Tights And Fights

It's MaxFunDrive. And here, for the first time, we give you an exclusive look (well, listen) at the craft of podcasting: presenting Casters on Casters. In this episode, Ben Blacker (Dead Pilots Society), Hal Lublin (Tights and Fights & We Got This with Mark and Hal) and Alonso Duralde (Maximum Film!) take listeners behind the scenes and swap stories about the ups and downs of podcasting. Plus, why does every TV reboot have a character that's a podcaster? And how did COVID change the podcasting game? Listen to find out! If this glamorous, in-depth journey into what makes your favorite hosts tick inspires you, support them by joining as a member at maximumfun.org/join. Edited and Produced by Laura Swisher for Maximum Fun. Happy MaxFunDrive! Right now is the best time to start a membership to support your favorite shows. Learn more and join at https://maximumfun.org/jointights

We are so close to the MaxFun Drive! And this year podcasting’s best event aligns with WrestleMania weekend! The most important thing to do for you is to get involved! Bookmark these links: Go to maximumfun.org/jointights to become a MaxFun Member on Monday, April 20th for as little as $5 a month. And if you’re already a member, you can boost or upgrade for as little as $1 more a month And THIS is where Tights and Fights will go live on Monday April 20th at 8 PM Pacific to review WrestleMania and RAW. Plus we’ll be celebrating the first day of the drive. We’re looking forward to celebrating the best times of the year with YOU! Keep up with this show all week long on instagram, tiktok and bluesky. This show was produced by Julian Burrell for Maximumfun.org Happy MaxFunDrive! Right now is the best time to start a membership to support your favorite shows. Learn more and join at https://maximumfun.org/jointights

This podcast is made possible by the generous contributions of our MaxFun Members! It’s always a great time to help this show continue for as little as $5 a month. Just go to maximumfun.org/jointights. Let’s take a breather from the chaos that is WrestleMania (Sorry Pat McAfee) and talk about wrestling fashion! McKenzie Mitchell has made a name for herself as an on-screen host for WWE and TNA. Now, she’s written a book! It’s entitled Threads of Triumph: Professional Wrestling’s Most Iconic Looks. It’s a showcase of fashion in wrestling from every era, as far back as Gorgeous George to as recent as Rhea Ripley. McKenzie tells us all about her opinions on what works in wrestling gear, how a look comes to define a performer, and the value of constantly evolving your presentation to the audience. The Three Count Danielle put over CM Punk's best ever pipe bomb. Lindsey put over wrestling's erotic fiction. Hal put over Danhausen's blessed curses.  Keep up with this show all week long on instagram, tiktok and bluesk

This podcast is made possible by the generous contributions of our MaxFun Members! It’s always a great time to help this show continue for as little as $5 a month. Just go to maximumfun.org/join. We finally have a really strong idea of the matches that will make up the WrestleMania card across two nights. There are championship matches aplenty and WWE is doing everything they can to drum up excitement and ticket sales. That includes immediately calling on John Cena to host the event! But through it all, we can continue to hope that the wrestlers will over deliver and finally give us a stadium show on a level befitting Las Vegas. The Three Count Lindsey put over singing to John Cena. Julian put over Rey Mysterio's Pokemon mask (among other wrestling crossovers). Danielle put over Kenny creasing his Red Octobers.  Keep up with this show all week long on instagram, tiktok and bluesky. This show was produced by Julian Burrell for Maximumfun.org

This podcast is made possible by the generous contributions of our MaxFun Members! It’s always a great time to help this show continue for as little as $5 a month. Just go to maximumfun.org/join. What do you do when you need to get people excited about WrestleMania? If you’re WWE you just have everyone start jumping each other! Everybody from Drew McIntyre to Stephanie Vaquer to Matt Cardona to Roman Reigns decided that they will not be waiting for April’s show to start the beatdowns. The Main Event WWE has revealed most if not all of its 2026 Hall of Fame Class. We're going to take a look at all of the names getting inducted this year and look back on some of our favorite past moments from the induction ceremony. This year we've got Stephanie McMahon, AJ Styles, Demolition, Dennis Rodman and Sid Vicious. The Three Count Lindsey put over Bald Dwayne with hair. Julian put over Johnny Gargano remembering who he is. Danielle put over Eileen Skating.  Keep up with this show all week long on instagram, tiktok and

