The Echo Chamber Trap
Wrestling fans are completely broken online right now. You cannot log into any platform without stepping into a toxic war zone over television ratings, turnstile counts, or star ratings. The discourse is miserable. Matt Hardy addressed this exact issue this week, pointing the finger directly at social media echo chambers for the ridiculous spike in WWE versus AEW tribalism.
Hardy is entirely correct in his assessment. The platforms are designed to reward anger. They push the most extreme takes to the top of your feed because outrage generates engagement. Fans dig into their trenches and refuse to acknowledge anything positive about the opposing company.
Hardy has seen multiple eras of wrestling. He survived the Monday Night Wars and knows what actual competition looks like. When he says the current environment is strictly an echo chamber, it carries weight. Back in the late nineties, fans argued in schoolyards. Today, they form coordinated algorithmic swarms to bury performers they dislike.
With WrestleMania 41 looming on April 19 and 20, the WWE side of the timeline is unbearable. Conversely, the AEW side is overly defensive heading into Dynasty in two days. It is a terrible environment for actual discussion. But the fans are not the only ones falling into this trap. The wrestlers are taking the bait.
The Ricochet Problem
Take Ricochet as the prime example. He is currently dealing with the fallout from a highly controversial tweet. More importantly, he recently admitted that people in his circle have explicitly warned him about his social media behavior. He knows it is an issue, yet he cannot seem to log off.
This is a massive tactical error. When you are a featured television talent, arguing with anonymous accounts is a losing battle. It instantly diminishes your star power. It makes you look insecure and easily rattled.
Ricochet is undeniably one of the most gifted athletes to ever step into a ring. He can execute a 630 senton with effortless precision. His matches are routinely the most physically impressive parts of any broadcast. But his defensive posture online is actively killing his aura.
He is letting the exact tribalism Hardy identified dictate his mental state. Fans know they can get under his skin, so they poke the bear. And every single time, he takes the bait. You cannot be the cool, relatable high-flyer on television if you are constantly whining on your phone.
A babyface high-flyer relies entirely on crowd sympathy. When you are taking immense physical punishment to entertain the audience, they have to like you as a person. The moment they start questioning your maturity because of a ridiculous internet feud, the athletic moves stop mattering. You can hit a shooting star press perfectly, but if the crowd is thinking about your last embarrassing post, the spot is dead on arrival.
The Lesnar Masterclass
There is a clear exit strategy here, but it requires a massive shift in psychology. Ricochet needs to study the Brock Lesnar playbook. It is the only proven method for neutralizing modern internet heat.
Lesnar recently opened up about his early days in mixed martial arts. He revealed that during his meteoric rise in the UFC, he intentionally leaned into a heel persona for a very specific reason. He wanted to dodge media duties. He despised the standard press conferences and hated answering the same repetitive questions.
So, he became the villain. He gave short, aggressive answers. He mocked the media. He antagonized the live crowds. It culminated in that infamous post-fight interview after defeating Frank Mir at UFC 100. The crowd booed him out of the building, and Lesnar loved every second of it.
When Lesnar fought Randy Couture for the heavyweight title, the entire MMA establishment wanted him to fail. They viewed him as a professional wrestling gimmick. Instead of trying to prove his technical worth or arguing with purists on forums, Lesnar just smashed Couture and walked away with the belt. You do not argue with a mosquito; you swat it.
It was a masterstroke in narrative control. Lesnar realized that if everyone already hated him, he might as well profit from it. Ricochet needs to steal this exact concept. Stop fighting the tide and start monetizing the anger.
The Hardcore Holly Contrast
If you want a masterclass in how to use the internet correctly as a wrestler, look at Hardcore Holly. A photo of Holly looking absolutely shredded at 63 years old went wildly viral this week.
Holly did not log on to argue about his legacy. He did not post a fifteen-tweet thread defending his run in the late nineties. He just quietly put in the work at the gym. Someone posted a picture, and the entire wrestling world united to praise him.
He went viral for the right reasons. He let the physical results speak entirely for themselves. That is old-school credibility. It is the exact opposite of what the younger generation is doing right now. They want the respect without putting the phone down.
The Dynasty Prediction
This brings us to AEW Dynasty, which takes place in exactly two days on March 30. This pay-per-view is the perfect opportunity to hit the reset button on Ricochet. The babyface run is hopelessly compromised by the outside noise.
I am officially calling it right now. Ricochet is going to turn heel at Dynasty. AEW management needs to weaponize his real-life social media heat and bring it onto the television screen.
He needs to interfere in a high-stakes match, cost a beloved babyface the victory, and completely abandon the smiling acrobat routine. When the inevitable backlash hits online, he must follow the Lesnar rule. Do not apologize. Do not write a notes app explanation. He should post a single photo of himself laughing and then log off.
Think about the tactical shift Ricochet could make in the ring. Right now, his matches are built around cooperative high spots. He needs the crowd to clap along as he sets up his springboard attacks. If he turns heel, he can strip all of that away.
Imagine Ricochet utilizing his elite agility strictly for evasion. He could slip out of holds, slide out of the ring, and refuse to engage until the crowd is begging for action. He could adopt brutal, grounded submission holds instead of his usual aerial arsenal. Taking away the spectacular moves is the ultimate punishment for a fanbase that feels entitled to his body.
AEW has plenty of beloved babyfaces who mind their own business. They do not need another guy desperately seeking approval from the echo chamber. A ruthless, grounded Ricochet who punishes the crowd for their online toxicity would be the most compelling character arc of his entire career. He has the physical tools to pull it off.
It is the only logical booking decision left. The social media era has broken the traditional babyface dynamic. You either log off long enough to protect your aura, or you stay online and become the villain. Ricochet needs to choose the latter, and it starts this Sunday.
