What WWE WON'T Tell You About The Ruthless Aggression Era

Jim Cornette Smile
WWE.com

Even the term "Ruthless Aggression" is colourless and bland. It sounds like a generic title for a compilation of the butt rock themes so beloved of the time.

WWE is hardly going to reveal the truth of the matter: "Well, we were screwed, so we prematurely promoted a generation of over-muscled greenhorns from Kentucky, and monumentally botched all but four of them."

That is a slight on WWE's approach, not Ohio Valley Wrestling. OVW was a training school, WWE feeder promotion and self-sustaining company in its own right. There, Jim Cornette oversaw the development of several goose-sh*t green talents who couldn't come up anywhere else because there was no nowhere else. The Independent scene was only just showing glimpses of life, much less identity. The skill-honing territory system had long since collapsed. In OVW, several talents that went on to become genuine megastars - and several more who may have achieved that status - were honed under the expert tutelage of the system which, at its peak, drew rave critical reviews as a cult hit of a TV show. It was a very effective - if homogenised - ecosystem, and from it, WWE promoted Cena, Batista, Randy Orton and Brock Lesnar.

And then it fell apart.

CONT'D...(2 of 5)

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Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!