of ties to a lot of people in WWE. If his daughter Charlotte becomes a top contender for the Divas Title then it would be smart to have Flair out there motivating her and potentially celebrating if she wins the title.

He could also be used in the Seth Rollins/Sting storyline. Since Rollins used Flair’s “to be the man, you’ve got to beat the man” line on Raw, Flair could be upset about that and tell Rollins he shouldn’t be saying stuff like that because he has to prove himself.

WWE.com

Sting has...

In the half century that WWE has been around, there have been many defining moments, many significant events, and many controversies, but by far the most memorable chapter in the company’s history is what became known as the Monday Night War.

Officially beginning on 4th September 1995 when WWE’s rival wrestling company WCW aired the first episode of Monday Nitro in direct competition with Vince McMahon’s established flagship show Monday Night Raw, the war lasted for five and a half years until McMahon bought WCW in March 2001, bringing a definitive conclusion to the most fascinating era in wrestling history.

Recognising that such a momentous period of history could never be done justice in a single documentary, WWE produced a twenty part series for the WWE Network examining the war in minute detail, and have now released the first ten episodes in this superb collection called The Monday Night War Vol.

WWE.com

Japanese wrestling legend Jushin “Thunder” Liger is making his WWE debut this Saturday night at the Nxt Takeover Brooklyn event when he takes on rising star Tyler Breeze.

According to PWInsider, Liger is not scheduled to appear at Sunday’s WWE SummerSlam pay-per-view or on next Monday’s Raw, even though both of those events are also at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Those plans could change, of course.

His appearance in WWE has raised eyebrows in the wrestling industry because he’s a New Japan Pro Wrestling talent and they’ve had a deal with Ring of Honor for several years now. Apparently Liger can take his own bookings and this doesn’t mean that WWE has a deal with Njpw. He’s known WWE official William Regal for over 20 years and that’s really how the deal was done.

For WWE, booking Liger was a smart move...

WWE/Youtube

This Monday night follow Raw, there will be a WWE Network special dedicated to the SummerSlam main event of The Undertaker vs. Brock Lesnar. It’s scheduled to start at approximately 11:06pmET (or whenever Raw ends) and will run for about 30 minutes.

Here’s the description of the program: “Will Undertaker have vengeance or will Brock Lesnar dominate? Watch WWE Superstars break down the highly anticipated SummerSlam matchup!”

The special is expected to feature various WWE stars discussing the match. There will likely be clips of their past matches going back to their feud in 2002 and 2003 as well as the infamous WrestleMania 30 match at WrestleMania 30 when Lesnar ended The Undertaker’s undefeated streak.

WWE will most likely hype the Undertaker/Lesnar special heavily during Raw especially since both guys might not be on Raw and it sounds like something worth checking out.

WWE.com

Immediately following that special,...

With Monday Night War Vol 1 – Shots Fired set for release here in the UK on Monday 10th August we’re taking part in a special look back at the spectacular battle between WWE and WCW – a battle which not only spawned some of the greatest matches in the sports history but also shaped the future of wrestling…

In the 1995 WWE’s biggest competitor, southern promotion World Championship Wrestling, launched its own Monday night television show to go head-to-head with Raw. After luring some of WWE’s biggest name stars down south with record-setting pay-cheques, WCW Nitro started to beat WWE in the ratings for the first time ever. In its effort to even the score, WWE gave birth to the “Attitude Era”, led by the incomparable “Stone Cold” Steve Austin. The result was a bitter war between the two promotions, which saw them trade wins, talents and insults. It would...

WWE.com

World Wrestling Entertainment released their quarterly financial statement on Thursday and with it they also mentioned some new programming they are planning for WWE Network. It’s a mix of new shows as well as adding older content to the archives.

Here’s a summary of what they are planning.

New programming includes:

– A reality series on the Nxt roster as they strive to make WWE’s main roster. That would likely be some kind of show that takes fans backstage and shows clips of Nxt performers out of the ring and in training.

– There’s a new series called “Table for 3″ that gives viewers a seat at the table with Superstars and Divas. It sounds like an interview program.

– A studio show highlighting current events in WWE and beyond.

– New episodes of WWE 24, WWE List, Stone Cold’s podcast, and teasers for “Camp WWE,” which debuts in...

WWE.com

WWE Hall of Famer Kevin Nash, who was one of the founders of the New World Order with Hulk Hogan, came to the defense of the Hulkster on Twitter after WWE fired Hogan this past Friday due to racist remarks that Hogan reportedly made on a tape in 2006.

Here are the three tweets that Nash sent out on Monday:

I've spent the last 23 years of my life with Hulk. I've been in the most diverse of situations and never heard Hulk use a racial slur.

— Kevin Nash (@RealKevinNash) July 27, 2015

In no way dismissing the remarks.Just looking at the situation. Sex tape thats set up.Tapes that are easily edited. Content that was pushed

— Kevin Nash (@RealKevinNash) July 27, 2015

I've watched Hulk do 10,000 make awish greetings. Religion creed or color. Never changed the love he shared.Judge a man put him with a child

— Kevin Nash (@RealKevinNash) July 27, 2015

There...

WWE.com

You could say that 2001 was a pretty big year for the wrestling business. Of course, the major story was Vince McMahon officially winning the Monday Night Wars, buying WCW in March while also acquiring Ecw which went out of business in January.

So Vince now owned his competition. What was he going to do with it? The original idea was to continue to run WCW as a separate brand, with Monday night Raw becoming a new version of WCW Nitro. When Buff Bagwell and Booker T had a match so awful that thousands of fans left while it was still in process, WWE changed their mind.

Instead, the company decided to run with the WCW/Ecw versus WWE invasion. It was a storyline that fans had been clamouring to see for years. Unfortunately, Vince did not acquire the services of the real stars like Hulk Hogan, Goldberg and Sting,...

wwe.com

This June, like many, many months in 2015, WWE has offered its ever-growing library of streaming video footage known as the WWE Network absolutely free for new subscribers. Those who order the Network this month got to watch Money in the Bank without paying a cent.

You can also relive the Attitude Era with a selection of Raw episodes from 1997 to 1999, watch the early years of Ecw’s development, and even check out the old competition with WCW Monday Nitro. While these are all far from a complete collection, it’s a start.

You also get access to almost every WWE Pay-Per-View there ever was, not to mention that the Network is the only way to watch Nxt on a weekly basis. The WWE Network has freed the sports entertainment empire from the Pay-Per-View machine and saves the fans about $60 a month (twice that lately). However, it’s also a lot more than that.

WWE.com

1999 would be the year when things really started to go sour for World Championship Wrestling, but even though the then-wwf would catch the company up and reclaim top spot in the world of North American pro wrestling, 1998 would be a banner year for Ted Turner’s grappling promotion.

Pay-Per-View buyrates were high, merchandise sales were through the roof (mainly because the nWo concept was still hot in ’98), and crucially, attendances at both televised and live events were incredibly high. For evidence of this, just look at the numbers WCW pulled for an episode of Monday Nitro at the massive Georgia Dome on July 6th, 1998. Attracting over 40,000 fans, the company trumpeted the event as a success, and rightly so.

With all that in mind, it doesn’t take a genius to realise that cracks were really starting to show in the WCW formula. Most notably, the promotion didn’t...