
SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
A little backstory: As a longtime wrestling fan, my fandom began when I watched John Cena wrestle Shawn Michaels in a one-hour classic on Raw. From that moment on, I was hooked—and I’ve been a huge fan of John Cena ever since. My interest in wrestling grew steadily, reaching a peak when Cena faced C.M. Punk at Money in the Bank 2011.
After the second WrestleMania featuring Cena vs. The Rock, I began drifting away from wrestling as WWE’s product started to decline. The only thing that kept me even slightly engaged was NXT and what Triple H was doing there.
I returned to full-time fan status when AEW launched. I watched weekly and even started calling into the Wade Keller Post-Shows (I was “James in Clemson”). My favorite topic? Expressing my disappointment in the Young Bucks. But eventually, life changed—and so did my opinion of AEW. I felt like I was wasting my Wednesdays on a booker who clearly had no idea how to build compelling stories. As a small business owner, I don’t have time to waste.
After stepping away from AEW, I now consider myself a casual fan. I catch clips on YouTube, tune in for big moments, and read PWTorch occasionally to stay up to date. Overall, though, I’m pretty tuned out.
That said, this year’s WrestleMania piqued my interest. As a diehard John Cena fan, I immersed myself in three straight nights of wrestling. Unfortunately, my ultimate takeaway was disappointment and confusion. I won’t be staying up for Raw any Monday night soon – and that’s why I’m writing this: to share a casual fan’s view of why WWE dropped the ball this weekend.
Reason #1: The Outrageous Number of Commercials
I know it’s been said before, but good lord—those commercials were excessive. WWE might defend it by comparing WrestleMania to the Super Bowl, but here’s the thing: Super Bowl commercials don’t pull you out of the game.
I couldn’t immerse myself in the event because of the constant ads. It felt like the show prioritized sponsorships over storytelling or wrestling.
Worse yet, the commercials replaced video packages. As a casual fan, that left me feeling like I was watching random matches without any story. I listened to PWTorch pre-show and understand that committed fans were excited about the undercard, but from a YouTube viewer’s perspective, I had no clue what any of the rivalries were about.
This lack of context meant that matches other fans may have rated a 7 felt more like a 5 to me.
Sure, you can buy the premium Peacock tier to see more video packages—but I’m barely watching as it is. I’m not going to pay more just for WWE to do a better job. To me, WWE is making the same mistake AEW did: assuming their audience already knows everything and alienating the viewers they should be trying to keep.
I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I hope WWE gives us more video packages in 2025.
Reason #2: It Wasn’t as Good as Last Year
If there was ever a time WWE could have pulled me back in, it was last year. The main event then was phenomenal. Triple H was firing on all cylinders, booking at the level we saw during peak NXT Takeover.
This year was the complete opposite. It undid all the goodwill WWE had built up.
Which brings me to…
Reason #3: Poor Match Quality
A big part of the problem here goes back to the lack of backstory. But even without that, I thought a lot of the matches simply didn’t deliver.
Jey Uso had potential, but the match didn’t land.
The IC Title Four-Way was decent, but I wasn’t as invested in Dominik as the crowd was.
The Triple Threat main event was the highlight of the weekend – but the lack of story dropped it from a 9 to a 7 in my eyes.
Randy Orton’s match was one of the weekend’s biggest letdowns. I was hoping his opponent would be Joe Hendry, and it didn’t end well.
Charlotte vs. Tiffany had strong physicality but wasn’t particularly memorable.
And that brings me to…
ARTICLE CONTINUED BELOW…
Check out the latest episode of “Acknowledging WWE” with Javier Machado, part of the PWTorch Dailycast line-up: CLICK HERE to stream (or search “pwtorch” on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or any other iOS or Android app to subscribe free)
Reason #4: The Main Event Was a Huge Disappointment
As a lifelong Cena fan, you can probably guess that the main event was my biggest draw to WrestleMania 41. It was the one match I had actual backstory on. And yet, I left feeling disappointed and underwhelmed.
If there’s one thing in wrestling that immediately turns me off, it’s dumb referees. And this match had that in spades.
Referees are there to maintain immersion. When they blatantly ignore rules to serve a storyline or a “cool spot,” it pulls me out. That’s one of the biggest reasons I gave up on AEW – and it’s unacceptable, especially in your main event.
Then there was the Travis Scott appearance. When he showed up at Elimination Chamber, I assumed I had missed something. But when even Wade Keller, Todd Martin, and Rich Fann didn’t know what was going on, I realized it wasn’t just me. WWE never followed up. That whole element was completely unnecessary and could have been replaced with something more logical.
Lastly, Cody looked stupid in this match. Leading up to it, he was presented as a clever babyface – one of the smartest we’ve seen in years. But in the match, he fell for every trick in the book and came off like a fool. As someone who’s been high on Cody, it was tough to watch his title reign end that way.
Reason #5: The Raw After Mania
Of the three shows this weekend, Raw was the best, but it still had its flaws. My biggest issue? There were only three matches on a three-hour show. Yes, the content was decent, but it felt like another “Paid-Promotion-athon.” I walked away feeling like, once again, this isn’t something I want to dedicate my Monday nights to.
Final Thoughts
I’ll keep watching clips on YouTube, and I’ll probably tune in for Backlash. But my main takeaway is that while WWE has made real improvements, it still has a long way to go.
In fact, I’d argue the company is in a bit of a storytelling decline compared to last year. My hope is that WWE regroups and starts making choices that invite casual fans in, rather than pushing us out. We need stories to connect with, week after week.
(PWTorch invites guest editorials from readers. Send to kellerwade@gmail.com for consideration.)
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