WWE Superstar Triple H accompanied Floyd Mayweather to the ring Saturday Night in Las Vegas for his fight opposite Miguel Cotto. The former heavyweight wrestling titleholder and current WWE executive was observed on screen carrying Mayweather's championship belt. The unlikely duo became good friends after Mayweather surfaced at Wrestlemania 24. He was involved in a match that pitted the boxer against pro wrestler The Big Show. Mayweather defeated The Big Show with a knockout blow at the annual event. The executive's appearance in the corner of Floyd Mayweather seems to be part of a bigger plan, which is to assist WWE is being accepted into the legit sports arena.
Professional wrestling and its fraternity of athletes has always been slightly concealed from the public. It's as if wrestlers did not exist beyond Saturday morning television or prime time Monday. But in the last several years, WWE wrestlers have slowly become more validated in the world of entertainment. And that includes more integration in legitimate sports like boxing and Ultimate Fighting Championship. The appearance of Triple H in the corner of Floyd Mayweather adds credence to what Triple H and World Wrestling Entertainment do. In a similar circumstance, in October 2010, the legendary Undertaker made a slight entrance into the world of MMA after UFC 121, when he had a brief confrontation with Brock Lesnar. The encounter was handled as a legitimate circumstance, despite rumors that this was set up to lead into a match at Wrestlemania. Regardless, the mainstream sports world reported on the engagement between Undertaker and Brock Lesnar, which helped legitimize WWE in the eyes of its detractors.
Recently, it seems as though Vince McMahon and World Wrestling Entertainment has been trying to market themselves as a more legitimate sport. Though the company is still generating predetermined matches, some of their marquee names have stepped up to the plate and delivered more authentic performances. This is no more evident than the feud between Brock Lesnar and John Cena. The two mega stars locked horns at the WWE Extreme Rules pay per view event and produced a highly entertaining bout, which featured hard hitting elbow strikes and submissions. The match was unlike anything the WWE had engineered in a long time, maybe ever.
In the grand scheme of things, these instances may seem diminutive. But over time, brief appearances like these will only aid the WWE in becoming more accepted by hardcore sports fans, who have always looked down on the predetermined atmosphere of pro wrestling. Although the WWE will never be totally accepted as a legit sport, they may be able to compete for that entertainment dollar. Triple H's acceptance into the Floyd Mayweather entourage will only help sports fans accept World Wrestling Entertainment into the circle of legitimate sports.
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Ryan Drew is a 30 year old independent pro wrestler from New England. He was trained by wwe star Spike Dudley. Read more wrestling articles at The Wrestling Hub, or follow Ryan Drew on Twitter and Facebook.
