Wrestlenomics
Wrestlenomics covers the business of pro wrestling. Pollock & Thurston is a weekly podcast hosted by John Pollock of POST Wrestling and Wrestlenomics’ Brandon Thurston. They are often joined by a relevant guest.
Episodes
John Pollock and Brandon Thurston discuss their reporting on ESPN's decision to remove letter grades from its WWE reviews and the relationship between the two.
Plus, AEW launches a streaming/FAST service, NXT Stand & Deliver to stream on YouTube, and UFC releases its card for the White House.
Topics this week include:
- ESPN dropped WWE letter grades from review...
John Pollock and Brandon Thurston go through the latest news on the WWE shareholder lawsuit and allegations of communications being deleted, plus Mark Shapiro speaks at the Morgan Stanley conference.
Plus, Janel Grant speaks publicly again, and a judge orders that redactions be removed in the WWE shareholder lawsuit.
Topics this week include:
John Pollock and Brandon Thurston go through TKO’s year-end earnings report, new details on the UFC White House card, and big projections for 2026.
Plus, Brandon Thurston examines the rebound in professional wrestling TV ratings following Nielsen's recent methodology adjustments.
Topics this week include:
John Pollock and Brandon Thurston report on Janel Grant’s speech at the Connecticut Alliance to End Sexual Violence event on Thursday. Grant spoke about her personal experience since the initial reporting by the Wall Street Journal and her lawsuit filed against Vince McMahon, John Laurinaitis & WWE in 2024, alleging sexual assault and sex trafficking.
Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/wrestlenomics/donati...
John Pollock and Brandon Thurston look at the all-time gate record set at WrestleMania 41, drawing over $66 million over two nights, and the figures from John Cena’s retirement tour.
Topics this week include:
- WrestleMania 41 gate exceeds $66 million
- Comparison of WrestleMania ticket prices over the years
- Pollstar figures for John Cena’s retirement tour, final draw se...
John Pollock and Brandon Thurston move to prime time and discuss everything involving Brody King, Janel Grant to speak in public, the status of WM 42 ticket sales & more.
Topics this week include:
- Anti-ICE chants and mainstream coverage for AEW
- Brody King misses Dynamite, WBD denies report regarding the reason
- Janel Grant to speak in Hartford next week
- Ring boy’s response Vince...
John Pollock and Brandon Thurston cover the Royal Rumble, Ashley Massaro mentioned in the Epstein files, and a breakdown of Zuffa Boxing’s contracts.
Topics this week include:
- Royal Rumble in Riyadh
- Event still not available for YouTube TV or Comcast Xfinity subscribers
- Backlash announced for Tampa in May
- Ashley Massaro mentioned in Jeffrey Epstein files
- Variety covers update by Nie...
John Pollock and Brandon Thurston discuss the rapid construction in Saudi Arabia of a stadium to house the Royal Rumble.
Plus: Vince & Linda McMahon oppose John Does remaining anonymous in the ringboy suit, Triller’s finances & more.
Topics this week include:
- John & Brandon discuss the process of having a stadium built in Saudi Arabia and questions regarding the...
John Pollock and Brandon Thurston discuss the defendants' responses to the ring boy lawsuit, Netflix’s engagement report, and TNA’s debut numbers on AMC.
Topics this week include:
- Defendants file Answers in the ring boy lawsuit
- Vince & Linda McMahon push to reveal identities
- Netflix engagement report for the second half of 2025
- Netflix’s earnings report
- TNA’s launch on A...
John Pollock and Brandon Thurston discuss a class action lawsuit filed over WWE’s move to ESPN, AEW’s Q4 performance & Netflix’s WWE viewership stats.
Topics this week include:
- Lawsuit filed against WWE over ESPN Unlimited
- Netflix releases states for WWE programming in 2025
- AEW’s Q4 results from Brandon Thurston
- TNA’s launch on AMC this week
- Netflix Global Top 10 for the firs...
