The Styles of Wrestling
The evolution of wrestling styles over the years reflects a dynamic blend of athleticism, creativity, and audience expectations. Each style has developed in response to changing tastes, regional influences, and the unique characteristics of individual wrestlers. Here’s an analysis of the development of key wrestling styles, including technical wrestling, high-flying maneuvers, and hardcore wrestling:
1. Technical Wrestling
• Origins and Evolution: Technical wrestling has its roots in catch wrestling and amateur wrestling, where the emphasis is on holds, grappling, and submissions. Early wrestling pioneers like Lou Thesz and Verne Gagne emphasized technical mastery and legitimacy in the ring, portraying wrestling as a competitive sport. This style was particularly dominant in the mid-20th century, where holds like the headlock and the hammerlock were staples.
• Key Characteristics: Precision, chain wrestling (a sequence of holds and counters), and a focus on wrestling psychology. Matches often center around a body part being targeted and weakened, leading to a submission or pinfall.
• Modern Examples: Wrestlers like Bret Hart, Kurt Angle, and Bryan Danielson have continued this tradition. Their matches often showcase a blend of athleticism and storytelling, where technical proficiency is central to the narrative.
2. High-Flying Maneuvers
• Origins and Evolution: High-flying wrestling began gaining popularity in the 1970s and 1980s, particularly in lucha libre from Mexico and junior heavyweight divisions in Japan. Wrestlers like Tiger Mask, Dynamite Kid, and Rey Mysterio revolutionized the sport by incorporating aerial moves that stunned audiences with their agility and risk-taking.
• Key Characteristics: Speed, agility, and acrobatic moves such as moonsaults, hurricanranas, and dives to the outside of the ring. This style places a premium on athleticism and spectacle, with wrestlers often taking significant risks to entertain the crowd.
• Modern Examples: Wrestlers like AJ Styles, Ricochet, and the Young Bucks have popularized this style on a global scale. High-flying wrestling has become more integrated into mainstream wrestling, with even larger wrestlers incorporating aerial moves into their arsenals.
3. Hardcore Wrestling
• Origins and Evolution: Hardcore wrestling developed as a response to fans’ desire for more extreme and violent forms of entertainment. It gained prominence in the late 1980s and 1990s, with promotions like ECW (Extreme Championship Wrestling) leading the charge. This style pushed the boundaries of what was acceptable in wrestling, introducing weapons, dangerous spots, and bloodshed as regular features of matches.
• Key Characteristics: The use of weapons (chairs, tables, barbed wire, etc.), extreme violence, and often a disregard for traditional rules. Hardcore matches are known for their unpredictability and high levels of physical punishment.
• Modern Examples: Icons like Mick Foley (as Cactus Jack), Terry Funk, and the Sandman helped popularize hardcore wrestling. In more recent years, promotions like AEW have kept the hardcore spirit alive through events like “Lights Out” matches, featuring wrestlers like Jon Moxley and Darby Allin.
4. Blending of Styles
• Current Trends: Wrestling today often incorporates a mix of styles, with many wrestlers blending technical wrestling, high-flying, and hardcore elements into their matches. Promotions like WWE, AEW, and NJPW have helped to mainstream a hybrid approach, where matches can feature a mix of technical skill, high-risk maneuvers, and occasional hardcore spots.
• Global Influence: The globalization of wrestling has seen styles from different regions influencing one another. Japanese strong style, British catch wrestling, Mexican lucha libre, and American hardcore wrestling have all cross-pollinated, creating a diverse wrestling landscape.
5. Cultural Impact and Audience Reception
• Audience Preferences: Different eras have seen shifts in what fans expect from wrestling. The technical wrestling of the 1960s and 70s gave way to the spectacle and showmanship of the 1980s. The 1990s saw a rise in both high-flying and hardcore styles, catering to fans seeking more dynamic and extreme action. Today, there is a demand for a mix of all these styles, with fans appreciating both the storytelling of technical wrestling and the spectacle of high-flying and hardcore matches.
• Evolution of Promotions: Promotions have adapted to these changing tastes. WWE, once known for its larger-than-life characters and slower-paced matches, has incorporated more technical and high-flying elements. Meanwhile, promotions like AEW and NJPW have gained popularity by offering a blend of all styles, catering to a more diverse and international audience.
Conclusion
The development of different wrestling styles reflects the evolution of the sport from a purely competitive spectacle to a form of entertainment that combines athleticism, storytelling, and spectacle. Technical wrestling, high-flying maneuvers, and hardcore wrestling each represent different facets of this evolution, and their ongoing fusion has helped create the vibrant, multi-dimensional wrestling landscape we see today.
PPV + PLE Content. Northern Adelaide suburbs resident with a lifelong passion for professional wrestling since the age of 14. What drew Rhys to wrestling was the antics of Eddie Guerrero and the freestyles of John Cena, and has been hooked ever since. Currently, Rhys watches WWE and AEW programing. This passion for wrestling has led to Rhys writing for PW Down Under, where he has become the resident PPV guy.
