Does anyone feel that the Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin messed up wrestling?

[dexterlablab1]

I say this because I started to wonder at what exact moment did wrestling change from grappling and slams to so much kick and punch thuggery.

Think back to the 80's and under. Wrestling had so many technicians and it was mandatory that wrestlers put skill first before the showmanship side of things. Almost every wrestling KNEW how to submit, KNEW how to counter, etc. Basically, they understood basic wrestling fundamentals.

But then I think it all changed when The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin rose to fame. When everyone else was grappling, they were kicking and punching. And the fans really ate it up. So much so that other wrestlers started to adapt it into their own routines.

Maybe it's just me missing the old says, but I will always feel these two are the prime factors as to why wrestling changed for the worst.

 

[Dale]

Was Hogan not a showman? Was Andre not a showman?

The only way Rock & Austin ruined wrestling was being so fucking good that nobody will ever come close to them.

 

[dexterlablab1]

Was Hogan not a showman? Was Andre not a showman?

The only way Rock & Austin ruined wrestling was being so fucking good that nobody will ever come close to them.

It wasn't simply about the showmanship. Ok, I'll put it another way. How many NORMAL wrestling moves have you seen either the Rock or Austin do on a normal basis?

 

[Dale]

About as many if not more than Hogan & Andre.

 

[Kiffy Lube]

Austin is one of the most skilled workers ever... He's not only the definition of what you want in wrestling, he's a hybrid of it on top of that.

 

[The Cork]

Puroresu is to blame for what OP is referring to.

It's why I hate ROH and why Jap wrestling is terrible. Some people have a twisted perception that a bunch of stiff kicks and chops is great technical wrestling because fat japs like Kobashi had hour long chopfests.

Davey Richards is the worst at this.

 

[Sugarhill]

It's hard for me to begrudge anyone who helped wrestling get bigger and more prominent. As with Hulk Hogan and Andre the Giant, you didn't have to watch wrestling to know who they were. They were bigger than the sport and they brought more viewers to the sport.

I wasn't watching when The Rock and Steve were making their names, but I still knew who they were and that really is the most important thing. Now, it's John Cena and he gets a lot of flack for his wrestling skill, but people know him and love him. They will also tune into watch him. That is where the "better" wrestlers in the organization have to take their chance and grab it.

You have got the viewers, now can you steal a fan from John Cena? Can you turn a person from a fan of just John Cena to a fan of wrestling?

Everyone has their place and purpose in a wrestling promotion.

Look back at some old episodes of wrestling and the arenas that they were in, the lighting and staging of it all, and compare them to now. The wrestling purists then aren't the only reason as to why wrestlers are now in football stadiums performing. It was a lot of casual fans that became purists that helped that transition.

 

[Isabellas2007]

I have to admit the wrestling genre has switched since then. However, it has been for the better at the time and some of it is coming back. I just wish some more technical matches would come back instead of the strength shows that are present now.

 

[Defiant]

If anything I enjoy WWE's in-ring aspect today over yesterday's because I find there is now more emphasis on a wider variety of styles, not just the "decline" of technical wrestling (which isn't exactly suffering either with Bryan, Punk, Jericho and Del Rio main-eventing and some big indy names going through development).

In regards to Austin, watch his work with Bret Hart as I did recently. There's more science to his brawler style than it seems.

 

[Lucky120]

Actually no I like Stone Cold and the Rock. I think that wrestling is good, but there are some that they could do without. You know I have to say that I use to hate the new wrestling style that is going on now, but maybe it is something that is for the best since everything else is changing along with the generations. There are people that I have talked to that are way older than me that loved the old style ya know the back then wrestling and hate the new one now. I am 22 so I was only around for some of the old stuff that was going on. I actually think that Stone Cold makes it really funny and so does the Rock in some doses. I would watch Stone cold any day though I don't think thye ruined wrestling at all.

 

[Deezy]

Rocky was great in the ring, and Austin is regarded to being one of the most skilled workers out there. Sure they were not Lou Thesz in the ring, but when the great mechanics say you are good, generally I'd say they were good.

Both were not just punch kick guys, leave that to Sandman n people of his ilk. Rock and Austin both knew how to work a crowd to the max and actually used this thing called psychology. Something that is hardly used anymore if at all.

 

[AvalonX]

Austin was more typical wrestler early in his career. I think later he adapted too after he hurt his neck. The guy was really fucked up for a while.