There’s been some idle chatter among some folks among the wrestling community. Some folks out there who feel that a part-time wrestler like Brock Lesnar can’t possibly be what is needed as champion. That’s right; some folks out there think that some ass kicker who has legit credentials such as winning championships in real fighting and wrestling competitions can’t be the champion because he won’t be on TV as much as some such as John Cena and Randy Orton are because everyone wants to see them all the time, dammit! To those people, I want you all to take a seat in a pew and sit down for my sermon. There is no reason to worry about Brock Lesnar as champion; in fact, this could be a good thing if WWE gets it right! I think that some of you folks out there are spoiled by what has become known as fast food wrestling. You see, there was a time when the champion never wrestled on TV. I remember a 7 year old me watching WWF programming 3 times a week, and those shows were Superstars, All American Wrestling, and Prime Time Wrestling. Through all of that, I can count on my hands the number of times Hulk Hogan wrestled on ANY of those shows while he was the champion. Sure, you would get a promo here and there but if you wanted to see the champion in those days, you either went to the house show when the WWF was in town, ordered the Pay Per View, or hope that an episode of Saturday Night’s Main Event was coming on! It wasn’t just like this in WWF, but in the territories that belonged to the NWA as well. For promotions like Championship Wrestling from Florida, Mid Atlantic, World Class Championship Wrestling or any of the other territories that belonged to the NWA at some point, it was a treat when the champion would show up to your area and defend the World title against the top star in the territory. These appearances by the champion weren’t as often we see them now, but it made those title matches when they a huge deal when they took place. If you missed the chance to see a title defense, then you missed out on a BIG event! This all changed during the Monday Night Wars of the 90s. Since WWF and WCW were in competition with one another, fans were treated to PPV caliber matches being given away for free on TV during Monday Nitro and Monday Night Raw. The Pay Per View specials, instead of happening every few months, were happening each and every month. While this made wrestling exciting and all while giving us wrestling fans a lot of moments to remember from such a boom period, the overexposure and over-saturation caused things such as frequent title changes, six month story-lines playing out within six weeks, and eventually inept and hotshot booking all in the name of one-ups-manship that actually put one company out of business because instead of people wanting to sit down and wait for their gourmet dinner to be brought to them, they wanted the good tasting fast food. Eventually, the wrestling business and the wrestling fans got a bit too fat off of it wouldn’t you say? Look at WWE right now; we get 5 hours of wrestling free on TV, along with WWE Network, and the monthly Pay-Per-View. Think about it like this, The Super Bowl is a huge brand name and huge media frenzy each and every year. Starting in September, you get a few months’ worth of story-lines that all come down to one event in late January/Early February to decide who the best is. Now imagine if there were twelve Super Bowls every year. It wouldn’t be nearly as special if special at all. That’s what has happened with WWE, we have seen the champion on TV every week and in a title match at the big event almost every month to the point where it becomes worn out and predictable. Same old shit. Brock Lesnar as champion gives WWE a chance to go back to the future. A chance to show fans what wrestling companies did during the old WWF and territory days when the champ wasn’t always around. A chance to show people how big of a deal it can be when the champion DOES defend his title, and even pay money in hopes that Brock Lesnar drops the title. Wrestling is a business at the end of the day, and everything that is going to be done is going to build to that big money event. Forget all that talk about how Brock Lesnar is a part-timer who has no passion for the business. So what! He joins millions of other people who live on this planet and go to jobs that they hate. Brock Lesnar is one of the few in professional wrestling who gets it! He is in it for the bankbook and not for the scrapbook, and thinks that anyone who talks about passion is just a pathetic dupe. I can’t knock the guy, and neither should you. If WWE wants to pay the freight to have him there, give him a title run, AND let him keep his Jimmy John’s endorsement it shows they see his value. Brock Lesnar isn’t going to hold the WWE Title hostage for 7 months until WrestleMania without defending it, so get that out of your heads. What do you think is going to happen? That he won the title, and then is going to go back home and hunt and fish until then? Of course not, I feel that he will be around just enough to be relevant, and that is all that is needed in professional wrestling not overexposure. Quit getting excited for McDonald’s Value Meals when you should be getting hype for a 16 ounce steak and a baked potato instead. Alright folks, I’m done here. Pass the collection plate to the right, will ya? You can also follow me on Twitter @whosantcox.
Follow us on Twitter @Kayfabe_Kickout, to get the latest news in the world of professional wrestling and like us on Facebook as well. To submit wrestling news email kayfabekickout2012@gmail.com.