On the Marathon...

[Vastardikai]

This goes back to something Triple H said in the "war" between AEW and NXT: "It's a marathon, not a sprint."

Reason why I mention this is I feel like AEW may have awakened the sleeping giant. And the marathon comment is about to make sense.

They have their top guy that everyone knows is the top guy: Roman Reigns. Dude is the biggest star in not just the WWE but in all of wrestling and it's not even close. But, there are some other pieces of the puzzle falling into place in ways AEW may not expect...

First off, Big E. The dude who for years I expected to be at least the #2 guy. He's there now. And he's always had the kids, but he's getting the adults with a new found intensity.

Secondly, there's Damien Priest. WWE has spent the better part of this year building this guy, and it's already paying off. He is a bit long in the tooth, but he's the star that folks were hoping for to pick up where Rey Mysterio left off. They have protected better than almost anyone else, and made him feel like a big deal.

Third is Bianca Belair. This is just the continuation of something Triple H discovered with Bayley that Vince is finally catching on with: they have never had a star to attract young girls. In fact, wrestling itself never went after that demographic. They were forgotten about until they hit 15, then here! Fabulous Ones! Rock n Roll Express! Now they have a strong, confident female character that little girls can look up to and say "I want to be like her!" like young boys had with Hulk Hogan and later John Cena.

Then there is the legacy of the career of Great Khali. He had the combined workrates of later day Andre the Giant and Hulk Hogan, but he also had the combined appeal. WWE became big in India in a way TNA never could with Ring Ka King. And the Indian fans have their favorite wrestler right now: Roman Reigns.

Finally, the female fans: WWE has strong female characters that are consistently featured in ways AEW doesn't. As in, they have strong female characters that are consistently featured. Another thing AEW doesn't really feature consistently and strongly are the so called "Alpha Males." In AEW, they are used as jobbers to folks who look like the average person here. In WWE, they are used like stars. Drew McIntyre looks like he stepped off the cover of a Lady-Porn trash novel. He could step onto the set of a Soap Opera and wouldn't look out of place. Women want them, and men want to be them. And that leads me to Meisha Tate. A female MMA fighter. She's around dudes who kick people's asses for a living. Her favorite wrestler is Roman Reigns. Because he looks and carries himself like the manliest man to ever be a man.

I guess what I'm saying is this: There's a LOT more casuals than there are hardcore fans. And if WWE starts to fire on all cylinders, that will make this whole rivalry seem ridiculous. Smackdown got a higher number of viewers in Rampage's all important Demo than Rampage got total viewers. A fully motivated WWE will destroy AEW, and they won't need white dudes with black t-shirts and questionable hygiene to do it. They'll do it with women wanting to be in the presence of Roman Reigns and Drew McIntyre, Parents who take their kids to see Big E and Bianca Belair, etc.