Mid 20th Century
114-581: Ryback Allen Reeves (born Ryan Allen Reeves ; November 10, 1981) is an American former professional wrestler and YouTuber . He is best known for his tenure with WWE , where he performed under the ring name Ryback . One of the eight finalists on Tough Enough 4 , Reeves later signed a developmental contract with WWE and performed under the ring names Ryback and Skip Sheffield in its developmental territories Deep South Wrestling (DSW), Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW), and Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW). In 2010, as Skip Sheffield, he participated in
228-598: A Bench Press Challenge on the March 29 SmackDown , where Ryback tied Henry at 53 reps after Henry choked him with the weight. On April 7 at WrestleMania 29 , Ryback was defeated by Henry in a singles match. The following night on Raw , Ryback saved WWE Champion John Cena from assault by Mark Henry before attacking Cena as well, turning heel in the process. The following week on Raw , Ryback explained his attack on Cena as stepping out from his shadow and getting revenge for Cena not having his back against The Shield; before Ryback got
342-435: A bona fide athletic contest or competition. Professional wrestling is not a combative sport. Wrestling constituting bona fide athletic contests and competitions, which may be professional or amateur combative sport, shall not be deemed professional wrestling under this Part. Professional wrestling as used in this Part shall not depend on whether the individual wrestlers are paid or have been paid for their performance in
456-441: A concussion from a stiff clothesline by Reeves in a January 2014 match, with Johnson reporting that this damaged Reeves's reputation among peers along with ongoing complaints of his recklessness – a reason why his recent pushes were aborted. In November 2014, CM Punk labelled Reeves as a "steroid guy" and said that wrestling him "took 20 years off" his life, while also claiming that Reeves purposely broke his ribs. Reeves denied
570-415: A performing art evolved from the common practice of match-fixing among American wrestlers in the 19th century, who later sought to make matches shorter, more entertaining, and less physically taxing. As the public gradually realized and accepted that matches were predetermined, wrestlers responded by increasingly adding melodrama, gimmickry, and outlandish stunt work to their performances to further enhance
684-760: A professional wrestler , mixed martial artist , or boxer whose real name is considered unattractive, dull, difficult to pronounce or spell, amusing for the wrong reasons, or projecting the wrong image. Since the advent of the Internet , it is relatively easy to discover a fighter's real name. Ring names are much more common in professional wrestling than any other sport; famous examples include Terry Bollea becoming Hulk Hogan , Michael Shawn Hickenbottom becoming Shawn Michaels , Roderick Toombs becoming Roddy Piper , Dwayne Johnson becoming The Rock , Christopher Irvine becoming Chris Jericho , and Phillip Jack Brooks becoming CM Punk . A number of wrestlers adopted their real name or
798-415: A professional wrestling exhibition. All engagements of professional wrestling shall be referred to as exhibitions, and not as matches. In the industry's slang, a fixed match is referred to as a worked match, derived from the slang word for manipulation, as in "working the crowd". A shoot match is a genuine contest where both wrestlers fight to win and are therefore "straight shooters", which comes from
912-531: A 19-man battle royal at Battleground , but neither Ryback or Axel managed to win. On August 26, 2014, Ryback underwent hernia surgery. After a two-month injury, Ryback returned on the October 27 episode of Raw , returning to his old "Feed Me More" gimmick by defeating Bo Dallas , turning face in the process. Ryback would later end his association with Axel on the November 6 episode of Superstars . Four days later on
1026-413: A background in authentic wrestling no longer mattered. After this time, matches became more outlandish and gimmicky and any semblance professional wrestling had to catch wrestling faded. The personas of the wrestlers likewise grew more outlandish. Gorgeous George , who performed throughout the 1940s and 1950s, was the first wrestler whose entrance into the arena was accompanied by a theme song played over
1140-520: A carny term for a shooting gallery gun whose sights were not deliberately misaligned. Wrestling in the United States blossomed in popularity after the Civil War , with catch wrestling eventually becoming the most popular style. At first, professional wrestlers were genuine competitive fighters, but they struggled to draw audiences because Americans did not find real wrestling to be very entertaining, so
1254-513: A central authority. Nor could any of them stomach the idea of leaving the NWA themselves to compete directly with McMahon, for that would mean their territories would become fair game for the other NWA members. McMahon also had a creative flair for TV that his rivals lacked. For instance, the AWA's TV productions during the 1980s were amateurish, low-budget, and out-of-touch with contemporary culture, which lead to
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#17328864987591368-574: A champion that Curley put forth: Dick Shikat . The National Wrestling Association shut down in 1980. In 1948, a number of promoters from across the country came together to form the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). The NWA recognized one "world champion", voted on by its members, but allowed member promoters to crown their own local champions in their territories. If a member poached wrestlers from another member, or held matches in another member's territory, they risked being ejected from
1482-420: A degree. Vince Russo, the boss of WCW in 2000, completely disregarded kayfabe by routinely discussing business matters and office politics in public, which alienated fans. I watch championship wrestling from Florida with wrestling commentator Gordon Solie . Is this all "fake"? If so, they deserve an Oscar . Ring name A ring name is a type of stage name or nickname used by an athlete such as
1596-404: A distinct vernacular . It has achieved mainstream success and influence within popular culture , with many terms, tropes , and concepts being referenced in everyday language as well as in film , music , television , and video games . Likewise, numerous professional wrestlers have become national or international icons with recognition by the broader public. In the United States, wrestling
