Lance Storm: Individual Wrestlers Are Not A Draw
The former ECW star has had his say
Mar 15, 2021
Lance Storm was speaking to Bryan Alvarez on the Wrestling Observer’s Figure Four Daily podcast recently, where the two discussed, amongst many other things, AEW’s Revolution PPV.
On the buy-rate success of Revolution, Storm opined that individual wrestlers aren’t a draw anymore, rather people tune in for a complete package:
“There are people who are stars and when you have enough stars, you can draw. But, the concept of one individual person actually being a draw in today’s day and age, I just don’t buy it…He (Kenny Omega). He isn’t the draw. He wasn’t the change. You’ve got Sunday Night which may have been the difference. You’ve got Sting’s big first match in AEW. You’ve got the announcement of the new Hall of Fame worthy signee and you’ve got bombs.
“I’m not trying to belittle Kenny Omega or anyone else. There is star power. There are people who are perceived as stars and they have value, but one individual person of actually being a draw where if he is on the TV show, ratings go up, if he’s off the TV show ratings go down any significant amount, or ticket sales or buy rates, I just don’t buy that.
“Think of one person in any company, really, that if that one person left, the company’s financial position would be drastically reduced…Pick anyone. If Chris Jericho left AEW today, there’s not going to be a perceptible difference in their Wednesday Night rating. Their next PPV buy rate isn’t going to drop because Chris Jericho isn’t on it, or Kenny Omega, or Cody Rhodes or whoever. Granted, if you lost The Bucks, Kenny, and Cody, yeah, then you are losing a bunch of your star power and then your business would drop.”
Credit: Figure Four Daily H/T: WrestlingNews.co for the transcription
