8 Big Concerns Raised By WWE's Injury Crisis
6. The Brutal Road Schedule
Success in WWE comes at a cost. No other company can match their mainstream exposure and financial clout, but the lifestyle is often described as a brutal, relentless grind. Not only are wrestlers expected to work four or five times a week, but jet themselves from city to city in the process, leaving little time for rest and recovery.
This takes an obvious physical and mental toll. The schedule has shortened countless careers over the years, with many wrestlers citing it as a major problem, but WWE show no signs of easing off. The company held a total of 280 shows in 2016. We're still awaiting year-end reports, but they were projecting 300+ at the start of 2017. This is nuts, and while the roster split eases things somewhat, WWE are pushing their wrestlers to breaking point.
Stylistic changes don't mean a thing with such a ruthless schedule, as no matter how 'easy' wrestlers take things at untelevised events, their bodies aren't given a chance to recover. Such is life in the world's biggest wrestling promotion, where refusing to 'work through the pain' is considered an affront.