1710-410: A fee, a visitor could challenge the wrestler to a quick match. If the challenger defeated the champion in a short time frame, usually 15 minutes, he won a prize. To encourage challenges, the carnival operators staged rigged matches in which an accomplice posing as a visitor challenged the champion and won, giving the audience the impression that the champion was easy to beat. This practice taught wrestlers
1824-453: A feud with Mark Henry after several non-verbal confrontations led to them attacking Drew McIntyre with their finishing moves in an attempt to one-up each other. On the March 15 episode of SmackDown , Ryback defeated Henry by disqualification following interference from The Shield. Afterwards, Henry delivered the World's Strongest Slam to Ryback three times in a row. Ryback and Henry competed in
1938-462: A few others, their real name. One notable exception was made for David Otunga because of his real marriage to singer Jennifer Hudson at the time, which gave WWE some mainstream exposure. Low Ki used the alias "Senshi" during his second TNA stint to reserve his primary ring name for other use. A similar example is the team known as The Dudley Boyz in ECW and WWE and Team 3D elsewhere. WWE trademarked
2052-405: A legitimate sport. Firstly, wrestling was more entertaining when it was faked, whereas fakery did not make boxing any more entertaining. Secondly, in a rigged boxing match, the designated loser must take a real beating for his "defeat" to be convincing, but wrestling holds can be faked convincingly without inflicting injury. This meant that boxers were less willing to "take dives"; they wanted to have
2166-754: A match against Gus Sonnenberg in January 1929. Bowser then broke away from the trust to form his own cartel, the American Wrestling Association (AWA), in September 1930, and he declared Sonnenberg to be the AWA champion. This AWA should not be confused with Wally Kadbo's AWA founded in 1960. Curley reacted to this move by convincing the National Boxing Association to form the National Wrestling Association , which in turn crowned
2280-602: A match between the two at TLC , where Ryback was defeated by Rusev by technical knockout. On January 24, 2016, Ryback competed in the Royal Rumble match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship as the ninth entrant, but was eliminated by Big Show. On the February 4 episode of SmackDown , Ryback debuted a new look, abandoning his singlet and now sporting black trunks, where he defeated Erick Rowan , but
2394-548: A measure of revenge later that night, by allowing the Shield to attack Cena. After becoming the number one contender for the WWE Championship, Ryback continued his feud with Cena by attacking him on several occasions while also having confrontations with The Shield. Ryback received his title opportunity in a Last Man Standing match on May 19 at Extreme Rules . The match ended in a no contest after Ryback rammed Cena and himself into
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#17328864987592508-424: A more literal meaning in those places. A notable example is India's Pro Wrestling League . In numerous American states, professional wrestling is legally defined as a non-sport. For instance, New York defines professional wrestling as: Professional wrestling means an activity in which participants struggle hand-in-hand primarily for the purpose of providing entertainment to spectators and which does not comprise
2622-440: A new city, attendance was high because there was a waiting fanbase cultivated in advance by the cable TV shows. The NWA's traditional anti-competitive tricks were no match for this. The NWA attempted to centralize and create their own national cable television shows to counter McMahon's rogue promotion, but it failed in part because the members of the NWA, ever protective of their territories, could not stomach submitting themselves to
2736-497: A new gimmick, where he began bullying various backstage workers. Also as part of the gimmick, Ryback would back away from fighting opponents of equal size and taking advantage of smaller and vulnerable opponents. On September 15 at Night of Champions , Ryback aligned himself with Paul Heyman after helping him defeat CM Punk . Despite being a bully himself, Ryback claimed he hated bullies and vowed to stop CM Punk and anyone else who acted as such. On October 6 at Battleground , Ryback
2850-473: A non-title match to earn a shot at the titles. RybAxel received their title shot on December 15 at TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs , but were defeated by Cody Rhodes and Goldust in a four-way elimination match, also involving Big Show and Rey Mysterio and The Real Americans ( Antonio Cesaro and Jack Swagger ). RybAxel received another shot at the WWE Tag Team Championship on April 6, 2014, on
2964-519: A professional wrestler, Reeves began lifting weights at 12 years old and was nicknamed "Silverback" as a teenager after a friend joked that he resembled a gorilla, later adopting part of it as his name. He excelled at baseball and football while attending Western High School and Palo Verde High School . He also played baseball during his freshman year at the Community College of Southern Nevada , but broke his leg and missed two seasons. He attended
3078-656: A second test. His case was later placed on the CNN documentary Death Grip: Inside Pro Wrestling . After over a year's absence, Reeves returned to OVW under the ring name Ryback and won the OVW Heavyweight Championship on October 15, 2008, before losing it in the same month. Soon after the title loss, Reeves was then re-signed to a developmental contract with WWE. From late 2008 to early 2010, Reeves wrestled in Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW) under
3192-609: A six-man tag team match against Rollins, Big Show and Kane, but lost. Ryback participated in the André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania 31 , but was eliminated by the eventual winner, Big Show. On the Raw following Extreme Rules , Ryback was attacked by Bray Wyatt (who sent a series of mysterious promos aimed at Ryback weeks prior), leading to a match at Payback , which Ryback lost. At Elimination Chamber , Ryback won
3306-497: A typical American household only received four national channels by antenna, and ten to twelve local channels via UHF broadcasting . But cable television could carry a much larger selection of channels and therefore had room for niche interests. The WWF started with a show called All-American Wrestling airing on the USA Network in September 1983. McMahon's TV shows made his wrestlers national celebrities, so when he held matches in
