10 Mistakes All Wrestling Fans Make

4. Bumping Isn't Selling

Roman Reigns
WWE.com

Apparently, Dolph Ziggler is so good at selling that he has now become synonymous with it. Whenever a meme of somebody or other falling over appears on newsfeeds, a wrestling fan isn't too far away. "That's Ziggler-level selling right there."

He's not. He's very, very good at bumping - at making the offence of his opponents look absolutely devastating. It is a practice at which Ziggler excels - nobody has come close to making Baron Corbin look as good - but it isn't selling. Ziggler's high octane ring style often renders actual selling the weakest part of his act. He recovers from purportedly devastating moves too quickly - not that Ziggler is an exception.

This is a particular bugbear because the art of selling - the art on which the business is predicated - has been bastardised in recent years, sacrificed at the altar of content, content, content.

For great selling, look no further than the great Ricky Steamboat. At NWA WrestleWar '89, the sell-job of his leg was acted with such unbelievable conviction that the people were palpably desperate to see him recover, much less win. The fans didn't bestow him with guffawing chants of "This is awesome!" - they reacted with genuine, belief-suspending emotion.

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Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!