WWE Superstar Spectacle

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WWE Superstar Spectacle
WWESSPoster.jpg
Promotional graphic featuring various WWE wrestlers
PromotionWWE
Brand(s)Raw
SmackDown
NXT
DateJanuary 22, 2021[1]
(aired January 26, 2021)
CitySt. Petersburg, Florida
VenueTropicana Field
Attendance0 (behind closed doors)[a]
Tagline(s)Indian Dhamaal
A Republic Day Blockbuster
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WWE Superstar Spectacle was a professional wrestling television special and WWE Network event produced by WWE. It featured wrestlers from the promotion's Raw, SmackDown, and NXT brand divisions. The event was taped on January 22, 2021, and aired on January 26 for India's Republic Day. The event was specially produced for WWE's Indian market as a part of their five-year deal with Sony Pictures Networks India. The event also incorporated elements of traditional and contemporary Indian culture and emanated from the WWE ThunderDome, hosted at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida.

Five matches were contested at the event. In the main event match, WWE Champion Drew McIntyre and The Indus Sher (Rinku and Saurav) defeated The Bollywood Boyz (Samir Singh and Sunil Singh) and the returning Jinder Mahal. The event also featured the participation of 10 Indian wrestlers from WWE's developmental system. The company later announced that 20 million people had watched the event live.

Production[]

Background[]

Coming out of WWE's third-quarter financial call on October 29, 2020, WWE's President and Chief Financial Officer, Nick Khan, announced that they were working with Sony Pictures Networks India on producing an event specially targeted to their Indian market, which would air in 2021 as a television special on India's Republic Day (January 26) and would mainly feature the promotion's developing Indian wrestlers. The event would mainly air on Sony's Indian platforms and be domestically distributed to the United States via the WWE Network.[2][3][4] The television special was titled Superstar Spectacle and was a two-hour event shown on Sony TEN 1, Sony TEN 3, and Sony Max and aired at 8pm Indian Standard Time. Viewers had the option of watching the broadcast in the language of their preference, with both English commentary and Hindi commentary being offered.[5][6][7][8][9]

On January 13, 2021, WWE announced that WWE Champion Drew McIntyre, Rey Mysterio, Charlotte Flair, AJ Styles, Bayley, The New Day (Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods), Shinsuke Nakamura, Cesaro, Dolph Ziggler, Robert Roode, Natalya, Ricochet, WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair, and many more would be in attendance at the event.[10][11] Jinder Mahal, the first WWE Champion of Indian descent,[12] The Bollywood Boyz (Sunil and Samir Singh), Indus Sher, Jeet Rama, Kavita Devi, Giant Zanjeer, Dilsher Shanky, and Guru Raaj, were all further confirmed to appear.[13][14][15]

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic[]

Main article: WWE ThunderDome

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic that began affecting the industry in mid-March 2020, WWE had to present the majority of its programming from a behind closed doors set. Initially, Raw and SmackDown's television shows and PPVs were done at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida,[16] while NXT's events were held at Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida.[17] In late August, Raw and SmackDown's programs were moved to a bio-secure bubble called the WWE ThunderDome. The select live audience was no longer utilized as the bubble allowed fans to attend the events virtually for free and be seen on the nearly 1,000 LED boards within the arena. Additionally, the ThunderDome utilized various special effects to further enhance wrestlers' entrances, and arena audio was mixed with that of the chants from the virtual fans.[18] After being hosted at Orlando's Amway Center,[19] the ThunderDome was relocated to Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida in December.[20][21] In October, NXT's events were moved to the Performance Center in a set up called the "Capitol Wrestling Center," an homage to the Capitol Wrestling Corporation, the predecessor to WWE. It was similar to the ThunderDome, but included a small crowd of select fans.[22] Superstar Spectacle was scheduled to be held at the ThunderDome and feature wrestlers from Raw, SmackDown, and NXT. The event was recorded on January 22, 2021, and aired on tape delay on January 26.[11]

Storylines[]

The event included matches that resulted from scripted storylines, where wrestlers portrayed heroes, villains, or less distinguishable characters in scripted events that built tension and culminated in a wrestling match. Results were predetermined by WWE's writers on the Raw, SmackDown, and NXT brands,[23][24] while storylines were produced on WWE's weekly television shows, Monday Night Raw, Friday Night SmackDown, and NXT.[25]

Reception[]

Ian Hamilton of 411mania gave Superstar Spectacle a 7.2 out of 10, remarking of the Indian performers (including those making their television debut) that "for a group of guys effectively trained from scratch, this wasn’t half bad", and believing that the show was a potential step towards a future "NXT India" (following the example of NXT UK).[26]

According to Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful, WWE claimed that 20 million people watched the event live.[27]

Results[]

No. Results Stipulations Times
1 Finn Bálor defeated Guru Raaj by pinfall Singles match[28] 7:08
2 Dilsher Shanky, Giant Zanjeer, Rey Mysterio, and Ricochet defeated Cesaro, Dolph Ziggler, King Corbin and Shinsuke Nakamura by pinfall Eight-man tag team match[28] 6:25
3 AJ Styles (with Omos) defeated Jeet Rama by pinfall Singles match[28] 3:14
4 Charlotte Flair and Sareena Sandhu defeated Bayley and Natalya by pinfall Tag team match[28] 6:06
5 Drew McIntyre and The Indus Sher (Rinku and Saurav) defeated The Bollywood Boyz (Samir Singh and Sunil Singh) and Jinder Mahal by pinfall Six-man tag team match[28] 9:03

Notes[]

  1. ^ The event was held without a paying audience due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, though featured a live crowd of virtual fans via WWE's ThunderDome viewing experience.