3420-751: A variation of it, sometimes modifying the spelling to better fit their gimmick , such as Dave Bautista becoming Batista (later reverting to his real name for his Hollywood acting career), Patricia Stratigeas becoming Trish Stratus , Jonathan Good becoming Jon Moxley , Bryan Danielson becoming Daniel Bryan (when he wrestled in WWE), Richard Fliehr becoming Ric Flair and Randall Poffo becoming Randy Savage . Others simply use part of their name, such as Bill Goldberg using Goldberg , Nicole Garcia-Colace using Nikki Bella , Mike Mizanin using The Miz , Cody Runnels using Cody Rhodes , and Michael Wardlow using Wardlow . Many female wrestlers go solely by their first name such as. It
3534-575: A victory for all the pain to which they subjected themselves. In the 1910s, promotional cartels for professional wrestling emerged in the East Coast (outside its traditional heartland in the Midwest ). These promoters sought to make long-term plans with their wrestlers, and to ensure their more charismatic and crowd-pleasing wrestlers received championships, further entrenching the desire for worked matches. The primary rationale for shoot matches at this point
Ryback - Misplaced Pages Continue
3648-622: A year until December 2011. Reeves returned to television on the April 6, 2012, episode of WWE SmackDown , under the Ryback ring name as a face . He would embark on a thirty eight-match winning streak until his match against CM Punk for the WWE Championship Hell in a Cell in October 2012 , where he lost after a controversial pin by referee Brad Maddox . He failed to capture the title twice more from Punk, first at Survivor Series , and then on
3762-436: Is a form of athletic theater that combines mock combat with drama , with the premise that the performers are competitive wrestlers. Professional wrestling is distinguished by its scripted outcomes and emphasis on entertainment and showmanship . The staged nature of matches is an open secret , with both wrestlers and spectators nonetheless maintaining the pretense that performances are bona fide competitions, which
3876-637: Is a highly respected tradition in Mexican lucha libre for performers to hide their true identities, usually wrestling under masks, and revealing a luchador's identity without their permission is considered a serious offence with real-life consequences. Professional wrestlers are often referred to by their contemporaries by their ring name. In interviews, Bret Hart regularly referred to Mark Calaway, Curt Hennig, and Kevin Nash by their ring names ( The Undertaker , Mr. Perfect , and Diesel ). Ring names are often trademarked by
3990-410: Is a true sport. Wrestlers would at all times flatly deny allegations that they fixed their matches, and they often remained in-character in public even when not performing. When in public, wrestlers would sometimes say the word kayfabe to each other as a coded signal that there were fans present and they needed to be in character. Professional wrestlers in the past strongly believed that if they admitted
4104-448: Is also common for wrestlers of all genders to use a nickname in addition to their real name for marketability and other reasons. Ricky Steamboat is an atypical instance of a wrestler adopting a ring name to sound less intimidating, as his legal name of Richard Blood was considered unfitting for his babyface persona. Some (mostly independent ) wrestlers still go to great lengths to ensure that their real names are not publicly known. It
4218-427: Is generally practiced in an amateur context. No professional league for competitive wrestling exists due to a lack of popularity. For example, Real Pro Wrestling , an American professional freestyle wrestling league, dissolved in 2007 after just two seasons. In other countries, such as Iran and India , wrestling enjoys widespread popularity as a genuine sport, and the phrase "professional wrestling" therefore has
4332-470: Is likened to the suspension of disbelief employed when engaging with fiction . Professional wrestlers perform as characters and usually maintain a " gimmick " consisting of a specific persona , stage name , entrance theme , and other distinguishing traits. Matches are the primary vehicle for advancing storylines, which typically center on interpersonal conflicts, or feuds , between heroic " faces " and villainous " heels ". A wrestling ring , akin to
4446-609: The New Jersey State Athletic Control Board that professional wrestling is not a real sport because its matches have predetermined outcomes. Shortly thereafter, New Jersey deregulated professional wrestling. The WWF then rebranded itself as a " sports entertainment " company. In the early years of the 20th century, the style of wrestling used in professional wrestling matches was catch wrestling . Promoters wanted their matches to look realistic and so preferred to recruit wrestlers with real grappling skills. In
4560-492: The University of Nevada, Las Vegas , entering its fitness management program. Reeves sent a brief one-minute videotape of himself to become a contestant on WWE's reality television series, $ 1,000,000 Tough Enough , and was invited to Venice Beach with 49 others. During the first week of training, Reeves suffered from bronchitis and a rib injury . He eventually became one of the eight finalists to appear on SmackDown! and
4674-543: The WrestleMania XXX pre-show, but were defeated by defending champions The Usos in a fatal four-way elimination match, which also included Los Matadores and The Real Americans. At Payback , RybAxel defeated Cody Rhodes and Goldust in a tag team match. At Money in the Bank , RybAxel lost to Gold and Stardust . On July 2, it was announced that Ryback and Axel would be competing for the vacant Intercontinental Championship in
Ryback - Misplaced Pages Continue
4788-471: The first season of NXT , joined WWE's main roster as a member of The Nexus , and headlined SummerSlam before being sidelined by an injury. He returned under the Ryback ring name in 2012, going on to headline multiple pay-per view events (usually as a contender for the WWE Championship ) in 2012-13 and following this until leaving becoming a one-time WWE Intercontinental Champion and competed in
4902-543: The independent circuit , to internationally broadcast events at major arenas. The largest and most influential promotions are in the United States , Mexico , Japan , and northwest Europe (the United Kingdom , Germany/Austria and France ), which have each developed distinct styles, traditions, and subgenres within professional wrestling. Professional wrestling has developed its own culture and community , including
