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What Jerry Lawler said about first WWE 'Raw' without fans, Wrestlemania with no crowd

What Jerry Lawler said about first WWE 'Raw' without fans, Wrestlemania with no crowd

Posted: Mar 18th 2020 By: Jason Munz

Jerry “The King” Lawler boarded a plane and left Memphis early Monday morning.

The WWE Hall of Famer, just as he has thousands of times before, was there when this week’s episode of “Monday Night Raw” went live on the USA Network.

But there was one major difference. The longest-running weekly episodic television program (at more than 1,300 episodes since 1993) aired for the first time without a live audience because of coronavirus concerns.

The WWE has moved the production of “Monday Night Raw” and “Smackdown Live” to its Performance Center in Orlando, Florida, for the foreseeable future.

Lawler said he and his family will remain in Florida for the next few weeks and called Monday’s production “surreal.”

“It was definitely different,” he told The Commercial Appeal Tuesday. “Everything about it was different.”

The company also announced Monday it would put on its flagship annual event — Wrestlemania — at the Performance Center without a live audience on April 5.

Lawler is holding out hope circumstances may change between now and then. He added that everyone who enters the Performance Center has his or her temperature taken.

“Man, oh man,” said Lawler. “I don’t know. You’ve got all those big matches already signed. Edge and Randy Orton. Brock Lesnar against Drew McIntyre. Undertaker and A.J. Styles. All those big, huge matches taking place in front of no fans. And, the Performance Center is not much bigger than
the old Channel 5 studio (where ‘Memphis Wrestling’ was filmed). I don’t know — everything’s changing by the minute now.

“(But) the WWE has always been and still is a TV company and pay-per-view company. Who knows, this may end up breaking every pay-per-view record there is.”

Following a short introduction and an impassioned monologue from Edge, Monday's show shifted to an airing of the main event from “Royal Rumble,” February’s pay-per-view affair.

The third and final hour of the show featured an appearance from the legendary Undertaker, a match between Rey Mysterio Jr. and Andrade (with guest commentary by Asuka), and what amounted to a skit involving “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and announcer Byron Saxton. One moment during the finale
prompted Austin to remark, “Tough crowd. Ain’t nobody here and it’s a tough crowd.”

Lawler said professional wrestling relies heavily on the live element of fan interaction and crowd feedback.

“That’s our obstacle (now),” he said. “How do you entertain when you don’t have a live audience? That’s how you judge whether you’re being entertaining or not — the crowd response. When nobody’s there, you can’t tell.”

In April 1981, Lawler and Terry Funk staged a match without fans at the Mid-South Coliseum in Memphis. Funk’s contention was he could not get a fair shake against Lawler in his hometown, so “The King” agreed to a match with no one on hand.

“That may have been the very first empty-arena match,” Lawler said. “Of course, ours was done intentionally. It was at like 1 o’clock in the afternoon. It was classic at the time. When I go back and think about it, I do remember, right in the middle of the match, I thought, ‘This feels stupid.’ He’s throwing me into empty chairs and those sorts of things. There’s no fans screaming, no background noise at all. It just made you feel kind of dumb.”

The 70-year-old Lawler said he would not be opposed to adding pre-recorded crowd reactions to the live shows.

“I’ve been to (football) training camps where the players go through their practice sessions with loud music or crowd noise piped in,” he said. “I don’t think it would hurt anything at all if they piped in some crowd noise behind the matches. And even explain it to the fans. It’ll make the matches more entertaining and it’ll make it easier for the performers themselves.”

 

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Spotlight in History

  • 1969 Alberto Torres & Ramon Torres def. Karl Von Stroheim & Treach Phillips for the TSW United States Tag Team Titles
  • 1971 Dusty Rhodes def. Sputnik Monroe for the TSW Brass Knucks Title
  • 2003 Ichiban [1st] became the TPW Heavyweight Champion
  • 2003 The Heatseekers (Karl Davis & Rick Styles) became the TPW Tag Team Champions
  • 2003 Outcast def. Tyler Bateman for the TPW Light Heavyweight Title
  • 2008 Ky-Ote became the 3DW Heavyweight Champion
  • 2008 Les Mayne became the 3DW Texoma Champion
  • 2008 2AM (Javi Hernandez & Kunna Keyoh) became the 3DW Dual Kombat Champion
  • 2008 Al Farat became the 3DW Violent Division Champion
  • 2008 Frankie Dee became the 3DW Femme Fatale Champion
  • 2008 Joshua Smith def. Al Farat for the 3DW Violent Division Title
  • 2010 David Kyzer def. Outlaw for the SWCW Luchadore Title
  • 2010 David Kyzer became the SWCW All-American Champion
  • 2021 Brandon Barricade def. Red for the ASP All Time Title
  • 2021 Maui Mike & Malik Mayfield became the ASP Tag Team Champions

