WWE apparently wants its live events to produce more than matches fans won’t see on television. The company is actively looking for moments that can spread online afterwards—even if all it takes is a basic interaction between wrestlers.
According to Fightful Select, it was stressed to them that WWE is looking to get viral moments out of its live events, even if those moments are nothing to write home about.
“It was stressed to Fightful that WWE is looking to get some viral moments emerge from their live events, even if they’re basic talent interactions.”
That certainly puts some of the unusual moments coming out of WWE live events lately into perspective. Instead of simply working their matches and moving on to the next city, wrestlers have increasingly been giving the fans in attendance something worth pulling their phones out for.
CM Punk and Cody Rhodes provided one of the more convincing examples in Springfield on July 30. After teaming together to defeat GUNTHER and Sami Zayn, their celebration suddenly fell apart when Rhodes caught Punk with an elbow to the face. Punk shoved him back, the two went nose-to-nose and officials had to separate them before Rhodes eventually ripped Punk’s shirt off and threw it at him.
Grayson Waller took a different approach at the August 15 NXT live event in Petersburg. With Zilla Fatu nowhere around, Waller grabbed a microphone and unloaded on him, calling Fatu a “Nepo Uce” before going directly after the Fatu family.
Last week, Kevin Owens also turned a Manchester live event into something considerably more interesting ahead of his Undisputed WWE Championship match against Punk. After saving Danhausen from The Miz and beating Miz himself, Owens remembered Danhausen’s friendship with Punk and decided to send the champion a message through him. Owens then dropped Danhausen with a Stunner.
Live events used to be the place where wrestlers could loosen up because the cameras weren’t rolling. Now practically everyone in the building has one in their pocket, and WWE apparently sees an opportunity to turn even the simplest interaction into something that gets people talking online.
What do you make of WWE looking to create more viral moments at its live events? Let us know in the comments below.
