Wrestling veteran slams WWE fans following major Pat McAfee incident (Exclusive)
Pat McAfee was heavily slammed by a small portion of WWE fans following his announcement about why he has been on a month-long hiatus. A wrestling veteran has proceeded to criticize the fans for their reaction.
On the latest episode of Writing with Russo, ex-WWE writer and longtime wrestling veteran Vince Russo came to the defense of Pat McAfee after he posted screenshots of fans slamming him.
According to Russo, a certain portion of wrestling fans believe that unless someone dedicates their entire life to pro wrestling, there is an issue. He elaborated, saying:
"Pat McAfee has made it clear by saying this and doing this: he doesn't eat, sleep, breathe, crap professional wrestling. He's got a life, he's got his own podcast on ESPN, he's got a two-year-old daughter. That's the thing with these marks, wrestling has to be your life, 100%, more important than anything else in your life. All of a sudden, you're this person who says, it's a part of my life, no question about it, it ain't the whole thing. Now they've got a problem with you because they can't understand why wrestling isn't your everything." (2:28-3:18)
You can watch the full video below:
Vince Russo described the WWE Universe and bubble as a "cult" when talking about the Pat McAfee problem
Vince Russo seemed to completely sympathize with Pat McAfee, as he highly relates to the idea that wrestling can only be one facet of a person's life, and not their entire life itself.
Russo was critical of the comments from some fans insulting McAfee. The veteran said that for a small portion of vocal wrestling fans, if pro wrestling isn't your end-all be-all, then you can't be a part of what he describes as a "cult".
"What McAfee is saying, 'I need a break from this, I got a lot of things going on, I got a real life', but when it comes to those people that are so entrenched in the business. If wrestling isn't your end-all, be-all, then you can't be a part of the cult, man." (5:41-6:00)
It's true that adult wrestling fans make up a smaller portion of the fanbase, but they're also the ones who are the most vocal about the product on social media. They're also the ones paying WWE's increasingly high ticket prices.
WWE President Nick Khan, in particular, isn't fond of the idea of catering the product to what many describe as the "hardcore" online fanbase. He stated that the creative team is encouraged not to think about online fans, as the mentality is that the fans and money will be there if the product created is good.
There has been criticism towards Khan's comments as well, with many fans stating that the primary form of engagement is social media, which means that WWE fans will primarily be online. However, the entire context of the McAfee situation seems to be focusing on a minority within that minority.
If you use any quotes from the article, please provide credit to Sportskeeda Wrestling, and don't forget to embed the episode of Writing with Russo.
