Wrestlers and their ages

[TGM]

Forgive me if I have posted this in thread wrong forum.

I see a lot of people criticising wrestlers who are over their 30s for being too old and I've been thinking recently about wrestlers and their ages. Back in the day, Batista was considered old to be receiving a main event push being 36 in 2005 (Cena was 28 for comparison).

This is despite the fact Bret Hart was 40 at Wrestlemania 13 (Austin was 33 and HBK and Undertaker were both 31.) Eddie Guerrero didn't hit the main event until he was 37 and Flair's first title reign was at 31.

Is there a stigma (?) amongst fans today about a guy being too old to challenge for the world title despite their ability? A quote on these forums about Tanahashi being too old to be the face of New Japan at age 40 inspired this thread.

WWE certainly believe that HBK 53, HHH 49, Kane 51, Undertaker 53 can headline a massive show, so what do you guys think?

[Viking Hall]

Age shouldn't matter, no. Ability and relevance should be the deciding factor. Going back to New Japan, I find 50 year old Minoru Suzuki ridiculously entertaining. However, he still has the ability to be in great matches and doesn't feel out of place in terms of character or persona. The Undertaker may only be three years older, but the fact is, he's clearly a physical wreck at this point and has done everything there is to do in his promotion.

[Nosnorb]

If you can still go, and your character hasn't been booked into oblivion, then age shouldn't matter.

[The Thread Barbi]

Probably attached to the stigma of real sportsmen who have had their best days by 30 with Roger Federer and Christiano Ronaldo being the exceptions.

[Cry Me a Wiggle]

I think fans get hung up on biological age when the real thing they're complaining about is TV age, i.e. how long a wrestler has been a staple of the show and dominating the main event without changing things up at the expense of fresher characters. Plus, 40 is definitely the new 30, which is the new 20. The workers age much, much slower than they use to, partly because they're no longer mainlining steroids, cocaine, and alcohol morning, noon, and night. There have also been steady increases in lifespan and economic realities, which has resulted in the culture changing over the last 30 years. It used to be that 18 meant you're an adult, but now the entire decade of the 20s has become a vague middle ground between being a teenager and adult, which has kind of pushed everything back. So AJ being over 40 means a lot less than it did even back in the days of WCW's main eventers being of a similar age.

[Deleted]

Age only matters when someone can't go anymore when it comes to wrestling. Rey Mysterio is 43 years old and he's still dope and we all want to see him in the action with anyone they can put him against. It's about how dope you are in the craft at the end of the day.

[This Player Hating Mothman]

One issue is in TV age; a lot of the old-timers WWE is trucking out aren't just on the older side, they've been around for-f***ing-ever. In the spotlight, all over TV, and now a lot of them can't really go anymore and are being held up as the only real stars despite being from eras long past. You don't see as many complaints about AJ's age because he hasn't been around on WWE TV since the mid '90s. But in the case of guys like Taker, it's not just that they are old, it's that they really show their age.

[Pushed to the Moon]

I'm not sure I've ever seen anyone complain about 30s being too old. I think it depends if you can still move decently and what you're actually doing. Like late 40s Jericho doing cool things with new people is entertaining. Late 40s HHH going at it with old man Kane. Not so much.

[Cranjis McBasketball]

Being 35 and the same age or older than most of the guys, that magic is gone for the new guys for me. It’s the same feeling I had when I went to a World Junior selection camp game, my friend collects autographs but I said to him, “I’m not waiting by the bus in the cold to meet a 17 year old boy”.

[Bub (BLM)]

I only care about age when it clearly shows in the ring. AJ Styles and Rey Mysterio are still putting out killer matches in their 40's and don't make you think "these guys are old". Mark Henry was a waste of space until he was over 40 and became the awesome Hall of Pain version of his character and had his best matches. Bret Hart's best year was at age 40.

Then on the flipside, you've got Undertaker gasping for air as he takes 24 seconds to bend down and pick up a chair, and Kane hobbling around with a body looking like mashed potatoes poured into a condom. Get that garbage off my TV. It should be f***ing embarrassing.

[mcstoklasa]

Kane and big show have been on tv for over twenty straight years. I know is show is a bit younger than old man Kane but they both need to go away.

