History Main / WrestlingPsychology

-->--'''Wrestling/JerryLawler''', {{leaning on the fourth wall}} to chide Wrestling/ShawnMichaels during [[https://youtu.be/j7px7rhA9A4?t=2m his famous oversell match]] against Wrestling/HulkHogan

** Beyond Wrestling was rather infamous for "circumventing" the problem by having other wrestlers surround the ring in a "lumber jack" fashion to provide some crowd noise. SBG era ROH copied this model for few episodes of their ''Future Of Honor'' shows even before the pandemic shutdown. Companies such as Wrestling/AllEliteWrestling went a step further by having a handful of wrestlers actually take seats as 'audience members', cheering and booing at appropriate moments. The cheers and noise also cover up the wrestlers calling their moves in the middle of the match while leaving more free camera movement than the "cue card" method. It even allowed for some story progression, as Wrestling/{{MJF}} and Shawn Spears (who would later form Wrestling/ThePinnacle) first began to associate with each other while gambling on the outcomes of matches while standing together on the "heel side" of the arena.
** Or the wrestlers themselves could just yell a lot, as is a longstanding tradition in ''joshi'' and you can see [[Wrestling/KanakoUrai Asuka]] demonstrate in WWE.
** Another tactic some wrestlers in WWE have taken is the wrestlers (usually the heel, but not necessarily) amp up their TrashTalk. This can be directed toward their opponents, to psych them out or add to a CurbStompBattle. One particularly good example of this is the ongoing Wrestling/SethRollins vs Wrestling/KevinOwens feud. Owens has always been known as [[{{Troll}} someone who speaks his mind during a match]], but Rollins can rise to his level, bringing more history and anger to their matches. This can even extend to ring crew or commentary, as Wrestling/{{Bayley}} has been showing. Her shouting at Wrestling/MichaelCole and the various referees has been consistently hilarious and entertaining.

Wrestlers who are attacking also sell, albeit differently, like stomping on the mat when punching, or slapping their thigh when kicking. This creates a loud sound that suggests high impact, when actually these punches and kicks are not connecting with their opponent at full force (see MMA or boxing for the kinds of damage a single, legitimate strike can do). A good example of this would be Wrestling/RicFlair, whose knife edge chops to the chest would sound very loud when striking on the echo chamber of the torso and lungs, but require many more strikes with much more effort before bruising or bleeding set in.

[[NoSell No Selling]], not reacting to an opponent's attack, is also part of this psychology. TheGiant or MonsterHeel may take a FinishingMove and sit right back up just to prove how dangerous he is, or a hero may be beaten to the ground only to shake it off and make an exciting comeback to vanquish the bad guy out of a [[TheDeterminator sheer desire to win]]. The polar opposite of that, ''over''-selling, or reacting to an attack far beyond what can be realistically expected, is often used for comedic effect or to taunt an opponent, e.g. taking a simple slap to the face and then reeling back so hard they fall out of the ring.

There's a big difference, however, between no-selling as part of the match, and a wrestler legitimately refusing to respond to their partner's moves with no storytelling involved: the latter is considered extremely unprofessional, as cooperation from both sides are needed to put on a performance. At best, it can sometimes lead to a frustrated or insulted opponent starting to "stiff" the no-seller to try and ''force'' them to sell, which can potentially cause the match to degrade into a [[WorkedShoot shoot fight]]. At worst, it can lead to [[RoleEndingMisdemeanor firings or ostracizing from the industry because the wrestler cannot be trusted]]. Similarly, a wrestler who leaps off a 10-foot ladder onto the floor [[NoOneCouldSurviveThat and gets up immediately without exhibiting any pain or fear]] removes all tension of such a death-defying move, and will likely get mocked instead of cheered by the audience. Thankfully, examples of these cases are extremely rare in the bigger companies.

One aspect of assessing wrestling psychology that sometimes gets overlooked is the fact that each region of the world - namely Japan, Mexico and North America, birthplaces of the major wrestling styles - can have ''very'' different traditions and customs in regards to what constitutes good psychology, and thus what may constitute an excellent match. A wrestling fan who has only ever known, say, the Sports Entertainment style of WWE or the like and then goes to watch puroresu of Japan or lucha libre may get a small bout of culture shock when doing so, as aspects they may have become accustomed to may be downplayed or absent entirely.