5016-482: The promotion that creates a character or gimmick for a performer. It is common to see one performer use a variety of ring names throughout their career, even if their overall persona remains similar. This is especially true in WWE , which has largely forced most wrestlers that have debuted since 2006 to use a WWE-owned ring name instead of a ring name that they used on the independent circuit or, such as with Daniel Bryan and
5130-431: The spectacle . By at least the early 20th century, professional wrestling had diverged from the competitive sport to become an artform and genre of sports entertainment . Professional wrestling is performed around the world through various " promotions ", which are roughly analogous to production companies or sports leagues . Promotions vary considerably in size, scope, and creative approach, ranging from local shows on
5244-485: The " Most Overrated " wrestler in the publication's 2012 awards, and WWE live crowds went on to chant "You can't wrestle" at Reeves in 2013. On the other hand, Jon Piermarini felt that Reeves had the potential to be successful under a new gimmick , stating: "I see a lot of good qualities and I see someone who can talk, I see someone that could be different and stand out... I think that there's something there". According to Mike Johnson of PWInsider , Dolph Ziggler received
5358-728: The "Dudley Boyz" name, leading them to have to change their name when they went to TNA. The members' individual names were also trademarked by WWE, forcing them to have to change their names. WWE partially repealed the policy in 2015, allowing wrestlers who were well known in other promotions such as Samoa Joe , A.J. Styles , Shinsuke Nakamura , Austin Aries , Bobby Roode , and Eric Young to use their long-standing ring names (or, in Nakamura's and Roode's cases, their real names) as well as wrestlers who sign "Tier 2" NXT brand contracts such as Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa , who wrestle both on NXT and
5472-441: The 16-man tournament to crown the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion , but he would lose to Kalisto in the first round. At Survivor Series , Ryback participated in a five-on-five elimination tag team match, teaming with The Usos and The Lucha Dragons to defeat The New Day , Sheamus and King Barrett. In December, Ryback started a feud with Rusev after interrupting Rusev and the returning Lana on Miz TV , which would lead to
5586-577: The 1920s, a group of wrestlers and promoters known as the Gold Dust Trio introduced moves which have since become staples of the mock combat of professional wrestling, such as body slams, suplexes , punches, finishing moves, and out-of-ring count-outs. By the early 1930s, most wrestlers had adopted personas to generate public interest. These personas could broadly be characterized as either faces (likeable) or heels (villainous). Native Americans, cowboys, and English aristocrats were staple characters in
5700-400: The 1930s and 1940s. Before the age of television, some wrestlers played different personas depending on the region they were performing in. This eventually came to an end in the age of national television wrestling shows, which forced wrestlers to stick to one persona. Wrestlers also often used some sort of gimmick, such as a finishing move, eccentric mannerisms, or out-of-control behavior (in
5814-506: The 1990s, WCW became a credible rival to the WWF, but by end it suffered from a series of creative missteps that led to its failure and purchase by the WWF. One of its mistakes was that it diminished the glamor of its World Heavyweight Championship . Between January 2000 and March 2001, the title changed hands eighteen times, which sapped fan enthusiasm, particularly for the climactic pay-per-view matches. In professional wrestling, two factors decide
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#17328864987595928-641: The Atlantic Athletic Corporation (AAC). The AAC shut down in 1960. In 1958, Omaha promoter and NWA member Joe Dusek recognized Verne Gagne as the world champion without the approval of the NWA. Gagne asked for a match against the recognized NWA champion Pat O'Connor. The NWA refused to honor the request, so Gagne and Minneapolis promoter Wally Karbo established the American Wrestling Association in 1960. This AWA should not be confused with Paul Bowser's AWA, which ceased operations just two months prior. Gagne's AWA operated out of Minnesota . Unlike
6042-498: The August 31 episode of Raw , where he pinned Show after a distraction from The Miz, ending the feud. On the September 11 episode of SmackDown , Kevin Owens , who was one of the lumberjacks, cost him a win against Seth Rollins. Three days later on the September 14 episode of Raw , it was announced that he would face Owens at Night of Champions for his Intercontinental Championship. Owens won
6156-469: The Bank , Big Show defeated Ryback by disqualification after Miz attacked him; Ryback retained the title as a result. Ryback was scheduled to defend the title against Big Show and Miz in a triple threat match at Battleground , but the match was postponed after Ryback developed a staph infection in his knee; the match was rescheduled for SummerSlam , where Ryback pinned The Miz to retain the title. Ryback once again defended his championship against Big Show on
6270-448: The February 4 Raw , when he teamed up with John Cena and Sheamus to attack the stable. This culminated in a six-man tag team match on February 17 at Elimination Chamber , where The Shield emerged victorious when Seth Rollins pinned Ryback for the win following a Spear from Roman Reigns. The following night on Raw , Ryback and Sheamus teamed up with Chris Jericho to face The Shield in a rematch, but were again defeated. Ryback then began
6384-454: The January 5 episode of Raw as punishment for insubordination, but they were re-hired after Cena defeated Rollins, Kane and Big Show in a handicap match due to the distraction caused by Sting , on the January 19 episode of Raw . On the January 22 episode of SmackDown , Ryback defeated Rusev via count-out to earn a spot in the Royal Rumble match, where he was eliminated by Big Show and Kane. At Fastlane , he teamed with Rowan and Ziggler in
6498-399: The January 7, 2013 episode of Raw , both times being interfered and attacked by The Shield ( Dean Ambrose , Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins ). On January 27 at the Royal Rumble , Ryback entered the Royal Rumble match as the thirtieth and final entrant and eliminated five superstars before being the last man eliminated by John Cena. Ryback would then resume his rivalry with The Shield on
