considering that with Wrestlemania they look to attract attention from the mainstream as much as possible which is mostly people who don't watch their shows, and nobody outside of current WWE fans knows who Kevin Owens is, and just about everybody knows who Goldberg is.... yes, it was actually a very good way to build up hype. the headline "Goldberg versus Lesnar for the championship" is an instant attention grabber.Was a good way to build hype for Wrestlemania?
I don't agree with this thinking that guys aren't getting over because part timers are taking headlining spots. getting a Wrestlemania headlining spot doesn't make someone into a megastar. Stone Cold was already a megastar when he headlined Wrestlemania 14. if anything it was his midcard match with Bret Hart at 13 that really pushed him over. the Rock was already a megastar when he headlined 15 with Austin having launched himself to that level on account of his overwhelming charisma. the inability of the current crop of wrestlers to get over to that level can only be blamed on themselves. if Kevin Owens wants Goldberg's spot then all he has to do is draw more money than Goldberg.That argument has merit to a certain extent. While they are in Orlando, they are at the Camping World Stadium, not exactly a destination spot within the city. They never have issues selling seats and meet and greet passes and while their new partnership with ESPN in recent past allows for them to easier market that headline match, it damages your product long term and anyone who remembers the years of Wrestlemania 8,9 and so on, it has lasting effects that they should have learned their lessons from.
I agree with Keg on almost all of this. Goldberg vs Lesnar is to attract people who see the commercial for it and buy the event or subscribe to the network to watch it.
Keg, what do you think about AJ Styles? Should he be in the main event of Wrestlemania, or are the rumors of a Shane McMahon match a good spot for him this year?
I like AJ. I think at this point his gimmick of "pissed off Indy guy" is wearing kind of thin though and he needs to change it up. I think AJ vs Bray vs Orton would be a good Smackdown main event, I don't really care to see Shane wrestle anymore.I agree with Keg on almost all of this. Goldberg vs Lesnar is to attract people who see the commercial for it and buy the event or subscribe to the network to watch it.
Keg, what do you think about AJ Styles? Should he be in the main event of Wrestlemania, or are the rumors of a Shane McMahon match a good spot for him this year?
having Goldberg headlining is what has the potential to put new eyes on the show and bring attention to people like Owens who are unknown to the public. if you booked the show your way you have nothing but internet wrestling fans would be tuning in and there would be no fresh blood coming into the fan base. the internet fans will always be there despite however many threats about cancelling subs when they don't like the booking. it's the mainstream attention WWE needs to bring in new fans.Drawing more money long term is what's key here, not short term. Owens will do that over Goldberg. Having huge Mania numbers is great for quarterly numbers but end of fiscal year is what's truly important. If you listen to Bruce Prichards podcast he mentions this a few times and how in the early 90's all they cared for was short term results and it killed their product on the State side of things and it took years to repair what they did.
Do I think this is as back then? No, but it could head that direction easily at this point because like I said, this wasn't the only issue with last nights card, there were many things that damaged their mania build last night, Owens/Goldberg was just on of them.
And also, Owens/Lesner have actually had some matches at house shows recently all to a great response, which is why its been rumored for awhile that they will go at it.