Steve Carrier on April 22, 2026
Dave LaGreca didn’t stay quiet after a sports personality questioned why grown men still watch wrestling — instead, he used the opening of his show to fire back and defend wrestling fans everywhere.
The situation started when FS1 personality Rob Parker said he didn’t understand why adults still follow wrestling, comparing it to childhood activities like visiting the zoo or circus. His comments caught attention across the wrestling world and quickly sparked reactions.
“I can’t understand how grown men are still into wrestling… We all went to the zoo. We all went to the circus as kids, right? And at some point, Kelvin, you grow out of it.”
LaGreca addressed those comments directly on Busted Open Radio, making it clear that he fits the exact demographic Parker criticized — and he wasn’t backing down from defending wrestling fans. He opened his response by pointing to his own lifelong connection to wrestling.
“I’m an older man. I’m going to be 55 in July. I am a lifelong pro wrestling fan. I never grew out of it. I’ve always loved it since the day I first saw it in 1982 to right now, in 2026.”
LaGreca then flipped Parker’s argument around by comparing wrestling to traditional sports — pointing out that many professional sports also begin as childhood games.
“The last I checked, football is a kid’s game. Baseball is a kid’s game, basketball is a kid’s game… You have made a living and a career writing and talking about a children’s game for four decades.”
He also defended wrestling as one of the toughest forms of entertainment, saying performers put their bodies on the line year-round in ways many fans don’t fully understand.
“In wrestling, there is no bigger and better athletic endeavor where men and women put their bodies, their health and their lives on the line… not for five months of the year, but 12 months of the year.”
LaGreca didn’t stop there. He challenged Parker to join him on Busted Open Radio for what he called an “adult conversation” about wrestling and its fanbase — a challenge Parker appeared to accept publicly with a response on social media saying, “let’s get it on.”
Veteran wrestler Tommy Dreamer also joined the conversation, backing up LaGreca and addressing the common criticism that wrestling isn’t physically demanding.
“I love it when people say ‘yeah, it’s fake.’ I’d be like, ‘oof, if you only knew.’ Or ‘well, you’re not really hitting each other.’ Well, if you only knew.”
Dreamer went a step further, inviting critics to step inside the ring and experience what wrestlers actually go through.
“Step into the ring and we’ll show you. Touch the ring, or touch the ropes, try to run the ropes… climb to 15, 20 feet and fall backwards onto a table.”
He also pointed to the business side of wrestling, noting how major cities compete to host events like WrestleMania — showing just how big the industry has become. With both LaGreca and Dreamer speaking out, the debate over wrestling’s place in mainstream sports culture continues to pick up attention.
Do you think criticism like this misunderstands wrestling fans, or is it just part of the ongoing debate about pro wrestling’s place in sports and entertainment?
2 hours ago
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