6612-408: The NWA, at which point his territory became fair game for everyone. The NWA would blacklist wrestlers who worked for independent promoters or who publicly criticized an NWA promoter or who did not throw a match on command. If an independent promoter tried to establish himself in a certain area, the NWA would send their star performers to perform for the local NWA promoter to draw the customers away from
6726-477: The NWA, which only allowed faces to be champions, Gagne occasionally allowed heels to win the AWA championship so that they could serve as foils for him. In August 1983, the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), a promotion in the north-east , withdrew from the NWA. Vince K. McMahon then took over as its boss. No longer bound by the territorial pact of the NWA, McMahon began expanding his promotion into
6840-643: The November 10 episode of Raw , Ryback appeared to join Team Authority for Survivor Series after attacking John Cena, but attacked his supposed teammates after they interfered in his match against Cena, joining Team Cena the following week. Ryback was eliminated by Rusev , but Team Cena won the match, putting The Authority out of power. Ryback defeated Team Authority member Kane in a Chairs match at TLC . After Seth Rollins coaxed Cena to bring The Authority back into power, Ryback, along with Erick Rowan and Dolph Ziggler , were ( kayfabe ) fired by Triple H on
6954-498: The alliance between Ryback and Heyman came to an end when Heyman verbally berated him. On November 24 at Survivor Series , Ryback was defeated by the returning Mark Henry after he answered Ryback's open challenge. Ryback then began a tag team with fellow former Paul Heyman Guy Curtis Axel collectively labelled as " RybAxel ", and on the December 6 episode of SmackDown , they defeated WWE Tag Team Champions Cody Rhodes and Goldust in
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#17328864987597068-452: The announcing team before dismantling the ring area and surrounding equipment. The group, named The Nexus , would continue feuding with Cena over the following weeks. This resulted in a seven-on-seven elimination tag team match at the 2010 SummerSlam , where The Nexus lost to Team WWE led by Cena. In August, Reeves broke his ankle in three places during a match, which made him undergo three surgeries and kept him away from wrestling for over
7182-401: The arena's loudspeakers, his being Pomp and Circumstance . He also wore a costume: a robe and hairnet, which he removed after getting in the ring. He also had a pre-match ritual where his "butler" would spray the ring with perfume. In the 1980s, Vince McMahon made entrance songs, costumes, and rituals standard for his star wrestlers. For instance, McMahon's top star Hulk Hogan would delight
7296-418: The art of staging rigged matches and fostered a mentality that spectators were marks to be duped. The term kayfabe comes from carny slang. By the turn of the 20th century, most professional wrestling matches were "worked" and some journalists exposed the practice: American wrestlers are notorious for the amount of faking they do. It is because of this fact that suspicion attaches to so many bouts that
7410-550: The audience by tearing his shirt off before each match. The first major promoter cartel emerged on the East Coast, although up to that point, wrestling's heartland had been in the Midwest. Notable members of this cartel included Jack Curley , Lou Daro, Paul Bowser and Tom and Tony Packs. The promoters colluded to solve a number of problems that hurt their profits. Firstly, they could force their wrestlers to perform for less money. As
7524-424: The cartel grew, there were fewer independent promoters where independent wrestlers could find work, and many were forced to sign a contract with the cartel to receive steady work. The contracts forbade them from performing at independent venues. A wrestler who refused to play by the cartel's rules was barred from performing at its venues. A second goal of the wrestling cartels was to establish an authority to decide who
7638-418: The case of heels). The matches could also be gimmicky sometimes, with wrestlers fighting in mud and piles of tomatoes and so forth. The most successful and enduring gimmick to emerge from the 1930s were tag-team matches. Promoters noticed that matches slowed down as the wrestlers in the ring tired, so they gave them partners to relieve them. It also gave heels another way to misbehave by double-teaming. Towards
7752-423: The character in shows must be considered fictional, wholly separate from the life of the performer. This is similar to other entertainers who perform with a persona that shares their own name. Some wrestlers also incorporate elements of their real-life personalities into their characters, even if they and their in-ring persona have different names. Kayfabe is the practice of pretending that professional wrestling
7866-508: The commission. The Commission did on very rare occasions hand out such authorizations, such as for a championship match between Jim Londos and Jim Browning in June 1934. This decree did not apply to amateur wrestling, which the commission had no authority over. Wrestling fans widely suspected that professional wrestling was fake, but they did not care as long as it entertained. In 1933, a wrestling promoter named Jack Pfefer started talking about
7980-692: The creative staff were doing "essentially the exact same thing they did with the character when it did not work or catch on the first time" and would only continue to get Goldberg's character over as Ryback. Reeves has garnered praise from peers such as Wade Barrett , who called himself "a huge fan of Ryback". WWE Hall of Famer Mick Foley said Ryback "had been doing a great job" in his solo promos , and that Ryback's first verbal interaction opposite Foley in 2013 "went really well". Reeves's in-ring work as Ryback has been criticized by some writers and fans since 2012, when IGN reporter Matt Fowler described Reeves as " green ", "unsafe", and lacking in stamina. This
8094-540: The current fashion of wrestling is the universal discussion as to the honesty of the matches. And certainly the most interesting phrase of this discussion is the unanimous agreement: "Who cares if they're fixed or not—the show is good." Newspapers tended to shun professional wrestling, as journalists saw its theatrical pretense to being a legitimate sport as untruthful. Eventually promoters resorted to publishing their own magazines in order to get press coverage and communicate with fans. The first professional wrestling magazine
