Tall men throw each other swingingly into the ring ropes, gesticulate, moan and pose theatrically.
Their oversized muscles are reminiscent of superhero characters - and ultimately they are too, fictional heroes and villains, at least within the ring.
The sight of two muscular men who acrobatically try to bring themselves to the ground is part of everyday life in wrestling, or "catching".
But there is no tangible competitive element.
Who will leave the ring as the winner is determined in advance, the course of the fights at least rudimentarily agreed.
To outsiders, the spectacle often seems strange and inaccessible, if not like a cheating on the viewer, considering that the show fights follow certain storylines and scripts. Something has to be at stake to suggest a dramatic fall. A friendship, a love affair, your own career or at least a title belt. It is divided into good and bad, the baby face and the heel, which face each other as a pro and antagonist between the ropes. The fascination of this staging also lies in the identification with the heroes - and it has taken on fanatical traits in the USA since the 1980s. Characters like Hulk Hogan, The Undertaker, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, John Cena,“The Nature Boy” Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels are revered as legends by many fans despite their personal downsides. And they're all characters who, in one way or another, owe their careers to World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE).
In the middle of the ring
If you look at the industry behind the show, WWE even takes the role of a heel.
Steroids and drug scandals were not uncommon in the 1990s, as were numerous complaints from female wrestlers of sexual harassment.
Despite all the scandals, the 75-year-old entrepreneur Vince McMahon has been at the helm of WWE since 1983, who some consider the "greatest promoter of all time" and whose talent even competitors have to acknowledge: McMahon made wrestling a national television spectacle and the show - Aspects of the fighting expanded extremely.
For a while, McMahon himself stood in the middle of the ring and the storylines, now you can often see his children Stephanie and Shane.
Above all, McMahon has managed to get rid of all competitors and expand WWE to a monopoly. In 2001 he bought the rival WCW, which was spread over several episodes on television. WWE fans speak of a simple storyline, old WCW supporters lamented the public ridicule and scorn for the defeated competitor. With the weekly shows "Raw", "Smackdown" and, since 2012, "NXT", WWE not only has a constant audience figure in the millions, sales from merchandise, live performances and advertising partners also totaled just under $ 1 billion in 2019. Dizzying sums of money, especially if you want to compete with the WWE for this particular market.