💪 WWE And Sports: A Perfect Match

SmackDown moves to FOX on Friday night, and Paul “Triple H” Leveaque would love to make you a fan. [View in browser]( [FOX SPORTS INSIDER WITH MARTIN ROGERS] In today’s FOX Sports Insider: WWE begins a bold new era with SmackDown’s move to FOX ... check out one of the NFL plays of the week in a whole new way ... and get ready for a Sunday showdown between two of the most popular teams in football. The lines between sports and sports entertainment are more blurred than ever as we sit here in 2019 — a time when the stories that surround athletic competition are often much more compelling than the action that transpires on the field, diamond or hardwood. And Paul “Triple H” Levesque loves it. Levesque, the WWE’s Executive Vice President of Talent, Live Events and Creative, sees the increasing push for elite athletes to try to build their brand and maximize their exposure as an extension of what his company has been doing for years. As the WWE launches a new era with the move of its iconic live SmackDown show to FOX (beginning at 8 p.m. ET on Friday night), Levesque believes the timing is perfect. SmackDown on FOX will be positioned at the Friday night heart of a four-day power programming window, starting with Thursday Night Football and culminating in college football and the NFL over the weekend. “It feels like we are everywhere right now,” Levesque told me in a telephone interview this week. “Being able to spread our brand to NASCAR and college football and the NFL, it feels like a perfect marriage.” Sports and the WWE have enjoyed a dovetailing of interest in recent years, each bouncing off the other to mutual benefit. WWE Superstars aim to be a mixture of pro athlete and entertainment superhero; extraordinary athleticism combined with attitude, signature moves, and probably a compelling catchphrase or two. “That is what a lot of athletes want to be — to be the spectacle at the center of it all,” Levesque added. “To be able to criss-cross the two; to be able to trash talk to each other like we do in WWE and come out on top; to wear a belt. “We want every Superstar to be their own brand and own larger-than-life character because it all works for us. We support that completely as a company. It is slightly different for the sports leagues, but that’s what the athletes strive for. So sometimes when they score a touchdown and celebrate like a WWE Superstar, it is them living vicariously through these cool moments that we create.” [STORY IMAGE 1] WWE shows are a healthy dose of scripted drama driven by a core of remarkable athleticism. The company’s athletes often emerge from one of the WWE’s Performance Centers that develop talent and help injured stars rehabilitate from injuries. As WWE continues to evolve, its appeal to pro sports athletes increases further. LeBron James is among the biggest and most visible fans, having followed the product since childhood. In 2014, he bought his entire Miami Heat squad WWE Championship belts, adding a personalized inscription to each one. Ray Allen’s belt was made out to Jesus Shuttlesworth, the character Allen played in the movie He Got Game. Upon his return to Cleveland, James wore an Undertaker shirt when 3-1 down in the 2016 NBA Finals to the Golden State Warriors to signify his team was not yet buried — and followed it up with a sublime troll job by rocking an Ultimate Warrior shirt after completing basketball’s most memorable series comeback. Around that time, the WWE began producing title belts for each of the champions across the four major sports, and Kevin Love rocked his strap everywhere the Cavaliers went on their victory tour. Later, James collaborated with Nike to release a signature shoe depicting his favorite all-time WWE athletes. In the NFL, WWE moves are often the perfect way to celebrate a sack, touchdown or victory. There is, of course, Aaron Rodgers’ ubiquitous “title belt” pantomime which became adopted into the branded “Discount Double Check,” but plenty of pro football players have been happy to get far more specific with their WWE homages. Last December, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce lit up social media with his reaction to collecting a touchdown catch from Patrick Mahomes. Kelce rose to his feet and [dropped teammate Anthony Sherman with a pre-planned Stone Cold Stunner]( borrowed from WWE legend Steve Austin. [Chicago Bears lineman Roy Robertson-Harris and Detroit Lions receiver Golden Tate have both used Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s People’s Elbow to highlight key plays](. And when San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle paid tribute to The Rock before and after his team’s most recent victory, [Johnson responded in kind](. This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to pro athletes showing their love for WWE. (The San Francisco Giants and just about every other sports team in the world adopted Daniel Bryan’s signature “YES” chant for a time in 2014, for example.) Don’t think that love fest is lost on Levesque and other executives in the company. [STORY IMAGE 2] “The athletes in the NFL and other sports are fans of what we do, just as we are fans of them,” Levesque said. “It’s exciting for us as talent and as a brand. At the end of the day, WWE Superstars are like the athletes in these other professional sports — they just get to be larger than life.” The WWE makes no secret of the fact that its shows are scripted, but that doesn’t make things any easier for the performers. Levesque said there is a “100 percent certainty” that a WWE star will suffer some kind of injury during their career. The travel schedule is frenetic, with the company putting on events around the world most days of the week. In addition to the physical toll, stars must remember their lines and planned segments and be able to perform on cue while following the carefully crafted script pieced together by the creative team. The result is that WWE Raw is American television’s longest-running episodic show, with SmackDown close behind in second place. The storytelling element is designed to