This podcast is made possible by the generous contributions of our MaxFun Members! It’s always a great time to help this show continue for as little as $5 a month. Just go to maximumfun.org/join. WrestleMania’s card is slowly coming into focus. Titles are up for grabs, words are being exchanged and blood is being spilled. We discuss how it’s all coming together, for better and for worse. Oba Femi is on his path to avenge the ancestors in his match against Brock Lesnar. And that’s all thanks to Seth Rollins who still wants to destroy the Vision; which is a mission shared by the Usos and LA Knight. So there are parts of the show that are working together to create stories. And that’s all before we get to the women’s title pictures, including Becky Lynch vs. AJ Lee, The Irresistible Forces vs. The Bellas and Rhea Ripley vs. Jade Cargill. Will it work? Here’s hoping! The Main Event For the first time in more than 5 years, Randy Orton is a heel. He took part in the proud WrestleMania tradition of beating Cody Rhod

We’re joined by Rufi Thorpe, author of the book Margo’s Got Money Troubles (which will also have a series on Apple TV soon). Bret Hart’s match against Stone Cold Steve Austin at WrestleMania 13 and his infamous exit from WWF are both well documented; but in between those moments was a largely under-discussed heel turn that helped lay the foundation for the Attitude Era.

This podcast is made possible by the generous contributions of our MaxFun Members! It’s always a great time to help this show continue for as little as $5 a month. Just go to maximumfun.org/join. WWE’s Elimination Chamber PLE is behind us and there’s nothing in front of us but the road to WrestleMania. Jade Cargill will defend her WWE title against Rhea Ripley while Drew McIntyre will defend that title against Randy Orton… and most likely Cody Rhodes. Hal, Danielle and Lindsey take a look at how we got here and where the pitfalls of WWE’s existing strategy are– is there a better way to build to the biggest matches at the biggest show of the year? Plus: Consider us fanhausens of Danhausen. The Main Event AJ Lee defeated Becky Lynch for the Women's Intercontinental Title. For the first time in over a decade AJ Lee is a champion in WWE. She has a brand new belt. And hopefully, CM Punk's photo, she bleaches it before someone else touches it. We take a look at her career so far and where we hope her run goes from

This podcast is made possible by the generous contributions of our MaxFun Members! It’s always a great time to help this show continue for as little as $5 a month. Just go to maximumfun.org/join. After weeks of speculation, the answer to why AJ Styles kept his gloves on after his (supposed) final match against Gunther are now here: He wanted to leave them in his hometown of Atlanta Georgia.  There was no swerve or final FINAL match announced. But we did learn that he WILL be headed to the WWE Hall of Fame as the first induction of the 2026 class. We also need to talk about the Vision: They suffered yet another loss in membership with Bronson Reed out for the foreseeable future with a significant injury. Where does this group here with the story of Seth Rollins, the box, and the masked man left unresolved? The Main Event If you're listening to this the day that it comes out, you know that it's Elimination Chamber day! And afterwards we'll know our title matches for WrestleMania. Which title match do we expect

This podcast is made possible by the generous contributions of our MaxFun Members! It’s always a great time to help this show continue for as little as $5 a month. Just go to maximumfun.org/join. Lindsey Kelk is back once again! After a whirlwind tour of book events and rewatching, “Heated Rivalry,” she’s prepared to discuss WWE’s Elimination Chamber PLE. It sure is nice to have an event the company cares about building to! The Main Event In a recent episode of AEW, Wheeler Yuta and Marina Shafir took on Toni Storm and Orange Cassidy. And a much bigger deal than the hair stakes was the fact that this had that rare feature of boys fighting girls and girls fighting boys in our wrassles! The Three Count Danielle put over Cody's best entrance track. Lindsey put over Heated Punk Rock Rivalries. Hal put over what we do.  Keep up with this show all week long on instagram, tiktok and bluesky. This show was produced by Julian Burrell for Maximumfun.org