Wrestling psychology is generally attributed to individual wrestlers instead of the bookers/'writers'. This is because, unlike staged fights in other media, wrestling matches are rarely choreographed from beginning to end[[note]]There simply isn't time to choreograph every match, since even when a promotion has a reliable roster house shows will translate to a wrestler typically having two or more matches per week.[[/note]]; usually, only the ending and a few big spots are pre-planned, while everything in between is improvised according to a very basic outline of how the match is supposed to flow. ''Usually'' - Wrestling/HulkHogan vs. Wrestling/UltimateWarrior at ''[=WrestleMania=] 6'', for example, was heavily choreographed; both Warrior and Hogan rehearsed much of the match for weeks leading up to the event, and it paid off as the resulting match is hailed as one of the greatest in both men's careers.

One can become a superstar wrestler without displaying great psychology (Wrestling/TheGreatKhali, Wrestling/JeffHardy) or with heavily simplified psychology (Hulk Hogan, [[Wrestling/DwayneJohnson The Rock]], and Wrestling/JohnCena). The opposite is also true, you don't have to have a lot of spectacular moves to show tremendous psychology (Wrestling/RicFlair, Wrestling/JakeRoberts, Wrestling/StoneColdSteveAustin, Wrestling/MickFoley). However, the greats, such as Wrestling/ShawnMichaels, Wrestling/TheUndertaker, [[Wrestling/BryanDanielson Daniel Bryan]], Wrestling/RickySteamboat, Wrestling/ShinyaHashimoto, [[Wrestling/SatoruSayama Tiger Mask]], and Wrestling/TheGreatMuta have a wide range of different moves with very deep, varied and adaptive psychology to go with them. That's how they filled up arenas.

* Strong Style, as described by Wrestling/YujiNagata, starts with two guys feeling each other, mainly through mat wrestling. When it becomes clear one is going to win the wrestling sequence the other wrestler starts using strikes to prevent from losing the match, the opponent responds in kind and then they begin to use their most dangerous moves. The idea was to convey [[DrivenByEnvy envy]]. Wrestling/AllJapanProWrestling had pretty much all the best foreign talent and thus all the attention, so the message being sent was the wrestlers in Wrestling/{{New Japan|ProWrestling}}'s dojo were working harder, were better conditioned more technically sound wrestlers who deserved everything AJPW had, and would keep trying to showing off [[ArrogantKungFuGuy until they were in danger of losing their matches]]. All Japan would nearly collapse on itself in the 2000s but New Japan's wrestlers would keep finding things to get envious about, so they could take their frustrations out in the ring and then on each other.
* A good deal of professional wrestling is based on the collar and elbow style, which can only be done by two willing opponents. Matches start with such a tie-up/lockup out of tradition, with the bonus of it being an easy way for a wrestler to feel for any vulnerabilities in the opponent this particular night and to quickly establish the strategies and personalities of wrestlers to the audience based on what they try to do while tied up. Failure to execute one on a wrestler's part indicates lack of respect, a degree of intimidation, something along those lines. Although ''particularly'' "[[DiscoDan old fashioned]]", {{cultural posturing}} or [[TheFool goofy]] wrestlers may attempt to initiate some kind of Greco-Roman knuckle lock, test of strength, underhanded finger clench or such in place of a collar and elbow hold. Some promoters won't sign an athlete, no matter how well they wrestle on the mat, apply submissions, land strikes, etc if they cannot lockup well.
* The shoot style was developed in the Wrestling/UniversalWrestlingFederation when Wrestling/YoshiakiFujiwara, Wrestling/NobuhikoTakada, [[Wrestling/SatoruSayama Tiger Mask]] and Kazuo Yamazaki entered the promotion on the vow they were no longer going to "help" inferior opponents, starting with rejection of this traditional start in favor of "shooting" straight for take downs or any perceived vulnerable area. Even after the UWF's closing, a telltale sign of a "shooter" remains [[ArrogantKungFuGuy an arm hanging limp]] when another wrestler attempts to "lockup" with one.
* Lucha Libre is an acrobatic, high-flying style of pro wrestling that is often quite difficult to get into initially. For one thing, Lucha Libre is ''staunchly'' conservative in how both matches are conducted and how ''Rudos'' and ''Technicos'' are intended to interact with each other; there are almost no Tweeners in Lucha, and a good portion of matches are under 2/3 falls, and the fans are very much okay with that. Second, the rings in Mexico don't have the spring support that allows for the "bounce" of a flat back bump, and so roll-throughs are far more common sells for damage than being knocked flat. Next, cards are often filled with multi-team tag team matches where the legal man is whoever's in the ring at any one time. This way it allows all the wrestlers to show off their stuff, but it also means their selling often happens out on the floor, rather than in the ring. Finally, a majority of wrestlers in Mexico often work with a mask and their names are purposefully withheld from the public, so an added element to their psychology comes from the mask itself; ''Rudos'' are more power-based brawlers will frequently attempt to maim the ''Technicos'' mask, which is considered kayfabe sacred to their identities (and in most cases, the single biggest identifier of who they are) and grounds for disqualification if ever removed, in order to garner heat from fans and to show just how ruthless or disrespectful the ''Rudo'' really is.
* Other pro wrestling [[TheGimmick gimmicks]] come with their own brands of psychology too. TheGiant is all part of their opponent's inability to move them and [[MightyGlacier also comes with a deliberate pace to let them know it]], as Wrestling/AndreTheGiant, a legitimately agile man early in his career, was criticized for running and jumping around too much, which was said to detract from people's ability to view him as the giant he was billed as. [[WrestlingMonster Monsters]] are generally not supposed to sell pain or only for a little while before ignoring it and going right back on the attack (which forms the basis of Wrestling/BigVanVader's CatchPhrase). Exóticos are more interested in harming their opponent's dignity than their bodies (Cassandro's "lip lock" served no other purpose).