Week of Sun 04-19 to Sat: 04-25

  • 04-19 1987 Bubba Rogers def. One Man Gang for the UWF Heavyweight Title
  • 04-19 2008 New Canada (The Canadian Luchadore & The Canadian Red Devil) def. La M (El Choppo & Jesus Rodriguez) for the ComPro Tag Team Titles
  • 04-19 2008 The New Age Syndicate (Scott Sanders & Shawn Sanders) def. Nathan Sensation for the IZW Tag Team Titles
  • 04-19 2013 Bree Ann def. Barbi Hayden for the NWA-TXO Rose Title
  • 04-19 2014 Aaron Anders def. Michael Wolf for the OWA Junior Heavyweight Title
  • 04-19 2014 Jake O'Brien def. Brian Breaker for the OWA Heavyweight Title
  • 04-19 2014 Tim Rockwell def. Jon Cross for the UWE Heavyweight Title
  • 04-19 2014 Randy Price def. Drake Gallows for the IZW Impact Division Title
  • 04-19 2014 Miss Diss Lexia def. Paige Turner for the IZW Queens Title
  • 04-19 2014 Erica def. Miss Diss Lexia for the IZW Queens Title
  • 04-19 2014 Brandon Groom def. Warhammer for the BPPW Heavyweight Title
  • 04-19 2024 Killa Kate became the TexPro Rose Champion
  • 04-19 2024 Kari Wright def. Tommy Prince for the TexPro Dynasty Title
  • 04-19 2024 K. O. A. (Caine Carter & Devion Black) def. Rock-N-Rugged (Rook Tyler & Gabe Welder for the TexPro Tag Team Titles
  • 04-19 2025 Rook Tyler def. Auzzy for the TexPro Dynasty Title
  • 04-19 2025 Brandon Warhawk def. Floyd Maystorm for the WAH Hunger Dojo Title
  • 04-19 2026 Gideon Vane became the WTW Open Promotions Champion
  • 04-20 1980 Toru Tanaka def. Kevin Von Erich for the WCCW American Heavyweight Title
  • 04-20 2013 The Canadian Red Devil became the OWA Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-20 2013 Daemon Storm def. Justin Dynamic for the UWE United States Title
  • 04-20 2018 Jack Swagger def. MVP for the IWR Heavyweight Title
  • 04-20 2019 B. M. F. (Kareem Sadat & Maniac Mike) became the EmpCW Tag Team Champions
  • 04-20 2019 Double D became the EmpCW Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-20 2024 Malachi & Ozzy Hendrix def. The Voiceless Society (Tyler Watts & E-Bone) for the CAPW Tag Team Titles
  • 04-20 2024 Kevin James Sanchez def. Montego Seeka for the EPW Heavyweight Title
  • 04-21 1967 The Assassins (Assassin #1 & Assassin #2) became the TSW United States Tag Team Champions
  • 04-21 1979 Mike George def. Jerry Stubbs for the TSW Louisiana Title
  • 04-21 2006 Ray Martinez became the SRPW X Division Champion
  • 04-21 2007 Kareem Sadat def. K-Rob for the AACW Hardcore Title
  • 04-21 2007 Team Shenanigans (Tyler Bateman & Kenny Campbell) def. The Re-Gex (Seth Shai & Mace) for the IZW Tag Team Titles
  • 04-21 2017 Sam Stackhouse def. Spyder for the BPPW Oklahoma Title
  • 04-21 2017 The Cursed (Blade [2nd] & Kuda) def. The Saints of Pro Wrestling (Scott Sanders & Shawn Sanders) for the MSWA Mid-South Tag Team Titles
  • 04-21 2018 The Untamed (Rex Andrews & Ryan Davidson) became the ComPro Tag Team Champions
  • 04-21 2023 Leo Fox def. Mr. Nasty for the UWE Apex Title
  • 04-21 2023 Mr. Wobble def. Tego for the TexPro Oklahoma Title
  • 04-21 2023 Mr. Wobble def. Tego for the TexPro Texas Title
  • 04-21 2023 Franco D'Angelo def. Mr. Wobble for the TexPro Texas Title
  • 04-21 2023 Franco D'Angelo def. Mr. Wobble for the TexPro Oklahoma Title
  • 04-22 1940 Jesse James def. Danny McShain for the NWA World Light Heavyweight Title
  • 04-22 1955 Ricki Starr def. Mike Clancy for the TSW Oklahoma Junior Heavyweight Title
  • 04-22 1968 The Spoilers (Spoiler #1 & Spoiler #2/Smasher Sloan) def. Fritz Von Erich & Billy Red Lyons for the WCCW American Tag Team Titles
  • 04-22 1980 Terry Gordy def. Junkyard Dog for the MSW Louisiana Title
  • 04-22 1985 The Great Kabuki became the WCCW Texas Brass Knuckles Champion
  • 04-22 2006 Michael York def. Jon Davis for the TPW Heavyweight Title
  • 04-22 2016 Brock Landers def. Mascara La Parka for the MSWA Mid-South Cruiserweight Title
  • 04-22 2016 Mascara La Parka def. Brock Landers for the MSWA Mid-South Cruiserweight Title
