Is WWE a career ending move these days?

[Londoner]

I've been thinking about this for a while, and the amount of talent the WWE has buried has been unreal. This makes me think "why do wrestlers still want to go to the WWE'? I mean, they will only be held back in the end because 'no one can be as good as HHH'. Ofcourse you get payed better than anywhere else, but then that means your selling out once you sign a contract with the WWE, if that's all you care about.


Honestly, until HHH leaves i don't see why any wrestler would want to go there.

Wondering what you guys think about this.

[Corkscrewed]

It's all about the $$$$$$.

[Londoner]

That's an obvious answer. but it kind of makes me lose respect for guys like RVD, if that is what it's all about.Though he regained my respect at ONS so that's a different story.

[V]

even if ur a nobody in the WWE, more people know about you than if you're a main eventer in TNA

WWE is the big leagues... not joining WWE would be like playing high school basketball instead of the NBA

[El Santo]

Or more appropriately staying in minor league baseball when you can join the MLB.

[Deceit]

You lost respect for RVD when he joined the WWE because he chose to be successful in his life?

[loopydate]

Yeah, heaven forbid someone go for the guaranteed pay days of top-promotion wrestling when he could work an indy schedule where he'd be making a fraction of that. Plus, unless he's a big indy star, odds are, he'd be making a fraction of a fraction.

And, honestly, I would bet that 99.999999% of people who get into professional wrestling do it with the ultimate dream of wrestling for WWE, not to attain a high level of indy cred.

[Nowhere Man]

Yes, it sucks to see talented wrestlers get mishandled by awful booking, but at the same time, at least most of those guys still have jobs at the end of the day.

The indy scene is a rough place to work; unless they pull something crazy on a regular basis to make a name for themselves, 99% of the wrestlers out there live from paycheck to paycheck, without contracts, and without anything definite on the horizon. And with the bar being raised so much over the years on what it takes to make a name for yourself in the wrestling world, it's no wonder that indy wrestling has degenerated into a series of who can come up with the most convoluted way to drop someone on their head. Just being a sound wrestler doesn't cut it anymore; if you want to be noticed on the indy scene, you've got to be willing to practically kill yourself (or your opponent) every chance you get, and there's extremely little chance that even TNA will pick you up.

Sure, there will always be guys like Raven, who would rather rule in Hell than serve in Heaven, but that's because they can afford to. They already made their money and careers in the Big Two or ECW, and can cruise on name recognition and get a payday pretty much any time they want. But if you want to be a wrestler and succeed in it, the only logical place to do it is WWE. It's a safer environment (even if that hampers match quality), there's a chance you could get national recognition on TV, and you'll make exponentially more money there than any other promotion in the world.

Looking at wrestling as a business or as an art form, WWE is still the most prominent promotion anywhere on Earth, and it just doesn't make sense to shoot for lower than that.

[KingofOldSchool]

And, honestly, I would bet that 99.999999% of people who get into professional wrestling do it with the ultimate dream of wrestling for WWE, not to attain a high level of indy cred.

Unless you're either stupid or desperate enough for a high spot on the card that you'd rather main event in high school gyms than to open at large arenas.

I mean if you were in a band, what would sound better to you...

Headlining a show at a local bar or opening up for a band you grew up idolizing at Madison Square Garden?

[Deceit]

This thread makes me curious of some of the WWE's low carder salaries.

Where's Kayfabe when ya need him :)