Fun
Frisky
Nostalgic
Intense
Adventurous
Choked Up
Curious
Romantic
Weird
More On:
Wrestlemania
-
John Cena Announces His Retirement From WWE After 20 Years
-
Dwayne Johnson Gets Into Verbal Altercation With WWE Fan: "Watch Your F**king Mouth"
-
John Cena Tells Drew Barrymore He's Still "Waiting" For His Invite To WrestleMania 40: "I Haven't Been Asked To Go Yet"
-
Can You Smell When The Rock Is Cooked? Dwayne Johnson's Career Is On The Ropes
The WWE is about to get millions of new fans. According to Variety, ESPN will begin airing classic WrestleMania events this weekend to fill the hours of programming left empty by canceled sports events. The Disney-owned network will begin its WWE partnership with an encore performance of WrestleMania 30 this Sunday, March 22 at 7/6c, followed by Wrestlemania 32 and 35 on subsequent Sunday evenings.
On Friday, Variety’s Brian Steinberg exclusively reported that ESPN will begin airing professional wrestling as it struggles to fill air-time in the wake of NBA, MLB preseason, and NHL season cancellations. Beginning this Sunday and continuing for three consecutive weeks, the leader in sports will be broadcasting classic WWE events, starting with WrestleMania 30. The April 2014 event was the first to stream on subscription streaming service WWE Network and saw Daniel Bryan ascend to the throne as WWE World Heavyweight Champion. WrestleMania 30 also featured a key match between The Undertaker and Brock Lesnar, who snapped Undertaker’s 21-0 undefeated streak at the marquee event.
“This unique opportunity is a byproduct of the terrific working relationship we’ve enjoyed with WWE over the years and the unprecedented circumstances we all find ourselves in,” ESPN’s executive vice president of programming Burke Magnus told Variety. “WrestleMania is one of the most popular global events in sports and entertainment and the spectacular content it provides will be a treat for fans.”
The WWE hopes that ESPN’s three Sundays of programming will help drum up excitement for WrestleMania 36, which will take place over two nights on April 4 and 5. The massive event will tape without fans and with only essential personnel in attendance. Former New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski is set to host WrestleMania 36, so with or without an audience, it should be quite a show.
“It is a privilege for us to deliver historic WrestleMania content to our world-class partners at ESPN and provide more premium programming to our fans; putting smiles on their faces particularly during this trying time,” said WWE chief brand officer Stephanie McMahon. “We look forward to celebrating WrestleMania history with ESPN as we head into our two-night pop culture extravaganza on April 4 and 5.”
Apart from ESPN’s classic WrestleMania broadcasts, March 22 will be quite a day for the network. This week, the network announced that it will be bringing back ESPN8: The Ocho on ESPN2, a 24-hour event highlighting unorthodox and under appreciated sports. This year’s lineup includes the Stupid Robot Fighting League, cherry pit spitting, marble racing, and more. Over on ESPN proper, fans can enjoy a seven-hour Tom Brady marathon from noon to 7 p.m. ET highlighting some of his greatest moments from his almost two decades with the Patriots.
WrestleMania 30 airs Sunday, March 22 at 7/6c on ESPN or the ESPN App.
