There are few places in the country which boast the access to professional wrestling Orlando does. That’s because the world’s largest wrestling promotion, the WWE, bases their developmental program, NXT, here. If you live in the area, or even if you’re visiting, and are a pro wrestling fan, you should definitely keep an eye out for a NXT Orlando show.

Now to answer the first question in your mind, yes, this is “that fake stuff” you see on TV. However, like any good wrestling fan will tell you, pro wrestling isn’t fake…it’s scripted.

So put on your trunks, lace up your boots, give the guys in the production truck your entrance music and let’s ring the bell on pro wrestling in Orlando.

What is NXT?

Orlando’s biggest promotion is NXT.

Just like the MLB has a farm system for up-and-coming players, so does the WWE. The easiest way to think of NXT is that NXT is WWE’s AAA league (so many letters!). And just like AAA baseball teams have their own stadiums, NXT has the Performance Center located right here in Orlando.

NXT provides the most opportunity to see live wrestling because of the frequency and variety of shows. In the wrestling world, there are two kinds of shows: TV tapings and live events (or house shows in wrestling parlance).

NXT TV Tapings

TV tapings occur every month or so and are filmed at Full Sail University. Attending a taping guarantees that you will see the biggest names and the biggest matches because TV tapings are where the storylines actually count. If an important moment is happening outside of a pay-per-view event, it’s going to happen here.

NXT is also unique because they film multiple shows in one taping. Very often you’ll see the same performers multiple times throughout the night. Unfortunately, that also makes for a very long night. Doors open at 6 p.m., the taping begins at 6:30 p.m. and often doesn’t finish until 10 p.m. Attend enough tapings, or watch enough episodes of NXT, and you’ll begin to notice at which point in the night the match was taped. The audience gets exhausted after a while.

The best advice we can give if you want to attend a TV taping is to get tickets early! Tickets are almost guaranteed to sell out.

NXT Orlando Live Events (House Shows)

Happening much more frequently than TV tapings are live events. NXT live events have a completely different atmosphere than TV tapings but are just as much fun (if not more).

The first difference is the venue. Full Sail is as much fun as it is because the venue is very small compared to the national arenas the WWE performs in. And for as small as Full Sail is, the live events happen in even smaller venues. The most common locations for live events are armories and community centers.

But with a smaller size comes an almost unprecedented level of access.

Before every show is an autograph session where you can meet two of the performers who have matches that very night. You also have the ability to get front row, ringside tickets for only $20 a ticket. Sitting in the front row all but guarantees you’re going to get a least a high-five or two from the superstars and you could even see some action spill outside of the ring and right in your face.

The second difference with live events is the superstars themselves. While you can be sure the biggest stars will appear for a TV taping, the same can’t be said for a live event. Remember how NXT is the farm system for WWE? These live events give the wrestlers valuable experience when it comes to technique, character work, and audience interaction.

It’s not uncommon to see a 70/30 split between wrestlers who you’ve probably never heard of to wrestlers you have. However, just because you haven’t heard of them doesn’t mean they’re bad; they are a part of the biggest wrestling promotion in the world after all. The main events always have one of the more noteworthy wrestlers in it, so you’ll never have a show where you see only developmental stars.

Getting into and watching pro wrestling is one of the things we did early in our dating life and living in Orlando has only grown our love for the sport. NXT events, especially the live events, make for great, fun dates and is a fantastic thing to take your kids to.

Be sure and follow our Instagram account for all our wrestling adventures.

Check out NXT’s touring schedule to find a taping or live event while you’re in town.