Booker T Believes Casual Fans Have Lost Interest in Hour-Long TV Wrestling Matches

MJF has fully embraced his role as a heel again, and he took it to Will Ospreay on AEW Dynamite last week, defeating him in a match that lasted nearly an hour. Booker T has now noted that such long matches might not appeal to casual fans.

On the 250th episode of AEW Dynamite, MJF and Will Ospreay faced off in an epic, nearly 60-minute match for the AEW International Championship. The match was filled with dramatic moments and wild spots.

In the end, the Salt of the Earth defeated Will Ospreay by using the Dynamite Diamond Ring to claim the AEW International Championship. The match became a divisive one due to its length and continues to be a topic of discussion even now.

While speaking on his Hall of Fame podcast, Booker T commented on Will Ospreay vs. MJF going an hour on AEW Dynamite, saying he doubts many people are interested in watching a match that long on television.

Booker T mentioned that while AEW fans might enjoy it, he thinks the general audience, who might be channel surfing, would not be as interested in a match without any vignettes or promos, just wrestling and commentary. Booker T feels that such a long match might not help in expanding the audience or growing the show beyond its current fan base.

 “I just don’t think people are interested in watching people wrestle for an hour on television these days. I could be wrong on that… I’m not talking about the AEW fans. I’m talking about the core general audience just you know, flipping through the channels. They’re not gonna want to sit and watch two guys wrestle for an hour. I just don’t — me personally, no vignettes. Like you say, no promos or anything, just guys in the ring wrestling overlaid by the commentary of the commentators. Me personally, that is not that entertaining to me. Was it a good match? Probably was. Was it entertaining to that core audience? It probably was. But I’m not talking about that. I’m talking about growing the base. I’m talking about, you know, growing the audience and making this thing a whole lot bigger than just watching the show on a regular basis. So, me personally, I don’t see who wins in a situation like that.”

MJF debuted an American championship on Dynamite this week, and he will be putting into n the line against Will Ospreay at AEW All In on August 25. AEW will continue to put on longer matches if they feel it fits the narrative and that’s unlikely to change anytime soon.

What do you think of what Booker T had to say about one-hour-long matches not being appealing to casual fans? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!