• WWE Takes A Shot At The Violence Shown On AEW Programming
The Toronto Star posted a story looking at the competition between WWE and AEW in Canada.
They revealed that the average viewership for SmackDown in Canada on Sportsnet360 was 155,000 viewers in 2021. On the other hand, the average viewership for Dynamite in Canada on TSN was 104,000 viewers in 2021.
The gap was much closer in the 25-54 demographic, with SmackDown having 71,000 viewers and Dynamite having 64,000.
In Toronto Star’s story, the credit for AEW almost being there in the 25-54 demo viewership with SmackDown was given to AEW’s edgier product.
This led to WWE providing a statement on AEW’s edgier product, where they took a shot at the violence shown in All Elite Wrestling.
You can read the statement below:
“If you look at the gory self-mutilation that bloodied several women in the December 31 event on TNT, it quickly becomes clear that these are very different businesses.
We had an edgier product in the ‘Attitude’ era and in a 2022 world, we don’t believe that type of dangerous and brutal display is appealing to network partners, sponsors, venues, children, or the general public as a whole.”
WWE is referring to the Anna Jay & Tay Conti vs. The Bunny & Penelope Ford Street Fight from the New Year’s Smash edition of AEW Rampage, which was a bloody match.
Below are the highlights from this match:
Moonsault Kneedrop to the face of @TayConti_ by @thePenelopeFord! 😱
Watch #AEWRampage: #NewYearsSmash on @tntdrama NOW! pic.twitter.com/aGTCeSS4Ke— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) January 1, 2022
https://twitter.com/AEW/status/1477119715512307713
https://twitter.com/AEW/status/1477120320486129665
https://twitter.com/AEW/status/1477120447489658880
https://twitter.com/AEW/status/1477120647159500801
WATCH: Close Up Of Tay Conti & Anna Jay’s Buns:
• On This Day In Pro Wrestling History (January 15, 2020) – Old School Wrestling Legend Passed Away
On this day in 2020, we lost Old School WWF Legend “Soul Man” Rocky Johnson at the age of 75.
Rocky Johnson wrestled for many different territories from his debut in 1964 until his retirement in 1991, but was most famous for his 1982-1985 run with the World Wrestling Federation, where he and Tony Atlas became the first black Tag Team to win a major World Tag Team Championship.
Nowadays, everyone knew him as the father of the #1 actor in Hollywood, fellow WWF Legend “The Rock” Dwayne Johnson.
It was also The Rock who inducted his dad into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2008.
† REST IN PEACE ROCKY JOHNSON
August 24, 1944 — January 15, 2020
