Evolution must continue; Goldberg’s farewell ends forgotten era
The evolution of pro wrestling was on full display this past weekend
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WWE hit the jackpot last night with Evolution.
The all-women’s show highlighted the best women’s division in all of professional wrestling. And it would be absurd not to make this a yearly event.
It opened with a tremendous triple threat–Becky Lynch’s match-winning modified backslide was shades of Ricky Steamboat1–and ended with Naomi cashing in her Money in the Bank contract to pin Iyo Sky near the conclusion of her outstanding match against Rhea Ripley.2
This was the sequel to the original Evolution event in 2018, which was also a major success. Yet it took seven years for WWE to run it back. In wrestling, especially WWE, that is the greatest rarity: leaving money on the table. Clearly, Vince McMahon did not want to run the show. Otherwise, it would have been a yearly staple.
But McMahon is no longer the end-all, be-all in WWE. Instead, the creative side is in the hands of Paul “Triple H” Levesque, who was asked during last night’s post-show press conference whether Evolution will run once a year.
“I think we see what that demand is for it,” said Levesque. “Because as the demand for the women grows every day, it becomes less about having their own show and more about, like, that’s the equality.
“They don’t have to have their show to be in the spotlight. But if it works, we’ll definitely go down that road. So I think it’s a ‘we shall see.’”3
There is no debate: the Evolution concept works. That is because WWE employs the best collection of women’s wrestlers on the planet. The show is important because it highlights the women who don’t always get time on Raw or SmackDown, and it places the spotlight on women who do not typically wrestle in the main event. Evolution is an outlier, a chance for women to dominate an industry long controlled by men. And there is no downside to running the show.
Women’s wrestling is only going to grow, especially with the current generation setting the example. WWE can either be ahead of the curve and lead the way, or frantically try to catch up after missing out on this golden opportunity.
One more note about Bill Goldberg’s retirement: right down to the finish, it was a fitting tribute to World Championship Wrestling.
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