At their PEAK, what was bigger competition to WWE...ECW, TNA, NWA or AEW

[Saysumthinfunnymike]

This guy says other posters are clueless and then proceeds to say Rhea/Charlotte was on it's way to being the GOAT women's feud The fukk...

 

[Jmare007]

But on the real...

• The NWA period was never a threat even with Starrcade in the 80s. It was a alternative but even Dusty and em read the writing on the wall.

False. They were a threat because Vince had to promote, lie and buy every single thing at his disposal to get traction outside of the core WWWF market. He took his time to attack AWA territory, he didn't really bothered with the south outside of Florida, he didn't even attempt to take over Memphis. He was also smart to take California and block JCP from having any success there.

The amount of effort, money and carny promoting that took Vince to keep JCP's influence to just the south and a few other towns was immense. And it's the type of work that you have to make when facing real competition.

It's not about JCP going national and actually becoming what WWF became. It was about WWF being able to secure the U.S and being able to become a national promotion. By the time JCP/NWA realized were business was actually going, they were already handicapped and Vince had the upper hand. But even in that scenario, it took years of heavy promoting, cheating and smart signings/booking to get to 87', when Dusty's magic began to fade as a booker.

 

[Saysumthinfunnymike]

False. They were a threat because Vince had to promote, lie and buy every single thing at his disposal to get traction outside of the core WWWF market. He took his time to attack AWA territory, he didn't really bothered with the south outside of Florida, he didn't even attempt to take over Memphis. He was also smart to take California and block JCP from having any success there.

The amount of effort, money and carny promoting that took Vince to keep JCP's influence to just the south and a few other towns was immense. And it's the type of work that you have to make when facing real competition.

It's not about JCP going national and actually becoming what WWF became. It was about WWF being able to secure the U.S and being able to become a national promotion. By the time JCP/NWA realized were business was actually going, they were already handicapped and Vince had the upper hand. But even in that scenario, it took years of heavy promoting, cheating and smart signings/booking to get to 87', when Dusty's magic began to fade as a booker.

Breh.... these dudes don't understand. These territories had their territories on LOCK... nobody in the south or midwest was giving a fukk about no WWWF shyt lol..

The local attendance and ratings in those markets were crazy and when wrestling ended up national on WTBS Vince was losing his fukking mind...

I wasn't around in the fukking early 80's either but I know the history of it... it's fascinating to read or listen to.

 

[Mʀ2ᴋDᴇᴇᴢ]

WCW/NWA and that's it. The rest could never pick up enough momentum to compete.

Agreed

 

[The Intergalactic Koala]

False. They were a threat because Vince had to promote, lie and buy every single thing at his disposal to get traction outside of the core WWWF market. He took his time to attack AWA territory, he didn't really bothered with the south outside of Florida, he didn't even attempt to take over Memphis. He was also smart to take California and block JCP from having any success there.

The amount of effort, money and carny promoting that took Vince to keep JCP's influence to just the south and a few other towns was immense. And it's the type of work that you have to make when facing real competition.

It's not about JCP going national and actually becoming what WWF became. It was about WWF being able to secure the U.S and being able to become a national promotion. By the time JCP/NWA realized were business was actually going, they were already handicapped and Vince had the upper hand. But even in that scenario, it took years of heavy promoting, cheating and smart signings/booking to get to 87', when Dusty's magic began to fade as a booker.

If we're going that deep, then technically AWA should be on the list because they had the roster, the better network deals and dates.

True with what you are saying, but by the time the AWA got poached to death, NWA was damn near dead in the water .

Listening to The Lapsed Fan episodes based on the NWA especially with the Royal Rumble changed my perspective of the company for the time. Especially with fumbling Bunkhouse Stampede to get shytted on by the Royal Rumble (Dusty brilliant ass booking in New York to get himself over and the ticket time being wrong).

 

[Ed MOTHERFUCKING G]

False. They were a threat because Vince had to promote, lie and buy every single thing at his disposal to get traction outside of the core WWWF market. He took his time to attack AWA territory, he didn't really bothered with the south outside of Florida, he didn't even attempt to take over Memphis. He was also smart to take California and block JCP from having any success there.

The amount of effort, money and carny promoting that took Vince to keep JCP's influence to just the south and a few other towns was immense. And it's the type of work that you have to make when facing real competition.

