wrestling / News

Backstage Update on WWE’s Reasoning Behind Renovating Capitol Wrestling Center for NXT, Future Goals for Fans Attending Events

October 4, 2020 | Posted by Jeffrey Harris
WWE NXT Capitol Wrestling Center

WrestlingInc.com has a report with some more details on the presentational plans for tonight’s NXT TakeOver 31. As noted, tonight’s event is being held at the Capitol Wrestling Center, which is a redsigned portion of the newly rebuilt WWE Performance Center.

As reported earlier, tonight’s event is expected to have a limited number of fans in attendance. In total there will be about 100 fans in attendance. According to WrestlingInc.’s report, the renovation of the Capitol Wrestling Center was done out of a desire to have live fans return for NXT events. Full Sail University was not going to allow fans for NXT at Full Sail Live, and WWE wanted to move forward with fans in attendance.

This renovation is being seen internally as a “refresh” for the NXT brand. The report notes that there has been talk backstage about how AEW continues to beat NXT in the ratings each week. There is a backstage notion that the NXT fans are part of what make the brand so unique. NXT officials are reportedly hoping that this refresh will rejuvenate NXT and give it back some of what it had previously before the COVID-19 pandemic shutdowns.

With regards to the fans in attendance and health and safety precautions, all fans in attendance for tonight’s show reportedly had to pass a COVID-19 screening, a temperature check, and a questionnaire in order to get inside. Also, fan attendees must be wearing masks at all times.

Additionally, the report notes that fans will be seated in pods at tonight’s show. The pods are being described as similar to the ones used in the Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler feud from 2011. The pods were said to have been custom built. As each group arrives, they will be taken separately to their pod before the show is slated to begin. The groups will leave separately when they set to exit once the show is over. They will reportedly not be allowed to intermingle with any NXT talent.

Also, it’s being reported that the plan is to increase attendance capacity at the Capitol Wrestling Center in the weeks and months to come, barring any positive test results for COVID-19. There’s said to be an understanding that NXT management wants to have fans seated in chairs and have stands integrated into the CWC and back to a more normal feeling show by the start of 2021. Officials are reportedly not talking about these ideas publicly in the event of any potential setbacks. However, this is the direction NXT management wants to take the live presentation in moving forward, with the current end goal of transitioning back to a more normal and traditional presentation by the start of the new year.

WrestlingInc.com reports that they were told the next few weeks of NXT and integrating live fans back into the show’s presentation are crucial, and they are said to be part of the “First steps” to management for NXT getting the brand back to where they want it to be later next year.

You can check out a sneak peek video WWE released of the newly redesigned Capitol Wrestling Center below: