"Wanna Wrestle?" Podcast - Episode 5

And we're going to talk about referees.

Now, what did you think a referee's job was when you first got into wrestling, Kevin?

They're there to enforce the rules.

They're there to count out, you know, people that are outside the ring, supposed to stop people from cheating and, you know, do three count, you know, basically make sure the match is orderly, which is, you know, the illusion that they're casting.

Now, did you think they were supposed to do anything else or you looked at them just like a basic umpire of like a baseball game or something? Yeah, just guys with mustaches.

Well, come to find out, a referee's job is much more deeper than what it was.

Now, just like Kevin said, I thought a referee was just there to enforce the quote-unquote rules or to make the three count or disqualify somebody or make a count out.

The referee's job is to control the action, control the show.

Tell the wrestlers how much time they have left.

Or God forbid if a wrestler gets hurt, the referee can call to the back and say, hey, look, wrestler A is down.

He's hurt.

Or he can tell a wrestler two minutes left.

Or, hey, this is your next move coming up just in case.

Or if a wrestler needs some sort of guidance, they talk to the referee.

The referee's job is extremely important.

And I never knew that until years taking a peek behind the curtain to see what's going on.

And I actually appreciate the referees more than I do the wrestlers.

So that kind of takes it to me.

To a whole other level, and I find it very entertaining.

Sometimes I actually watch the referees more than the wrestlers in a particular match.

Have you ever found yourself doing that?

Not exactly, but because I don't understand how.

Because I would like to know.

That way I can pay more attention to how things are going.

And if something goes wrong, like, oh, I bet I know what miscommunication happened.