Billy Corgan Says Wrestling Is On The Cusp Of Entering The Core Mainstream Of Entertainment

Billy Corgan believes in a bright future for the wrestling business.

The industry has seen many ups and downs over the years, but many believe that the current “boom period” in wrestling could last for quite some time.

In a new interview with the Battleground podcast, NWA owner Billy Corgan planted his flag in that same camp, saying that wrestling’s best days have yet to come.

“I think there were those years between — let’s say mid 40s and maybe up until about ten years ago — where wrestling’s place in the culture was very much kind of a almost embarrassed, yeah, there’s wrestling too. It was stuck over there in the corner with roller derby. Yet, over those 70 years, you saw the rise of the NFL, the rise of the NBA. Heck, now we see the rise of the WNBA. I think it was very hard for people in the wrestling business — because they’re obviously very gifted athletes — to not get that same kind of street respect as another great athlete. Yes, they’re entertainers and we all understand that part of the business. I think since we’ve seen the sale of WWE to WME, which is also owns UFC, I think you’re gonna see now wrestling finally enter the core mainstream of entertainment. It’ll be up there with broadway theater and everything else. It’s something that obviously very popular, generates a lot of money for partners that it has. I think it also sort of attracts more talent. Personally, I think wrestling’s best days are ahead. I love the era I grew up in, I think it was a fantastic time for professional wrestling. But, I think what’s to come — You see what WWE’s able to do with 80,000 people in a stadium for WrestleMania and all that stuff.

Corgan proceeded to tie this topic into his 2017 purchase of the NWA.

“That’s why I bought the NWA, because I saw a lane by which we could not only bring the NWA back, but also grow as a business. All my meetings, whether I’m talking to top networks or big agents in the sports field, my pitch is always the same. It’s a mainstream product, it’s meant to be a mainstream product. I know it’s very trendy right now for wrestling to be treated as a niche product, like a smaller and smaller fanbase pays more to watch a very specific kind of wrestling. I get that, it’s very similar to the dynamics of independent music where a band has a weird mustache and a bunch of people like them and they can’t really write hit songs but everyone says how great it is. Well, there’s nothing wrong with that. I came out of the independent markets myself, but we all understand that the biggest movies are about the most people going. The biggest wrestling events are about the most people going. What does that tell you? You have to find a product that reaches everything from a five year old kid who gets what they’re watching at the most fundamental levels — then, my case, sitting next to an 81 year old Belgium woman who didn’t even speak English but liked professional wrestling. I think that’s when wrestling is at its best. The best times are to come.”

Interested in staying up-to-date with the National Wrestling Alliance? Keep up with Fightful’s coverage of the the promotion by clicking here.

If you use any of the quotes above, please credit and link to the original source with a h/t and link back to Fightful for the transcription.