For years, World Wrestling Entertainment and other wrestling organizations have paid their superstars on a structure that rewards the success they have within the company. That makes sense but what happens when the results and the success is predetermined?

This is the point WWE wrestler Ryback (real name Ryan Reeves) is trying to make in his Tumblr post. He has accepted his role on WWE TV as a “mid-card” wrestler. He won’t be the person fans will pay tickets to see and he may be more in the position to make others look better rather than his own success but feels the pay structure should be more even since he puts in just as much training and competes as much as the main event talent. And since results are predetermined, it’s not like he can work harder and win and get paid like other sports do.

Think of it like this, Reeves’ job is to sometimes make others look better and move them to be more successful. Reeves’ position is that if he is going against WWE champion Roman Reigns and make him look better in the ring. If both people train and put in as much time, why should the winner get more money over the loser when the loser’s job is to make the winner look better and thus get more money.

In his statement, Reeves talked about his current contract situation and the renegotiation.

Today I sit and fly home and for the first time in years feel absolutely free. I will start by saying I did request to be taken off of WWE television until myself and Vince could get a yes or no on a new deal…It comes down to a major problem I have with not only WWE but wrestling in general. 

Wrestling is pre determined, we as performers know before we go out to that ring or perform a backstage scene who is winning and losing etc or have a general idea of what we are going to say. It blows my mind how in a sport which is pre determined from a company standpoint winners are paid so much more than the losers. Every single person who works for WWE from top to bottom is absolutely just as valuable as the next. The winners cannot win unless the losers go out there and agree to lose to them. 

It blows my mind that in this day and age though we still adhere to this formula. Obviously things have always been this way, but does that make them right?…Every single performer for WWE sacrifices the same amount of time from home and their families and every single man or women goes out and does what they are told. Looking at this formula though losers turn into what fans like to call jobbers and their value decreases in the companies eyes and before you know it they get released. For what? For doing exactly as they are told!

In fairness to Reeves, he doesn’t fully believe that everyone should fully get a flat rate. For one thing, he feels people who are main event wrestlers are deserving to get merchandise bonuses. If half the arena is wearing Brock Lesnar shirts, obviously it’s only fair that Lesnar should get a piece of those sales.

But for the most part, Reeves feels pay should be a bit more even than it is now especially when he is getting less money because of predetermined win-loss performance reasons and does what he’s told.

I am proud to say I have never gone to change a finish and have gladly took pride in helping put over other talent. Hell look at my pay per view record of 12-26 and you will see that has been the pattern of my career. I have always been confident in my ability and work ethic to being my best every day and ultimately always felt that by doing good it was the right thing to do. Personally seeing my money go down over the years though even though I was working as much as ever and being denied magazine covers and other projects as well as watching my role diminish no matter what I did or how hard I tried takes its toll on a human…It isn’t soley about money, it is about commitment. Commitment to a guy who fucking cares and who loves this more than anything in the world and wants to know that his passion his efforts and his determination to constantly improve is going to be recognized and taken care of. 

Reeves knows this probably doesn’t help his negotiation with WWE by making this public and is willing to accept the possibility that WWE releases him based on this post.

WWE may very well release me, which if it is the case so be it. If we can work things out a lot needs to change as I am not living in fear and creatively cannot continue to live a life that limits me creatively. I have many other interests and passions and have been very smart with my finances over the years. I thank every WWE superstar from top to bottom for their sacrifices and for working with me. The world is an amazing place and there is more than just a WWE universe there is The Universe and I will prove one way or another over time I am the greatest big guy in the universe!

There are certainly two sides to this issue and like many issues, what’s right is somewhere in the middle. On one side, wrestlers do put in the training, the work and for the most part, cannot help it if they are being told they are going to lose and thus not make as much money. Hearing that, of course wrestlers deserve the same pay.

On the other side, main event talent are promoted heavier and “put butts in seats.” They also sell more merchandise and make more sponsorship and fan appearances. Also, while it’s not much of a problem now, these top stars need to be given more money so they don’t leave for a rival organization. In a supply/demand argument, the main eventers are in higher demand and thus get more money because they in turn make WWE more money being in that position.

Also, it’s not as if everyone is trapped where they are. Steve Austin was a midcard wrestler when he started out. He then became Stone Cold, had the idea to be the “everyman” who dreamed of telling off and beating the crap out of their boss and with that gimmick, became one of the most iconic wrestlers in the industry.

So, both sides have a legitimate argument in terms of what should be done. The important thing is that this is at least being talked about since many in the industry are likely on either side of the fence. Will this cause WWE to make changes to their pay structure?

About Phillip Bupp

Producer/editor of the Awful Announcing Podcast and Short and to the Point. News editor for The Comeback and Awful Announcing. Highlight consultant for Major League Soccer as well as a freelance writer for hire. Opinions are my own but feel free to agree with them.

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