12 Times Crowds Actually IMPROVED Wrestling Moments

Few things are harder these days than making a wrestling audience believe what they are watching is in fact real - an unscripted fight between two humans with insane athletic ability. NJPW can do that for every one of its main events.

Crowds often work to the same rhythm as Japanese Strong Style/King's Road matches. They start as slow and deliberate as the wrestlers, with their butts in the seats, clapping along, chanting the name of their heroes, before piping down and letting the two titans work each other into oblivion. The silence created in Japanese venues is enough for the impact of every hard-hitting strike to be heard by the cameras and throughout the stands.

Once the counters get going, and the near falls keep happening, the fans are whipped into a frenzy, not seen outside of chaotic endings in sports like hockey, football, and basketball. Anyone watching on a TV or a computer screen can't help but get the same heart beat as the live audience, their fingers twitching in anticipation for that final three-count that always seems so close but seemingly never shows up.

When the match ends, everyone watching is left panting, breathing sighs of relief, as if they themselves were involved in that same match. NJPW is one of the few promotions that understands how vital fan participation is to the artisitc product of a wrestling match. It only makes sense that they're one of the few that isn't holding any shows right now.