* [[Wrestling/JakeRoberts Jake "The Snake" Roberts]] is widely considered to be one of the finest practitioners of wrestling psychology, to the point where younger wrestlers are often sent to him for an education in the art. Despite having a pot belly, skinny legs and a quite limited variety of moves he could do convincingly, Jake was always massively over with the fans due to a combination of his classic promos and uncanny knack to always do the right thing in the ring, when it was the right time to do it. Even modern day stars like Wrestling/RandyOrton have been schooled by Jake in the art of psychology.

* Wrestling/TheMidnightExpress's Bobby Eaton, considered the backbone of that team, was well known for his savant like ability to know exactly which moves to pull off and when to pop the crowd. So much so that when other wrestlers were booked against Eaton, they considered it basically a night off since Bobby would lead the match and make it look good.

* Wrestling/TheShield has been applauded for their psychology, both during beatdowns and promos. Their usage of the numbers game allow them to beat down isolated opponents, while knowing each other's strengths and weaknesses (Wrestling/DeanAmbrose as the brawler, Wrestling/SethRollins as the high-flyer and Wrestling/RomanReigns as the powerhouse) inside out gives them the edge even against foes who might be great individually but lack the collective front.

* There is a different kind of psychology, involving being able to get under one's opponent's skin and even terrify him before the match has even started. Wrestling/TheUndertaker, Wrestling/{{Kane}}, Wrestling/TheWyattFamily, [[Wrestling/{{Boogeyman}} the Boogeyman]] and Wrestling/{{Holidead}} are all naturals at this.
* Then there is the case of [[Wrestling/JimFullington The Sandman]]. While generally dismissed as a sloppy GarbageWrestler, he did have his own version. By [[CanCrushingCranium busting himself open with beer cans]] on his way to the ring, he nullified any threats his opponents might have made about making him bleed.

* One aspect of psychology Wrestling/JimCornette gave away on Wrestling/RingOfHonor's ''Secrets of the Ring'' Series was why it was sometimes important for wrestlers to slow down at points even if they're fully capable sprinting for ten minutes at a time: to give the audience a chance to catch up, and if they actually like what they're seeing, clap. Incidentally, ROH crowds are equally among the most vitriolic and appreciative to gather in ECW's wake.
* Savio Vega stated the kind of psychology that comes from taking in the crowd reaction and improvising in the match as it went on was lacking in TNA, where most wrestlers were under the impression the crowd should be ignored as much as possible. He cited his and Dutch Mantel's attention to this detail as the reason the Knockouts had the best rated segments on flagship show ''Impact'', though Vega was more in charge of BShow ''Xplosion'' till Mantel's departure.