appeal to a mass audience, often spanning generations. “We do it by listening to the fans, by mirroring society in a way,” Levesque said. “We generate and promote athletes as cultural icons, who are every bit a superhero. At our shows you see grandparents with their kids and grandkids; you see families come together to share it. You follow the pulse of what happens in the world. We’ve been PG now for years and years and it’s what works for us.” Levesque is aware that the move to FOX may open up the WWE to a new audience and that some of those who tune in on Friday may be doing so as a curious newcomer rather than a hardcore fan. He welcomes that opportunity to spread the WWE’s reach. “On Friday, expect to see a spectacle. Expect to be entertained,” he said. “Expect not to take it too seriously in some manner. We’re here to help you kick back and forget all your problems. Turn on the television for a couple hours and just be excited. Cheer, boo, yell, scream, shed a tear, smile, laugh — the storylines and characters keep you invested. “We bring the spectacle of live, athletic sport but add that episodic storytelling that brings you back week after week. There’s a little bit of something for everybody.” [STORY IMAGE 3] Here’s what others have said ... Joseph Staszewski, New York Post: “SmackDown has added a super-slow-motion camera to give a new perspective to wrestlers’ moves. It’s all part of a cinematic approach Fox felt fit WWE’s product because of its athleticism and good-vs.-evil storylines. SmackDown will now have more of a sports feel.” Kyle Decker, Cageside Seats: “WWE has been around for a long time, but it’s never been on network television regularly like it will (be) now. This will mean that WWE is available in the more homes than maybe ever before. And a station like Fox airing them, even on Friday night, is a new level of validation for the company. Because of that, this is the most important show WWE is airing now. That’s right, Raw is no longer the A show. SmackDown is. How weird is that?” Dan Gelston, Associated Press: “Unlike the action in the ring, WWE isn’t pulling any punches to launch the show in an A-list way: Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson is set to step away from the movie set and step back into WWE for an unspecified role on the debut. Johnson sparked the show’s title nearly 20 years ago when he was still a wrestler and vowed to ‘lay the smack down’ on anyone who got in his way.” [IN OTHER WORDS] - Places like Moreno Valley and Palmdale are what some locals call “the real L.A.” And it’s in those places, [writes Paolo Uggetti at]( [The Ringer]( where both Kawhi Leonard and Paul George began their unlikely NBA journeys. - A cold case, not a closed case: meet the baseball obsessives correcting the record about the 1919 Black Sox Scandal, [by Zach Buchanan at]( [The Athletic](. - [Jerry Brewer at]( Washington Post]( notes that as Ted Leonsis bets on sports gambling in a big way, he should proceed with caution. [THE INTERNET IS UNDEFEATED] [THE INTERNET IS UNDEFEATED]( When Russell Wilson somehow found Tyler Lockett in the end zone at the end of the first quarter on Thursday Night Football, the jaw of every football fan watching hit the floor. Wilson scrambled out of the pocket and miraculously dropped a pass over a defender into the arms of a sprawling Lockett, who somehow got his toes down. We all thought it was an impossible catch at the time, but it turns out it was just extremely improbable. Check out the above GIF of the play via NFL’s Next Gen technology, which shows you just how wild the play was from a bird’s-eye view. [VIEWER'S GUIDE] WWE Friday Night SmackDown (FOX, 8 p.m. ET) It’s the very first night of an all-new era for WWE and SmackDown. This mammoth first show on FOX will feature an appearance by the Rock, a bevy of Hall of Famers, and a WWE Championship match between Kofi Kingston and challenger Brock Lesnar. No. 14 Iowa at No. 19 Michigan (FOX, Saturday, 12 p.m. ET) The Big Noon game on Saturday is another pivotal one for Jim Harbaugh’s Wolverines. The undefeated Hawkeyes are attempting to climb in the rankings, while 3-1 Michigan is struggling to run the table and stay in the Big Ten title picture. Green Bay Packers at Dallas Cowboys (FOX, Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET) The afternoon matchup between two of America’s most beloved teams is one of the most anticipated games of Week 5. Only one team will leave Dallas with a 4-1 record. [BET OF THE DAY] [BET OF THE DAY] Odds provided by [FOX Bet]( New England Patriots -15 (-110) @ Washington Redskins The poor Redskins are currently 0-4 and just about no one is picking them to upset the undefeated Patriots, even with reports of a dinged up Tom Brady. In fact, according to our insights, fans are so confident in Brady’s crew that New England -15 is the single most popular football wager on the board this weekend, professional or college. If you’re looking to back an underdog, on the other hand, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are seeing a surprisingly lopsided amount of the money at +3 vs. the New Orleans Saints. [WHAT THEY SAID] “I'm always asked, 'What's the secret to success?' But there are no secrets. Be humble. Be hungry. And always be the hardest worker in the room.” — Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson [FOLLOW FOX SPORTS] [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [YouTube]( [Instagram]( Download the FOX Sports app for live scores and streaming [App Store]( [Google Play]( Available on: [tvOS] [Roku] [fireTV] [androidtv] [XBOX] [Google chromecast] [tvOS] [Roku] [fireTV] [androidtv] [XBOX] [Google chromecast] Forwarded this message? [Sign up](. Trademark & Copyright Notice: ™ and © 2019 FOX Media LLC and FOX Sports Interactive Media, LLC. All rights reserved. Please do not reply to this message. If you do not wish to receive emails like this in the future, please [unsubscribe](. FOX Sports respects your privacy. Click [here]( to view our Privacy Policy. FOX.com Business & Legal Affairs - Manager Digital Media P.O. Box 900 Beverly Hills, CA 90213-0900