It's not about JCP going national and actually becoming what WWF became. It was about WWF being able to secure the U.S and being able to become a national promotion. By the time JCP/NWA realized were business was actually going, they were already handicapped and Vince had the upper hand. But even in that scenario, it took years of heavy promoting, cheating and smart signings/booking to get to 87', when Dusty's magic began to fade as a booker.

Yeah, saying they weren't a threat is wild considering he was buying talent nation wide to stop them, counter programming ppvs, buying TV time slots, etc...

 

[Jmare007]

If we're going that deep, then technically AWA should be on the list because they had the roster, the better network deals and dates.

True with what you are saying, but by the time the AWA got poached to death, NWA was damn near dead in the water .

Listening to The Lapsed Fan episodes based on the NWA especially with the Royal Rumble changed my perspective of the company for the time. Especially with fumbling Bunkhouse Stampede to get shytted on by the Royal Rumble (Dusty brilliant ass booking in New York to get himself over and the ticket time being wrong).

Royal Rumble?

That's 1988. I have no clue what podcast that is but by that year there was no more "war". Like I said, by 87' Dusty's hot run as booker was fading end by 88' it was basically their core towns in the south and not much more even though they tried to expand and make shyt big. It's like comparing 2000 WWF to 2000 WCW. Sure, they were still techinically competition but the work was already done.

And yeah, Vince went at AWA's neck first, but he did it because Verne had huge towns (Twin cities, Chicago) and he was an old fukk who could be taken down with smart promoting. AWA held longer than it should if you look at the type of cards Vince was running against them and how he raided that roster.

Once the AWA was done as a threat, Vince basically went to do the same with JCP, but he encounter much stronger opposition that lasted way longer and even gave him a couple of Ls before it was all said and done.

 

[Saysumthinfunnymike]

Mid-Atlantic/Crockett prime years were like 1983-1987. They were big before that locally but I'm talkin on a national scale.

The 1986 Great American Bash Tour was selling a crazy amount of tickets... Crockett was actually lowballing the ticket sales numbers to screw over the talent because they got more money based on a percentage of the house

I think 1986 was their biggest year financially...

Remember prior to and in 1985 Vince McMahon was trying to pull all types of tricks and scams to get one over on them. He said himself that if WrestleMania didn't work with all the money they put into it they were about to be in big trouble despite being in New York, the biggest market.

Crockett had most of the best talent at that point.

Also, in the early 80s Mid-South, Memphis and World Class were all on fire.. That period was by far WWWF's greatest challenge.

 

[BrehWyatt]

NWA.

Disregarding that Wrestlemania doesn't happen without Starrcade forcing Vince's hand, there are a lot of things the WWF doesn't do if NWA wasn't on their asses.

 

[Cattle Mutilation]

Where's the DDT option

Including the GOAT Yoshihiko would have made the results too uncompetitive that the thread would have been pointless to even make

 

[CM_Burns]

Aew Fall 19-Mar 20 or Fall 2021-March 22

Not ECW. Pre Nitro WCW/NWA, I wasn't watching and can't really say.

I do think WWE was aware of TNAs momentum in 06-07, and obviously they reacted to them in 2010 also. TNAs 2nd peak had good exposure but wasn't that well received. They weren't selling PPVs and the fans didn't love them like they did in that 1st peak.

AEW had 2 peaks imo, beginning of Dynamite to beginning of Covid, and then their highest peak of the first 6 months of Punk/Bryan coming in. I think AEW at especially that 2nd peak was probably bigger than TNAs peak.

 

[CM_Burns]

This is revisionist history. They took their fair share of shots at WWE several years before Hogan/Bischoff era.

It's also revisionist history that 07-09 TNA wasn't a fukking mess (though an entertaining one a lot of the time)

 

[FunkDoc1112]

It's also revisionist history that 07-09 TNA wasn't a fukking mess (though an entertaining one a lot of the time)

Yeah, outside of a few good stretches Vince Russo's booking was HORRENDOUS during that era. It sucked because I was kind of a TNA fan at the time and would have to do Majin Buu level reaching to defend that bullshyt

 

[StatUS]

Yeah, outside of a few good stretches Vince Russo's booking was HORRENDOUS during that era. It sucked because I was kind of a TNA fan at the time and would have to do Majin Buu level reaching to defend that bullshyt

Russo was booking competent and sensible RIGHT BEFORE Hogan/Bischoff came in. Story of the company.

 

[FunkDoc1112]

Russo was booking competent and sensible RIGHT BEFORE Hogan/Bischoff came in. Story of the company.

Oh yeah I remember. Genesis 09 in particular and then it all fell apart.