This week, the most decorated star in WWE history, Edge, was forced to retire at the age of 37 because of complications from a neck injury sustained nearly a decade ago.
If he kept competing, there was a serious chance he could face paralysis or death.
Easy choice, right?
You’d think, but in wrestling, people keep going and going and going, never able to say goodbye.
The legendary Terry Funk has retired at least a dozen times over the past 25 years. Ric Flair, Hulk Hogan, Sting – household names of the 1980s, are still hanging around the active side of the business.
But back to Edge.
In a pseudo-sport where people play over-the-top characters, Edge seemed to always be not that far of a stretch from the performer, Adam Copeland. (We’ll gloss over the goth/vampire phase of his early tears, OK?) But the sense of humor, intensity, inner drive and cockiness never felt like a character he was trying to act out.
Just like the great Shawn Michaels, Edge was living out his boyhood dream.
He was a huge fan growing up in the 1980s, famously being in the SkyDome crowd in Toronto for Wrestlemania VI, where the main event of Hogan vs. the Ultimate Warrior allegedly inspired him to become a wrestler.
And 21 years and 31 championships later, Edge is walking away to face the next challenge of his life.
There is something refreshing and inspiring about seeing people who had a dream actually get to live it out, be among the best in the world, and walk away from it.
So what’s next for Edge?
Unlike Hogan, Steve Austin, The Rock and John Cena, Edge has never been a cross-over star. Maybe he’ll dabble in acting, return to WWE in a non-wrestle capacity, or maybe he’ll live out his days quietly with his family.
The great thing is that he’s young enough and healthy enough to conquer a new dream.
And millions of fans will be there to cheer him on, no matter what he does.
But sometimes it’s just REALLY hard not to in certain situations.
Several months back, we discussed Total Nonstop Action Wrestling champion Jeff Hardy, who was given the belt in the fictional storyline of wrestling despite the real-life drug troubles of the performer.
Since he announced he would plead guilty to drug charges, including some felonies, TNA scripted him to lose the title…but then regain it before the case was finished…only to lose it again to veteran Sting, making his big return to the promotion.
TNA chose to feature Hardy as a top contender in their organization, including a main event rematch against Sting for the championship at the “Victory Road” pay-per-view show Sunday night.
No specifics have been given as of yet, but it seems like TNA played with fire…and got burned badly.
While not the current champion, Hardy was a main event player and integral to the show. Because of his alleged condition, the main event title match lasted only 90 seconds, leaving the live crowd and (most assuredly) the pay-per-view audience irate.
In the promotion world, the main event makes or breaks a show. And TNA put their main event in the hands of someone who was dangerous of business. And more than that, they put the life of their champion, Sting, in the hands of an incapable performer.
When you can pick and choose who you rely on, why would leave something so important up to chance?
Here is video from the event…you can make up your own mind about the situation:
World Wrestling Entertainment pulled a giant coup, announcing former Superstar and current action hero/villain Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as the guest host for their biggest show of the year, Wrestlemania!
Instant Analysis: Obviously, getting their biggest cross-over star EVER (apologies to Steve Austin and Hulk Hogan, but The Rock is for real) to come “home” will boost TV ratings, buyrate, public interest…and maybe even their lagging stock price. Fantastic move! Enjoy the moment:
While Sprite tried to explain to us that “Image Is Nothing,” I don’t think everyone is on-board with that concept.
Professional wrestling legend Ric Flair has made a name for himself by portraying a playboy on-screen in five decades. He rose to stardom in the days where professional wrestling denied the whole fake/pre-determined/story-telling thing and portrayed themselves as athletes competing for a real championship.
While bad guys were hated and good guys revered, most every wrestler “lived” their gimmick – whenever they were seen in public, they were in character.
In Mexico’s Lucha Libre culture, masked wrestlers even wore their masks to the grave. This is/was a serious aspect of the business.
The Ric Flair character was based on a “stylin’ and profylin’” lifestyle…and…wooooooooo…did he live it!
Now into his 60s, the jet-setting lifestyle has taken it’s toll on Flair and his bank accounts. But he apparently is having trouble letting go of that time.
He was THE MAN, the wheelin, dealin, jet-flyin, limousine-ridin, kiss-stealin son of a gun – and one of the greatest wrestlers of all time.
The Ric Flair brand was clearly defined and it remained virtually the same for…a little too long. It never evolved.
Now, when he should be reaping the rewards of one of the most brilliant careers ever, he is faced with the consequences of a life of diems being carped.
For brands, this is an important lesson to learn, grow, change and, most importantly, evolve over time. Don’t run away from the past, but use it to invest in tomorrow.
Keeping a brand fresh and relevant will maintain it’s sustainability and promote growth.
Of course, there are the freakish brands, like, say, Coca-Cola, that have remained relatively consistent for decades to find success, but they are the exception, not the rule.
The key is knowing when it’s time to make changes, because there will come a time when it may just be too little, too late.
Your Turn – What brands do the best job of evolving to stay fresh?
JANUARY 9, 2011 UPDATE – On the first live show of 2011, a Pay-Per-View showcase, Hardy dropped the title to #1 Contender Mr. Anderson. It was the first opportunity TNA had since the plea news broke to move the title off Hardy and to a different wrestler.
I’ve railed on Total Nonstop Wrestling in this space several times in the past for their…interesting…decisions.
TNA World Champion Jeff Hardy is expected to plead guilty to drug charges next month.
Professional wrestling is an entertainment form. The outcomes are pre-determined, the moves are designed to be as pain-free as possible, but the athleticism and charisma are off the charts.
In this realm, where the promoters choose the winners and losers, TNA put their championship on Rob Van Dam, a noted..even celebrated…marijuana user, earlier this year.
Despite multiple chances to take the belt off of him as the case progressed, they never took the belt off of him. They even altered their TV taping schedule to allow him to fly from Orlando to his home state of North Carolina for a date in court.
This is a major company, with touring, domestic and international TV, pay-per-view, DVDs, merchandise and more.
They chose to allow the face of their company to be a guy facing drug charges.
They definitely rolled the dice.
And today, it came up as snake-eyes.
The Charlotte Observer is reporting that Jeff Hardy will plead guilty to drug charges in court next month.
And because of the way TNA has taped their TV shows, there is absolutely nothing they can do about this for two weeks.
Good work, TNA…your champion is pleading guilty to felony drug charges. While WWE, the worldwide leader, is getting tons of positive mainstream coverage with their recent Tribute to the Troops show, former reality star Mike Mizanin as champion and finances that get better each quarter, your champion faces jail time.
You see, in wrestling, the matches may be fake, but this PR fail is very, very real.