8208-576: The decision to go home, citing a lack of equal pay for talent and creative frustration as primary reasons for his departure. On August 5, Reeves announced via Instagram that he and WWE had parted ways, though he was not officially released until August 8. Immediately after his WWE departure, Ryback began taking independent bookings. He wrestled between August 2016 and August 2018. The Ryback character has been described as " Goldberg meets The Ultimate Warrior meets Rob Van Dam 's tights". Owing to similarities between him and Goldberg (the latter of whom
8322-466: The electric backdrop at the top of the ramp. The following night on Raw , Ryback entered the arena in an ambulance and challenged Cena to an ambulance match for the WWE Championship at the first-ever Payback pay-per-view. The following week on the May 27 episode of Raw , Cena accepted Ryback's challenge, but announced their match would instead be a 3 Stages of Hell match ; the first fall a lumberjack match ,
8436-405: The end of the 1930s, faced with declining revenues, promoters chose to focus on grooming charismatic wrestlers with no regard for their skill because it was charisma that drew the crowds, and wrestlers who were both skilled at grappling and charismatic were hard to come by. Since most of the public by this time knew and accepted that professional wrestling was fake, realism was no longer paramount and
8550-597: The facade of kayfabe as best as they could. In 1989, Vince McMahon testified before the New Jersey government that professional wrestling was not a true sport and therefore should be exempted from sports-related taxes. Many wrestlers and fans resented McMahon for this, but Lou Thesz accepted it as the smart move as it gave the industry more freedom to do as it pleased, and because by that point professional wrestling no longer attempted to appear real. The demise of WCW in 2001 provided some evidence that kayfabe still mattered to
8664-470: The first place. "Double-crosses", where a wrestler agreed to lose a match but nevertheless fought to win, remained a problem in the early cartel days. At times a promoter would even award a victorious double-crosser the title of champion to preserve the facade of sport. But promoters punished such wrestlers by blacklisting them, making it quite challenging to find work. Double-crossers could also be sued for breach of contract, such as Dick Shikat in 1936. In
8778-610: The game is not popular here. Nine out of ten bouts, it has been said, are pre-arranged affairs, and it would be no surprise if the ratio of fixed matches to honest ones was really so high. The wrestler Lou Thesz recalled that between 1915 and 1920, a series of exposés in the newspapers about the integrity of professional wrestling alienated a lot of fans, sending the industry "into a tailspin". But rather than perform more shoot matches, professional wrestlers instead committed themselves wholesale to fakery. Several reasons explain why professional wrestling became fake whereas boxing endured as
8892-455: The government. They pledged to stop allocating exclusive territories to its promoters, to stop blacklisting wrestlers who worked for outsider promoters, and to admit any promoter into the Alliance. The NWA would flout many of these promises, but its power was nonetheless weakened by the lawsuit. Paul Bowser's AWA joined the NWA in 1949. The AWA withdrew from the Alliance in 1957 and renamed itself
9006-477: The independent circuit to keep their ring names (or, in Gargano's case, his real name). Gargano and Ciampa have since signed exclusive WWE contracts. "In-house" WWE wrestlers still use WWE-owned ring names. In rare cases, the rights to a wrestler's ring name may be owned by a company with little or no connection to professional wrestling, such as Marvel Comics ' ownership of the name Hulk Hogan until early 2003, which
9120-513: The independent. By 1956, the NWA controlled 38 promotions within the United States, with more in Canada, Mexico, Australia and New Zealand. The NWA's monopolistic practices became so stifling that the independents appealed to the government for help. In October 1956 the US Attorney General's office filed an antitrust lawsuit against the NWA in an Iowa federal district court. The NWA settled with
9234-471: The industry was anything but a competitive sport. The first wrestling promoter to publicly admit to routinely fixing matches was Jack Pfefer . In 1933, he started talking about the industry's inner workings to the New York Daily Mirror , resulting in a huge exposé. The exposé neither surprised nor alienated most wrestling fans, although some promoters like Jack Curley were furious and tried to restore
9348-487: The industry's inner workings to the New York Daily Mirror , maintaining no pretense that wrestling was real and passing on planned results just before the matches took place. While fans were neither surprised nor alienated, traditionalists like Jack Curley were furious, and most promoters tried to maintain the facade of kayfabe as best they could. Not the least interesting of all the minor phenomena produced by
9462-556: The last to be voted off. Even though he did not win the competition, Reeves impressed WWE officials enough for them to sign him to a developmental contract. He spent time healing from his injuries in Las Vegas before heading to Atlanta, Georgia in March 2005. After training in Deep South Wrestling (DSW) for most of 2005 and early 2006, Reeves was transferred over to Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) in early March. In July 2006, Reeves
9576-410: The match by pinfall after he raked Ryback's eyes, ending his reign at 112 days. After initially failing to regain the title using his rematch clause after Owens proceeded to get himself counted out, Ryback defeated Rusev to earn another opportunity at Hell in a Cell , where Ryback failed to regain the championship from Owens, ending the feud. On the November 12 episode of SmackDown , Ryback would enter
9690-498: The members of wrestling cartels as the champion drew big crowds wherever he performed, and this would occasionally lead to schisms. By 1925, this cartel had divided the country up into territories which were the exclusive domains of specific promoters. This system of territories endured until Vince McMahon drove the fragmented cartels out of the market in the 1980s. This cartel fractured in 1929 after one of its members, Paul Bowser , bribed Ed "Strangler" Lewis to lose his championship in
