Exposing The Myth: Tag Team Wrestling Doesn’t Draw Money

5. The Numbers Don't Lie

Looking back through the history of professional wrestling, there are cold, hard facts to showcase just how popular tag team wrestling can be when presented as a main event attraction.

For example, back in the 1980s when Jim Crockett Promotions would run an A and a B live event on the same night, it was often the supposed B-show that would outdraw its more illustrious cohort. In particular, it was the Rock 'n' Roll Express who would often be responsible for bringing more fans to these B-shows.

Famously, there were duelling JCP events where a jealous Dusty Rhodes blew his top at the Rock 'n' Roll after they sold out their B-show while the Rhodes-fronted A-show only brought in half the number of fans. Tie this in with stories of Ricky Morton and Robert Gibson having to be forced to leave arenas and publicity events after their presence caused overcrowding from masses of fans.

To highlight the Rock 'n' Roll Express again, there were times when both Morton and Gibson would have to have police officers assigned to their homes to stop any crazed fans - and they were babyfaces in all of this!

It even got to a point where Jim Crockett refused Morton or Gibson a single day off for nine months, for fear of the impact the Rock 'n' Roll's absence would have on ticket sales.

There are plentiful similar stories about so many tag teams of the past, and again this reiterates how valuable tag team wrestling can be.

Andrew Pollard

Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.

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