Vince McMahon Is Not Trying To Kill Independent Wrestling

One take I do agree with, up to a point, is that going to WWE means a character is going to be watered down, made into a joke, or that they won’t be as successful or on top like they are in the indys. WWE has certainly done the former more times than I can remember over the years: Dude Love, Dean Douglas, Tommy Dreamer, RVD, Booker T, and Diamond Dallas Page are just a few of the people I can think of that were successful outside of WWE, came to WWE and were either saddled with bad storylines or saw their characters suffer because of Vince’s ideas.

As for the latter, what a lot of us forget is that the available pool of big league talent isn’t as concentrated in the indys as it is in WWE and a guy that is on top in Ring of Honor or TNA, will likely be a mid-carder in WWE. It doesn’t mean that WWE doesn’t recognize their greatness, it means that WWE has a lot of super talented, top tier and it’s inevitable that not everyone who was a big name in the indys is going to have quite the same success in WWE.

One more…myth that I keep hearing involves Madison Square Garden. People seem to view New Japan running MSG and that fact that Ring of Honor is going to be running it during WrestleMania weekend as a sign that WWE’s grip is slipping. Spoiler Alert: It’s not. WWE has a clause in their agreement with Madison Square Garden that states that WWE has the right to tell Madison Square Garden that they don’t want another wrestling promotion doing a show at the Garden. New Japan and Ring of Honor running shows there doesn’t mean that WWE is in trouble, it means that WWE isn’t telling MSG ‘No’. In essence, WWE is LETTING New Japan and Ring of Honor run Madison Square Garden. It also has not raised a stink over other host cities letting indy promotions have shows during WrestleMania weekend, a trend that has  increasingly popped up over the years. If Vince was so afraid of competition, he would’ve raised more of a stink than he has.

I’m not saying that WWE hasn’t been guilty of doing underhanded things to rival promotions in the past, because it certainly has, the cable wars of the late 80s between WWF and WCW over PPVs is a prime example. However, the idea that Vince fears competition is ridiculous, as is the idea that he’s trying to kill off indy promotions by signing their talent. No one is making the talent sign with WWE, they’re going because the money is better and they have a chance to be seen by a wider audience of fans. You don’t have to like it, but stop trying to turn WWE into the bad guy. Be happy that your faves are getting a chance to show their greatness and make a better living and if them signing with WWE makes you decide to not be a fan of theirs anymore, maybe the problem is you.

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