Why Australia must embrace Global Warning in 2018

Imagine it: a fully packed Melbourne Cricket Ground on a pristine spring night. Tens of thousands of fans packed into Australia’s own colosseum to witness its first-ever live World Wrestling Entertainment pay-per-view.

The light show, the entertainment, the roar of the crowd and the excitement of seeing some of professional wrestling’s biggest names on our own soil is one that only the most fanatic of fans have dreamt about.

It was 15 years ago when the WWE sold out Etihad Stadium for the inaugural Global Warning, which featured names such as The Rock, Triple H, Brock Lesnar, Edge, Chris Jericho, Randy Orton and Batista, who competed in front of 50,000 hardcore wrestling fans.

The thought of a return at that level was still a far-off fantasy – until last week, when Pro Wrestling Sheet reported that the WWE were in heavy discussions about ‘Global Warning II’, this time at the MCG. The excitement level are through the roof as wrestling fans eagerly await the final decision from Vince McMahon and co whether this will actually go ahead.

However, many would think, ‘Why here in Melbourne? Why don’t they do a pay-per-view in Japan or the UK? Will the WWE actually have the draw power to sell out the arena?’.

Firstly, the MCG is the perfect arena for an event of this magnitude. Why? Because the MCG is one of the most famous sporting arenas in the world. PLus the timing of the event could not be better – with reports stating that the event will take place in October, it perfectly fits in between the hectic AFL and cricket schedules that dominates the winter and summer months respectively.

The WWE will have ample time throughout 2018 to advertise the event, and with the draw of Melbourne being the ‘sporting capital of the world’, why not welcome a more obscure form of sport in professional wrestling to our own shores?

Each year the WWE do live events around the country that sell out in days, and since this is a pay-per-view, fans will jump at this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Not everyone has the money to fly to the USA and watch a Wrestlemania or a Summerslam, so fans around Australia, New Zealand and South-East Asia will see this as a chance to make their dreams reality by making a more cost-effective flight to watch it in Melbourne. The MCG selling out won’t be a worry due to the demand of the event and a marquee match-up as the main event, which is built up like one from a ‘Big Four’ pay-per-view and will only increase the want for a ticket.

The key will be to make it a one-week build-up where the WWE set up events around Melbourne, including meet and greets, a ‘WWE Axess’ kind of event and a RAW and SmackDown live after the pay-per-view is an absolute must.

Rod Laver Arena would be absolutely rocking for both shows as Australian fans have been known as some of the most vocal on the planet. The ovation for an Aussie star like Peyton Royce, Billie Kay, the tandem of TM-61 or – dare I say it – a returning Emma would be deafening.

These Aussies must be competing at the event, and I do believe that a tag-team title opportunity for TM-61 must be part of the event, with a women’s title chance for one of Royce or Kay, who will have ample time to be built up as credible title contenders by October next year. THe chance of an Aussie winning a title on home soil would make it a must-see event.

The WWE must look at what they did with British Bulldog back in the 1990s when he won the title at Wembley. Imagine the ovation one of Australia’s own wrestlers taking home the gold, especially if it were the first Aussie in WWE history to hold a title of some sort on the main roster.

However, the pool of talent must be the best of the best from both shows. This must not be a RAW or SmackDown exclusive pay-per-view; it must showcase the best full-time and part-time performers with numerous titles up for grabs. Names like AJ Styles, Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, Finn Balor, Braun Strowman, Randy Orton and Shinsuke Nakamura must be at the forefront of the event and be competing in some capacity.

Unfortunately the pull for fans of all eras is not with those names entirely. Fans will come out in droves if men like Triple H, John Cena, Kurt Angle, Shane McMahon appear, and even cameos from past legends would set the house on fire. Not many fans would have the opportunity to see wrestlers of such calibre, and they are an instant hit with fans of the ‘Reality’ and ‘Attitude’ eras, who will be caught up in the action in a similar manner to how The Game faced Jinder Mahal in India this past week.

Imagine a main event featuring AJ Styles and a name such as Kurt Angle in a once-in-a-lifetime match. What about John Cena facing Samoa Joe between the face of WWE and Impact Wrestling? What if we got a new name making his way over to WWE by the time this event comes to fruition? A certain Kenny Omega immediately springs to mind. Put him in a match with anyone and expect a standing ovation.

There will be sceptics out there who believe that Australia is not worthy of a pay-per-view of such magnitude, but if this is advertised correctly with the right names and right feuds, we could see an amazing event unfold before our very eyes.

The WWE sold out Wembley, had their own pay-per-view on enemy territory in 2015 for ‘Beast in the East’ and now it is time to make the venture Down Under.