WWE has had to deal with declining ratings over the last year and they have looked for different ways to boost things up again. The creation of All Elite Wrestling has also had people thinking that Vince McMahon and others may be a little on the defensive side of things. One former world champion and WWE Hall of Famer believes that the company is actually bringing back some elements of the “Attitude Era” to help out today’s product.
The WWF/WWE Attitude Era was one of the most enjoyable times in professional wrestling and it created some of the biggest superstars in history. As times have changed, the product has also been altered to be more family-friendly and relate to a much larger audience.
That is quite understandable as the world has changed and those in it have had to change with it. WWE has witnessed a decline in ratings and some other issues, but there have been signs that some of their old ways could be coming back to TV for all fans to enjoy.
Just a couple of weeks ago, Mick Foley went out on Monday Night Raw to introduce the WWE 24/7 Championship which is very similar to the old WWF Hardcore Championship. That title was very popular and brought about a lot of fun times and happenings, but is this only the beginning?
In a recent interview with talkSPORT , Foley said that WWE is actually looking to have some of the “Attitude Era” elements return. He believes that the third hour of Monday Night Raw will have that harder feel each week and be more like how things used to be.
“The idea is that the third hour is going to get rougher, wilder, and more unpredictable. When I was GM, I knew that people were breaking towards the SmackDown show because it was the darling of the Internet.”
“The idea was ‘why don’t you try [having] a third hour.’ It was like a giant albatross around your neck. The third hour is really difficult. I think it’s an idea to have the third hour more unpredictable and more like the Attitude Era.”
When Foley first showed up on Raw again to introduce the new title, he also talked about how the third hour of Raw would be each week. That night, the crowd lights were turned down and things took on a darker appearance, but that didn’t carry over into this week.
The Inquisitr reported that the USA Network may have been those responsible for coming up with the 24/7 Championship. The network saw ratings drop for the third hour of Raw and wanted WWE to make a change to fix that problem.
WWE has teased intergender matches, more risque storylines, and a number of other Attitude Era” elements in the last few months. It will be interesting to see if they continue to bring in even more as time goes on.
