Why The WWE Evolution PPV Controversy Makes Zero Sense

Since the announcement of the first ever all women’s WWE pay per view I have been full of excitement and pride. This event is a massive celebration of women not only in the WWE today but the past and the future as well as wrestling as a whole and I only have positive things to say, however, that is not general feel I’ve gotten from a great deal of the WWE universe and in fact I have been extremely surprised and disappointed at some of the comments made particularly by male fans. In today’s blog post I thought it was about time I gathered all my thoughts and we had an honest discussion about the Evolution pay per view, what it truly means, and the backlash coming out of a positive and historic event.

What Is Evolution All About?

While there is an argument that suggests twenty eighteen may not be the best or the right time to host the first ever all women’s WWE pay per view I can totally see why the company believed otherwise. The division is growing massively, we have the introduction of the UK Women’s division, the second Mae Young Classic, and the division is jam-packed full of must-see talents including Charlotte Flair, Io Shirai, and of course Ronda Rousey but what this PPV truly is is a celebration of women’s wrestling and the evolution of women’s wrestling. There have been so many jokes made by male fans suggesting this is one step closer to just “No men” which is just ridiculous. This extremely special and historic event is a celebration of women now, then, and forever in an industry that has been so massively dominated by men from the beginning of time. Evolution is about so much more than what we see the WWE present to us and instead what this truly is about is the female talent proving they can host a pay per view, that they can go from thirty-second matches to an entire PPV worth.

The Greatest Royal Rumble

I have seen the words “The Greatest Royal Rumble” pop up so frequently since the announcement of the Evolution pay per view. The controversial special that was hosted earlier on in the year has been used for and against in arguments regarding the Evolution PPV and I thought it was key we talk about it here. Now, on the one side, we must remember that the Greatest Royal Rumble wasn’t all men’s show. Yes, women could not compete or even be in the arena, but it was a cultural thing and so that argument is a little weaker. However, the fact the WWE would host a show where women couldn’t be involved right in the middle of pushing a women’s evolution is just stupid yet from a business perspective it makes sense totally. Now, comparing the Greatest Royal Rumble to the Evolution PPV is something we can’t do. Was it fair that women couldn’t be involved? Absolutely not, but I do believe in the long run we will have different opinions on this and more will come for the women. Evolution is something completely different. This is a celebration of a movement, of women in this industry, and proving a point; the Greatest Royal Rumble was a business move.

So… what about an All men’s Pay Per View

I hate telling people their opinions are stupid but the idea of an all men's pay per view does irritate me. There just isn’t a need for it. Now, I can see the argument and I will do a post on this, however, the reason there isn’t a need for this is because we’ve had it. Throughout the history of the WWE, we have seen women given less than five minutes on a PPV or not even given a spot on the show. Wrestlemania events have seen women not partake, female talent has been excluded from many PPV’s over the years and so Evolution is a night where we can change that. It’s a night to prove that women of all generations could have been given more time when they weren’t, this is making up for the “All men’s shows” we have had before. WWE weekly shows and pay per views have been dominated by male talent, the male roster is bigger, and there have always been far more matches for them than the women which creates the idea of an “All men’s” show regardless.

Men are Not Going Anywhere

I have seen so many male fans make light-hearted jokes about creating “No Men” edits (of course replacing No Mercy) but the problem is this isn’t a joke and in fact emphasizes a true issue. Without going deep into that we must remember that while we do see women make history and finally able to partake in major events like Elimination Chamber, the Royal Rumble, Money in the Bank, and of course tournaments but they still have a very long way to go before they are truly equal to men in this industry. Looking at promotions worldwide men still dominate the wrestling world. There is still far more male superstars in the WWE than women, female talent still gets far less airtime than men, and regular pay per vies will rarely ever feature more than two women’s division matches. Men will still be at the top in this industry, but we must also remember that the idea isn’t for women to overtake men, to be better, or have more time but instead be equal, to catch up to years of men being at the very top.

An Open Attack on Feminist

Whenever women in the WWE or wrestling as a whole are given a huge opportunity or the chance to compete in matches or at a level in which men have been competing at for decades there is a small group of “fans” who see this as an open attack on feminist. This past week alone I have seen so many comments that have said things such as “the WWE need to stop giving into the feminist”, “women will never be and should never be equal to men in this industry” and “imagine what the feminists would be saying if this was all men’s”.

The fact there are still a group of “people” who will take any given chance to attack women who want to be equal to men is baffling but again, let’s remember that Evolution isn’t about women taking over but instead a celebration, proving a point, and pushing forward the Women’s Evolution as a whole. It’s also key to point out that allowing the female talent to be involved in what the men do in this industry and/or give them a whole pay per view to themselves its not giving into feminist but realising there has been an issue in this industry, turning it around, allowing women now to have their moment but also give young girls the chance to look up to true female athletes in the wrestling world; and finally, as we have already touched on, we have had all men’s pay per views before without the title of exactly that. Women have had to sit back and be patient while men take the entire spotlight. Women had to deal with the fact that the WWE decided to host a show in a country that excluded women from the network special and of course, while there is an argument for an advertised “All men’s” pay per view it isn’t needed. The idea of Evolution is to edge closer to women becoming equal and reaching the same height the male superstars have been at for decades. So pushing men even higher by giving them yet another night to themselves will effectively only set the women and the women’s Evolution movement back in further.

I do plan on creating much more content regarding the Evolution pay per view including a look at why now the best time may not be. We have to acknowledge that there is still plenty more to be done to allow women to feel more equal to the men they work alongside but the Evolution show is a night to celebrate and have fun and we have to keep in mind that this one off special will not make drastic changes any time soon and there is still a ladder to climb for female talent in a still rather male dominated industry.  


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