TKO Chief Operating Officer Mark Shapiro has set massive expectations for WWE’s upcoming WrestlePalooza, positioning the new premium live event as a potential peer to the company’s most iconic shows.
“Hopefully, Wrestlepalooza is a winner and we can bring that back annually. That could be a marketing bonanza for us if we do that right,” Shapiro stated.
The Stakes for the Inaugural Event
While company brass has high hopes, Triple H has indicated that the event’s future hinges on the success of its debut. In a recent appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, WWE’s Chief Content Officer was direct about the prospects of it returning. “I think it will be, probably, depending on how this one goes we’ll see,” Triple H said.
WWE is stacking the card for this inaugural show, which marks the start of a new multi-year partnership with ESPN. The lineup already features John Cena vs. Brock Lesnar in their billed final encounter, the in-ring return of AJ Lee teaming with CM Punk against Seth Rollins and Becky Lynch, and a match to crown a new Women’s World Champion.
The high-level corporate ambition for WrestlePalooza to become a new franchise is clear, but its entire future will be determined by the performance of the inaugural show. The wrestling world will now watch to see if the stacked card, held on September 20 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, delivers on that massive potential.