TJR: 5 Ways For WWE To Improve Premium Live Events
This is one WWE fan’s opinion on what the company needs to improve regarding its Premium Live Events.
The WWE Wrestlepalooza PLE is in the books, and I thought it was a pretty good show, but it also had things that prevented it from being a great show.
An ESPN writer gave Wrestlepalooza a “C” letter grade, which got a lot of attention because it was the first WWE PLE on ESPN in the US, so it had a lot of hype, and a “C” score means it didn’t live up to expectations.
In my opinion, it was better than “C” because the talent’s work should be appreciated more. With that said, there are things about WWE PLE’s that frustrate me just as much as any fan of the company.
What I have written here are five reasonable ideas that WWE could easily implement for its Premium Live Events. In my opinion, they would be beneficial for both the audience watching at home and the fans paying a significant amount to witness the event in a stadium or arena.
5. Have A Match In The First 10 Minutes Of PLE Coming On Air
At Wrestlepalooza, it was 21 minutes into the show when the bell rang for the Brock Lesnar-John Cena match. Do we really need Triple H doing a promo about how big this is for WWE’s first show on the ESPN streaming service in the US? No. We already know. They were promoting it like crazy for weeks, and there’s a two-hour Countdown show talking about it, too.
As soon as the show begins, run a 3-minute opening video package because those are cool and get the crowd hyped. After that, show the announcers at ringside and have Michael Cole say we are getting right to the action. Have the introductions and start the match within 5-7 minutes of coming on the air.
It’s a PLE. We don’t need a promo to start the damn show. Get right to the action. If you start a match in the first 5-7 minutes, then you can give those wrestlers 15 minutes to put on a great match, and it will get the crowd excited for the rest of the show. At Wrestlepalooza, fans had to wait 21 minutes for the first match, and there was only one match in the first 50 minutes of the broadcast.
4. Use A Runtime Of 3.5 Hours For Most PLEs
If a main roster PLE is 2.5 hours, then most people would say it’s too short. I don’t think anybody would say 3.5 hours would be too long if there’s enough action on the card. More on that later.
In my reviews, I always mention the show’s length. Here are the last 6 WWE PLE in terms of show lengths in hours and minutes:
Wrestlepalooza – 3:15
Clash in Paris – 3:50
SummerSlam Saturday – 3:24
SummerSlam Sunday – 3:46
Evolution – 3:23
Night of Champions – 3:00
When you look at that, I think 3:30 is the sweet spot that WWE should target for most PLEs. If you want to go a bit longer for Royal Rumble then that’s fine, and the same goes for two nights of WrestleMania. I think if fans know that a PLE will be around 3.5 hours, then it may make the viewing experience better because they know when the finish might come, but it doesn’t mean it has to be right at 3:30 because you can go a few minutes longer or shorter, depending on the match and show ending.
3. Limit The Time In Between Matches
A complaint I often see about WWE PLEs is that there’s a long time between matches. The reason for that is that we know WWE loves to run commercials for its own shows and other products. Advertising is frustrating to viewers, but it’s how businesses make money. This website makes money and pays our staff because of the ads on the site. Yes, it can be frustrating. However, it’s how the world works.
My suggestion is to limit the time between matches to around 7-10 minutes at most. I understand video packages need to air and some ads, but let’s get to the action faster. That’s why I’m not bothered by ads in the ring, and I don’t even mind the Slim Jim-sponsored tables in WWE because it saves us from seeing an ad for them.
When I watch these shows, it feels like one match ends and the bell rings for the next match 20 minutes later. It’s too long. Trust me, I’m not timing these things, but I see the complaints, and when I write the reviews, there’s a long time between matches. That could be cleaned up better.
2. Put At Least 4 Title Matches On Every PLE
There are 11 titles combined on Raw and SmackDown, with five on each brand, plus the Women’s Tag Team Titles that can be defended on any main roster show, plus NXT.
