10 Wrestling Facts We Didn't Know Last Week (Jan 12)

7. There Was A Hidden Reason Behind Listing Raw & War Zone Separately

Raw Is War
WWE.com

Back in the 90's, fans may have wondered why episodes of Monday Night Raw were split up into 2 sections on their TV listings. The first hour was called 'Raw Is War' and the second was dubbed 'War Zone'. Why was that, you ask? According to Bruce Prichard on his Something To Wrestle With podcast, it had everything to do with ratings.

The USA Network were delighted when Vince McMahon suggested breaking up Raw into 2 distinct sections, because each portion was then rated individually. This meant the station could drive up advertising prices for the second hour; the main event segments in particular were hugely lucrative for both the WWF and USA.

To fans watching at home, the 'War Zone' gimmick seemed to be some sort of drive to present the second hour of Raw as wilder than the first. Nobody thought much of it at the time, probably, but it was a board room decision that reaped huge financial rewards for the promotion.

Advertisement
Contributor

Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.