9804-474: The notion that he is a hazardous wrestler, and claimed that he would not be placed in matches with top WWE stars if he were as unsafe as some have claimed. Veteran wrestler Chris Jericho also dismissed the allegations of dangerous in-ring performance directed at Reeves, saying: "Having worked with [him], I've never seen those types of things... it was always fun". Former WWE producer Arn Anderson said he never "had an issue working with him on matches or anything. He
9918-437: The platform used in boxing , serves as the main stage ; additional scenes may be recorded for television in backstage areas of the venue, in a format similar to reality television . Performers generally integrate authentic wrestling techniques and fighting styles with choreography , stunts , improvisation , and dramatic conventions designed to maximize entertainment value and audience engagement. Professional wrestling as
10032-714: The promotion's closing in 1991. In the spring of 1984, the WWF purchased Georgia Championship Wrestling (GCW), which had been ailing for some time due to financial mismanagement and internal squabbles. In the deal, the WWF acquired the GCW's timeslot on TBS . McMahon agreed to keep showing Georgia wrestling matches in that timeslot, but he was unable to get his staff to Atlanta every Saturday to fulfill this obligation, so he sold GCW and its TBS timeslot to Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP). JCP started informally calling itself World Championship Wrestling (WCW). In 1988, Ted Turner bought JCP and formally renamed it World Championship Wrestling. During
10146-408: The ring name Ryback and later Skip Sheffield. On February 16, 2010, Sheffield was announced as one of eight FCW contestants to take part in the first season of WWE's new NXT show, where he finished sixth. On the June 7 episode of WWE Raw , Sheffield and the seven other NXT participants interfered in the main event match between John Cena and CM Punk , attacking both competitors as well as
10260-402: The second a tables match , and the third an ambulance match. On June 16 at Payback, Ryback won the lumberjack match, but went on to lose both the tables and ambulance matches and his shot at the WWE Championship, to end the feud. Ryback then began feuding with Chris Jericho, which led to a singles match on July 14 at Money in the Bank , where Ryback emerged victorious. In August, Ryback debuted
10374-440: The stamina for an hours-long fight. Audiences also preferred short matches. Worked matches also carried less risk of injury, which meant shorter recovery. Altogether, worked matches proved more profitable than shoots. By the end of the 19th century, nearly all professional wrestling matches were worked. A major influence on professional wrestling was carnival culture. Wrestlers in the late 19th century worked in carnival shows. For
10488-468: The tag team division with Curtis Axel before being released in 2016. He would compete on the independent circuit for the next two years. Ryback Allen Reeves was born Ryan Allen Reeves in Las Vegas on November 10, 1981. He started watching professional wrestling at the age of eight, and was a guest bell ringer at a live World Wrestling Federation (WWF, later WWE) event at the age of 13. Wanting to become
10602-426: The territories of his former NWA peers, now his rivals. By the end of the 1980s, the WWF would become the sole national wrestling promotion in the U.S. This was in part made possible by the rapid spread of cable television in the 1980s. The national broadcast networks generally regarded professional wrestling as too niche an interest, and had not broadcast any national wrestling shows since the 1950s. Before cable TV,
10716-505: The trial, witnesses testified that most of the "big matches" and all of the championship bouts were fixed. By the 1930s, with the exception of the occasional double-cross or business dispute, shoot matches were essentially nonexistent. In April 1930, the New York State Athletic Commission decreed that all professional wrestling matches held in the state had to be advertised as exhibitions unless certified as contests by
10830-471: The truth, their audiences would desert them. Today's performers don't "protect" the industry like we did, but that's primarily because they've already exposed it by relying on silly or downright ludicrous characters and gimmicks to gain popularity with the fans. It was different in my day, when our product was presented as an authentic, competitive sport. We protected it because we believed it would collapse if we ever so much as implied publicly that it
10944-451: The vacant Intercontinental Championship , his first professional wrestling championship in WWE, by defeating Sheamus , Dolph Ziggler, R-Truth , King Barrett and Mark Henry in an Elimination Chamber match . The following night, before Ryback was scheduled to make his first title defense against The Miz ; Big Show attacked Miz and confronted Ryback, starting a feud between the two. At Money in
11058-535: The way of proceedings: the "in-show" happenings, presented through the shows; and real-life happenings outside the work that have implications, such as performer contracts, legitimate injuries, etc. Because actual life events are often co-opted by writers for incorporation into storylines of performers, the lines between real life and fictional life are often blurred and become confused. Special discern must be taken with people who perform under their own name (such as Kurt Angle and his fictional persona ). The actions of
11172-464: The win, he earned another shot at Kalisto's United States Championship at the Payback pre-show, but was again defeated; this marked his final appearance in WWE. On May 2, it was reported that WWE had sent Ryback home from television due to a contract dispute, and he did not participate in the battle royal match for which he was scheduled. The following day, he explained on his Tumblr page that he had made
11286-409: The wrestler's gimmick changes, either subtly or dramatically. After debuting in WWE as the " Connecticut Blueblood " Hunter Hearst Helmsley, Paul Levesque's character later morphed into Triple H . A more drastic change sometimes occurs when a wrestler turns heroic or villainous , such as when Hulk Hogan joined the villainous nWo (New World Order) and became "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan. His new attitude
11400-420: The wrestlers quietly began faking their matches so that they could give their audiences a satisfying spectacle. Fixing matches was also convenient for scheduling. A real ("shoot") match could sometimes last hours, whereas a fixed ("worked") match can be made short, which was convenient for wrestlers on tour who needed to keep appointments or share venues. It also suited wrestlers who were aging and therefore lacked
