#3 Not enough selling
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A pro wrestling match filled with finishers ultimately does not work. It’s a good way to pop the crowd, as one near-fall after another typically gets a good reaction. But when a power move that usually gets a three count does not, the validity of the match itself comes into question.
The business is exposed every time this happens. Fans are very aware of how the game is played of course. But when one devastating move is followed by yet another devastating move because of a kick out at two, then it’s as if the truth is being advertised.
This is how matches happen in WWE now. A guy can get posted, take a finisher, kick out, deliver the same to his opponent who then kicks out, and the same thing happens all the time. Selling is the only thing that sets pro wrestling apart from performance art; it’s also the only thing that delivers realism for fans.
The explanation that Superstars are better and more athletic than the previous generation just does not cover it, and really never has. The more unbelievable the workers are, the less realistic the matches themselves are.
Weak selling is killing the product, and it’s becoming nothing more than one meaningless match after another. The talent level of the stars involved is secondary, as the main focus is becoming just how easy the matches themselves appear to be. The suspension of disbelief is key to the business being accepted in the first place, and no-selling destroys any chance of it happening at all.