Also Brock May deserve a lot of the hate he gets, but he gets lumped in with the much older part timers a lot who are all nearly a decade older than him, at what, 41?

[Allie Kitsune]

Nov 8, 2018 15:13:31 GMT -5 mcstoklasa said:

Kane and big show have been on tv for over twenty straight years. I know is show is a bit younger than old man Kane but they both need to go away.

Also Brock May deserve a lot of the hate he gets, but he gets lumped in with the much older part timers a lot who are all nearly a decade older than him, at what, 41?

Brock also gets Beet Red and pouring gallons of sweat out of his body after 3 1/2 minutes.

[Ryushinku]

It's interesting, back in the Monday Night Wars, wrestlers hitting or near 40 really felt old to me. Maybe simply because I was a lot younger than that, as were a lot of the audience at the time.

These days...it feels much more that guys can be just as good this side of 50. Both in terms of how they look and how they perform.

Definitely a fair point that there's "tv age" as well. Someone in their mid-thirties that's been on the shows for fifteen years is going to always feel a lot less fresh.

[Xxcjb01xX [PIECE OF: SH-]]

Arn Anderson was 30 years old when he was 7.

[Tony Schiavontay]

I'll always remember Undertaker in the American Badass years doing an interview where he expressed a desire to start slowing down because he never wanted to be the guy wrestling where someone in the stands says to his kid, "You should have seen how good he was when I was young."

I'd say he's a good five years or so past even that point.

[Mozenrath]

Age is relative. See, Nick Bockwinkel for maybe the biggest example.

That said, it is usually a complaint that surfaces more when the perception is a lack of upward mobility is a major issue. In WCW, for instance, or in WWE currently with the brass ring. Some people, namely the Shield and Wyatt, have climbed, but so many have been seen as unfairly being kicked off the ladder before they ever had the chance to.

[TOK Hehe'd Around & Found Out]

Nov 8, 2018 16:32:58 GMT -5 Allie Kitsune said:

Nov 8, 2018 15:13:31 GMT -5 mcstoklasa said:

Kane and big show have been on tv for over twenty straight years. I know is show is a bit younger than old man Kane but they both need to go away.

Also Brock May deserve a lot of the hate he gets, but he gets lumped in with the much older part timers a lot who are all nearly a decade older than him, at what, 41?

Brock also gets Beet Red and pouring gallons of sweat out of his body after 3 1/2 minutes.

He always did, it's just way more obvious in HD and with everything being so bright now.

[SCCB Was Told To Do Steroids]

I just want to see new talent shine. These guys they prop up now are more stale in age than chronologically old.

[nisidhe]

The lifestyles and health regimens of today's crew are far different from those held up in the 1980s or 1990s. Steroids, if used at all, are used with far greater care (Jinder's bacne notwithstanding.) The harder recreational drugs are all but gone as are the unregulated prescription meds.to What we know about concussions and CTE has probably lengthened the careers and lives of every single person in that locker room. The mental and emotional stressors that used to be part of life on the road, including the crueler ribbing and Wrestler's Court, have largely gone away, and generally the locker room is a happier place than it used to be.

Nonetheless, the ability to go in the ring does eventually fade with time and as injuries pile up, especially if those injuries are not looked after in a timely manner and/or with 100% health as the benchmark for returning to the ring. Genetics will play a role here, as well as size and any underlying conditions. Smaller wrestlers tend to be better able to go as they age than larger guys. We joke about Kevin Nash's quads at 40 but marvel at Ricky Steamboat's stamina and prowess at 60. Mileage can vary, of course, but in the end it has to be up to the wrestler him/herself and the company to decide when it's time to call it a career. The only reason, I feel, that we got DX vs. BoD is because they really are the last of that generation who could go.

[Cvslfc123]

Nov 8, 2018 14:28:07 GMT -5 The Thread Barbi said:

Probably attached to the stigma of real sportsmen who have had their best days by 30 with Roger Federer and Christiano Ronaldo being the exceptions.

I guess goalkeepers are the most similar to wrestlers in terms of them "bumping" when they dive, and like most wrestlers they hit their peak in their mid 30s.