11514-425: Was Wrestling As You Like It , which printed its first issue in 1946. These magazines were faithful to kayfabe . Before the advent of television, professional wrestling's fanbase largely consisted of children, the elderly, blue-collar workers and minorities. When television arose in the 1940s, professional wrestling got national exposure on prime-time television and gained widespread popularity. Professional wrestling
11628-488: Was after Reeves botched his Shell Shocked (a cradle suplex lifted and dropped into a running horizontal muscle buster ) finishing move multiple times on Tensai on the October 1 episode of Raw , which was described by an IB Times writer as "hard to watch". Reeves later attributed the error to sickness and improper technique on his part. Readers of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter voted Ryback
11742-591: Was always very, very easy to work with". Former World Champion Mark Henry said of Reeves's reputation: "A lot of his peers look at him as difficult. A lot of his peers looked at him as dangerous." He also expressed displeasure with Reeves "talk[ing] shit" about the industry (including once labelling it "fake"), which Henry said had drawn the ire of many other wrestlers besides himself. Professional wrestler 1970s and 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s and 2020s Professional wrestling (often referred to as pro wrestling , or simply, wrestling )
11856-415: Was attacked by The Wyatt Family . Ryback teamed up with Big Show and Kane , being billed as "the titans" of WWE, to defeat Wyatt Family members Erick Rowan, Luke Harper and Braun Strowman in a six-man tag team match at Fastlane , with Ryback pinning Harper for the victory. The next night on Raw , during a rematch between the two teams, Ryback walked out on Big Show and Kane, and later proclaimed that he
11970-488: Was challenges from independent wrestlers. But a cartelized wrestler, if challenged, could credibly use his contractual obligations to his promoter as an excuse to refuse the challenge. Promotions would sometimes respond to challenges with "policemen": powerful wrestlers who lacked the charisma to become stars, but could defeat and often seriously injure any challenger in a shoot match. As the industry trend continued, there were fewer independent wrestlers to make such challenges in
12084-473: Was defeated by Punk in a singles match following a low blow from Punk. On October 27 at Hell in a Cell , Ryback and Heyman were defeated by Punk in a 2-on-1 handicap Hell in a Cell match. The feud ended the following night on Raw , when Punk defeated Ryback in a Street Fight match after forcing him to submit to the Anaconda Vise , marking Ryback's first ever submission loss. On the November 11 episode of Raw ,
12198-596: Was due to Hogan being advertised as " The Incredible Hulk Hogan" early in his career, while Marvel owned the trademark for their comic book character. Sometimes, a wrestler will buy the rights to their own ring name; for example, Steve Borden owns the rights to the name Sting and licenses it to the musician of the same name . The wrestler formerly known as Test took this one step further and legally changed his name to "Andrew Test Martin". Jim Hellwig, known as The Ultimate Warrior , had his name legally changed to simply "Warrior". In many cases, ring names evolve over time as
12312-549: Was enhanced by changing his costume color scheme from his famous red and yellow to nWo's black and white. Steve Williams adopted the ring name Steve Austin to avoid confusion with the then-more established performer "Dr. Death" Steve Williams . Austin would wrestle under that name for several years before signing with the WWF and being given the name "the Ringmaster". This gimmick failed to catch on, and Austin reverted to his established name, reaching his greatest level of success with
12426-593: Was estranged from WWE at the time, due to his own failed stint with the company in 2003–2004), the portmanteau of "Ryberg" was devised for Reeves. In October 2012, after Reeves allegedly "stole" a move used by Goldberg during a match, Goldberg would respond by stating, "now comparisons offend me". Spectators at WWE events had been chanting "Goldberg" during Reeves' matches from 2012, which Reeves said "never bothered [him]". In response to podcast host and mixed martial artist Chael Sonnen 's confusion about Ryback's appeal in late 2014, former WWE writer Jon Piermarini noted that
12540-636: Was previously considered a niche interest, but the TV networks at the time were short on content and thus were willing to try some wrestling shows. In the 1960s, however, the networks moved on to more mainstream interests such as baseball, and professional wrestling was dropped. The core audience then shrunk back to a profile similar to that of the 1930s. In 1989, Vince McMahon was looking to exempt his promotion (the World Wrestling Federation ) from sports licensing fees. To achieve this, he testified before
12654-415: Was something other than what it appeared to be. I'm not sure now the fear was ever justified given the fact that the industry is still in existence today, but the point is no one questioned the need then. "Protecting the business" in the face of criticism and skepticism was the first and most important rule a pro wrestler learned. No matter how aggressive or informed the questioner, you never admitted
12768-407: Was suspended for 30 days due to failing a drug test as part of WWE's Wellness Program . According to Reeves, he had been taking several over the counter bodybuilding supplements , one of which caused a positive reading. The supplements he was using were later taken off the market due to this effect and, although his suspension remained in place, Reeves eventually returned to the roster after passing
12882-417: Was the "world champion". Before the cartels, there were multiple wrestlers in the U.S. simultaneously calling themselves the "world champion", and this sapped public enthusiasm for professional wrestling. Likewise, the cartel could agree on a common set of match rules that the fans could keep track of. The issue over who got to be the champion and who controlled said champion was a major point of contention among
12996-465: Was tired of being in tag team matches, turning heel for the first time since 2014. On the March 7 episode of Raw , Ryback confronted United States Champion Kalisto backstage, leading to a title match between the two on the WrestleMania 32 pre-show, which Ryback lost. In a non-title rematch between the two on the April 21 episode of SmackDown , Ryback defeated Kalisto to reignite their feud. With
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