WWE Reaction to Mixed Match Challenge

The Mixed Match Challenge with the WWE came to a close as the finals took place. For the WWE, it is time to head back to the office and review the tournament and review the match results and see how they played out to determine if this should be a returning event.

The Reasoning Behind the Idea

The purpose of the Mixed Match Challenge was one that, for the most part, got mixed reactions. For many, including this writer, there was little desire to purchase the Pay Per View event for fear of being disappointed.

The reality is, overall, I am not a fan of the WWE and prefer other physical sports, but in order to write his article, I had little choice but to watch the challenge and report on it. For me, I wasn’t really interested in the thought of watching mixed matches as. They would not be as exciting as other WWE tournaments, and it just lacked the usual gimmick and hype associated with the WWE. Sure, we all know the wrestling is stages, I man who could handle having a 250lb man leap from five feet in the air and land on their chest only to get up and smash the offender into obviation. Still, many seem to love the sport, and there is little to deny that the athletics that the wrestlers possess are on-par with those in the NFL and NHL.

However, the idea was at first to be an all-women’s tournament and for the most part, considering the near 80% male audience that would have been a better way to go. However, as the hope was to generate charitable donations to a variety of organizations, they chose to go with mixed instead with hopes of generating more revenue – an honourable choice if you ask me.

Live Video on Facebook

The purpose to this side of the event was to use Facebook as a revenue generating model for the charities that the WWE planned to donate to. As a rule, this was an excellent idea as those using the platform could click a link to make a donation. Facebook without a doubt has a global audience, as does the WWE, and the feeling was it would draw an increase in viewership and was a good platform for alternative ways to view the event versus the usual television networks like Fox.

While a good experiment in principle, it failed to generate the views the WWE hopes to garner. The reality is, the first of the matches saw viewership at just over 135,000, and that plunged to just over 90,000 the week after and by the 3rd week, and viewership was down by 50%. The totals went up slightly with matches as the finals neared, but not nearly meeting the expectations of the WWE.

The Undertaker

The Undertaker, whose was born on the 4th of March in Houston, Texas and named Mark William Calaway, is an American wrestler in the WWE Wrestling league.

In 1984, Calaway began his career in wrestling with the World Class Championship Wrestling. Remaining with the WCCW until 1990, he joined the World Wrestling Federation and given the ring name “The Undertaker due to his large size and intimidating appearance. To date, he is the longest tenured performer in the WWE and is considered one of the greatest of all time.

The Undertaker – A horror-themed gimmick

Calaway’s gimmick in the ring was to act as an entity that used scare tactics and uses his supposed supernatural links as a way to win. In the early 2000’s, Calaway opted to change his image and take on a biker-themed character before returning to his nemesis the Undertaker a mere four years later. It saw the wrestler being joined by his brother “Kane” with whom he created The Brothers of Destruction. This saw the wrestling team of Calaway and Glen Jacobs being involved in a number of different dramatic storylines that saw the due fighting it out in the ring with opposing forces.

The Undertaker was and remains a fan favourite having has the unprecedented record of twenty-one victories during WrestleMania. This includes matches during WrestleMania 13, XXIV, XXVI, and WrestleMania 33.

Prior to joining the World Wrestling Federation he won the Unified World Heavyweight Championship and has since unseated the infamous Hulk Hogan as the most popular wrestler in the history of the WWE. He has won the championship four times and won the Royal Rumble in 2007.

His climb to fame was not expected to last so long in the WWE, which was over twenty years. Only a few wrestlers came close to touching that record such as John Cena. Hulk Hogan, Stone Cold, The Rock, and HBK.

More popular than Hulk Hogan, the Undertaker remains a popular icon in the WWE with fans coming out in droves whenever an appearance by the wrestler is made. His participation on any scale is a sure-fire ticket seller. Few other wrestlers can lay claim to the impact Calaway has had on the WWE and entertainment wrestling as a hole. He has been instrumental in the success of the federation. The only others who have close to his success include The Rock (who went on to become a successful actor), Shawn Michaels, The Edge, and Triple H.

However, there is little argument to The Undertaker success over the course of his twenty plus long career. His undefeated record at WrestleMania cannot be matched, and from all accounts, there is more to come. He has earned respect from his peers and fans and collectively, it has made him the number one wrestler of all time.

In 2010 Calaway married long-time girlfriend and fellow WWE star Michelle Leigh. Leigh was part of the due that formed the Divas Champions and previously to the WWE, was teaching in Florida. The two share a daughter who was born in 2012.