References[]

  1. ^ Johnson, Mike (18 January 2021). "WWE taping Superstar Special this week, special to air next week on major holiday in India". PWInsider. Retrieved 18 January 2021.
  2. ^ Currier, Joseph (9 January 2021). "WWE announces 'Superstar Spectacle' India special". The Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  3. ^ Transcribers, Motley Fool (30 October 2020). "World Wrestling Entertainment Inc (WWE) Q3 2020 Earnings Call Transcript". The Motley Fool. Archived from the original on 30 October 2020. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  4. ^ Powell, Jason (29 October 2020). "10/29 WWE Conference Call report: Vince McMahon discusses the 2020 third quarter financial report". Prowrestling.net. Archived from the original on 16 January 2021. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  5. ^ Wilen, Jerome (13 January 2021). "WWE files for new trademarks; Update on WWE Superstar Spectacle". WrestleView. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  6. ^ Thompson, Andrew (13 January 2021). "Jinder Mahal, Kavita Devi & more confirmed for WWE Superstar Spectacle". POST Wrestling. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  7. ^ Johnson, Mike (12 January 2020). "WWE Superstar Spectacle updates". PWInsider. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  8. ^ Lafferriere, Nicolas (12 January 2021). "Se revelan los primeros detalles de WWE Superstar Spectacle". Solowrestling.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 13 January 2021.
  9. ^ Defelice, Robert (11 January 2021). "Report: Top Raw And SmackDown Superstars May Be Involved In WWE Superstar Spectacle Taping". Fightful. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  10. ^ "WWE® and Sony Pictures Network India announce WWE Superstar Spectacle". WWE. 16 January 2021. Archived from the original on 16 January 2021. Retrieved 13 January 2021.
  11. ^ a b Defelice, Robert (13 January 2021). "WWE Officially Announces Superstar Spectacle Airdate, Stars From All Three Brands To Be Featured". Fightful. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  12. ^ Deb, Sopan (19 August 2017). "Jinder Mahal, the immigrant who became the 'Modern Day Maharaja'". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  13. ^ Staff, WWE.com (13 January 2021). "WWE and Sony Pictures Network India announce WWE Superstar Spectacle". WWE. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  14. ^ "WWE Superstar Spectacle - Special event for Indian audience on Republic Day". The Hindustan Times. 15 January 2021. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  15. ^ Johnson, Mike (13 January 2021). "Official details released on WWE Superstar Spectacle, lots of big WWE names to appear". PWInsider. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  16. ^ Johnson, Mike (March 21, 2020). "WWE TAPING UPDATES". PWInsider. Retrieved March 22, 2020.
  17. ^ Powell, Jason (March 24, 2020). "NXT Takeover: Tampa's scheduled matches will air on NXT TV". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
  18. ^ "WWE introducing new state-of-the-art viewing experience with WWE ThunderDome". WWE. August 17, 2020. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  19. ^ Lambert, Jeremy (August 17, 2020). "WWE Announces ThunderDome Arena; Enhanced Fan Experience, Residency At Amway Center; First Look Video Shown". Fightful. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
  20. ^ "WWE ThunderDome will head to Tampa Bay's Tropicana Field beginning Friday, Dec. 11". WWE. November 19, 2020. Retrieved November 19, 2020.
  21. ^ Lambert, Jeremy (November 19, 2020). "WWE ThunderDome Moving To Tropicana Field On December 11". Fightful. Retrieved November 19, 2020.
  22. ^ "Capitol Wrestling Center to be unveiled tonight at NXT TakeOver 31". WWE. October 4, 2020. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
  23. ^ Grabianowski, Ed (January 13, 2006). "How Pro Wrestling Works". HowStuffWorks. Discovery Communications. Archived from the original on November 18, 2013. Retrieved March 5, 2012.
  24. ^ "Live & Televised Entertainment". WWE. Archived from the original on February 26, 2009. Retrieved March 21, 2012.
  25. ^ Steinberg, Brian (May 25, 2016). "WWE's 'Smackdown' Will Move To Live Broadcast On USA (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on May 26, 2016. Retrieved May 25, 2016.
  26. ^ "Hamilton's WWE Superstar Spectacle Review". 411mania. Retrieved 2021-02-07.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  27. ^ Sapp, Sean Ross. "WWE says 20 million people watched Superstar Spectacle". Twitter.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  28. ^ a b c d e "SUPERSTAR SPECTACLE RESULTS". WWE. January 26, 2021. Retrieved January 26, 2021.

External links[]

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