  • 04-22 2017 Double D def. Randy Price for the IZW Impact Division Title
  • 04-22 2017 Nikki Knight def. Skylar Slice for the ComPro Ladies Title
  • 04-22 2018 Chaz Sharpe became the ASP Inter-County Champion
  • 04-22 2018 Johnny Kove & Tristan Thorne became the ASP Oklahoma Tag Team Champions
  • 04-22 2018 Damon Windsor def. Chandler Hopkins for the IWR Revolutionary Title
  • 04-22 2022 Drake Gallows & Fester Cluck def. Legend Has It (Thrash & Killbane) for the CPW Tag Team Titles
  • 04-22 2022 Duncan Kincaid became the RDW Iron Man Champion
  • 04-22 2023 The Psychotic Messengers (Tank Bryson & Malachi) def. X-Rated (Kevin James Sanchez & Ozzy Hendrix) for the EPW Tag Team Titles
  • 04-22 2023 Devion Black def. Adrian Vega for the EPW All-American Title
  • 04-22 2023 Logan Knight def. Gemini [2nd] for the EPW Heavyweight Title
  • 04-23 1966 Ramon Torres def. Lorenzo Parente for the TSW Missouri Junior Heavyweight Title
  • 04-23 1973 Rip Tyler & Eddie Sullivan def. The Hollywood Blondes (Jerry Brown & Dale Valentine) for the TSW United States Tag Team Titles
  • 04-23 1974 Thunder Cloud & White Cloud def. Bob Sweetan & Seigfried Stanke for the TSW United States Tag Team Titles
  • 04-23 1978 Ray Candy & Steven Little Bear def. Ernie Ladd & The Assassin for the TSW United States Tag Team Titles
  • 04-23 2004 Michael Barry became the NWA-OK Oklahoma Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-23 2006 Tyler Bateman def. Seth Allen for the MSWA Mid-South Cruiserweight Title
  • 04-23 2006 Michael Faith became the MSWA Oklahoma Champion
  • 04-23 2016 Athena def. Erica for the IZW Queens Title
  • 04-23 2022 The Blue Bolt def. Richie Adams for the WFC Prime Title
  • 04-23 2022 Koko def. Reed for the WFC Hometown Heroes Title
  • 04-23 2022 Rhett def. Hornsby for the WFC Drillsville Title
  • 04-24 1999 The Casualties of War (Grunt & Shrapnel) def. The East-West Express (J. J. Mustang & Joey Steiner) for the OPW Oklahoma Tag Team Titles
  • 04-24 1999 Original Renegade def. Tarantula for the OPW Oklahoma Light Heavyweight Title
  • 04-24 2004 Dexter Hardaway became the NWA-OK X Division Champion
  • 04-24 2004 Tejas def. Al Jackson for the NWA Texas Title
  • 04-24 2015 Rick Russo & Largus RagnaBrok became the MSWA Mid-South Tag Team Champions
  • 04-24 2025 Floyd Maystorm def. Brandon Warhawk for the WAH Hunger Dojo Title
  • 04-24 2026 Nate Bourne def. Skidz for the RDW Iron Man Title
  • 04-24 2026 Morgan Levay def. Shylynn for the UWO Women's Title
  • 04-25 1969 Alberto Torres & Ramon Torres def. Karl Von Stroheim & Treach Phillips for the TSW United States Tag Team Titles
  • 04-25 1971 Dusty Rhodes def. Sputnik Monroe for the TSW Brass Knucks Title
  • 04-25 2003 Ichiban [1st] became the TPW Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-25 2003 The Heatseekers (Karl Davis & Rick Styles) became the TPW Tag Team Champions
  • 04-25 2003 Outcast def. Tyler Bateman for the TPW Light Heavyweight Title
  • 04-25 2008 Ky-Ote became the 3DW Heavyweight Champion
  • 04-25 2008 Les Mayne became the 3DW Texoma Champion
  • 04-25 2008 2AM (Javi Hernandez & Kunna Keyoh) became the 3DW Dual Kombat Champion
  • 04-25 2008 Al Farat became the 3DW Violent Division Champion
  • 04-25 2008 Frankie Dee became the 3DW Femme Fatale Champion
  • 04-25 2008 Joshua Smith def. Al Farat for the 3DW Violent Division Title
  • 04-25 2010 David Kyzer def. Outlaw for the SWCW Luchadore Title
  • 04-25 2010 David Kyzer became the SWCW All-American Champion
  • 04-25 2021 Brandon Barricade def. Red for the ASP All Time Title
  • 04-25 2021 Maui Mike & Malik Mayfield became the ASP Tag Team Champions
04-25
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  • Nightmare [1st] May 2nd
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  • Jay Hazzard May 4th
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  • Miss Diss Lexia May 5th
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  • Hercules May 7th
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