This podcast is made possible by the generous contributions of our MaxFun Members! It’s always a great time to help this show continue for as little as $5 a month. Just go to maximumfun.org/join.Finn Balor will not be denied! Even though CM Punk has accepted Roman Reigns’ challenge for the World Heavyweight Championship, he will take on the Prinxe in Chicago at Elimination Chamber.Given how there’s no chance Finn will win this match, what does this mean for his path to WrestleMania?We also take a look at Liv Morgan– she has yet to pick which championship she will challenge for. We can think of a solid case for both the WWE and the World Titles.The Main EventOver the years there's been a lot of wrestling gimmick matches. And some of them have gone on to be staples of wrestling like the Elimination Chamber and the Royal Rumble. And others are the Punjabi Prison match.The Three CountDanielle put over WWE Superstar Bad Bunny.Julian put over Stone Cold Jane Austen.Hal put over Sad Johnny Gargano. Keep up with this

This podcast is made possible by the generous contributions of our MaxFun Members! It’s always a great time to help this show continue for as little as $5 a month. Just go to maximumfun.org/join.The Royal Rumble has come and gone; the first ever edition of the show to be in Saudi Arabia. And once again, it’s the clearest sign of WWE placing profit before the fan experience.The audience felt slim, the women were forced to wear their full-coverage jumpsuits and the whole just had a vibe that wasn’t befitting a Big 5 PLE.But there were things that we enjoyed: Roman Reigns and Liv Morgan won the titular match; the former sets up an incredibly compelling match for the World Heavyweight Championship against CM Punk.Plus seeing Gunther retire AJ Styles was something that clearly emotionally affected everyone in attendance and around the world. But we’ll explain why we actually think this is really compelling booking.All that and plenty more, but we’re left dreading the next time WWE decides to hold another show in S

This podcast is made possible by the generous contributions of our MaxFun Members! It’s always a great time to help this show continue for as little as $5 a month. Just go to maximumfun.org/joinWWE has recently released the second season of “Unreal” on Netflix. It’s another peak into how the company works. It’s probably not as “real” as it claims to be; but there are still some great insights that we’re happy to discuss… especially the ones about Chelsea Green.The Main Event: What we’ve loved and loathed about the Royal Rumble.This Saturday is the Royal Rumble. It's one of WWE’s most important shows of the year. So why does the marketing for the show feel so slipshod? We take a look and examine some of the highs and lows from the event’s history.The Three CountDanielle put over Becky's weather reports.Lindsey put over Cat Dad Drew.Hal put over  Wrestling newbies and Royal Rumble ribs.Keep up with this show all week long on instagram, tiktok and blueskThis show was produced by Julian Burrell for Maximumfun.org

This podcast is made possible by the generous contributions of our MaxFun Members! It’s always a great time to help this show continue for as little as $5 a month. Just go to maximumfun.org/join.There’s been some really strong matches lately, not the least of which was Finn Balor’s effort against CM Punk for the World Heavyweight Title. There’s also a really promising rivalry coming up between Jade Cargill and Jordynne Grace.But we haven’t been able to get excited about the Royal Rumble, mainly because of how poor the build to the show has been. What gives? And can WWE heat this thing up in a week?The Main Event: Wrestling Interview ShowsSometimes we just wanna take a break from all that wrestling on our wrestling show. That is when WWE makes a change in presentation and throws in the classic wrestler-hosted interview show. So let's talk about some of our favorites from over the years and what makes them work. The Three CountDanielle put over Jojoblacco.Lindsey put over Jade Cargill's interview skills.Hal put

This podcast is made possible by the generous contributions of our MaxFun Members! It’s always a great time to help this show continue for as little as $5 a month. Just go to maximumfun.org/join.Drew McIntyre is WWE Champion! Just one week after we’d noticed that the company seemed hesitant to shake things up at the top of the men’s card, the Scottish Psychopath beat Cody Rhodes for the top title in the company. Where does Drew go from here? And will there be cats? Hopefully!Plus, how we would make Finn Balor vs. CM Punk more interesting.The Main Event: Alison Lyn MillerThere's a new wrestling book hitting store shelves this month:Rough House: A Father, a Son and thePursuit of Pro Wrestling Glory. It's the story of Georgia born Hunter James as he tries to surpass the wrestling legacy of his father. That includes the turbulent world of the indies where things are, shall we say, not as glamorous as all televised wrestling we see every week.Alison Lyn Miller joins us to discuss the book. You can find her on tour