The way I would book a PLE is to have more matches on the show (see point 1 for that) and prioritize featuring different titles on a PLE. For example, Finn Balor & JD McDonagh won the World Tag Team Titles on June 30th. Do you know how many televised title defenses they have had in 80+ days as champions? One! It was on July 28th against the LWO. I’m not saying there should be a “30 Day Rule” or anything like that. However, I am saying that after one PLE ends, the creative team should say, “We are putting those titles on the next PLE,” and spend the next 3 or 4 weeks telling a story to set up a title match.
A big reason why you have 11 titles on the main roster is that they are devices that can be used to tell a story. If a wrestler is a heel, they may resort to cheating to win and retain their title. If a wrestler is a face, they will strive to win fairly and prove themselves to be the best. These are easy stories to tell, so just put a little effort in and suddenly those titles will be more meaningful.
I know the main WWE Title, World Heavyweight Title, and the women’s versions of those titles are regularly on PLEs, which is great, but why not other titles? Let’s see more of them.
From a creative standpoint, you can also plan out these title defenses on PLEs better. Let’s say the men’s US Title isn’t on the September PLE, then you mark it down that it’s going to be on the October PLE, and you have several weeks to build a story to make the title defense matter. Having 11 titles on the main roster is fine, but all of them could be booked well if you plan it out better.
1. Every One Night PLE Should Have At Least 7 Matches
When Triple H ran NXT from the early 2010s until Shawn Michaels took over in 2021, the formula for most of those shows was to have five matches. Considering the NXT roster was young in many cases, and you didn’t have a deep roster, it was understandable to only have five matches. But now? The WWE roster is deeper than ever. There are way too many talented people sitting on the sidelines for these PLE shows.
At Wrestlepalooza, there were only five matches, and SmackDown only had one match – Cody Rhodes vs. Drew McIntyre. The John Cena-Brock Lesnar match was set up at SummerSlam and then carried over to one episode of SmackDown, but Cena stopped appearing on SmackDown. The SmackDown roster has 40+ talented men and women on the roster, and you’re telling me there’s room for only one match at a PLE event? That’s ridiculous.
The CM Punk/AJ Lee match against Seth Rollins/Becky Lynch was very entertaining, and I enjoyed it. They also got 30 minutes for the match. Did it need to be that long? No. You could have had a match that was just as entertaining in 18-22 minutes, and then you have more time for more matches.
I am also not saying that every match has to be 15-20 minutes on a PLE. You can have an awesome match in 10-13 minutes if it’s the right people, the pace is fast, and the fans get into it. A triple threat match, for example, can thrive at that length because it’s all about building the nearfalls and getting the fans into the match. Build a storyline around the tag team division on SmackDown, give those guys 10-15 minutes in a PLE match, and it’s going to be good. They’re too talented for it not to be good.
It would be so easy for WWE to put together PLE match cards with at least seven matches. Get rid of the main roster PLEs with only five matches. Considering the prices to attend WWE PLEs keep going up, I think fans deserve to see more people on these shows.
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IN CLOSING
What I wrote was out of love as a lifelong WWE fan that has literally reviewed 95% of the company’s PLEs and every one for the last 15 years. Since Triple H took over the creative team in July 2022, following his father-in-law’s scandals that led to a “retirement” that didn’t last, the shows have improved. I rate most WWE PLEs at 7 out of 10 or higher, and many of them in the last three years have been above 8 out of 10.
The WWE PLEs aren’t bad shows, in my opinion, but I think they could be better, especially for the casual fan who may not watch Raw, SmackDown, and NXT weekly. Many of those fans are willing to check out the PLEs because they know the matches tend to be longer and often involve major storylines. I think they could be better, and the PLEs can have more matches that make the cards even more exciting to watch.
I’m not suggesting crazy things in this article. I want more action, fewer ads, and most importantly, the chance for more wrestlers to be featured on these PLEs because five-match cards are too small, and we want to see the talented WWE superstars on the biggest stages. They work hard and deserve it, so reward them with more PLE matches. Please, and thank you.
Thanks for reading. My contact info is below.
John Canton
Email [email protected]
Twitter/X @johnreport