I've been going strong in this forums for quite sometime now and I haven't find any particular article or thread about real inside knowledge of the wrestling business. Just plain: "How to be a wrestler?" type of questions and today I thought about speaking about some of my experiences and just focus on the wrestling ring.
It truly is the center of the whole show. Without the squared circle, wrestling wouldn't have the same feeling and there are a lot of curiosities that I think most people don't know.
WHAT IS THE MAIN DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WRESTLING RINGS?
There are a lot of different mats and rings to step on. Some of them are pretty stable, while others are so fragile that you fear you'll break it on your first bump. However the suspension system is what you should be looking for to distinguish wrestling rings and of course, the hand of the people who put him together.
I say the suspension system because if you bump in a boxing ring, I can tell you, the mat is really stiff. Take the air out of your lungs stiff and it makes sense because its athletes need to maintain balance, while wrestlers can be in the same place for minutes with wrestling holds (aka rest holds) and trading some pinning combinations.
With that said, building a wrestling ring can always be a different procedure, but one thing is for sure, the mat falls down to every bump. If you watch some indies (and at times in WWE) you can see that in a split second the wrestlers body gets really buried and lower than the corners.
THE IMPORTANCE OF THE MIDDLE
The wrestling ring yelds a lot more in its center. The smart wrestlers always find a way to bump in the middle and that's on purpose. The suspension system is more reliable in it, which really cushions the bump.
It doesn't mean that bumping isn't hard or that it doesn't hurt. It does, but bumping in a wrestling ring is a lot better than doing it anywhere else in the arena. Use a mattress for practicing.
THE DIFFERENT WRESTLING RINGS:
SIZE
WWE rings are the biggest in the business with 20ft by 20ft. The standard model in the United States is 18ft. In Europe the wrestling rings are 16ft or even smaller. Why's that? Americans tend to be taller than Europeans or at least that was the norm some years back and it kind of remain a part of tradition.
Size doesn't matter, though. You'll have to take the same amount of steps to the ropes (smaller steps for smaller rings) and always try to bump in the middle. That last part is a real challenge if the guys are tall and have to bump in the middle of a 16ft wrestling ring and most of the nights, they'll be sore. Big men don't bump that much, though.
A 5'6'', 175 pound dude looks really menacing in a 16ft ring, but in WWE they will usually be the ones to do all the flips and flops and chant "YES!". In WWE everything looks bigger, for instance, did you know Dean Ambrose height is 6′ 4'' (1.93m for my fellow europeans)? That's pretty freaking tall, yet you don't see it.
The Ropes
There are two kinds or wrestling ropes: the real rope and cables.
In WWE they use real ropes because it's more realistic and you can have it in any color you want. It's better for showmanship and television and they do help the Irish whips. They need a bigger maintenance though.
The cables are more tight which really help highflyers (and that's about it). They don't give any cushion for the Irish whips, which takes the fans away sometimes when you're running the ropes in a match. As far as I know, cables are always black.
The Mat
There are also 2 types of material you can find: the canvas and vinyl.
Canvas is visually better because it doesn't shine nor reflects more with the light. It also has better natural colors. They are made out of a thick cloth.
Vinyl mats are easier to wash and can last for a lot longer, however they tend to be dangerous for a wrestling show. The mat gets slippery and that can lead to really nasty injuries. On indie shows, you usually see some staff members cleaning the ring in a break from other matches and when that happens, it's because the mat is made out of vinyl. No matter how much you scrub, it's never 100% safe. Specially for small promotions who also uses it for training.
The Irons
Below the cloth/vinyl canvas you'll have some good ol' gym mattress, a wood board and some irons (the support). There's not much to say about this, some are easier to transport than others. I think there are two types of iron support too, one I think can be folded, while the other uses half the pieces of the first. The main importance in choosing between any of them is the transport. It's of course, the hardest part to assemble.
Apron and The Height
Those two are important for a wrestler because they can influence the work you put up. The apron is of course the place where the tag team wrestler waits for his partner to tag him. It's the distance between the ropes and the end of the ring if you will and some have a very limited size, that doesn't help for some moves.
The height is also important, because in Europe it isn't rare to find wrestling rings set up with a ladder step of height. The dives outside of the ring truly lose as the outside of the ring is pretty much inside without the mat to help you take bumps.
Here and There
Before a show it's common practice to test the ropes. Some, however, like to be thorough about the wrestling ring. The first thing you should look for is holes in the wood board. Walk barefoot and you'll notice some planks being higher than others, and if the board is broken, you'll most likely feel it if you bump in there so... avoid it.
Then you move on to the turnbuckles and make sure the irons are not showing. You also should check it's alignment with your body, which after 5 matches it will probably be all fucked up. Do it anyway, it's good practice because the side used to tight it all up, it's usually the "avoid" area of the ring.
Time to test the ropes. 30 second running is more than enough.
Before finishing you should check the aprons and usually one out of four sides should be avoided. Why? Sometimes the mat or the wood board is smaller than it should and bumping on iron alone can severely injure you.
That's really fun after the shows, because the first thing fans want to touch is the wrestling ring and they usually go to the aprons. The hardest part of the ring by a mile and I don't know, they try to ease their minds about it being fake, and most leave with their eyes bugged thinking: "fuck, I wouldn't fall in there".
PUTTING A RING TOGETHER
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