John Pollock and Brandon Thurston cover the success of Wrestle Kingdom 20, how WWE’s holiday tour performed, and Netflix strikes a deal for WWE’s library.
Plus, POST Wrestling’s Karen Peterson speaks about the significance of Wrestle Kingdom, Hiroshi Tanahashi’s retirement, the debut of Aaron Wolf, the TV-Asahi broadcast, and Saya Kamitani’s breakout year.
Topics this week ...
John Pollock and Brandon Thurston cover the TKO merger process with new documents unsealed and correspondence among key executives revealed.
Plus, a look back at the biggest news stories of 2025 and ones to watch in the coming year.
VIDEO VERSION: https://youtube.com/live/EZCOw8EBD1s
Music courtesy: “Panic Beat” by Ben Tramer
POST Wrestling
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John Pollock and Brandon Thurston cover the latest developments in the WWE Ring Boy lawsuit, as a judge rules that most of the plaintiffs’ claims will proceed to discovery.
They also discuss John Cena’s final match and the business impact it generated, along with Mick Foley publicly cutting ties with WWE over Donald Trump.
Topics this week include:
- Warner Bros. Discovery’s ...
John Pollock and Brandon Thurston look at the career of John Cena as the longest tenured main eventer in WWE’s history and the fight between Netflix & Paramount.
Topics this week include:
- The legacy of John Cena and his run on top in WWE
- The showdown between Netflix and Paramount for control of WBD
- Lawsuit over Cena’s theme song
- Cena’s latest comments on Vince McMahon
- Mark Shapiro speaks at the UBS conference
- Judge issues order ...
John Pollock and Brandon Thurston welcome Trish Speirs to discuss her excellent feature on the booking of Hiroshi Tanahashi’s retirement match and TNA’s new media rights deal with AMC.
Topics this week include:
- TNA inks multi-year deal with AMC
- The booking of Hiroshi Tanahashi’s retirement match
- WWE Raw falls outside the global top ten on Netflix
- More on the WWE share...
John Pollock and Brandon Thurston unpack the effect Big Data + Panel is having on the professional wrestling industry, and a blistering response from CW on the new methodology.
Topics this week include:
- Big Data + Panel reporting by Brandon Thurston, including CW’s response
- Comparisons using the old and new methods for WWE & AEW
- Significant updates in the WWE shareholder lawsuit
- Vince McMahon’s phone given back by the feds
- A...
John Pollock and Brandon Thurston react to Tony Khan’s sit-down chat with Ariel Helwani, TKO’s big week at Madison Square Garden, a “Stunner” of a group chat, and the WON Hall of Fame class.
Topics this week include:
- Tony Khan returns to the Ariel Helwani Show
- TKO runs UFC 322 & John Cena’s Final Raw at MSG
- ESPN and YouTube reach an agreement
- Latest in the ongoing shareholder lawsuit agains...
John Pollock and Brandon Thurston cover WWE’s announcement with Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, TKO’s Q3 earnings report, and how TNA Bound for Glory performed.
Topics this week include:
- WWE and MLSE announce long-term partnership
- TKO’s Q3 Earnings Results
- Mark Shapiro comments on Fox’s performance with UFC
- TNA Bound for Glory’s gate and tickets sold
- Janel Grant accuses Dr. Carlon Colke...
John Pollock and Brandon Thurston share their Observer Hall of Fame ballots and debate who should be inducted this year.
Plus: TKO prepares for its third-quarter earnings, analysis of AEW’s past quarter, Wrestle Kingdom 20 ticket update & a betting scandal rocks the UFC.
Topics this week include:
- TKO to report Q3 earnings
- AEW’s past quarter performance
- Market-to-market compa...
John Pollock and Brandon Thurston discuss WWE’s enforcement of no-compete clauses involving Andrade and Samantha Irvin, and whether these clauses could withstand legal scrutiny.
Combat sports regulatory lawyer Erik Magraken joins them to break down the legality of these contracts and the push by TKO to pass the Muhammad Ali American Boxing Revival Act.
Topics this week includ...
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