* Wrestling/TetsuyaNaito developed a very interesting psychology to his matches following his second run in CMLL. The basic story is that he ''really'' wants to win and will go to any means necessary to so...but he also doesn't want anyone to actually think that. His goal is to come off as an uninterested genius who gets all that he wants without trying, so when he is in control or at a stalemate he loafs around and avoids contact, trying to do as little as possible and when things go south he tries to have one of his Wrestling/{{Los Ingobernables|deJapon}} run interference. But when all else fails he "wakes up" and becomes desperate, almost childishly so. Kind of like a reconstructive parody of strong style, as Naito is basically trying his best to lash out at the crowds who ignored him without losing track of the fact he has matches to win. This all unfolded in his feud with Wrestling/HiroshiTanahashi from Naito slacking is way to victory in the G-1 up to them fighting for the IWGP Intercontinental Title belt.

** This was the problem wrestlers faced with matches being taped in empty arenas during the 2020 Coronavirus pandemic - while watching wrestling with no crowd was a surreal experience in itself, many wrestlers found it difficult to adjust, doing things like pausing to let the audience "pop", which felt bizarre when they weren't there. Wrestling psychology has almost needed to be reworked from the ground up to adapt to the circumstances.
** The "[[GimmickMatches Empty Arena]]" match was nothing new by this point, but it was a very rare thing. It was generally only used by enterprises who owned their own buildings or open air arenas, was generally only used after lengthy buildups during particularly long running feuds and even the hungriest of independent wrestlers tended to refuse them the rare times they were suggested ''because'' they didn't want to get used to working without fans. Since the general practice is to film the match and then show it to fans in the arena later, most wrestlers tend to insist they just be on the card in the first place and suggest their own special stipulation(falls count anywhere, fans bring the weapons, etc). All that established, there are a few short cuts a promoter dead set on using out of their depth wrestlers can employ, such as having someone off camera hold up cue cards to guide wrestlers along and hopefully reduce spot calling. Wrestling/JerryLawler's many incarnations of "Memphis Wrestling" were mocked for empty arena matches, but his CWA bout with Wrestling/TerryFunk ''was'' well received since the two of them could actually pull off a quick fight and make it look good without any assistance or audible spot calling. It was when entire shows, rather than a single match, were filmed in such a way that problems arose. The worst offender however was not Lawler's doing but the 1989 "New" Wrestling/{{A|mericanWrestlingAssociation}}WA pilot where a green screen of audience footage and piped in crowd noise was used in a [[SpecialEffectsFailure failed]] attempt to hide the fact the show was being shot without fans.

The first half of wrestling psychology is a wrestler's strategy throughout the match, which can depend on a wrestler's physique, gimmick, and personality. A smaller wrestler may use technical skills to attack a body part in order to set up for a painful submission hold, while a 6-foot brawler will eschew such finesse and just straight up punch you. Other popular strategies include [[IShallTauntYou taunting an opponent]], keeping a high-flying opponent on the ground, chopping at TheGiant's legs to limit his mobility, or [[BatmanGambit maneuvering an opponent to make a stupid mistake out of frustration or desperation]].

There's a big difference, however, between no-selling as part of the match, and a wrestler legitimately refusing to respond to their partner's moves with no storytelling involved. The second is considered extremely unprofessional, as cooperation from both sides are needed to put on a performance. At best, it can sometimes lead to a frustrated or insulted opponent starting to "stiff" the no-seller to try and ''force'' them to sell, which can potentially cause the match to degrade into a shoot fight. At worst, it can lead to firings or ostracizing from the industry because the wrestler cannot be trusted. Similarly, a wrestler who leaps off a 10-foot ladder onto the floor and gets up immediately without exhibiting any pain or fear removes all tension of such a death-defying move, and will likely get mocked instead of cheered by the audience. Thankfully, examples of these cases are extremely rare in the bigger companies.

There's a big difference between 'no selling as part of the match', and a wrestler legitimately refusing to respond to their partner's moves with no storytelling involved. The second is considered extremely unprofessional, as cooperation from both sides are needed to put on a performance, and can lead to firings or ostracization from the industry because the wrestler cannot be trusted[[note]]at worst, it can sometimes lead to a frustrated or insulted opponent starting to "stiff" the no-seller to try and ''force'' them to sell, which can potentially cause the match to degrade into a shoot fight[[/note]]. Similarly, a wrestler who leaps off a 10-foot ladder onto the floor and gets up immediately without exhibiting any pain or fear removes all tension of such a death-defying move, and will likely get mocked instead of cheered by the audience. Thankfully, examples of these cases are extremely rare in the bigger companies.

There is a third, more nebulous component to wrestling psychology, and that is the crowd's reaction. The audience may decide, on their own, to cheer for a Heel in the match, boo the Babyface, or simply not respond to incredible athletic feats. Wrestlers with good psychology know how to play up to the crowd or give them periods of rest, sometimes even changing their styles to match what the audience wants (see Wrestling/HulkHogan and [[Wrestling/DwayneJohnson The Rock]] switching roles as Heel and Face respectively at Wrestlemania X8).

** Beyond Wrestling was rather infamous for "circumventing" the problem by having other wrestlers surround the ring in a "lumber jack" fashion to provide some crowd noise. SBG era ROH copied this model for few episodes of their ''Future Of Honor'' shows even before the pandemic shutdown. Companies such as Wrestling/AllEliteWrestling went a step further by having a handful of wrestlers actually take seats as 'audience members', cheering and booing at appropriate moments. The cheers and noise also cover up the wrestlers calling their moves in the middle of the match while leaving more free camera movement than the "cue card" method.

There's a big difference between 'no selling as part of the match', and a wrestler legitimately refusing to respond to their partner's moves with no storytelling involved. The second is considered extremely unprofessional, as cooperation from both sides are needed to put on a performance, and can lead to firings or ostracization from the industry because the wrestler cannot be trusted. Similarly, a wrestler who leaps off a 10-foot ladder onto the floor and gets up immediately without exhibiting any pain or fear removes all tension of such a death-defying move, and will likely get mocked instead of cheered by the audience. Thankfully, examples of these cases are extremely rare in the bigger companies.

* Orange Cassidy (now wrestling for Wrestling/{{AEW}}) has one of the most unique psychologies in wrestling history, leveraging especially on crowd participation. Cassidy's shtick is that he's ''[[BrilliantButLazy lazy]]'', walking into the ring like it's a chore, or 'kicking' his opponents by tapping them lightly on the shins. Despite this, the crowds always go bananas for his appearances, cheering for lazy gestures like [[MundaneMadeAwesome him putting his hands in his pockets]] because 1) his antics get his opponents furious, and 2) when he gets hit, [[LetsGetDangerous he starts trying]], and reveals that he can keep pace just fine with the competition when he wants to.

These strategies tend to be a little stereotypical, for good and bad reasons. A 400-pound gorilla will usually be [[MightyGlacier slow but strong enough to hurl their opponent like a ragdoll]], while a 100-pound female wrestler will likely be [[FragileSpeedster agile and fast, focusing on strikes and aerial moves]]. Wrestling psychology is all about visual shorthand, and audiences will have immediate expectations when they see certain physiques or personalities. Many wrestlers play with these stereotypes, and there have been plenty of examples of big men doing flippy moves, or smaller wrestlers showing surprising strength by doing power moves. However, there is also the concern of safety and health for the wrestlers. That 400-pounder is more likely to injure himself and his partner leaping off the top rope for an elbow drop, and a small wrestler is going to have a lot of difficulty trying to lift a 7-foot opponent onto his shoulders.

Wrestlers who are attacking also sell, albeit differently, like stomping on the mat when punching, or slapping their thigh when kicking. This creates a loud sound that suggests high impact, when actually these punches and kicks are not connecting with their opponent at full force (see MMA or boxing for the kinds of damage a single, legitimate strike can do, and how actually quiet they are). A good example of this would be Wrestling/RicFlair, whose knife edge chops to the chest would sound very loud when striking on the echo chamber of the torso and lungs, but require many more strikes with much more effort before bruising or bleeding set in.

** Or the wrestlers themselves could just yell a lot, as is a longstanding tradition in ''joshi'' and you can see [[Wrestling/KanakoUrai Asuka]] demonstrate in WWE.