Crowd Pleasers

Of all professional sports, wrestling offers the greatest level of interaction between the athletes and the fans.  The wrestlers walk down a narrow aisle between the rows of spectators, offering the crowd chances to see and lay hands on their favorite superstars.  This high touch factor enhances the loyalty of the audience members to their favorite wrestlers and to wrestling in general.

Many matches also include action that spills out of the ropes onto the floor and even out of the ringside area into the seats.  No other sport extends the field of play right into the laps of the audience.

The reason people attend events like concerts or sporting contests is to feel a connection to their fellow man.  People enjoy bonding with others in the audience who wear the same clothing styles or team colors and who share the same love of the performers.  They cheer as one, or sing and chant together, or may touch perfect strangers with high-fives or Bro Hugs when good things happen.

The audience members also crave a connection with the stars of the show — to get the singer’s attention, to yell some encouragement to an outfielder.  If someone in the crowd catches a foul ball or a guitar pick, they will cherish that item because it was touched by the star — it represents a physical bond to the talented Alpha Male in the spotlight.

The attraction of pro wrestling lies in its ability to amp up that sense of connection to the wrestler.  He may let you touch his chest, or smile and welcome you to the show, as he walks toward the ring, especially if he is a Baby Face seeking your approval and support.

One competitive advantage that small Indy pro wrestling federations have over the bigger, more crowded shows is the ability to create that sense of intimacy.  In a small venue, the hero wrestler can often literally slap the hand of every fan who wants his hand slapped.  Some Indy shows I’ve attended also have photo opportunities during intermission, or an autograph table where you can chat up your favorite wrestler while buying one of his 8-by-1o’s.

Fans also may express their disdain for a hated wrestler, getting in his face or threatening to hurt him as he walks to the ring.  Some fans seem to get more pleasure over a bitter exchange than they do expressing love and support.  Maybe they’re feeling ashamed of the boner they have for another male.

And sometimes, we see homo-erotic flirtation between the nearly naked wrestlers and the (presumably straight) men who bought a ticket to gawk at the nearly naked wrestlers.

The wrestlers are obviously aware that many of the men at ringside have a sweet tooth for eye candy, because an atmosphere of playful sexual tension often ensues.  The wrestler will flaunt his sexual desirability, twerking his ass, or lap-dancing on an embarrassed (but highly excited) audience member.  I suppose due to the suggestive homo-erotic action in the ring and the exposure of the male bodies, the air at most wrestling events seems to be thick with the aroma of excitement, testosterone, spunk, and male aggression.

An unspoken agreement is formed between the wrestlers and the men watching them.  The fans agree to show up and buy a ticket; the wrestlers agree to strut around flaunting their bodies and cocks and spandexed asses; and everybody agrees not to mention or point out how gay the whole scenario really is.  The First Rule of sexy pro wrestling is don’t talk about the sexiness of pro wrestling.

Most sports could almost happen in a vacuum with no audience present. Baseball or football could really be played in an empty stadium and just aired on television with little difference to the game.  But for pro wrestling, the audience is a critical ingredient.  It just doesn’t make sense if nobody is watching it (and getting off on it.)

Of course the ultimate fan experience is to become part of the action — to get to restrain a wrestler so his opponent can wallop him, or to be invited to slap or pinch his exposed flesh.  It happens rarely, but often enough to realize the fans really get off on joining in the stud abuse.  I’ll bet the guy holding this wrestler’s arms will be ringside at the next show too!