William Regal, WWE’s Vice President of Global Talent Development, used social media on October 16, 2026, to deliver a pointed message to professional wrestlers around the world about what he sees as a lost art in the ring: the pin and the kickout.
In a lengthy post on X, Regal urged wrestlers everywhere, regardless of promotion, to treat pinning sequences and kickouts with far greater urgency and believability. He advised performers to “pin and kick out like your life and career depend on it,” arguing that these moments should resemble fight scenes rather than routine, mechanical exchanges.
Regal’s message went further than a simple tip on in-ring psychology. According to his comments, he believes wrestlers are giving fans too many reasons to stop believing in what they are watching, framing the issue as one of trust between performers and their audience rather than a matter of ratings or booking decisions. He reportedly stated that fans deserve better than what they are currently being shown when it comes to selling the stakes of a cover attempt.
The veteran did not limit his comments to a single company or style, instead directing his advice broadly at performers across the global wrestling landscape. His remarks suggested that if a wrestler cannot commit to making a pin attempt and kickout look consequential, they should reconsider whether the business is the right fit for them.
Regal’s standing lends particular weight to the message. He retired from in-ring competition in 2013 after a career spanning WWE and WCW, during which he worked with a wide array of talents across multiple eras of the industry. Since stepping away from active competition, he has remained deeply embedded in the business, most recently in his current role overseeing WWE’s global talent development efforts, a position that puts him in direct contact with the next generation of performers being trained and evaluated by the company.
Because the advice was framed as a general statement rather than criticism of a specific wrestler, match, or promotion, Regal did not name any individual performers in his comments. The post instead reads as a broader appeal to the industry at large, reflecting concerns he has developed over decades spent both performing in and now helping shape the next wave of in-ring talent.
No further elaboration from Regal beyond the social media statement has been reported at this time.
