Are Pro Wrestlers Really Athletes?
Our American Stories
iHeartPodcasts
4.6 • 817 Ratings
🗓️ 6 March 2026
⏱️ 11 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
On this episode of Our American Stories, from the days of Hulk Hogan to modern WWE, wrestlers travel constantly, train relentlessly, and perform feats that demand strength, timing, and endurance. The spectacle may be designed for drama, but the toll on the body is no joke. Riley Evans, sportswriter and CEO of RealPodcasting.com, shares the real story and cost behind professional wrestling.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | This is an IHeart podcast. |
| 0:02.5 | Guaranteed human. And we continue with our American stories. |
| 0:28.7 | Oftentimes, when the topic of professional wrestling, |
| 0:31.8 | think Hulk Hogan comes up, |
| 0:34.1 | it's almost guaranteed that someone will scoff, |
| 0:36.9 | that it's just, well, all fake. |
| 0:39.3 | Yet those who enjoy watching professional wrestling won't disagree, what they will say or likely say |
| 0:45.5 | is that they enjoy the characters, the athleticism, and the stagecraft. |
| 0:50.6 | They know it's scripted, and they love the storylines. |
| 0:54.0 | Same way we all enjoy watching any scripted story on TV or in the movies. |
| 0:59.0 | Here's Riley Evans to tell the real story about professional wrestling, a story he's titled, |
| 1:06.0 | Pro Wrestlers deserve to be called athletes. |
| 1:10.0 | Over 200 days a year. |
| 1:12.8 | No off-season. |
| 1:14.4 | Just running, jumping, bumping and crashing into concrete, steel, and wooden rings with only |
| 1:20.9 | the thinnest layer of padding. |
| 1:23.5 | Bones break. |
| 1:25.3 | Ligament snap. |
| 1:26.6 | And even the absence of serious injury leaves the constant ache of smaller ones. |
| 1:31.6 | Short of something debilitating, there's no time off to recover, because if you stop, there's always somebody waiting to take your place. |
| 1:39.3 | Whether it's a high school gymnasium or a 100,000 seat stadium, the show must go on for the entertainment |
| 1:45.9 | of some of the world's most rabid fans. It's ironic that pro wrestling, the most grueling athletic |
... |
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