10 Small Details Wrestling Still Can’t Get Right

9. Near Falls

Steve Austin once remarked on his podcast that he rolls his eyes when younger wrestlers blatantly stare at the ref during near falls. Back in his day, Austin preferred to close his eyes and listen for/feel the cadence of the official's count before kicking out. That, to him, is why referees shout out each number as their hands slap the mat.

He has a point.

It's a total giveaway when stars keep a close eye on the count. They're effectively telling the viewer that there's no danger; they're part of a staged act and they're going to magically summon the energy to raise a shoulder somewhere between two-three seconds. Ta-da! The ongoing obsession with dissing artful performance continues.

Near falls are 100x more exciting when wrestlers play dead, pretend to be knocked out or at least don't stare right at the referee instead of selling. Those glances remove any and all threat from the situation, and they kinda' crap on big moves that are supposed to be impactful.