This podcast is made possible by the generous contributions of our MaxFun Members! This December to be a Member, it’s a great time to help this show continue for as little as $5 a month. Just go to maximumfun.org/join.It’s the first episode of Tights and Fights in the new year! What an eventful couple of weeks we’ve missed so far– tons of championships changed hands and many new faces appeared across all WWE shows.But there’s still an air of caution to all of these moves. We’ll explain why.The Main Event: Our Predictions for 20262026 is here and it brings with it so many possibilities in wrestling. So we decided to get some skin in the game. We are going to go around and each make three predictions each, one at a time. At the end of the year, whoever gets the most correct will be allowed to force the panel to watch and react to one wrestling match or wrestling related piece of media of the winner's choice.The Three CountDanielle put over Jamie Hayter’s fit check at AEW World’s End.Lindsey put over Tanahashi’s

This podcast is made possible by the generous contributions of our MaxFun Members! This December to be a Member, it’s a great time to help this show continue for as little as $5 a month. Just go to maximumfun.org/join.This is it– the final Tights and Fights episode of the year! We take a look at some of the biggest wrestling stories of the year– which stars took a step forward in their careers? What were the biggest headlines? And why oh why has watching wrestling become so difficult in the era of streaming television?The Three CountDanielle put over Nikki Bella and AJ Lee’s big returns.Lindsey put over the community coming together to Boo someone.Hal put over John Cena making Chelsea Green regaining the US Title..Keep up with this show all week long on instagram, tiktok and bluesky.This show was produced by Julian Burrell for Maximumfun.org

This podcast is made possible by the generous contributions of our MaxFun Members! This December to be a Member, it’s a great time to help this show continue for as little as $5 a month. Just go to maximumfun.org/join.With the end of the year upon us, it’s time for a lot of reflection on the year in wrestling. But one subject was so big  that we couldn’t help but devote an entire episode to: the culmination of John Cena’s final year as a professional wrestler.In his match against Gunther, he did the one last thing he’d never done before: tap out! While we agree that it was a remarkable way for one of WWE’s all time greats to end his career, we debate on the impact of such a conclusion.The Three Count:Lindsey put over Pancho and Mach merch (finally!).Danielle put over Mick Foley cutting ties with WWE.Hal put over John Cena making a child a priority at his final match.Keep up with this show all week long on instagram, tiktok and bluesky.This show was produced by Julian Burrell for Maximumfun.org

This podcast is made possible by the generous contributions of our MaxFun Members! This December to be a Member, it’s a great time to help this show continue for as little as $5 a month. Just go to maximumfun.org/joinPlease support some marathon efforts and the National Alliance on Mental IllnessAs of the publication of this episode, there are only a few hours left in John Cena’s career as a wrestler. He will take on Gunther at Saturday Night’s Main Event in his final match.But questions still remain: Where should this monumental match go on the card– near the beginning where it can get as much time as it needs or near the end because nothing else could possibly top it?Plus, the rest of the night is NXT vs. the main roster, something the WWE hasn’t worked on since the black-and-gold days. We discuss what we’re most looking forward to.Wiki wiki!The Three CountJulian put over the best wrestling cameo ever (Pluribus Spoilers!).Danielle put over the finale of Hey(EW)!Hal put over Jey Uso a mash up you CAN see and

This podcast is made possible by the generous contributions of our MaxFun Members! This December to be a Member, it’s a great time to help this show continue for as little as $5 a month. Just go to maximumfun.org/join.Lindsey Kelk is back, fresh off of seeing Survivor Series live in San Diego! The rest of the team made due with watching the show on ESPN’s terrible app.Response to the last Premium Live Event of the year has been mixed, but there were still things worth looking into: John Cena’s final match on a PLE ended in Dominik Mysterio winning back the Intercontinental Title with the help of a returning Liv Morgan. Just please tell the WWE pre-show team to stop mentioning Dom’s IRL wife, okay?The women once again had the better of the two War Games match, between Iyo’s antics and Rhea’s star power. But let’s give a shoutout to Bron Breakker for not only getting the win for his team, but also setting the stage for his first World Title match against CM Punk in January.And once we’ve discussed all the wrest