FSM Archive: 10 Questions... with Jim Korderas (Issue 91; April 2013)

FSM: Casual fans may think that the role of the referee is to count the pinfall, or signal for a disqualification, but there's a lot more to it. If you were asked to explain the role of the referee, what would you say?
Jim Korderas: I'd say it's kinda like being a traffic cop. I don't mean you have to direct the traffic necessarily, because it's obviously down to the boys in the ring to tell the story of the match. The referee shouldn't be overtly noticeable, but instead a bit-player who helps enhance the match.

A lot of wrestlers say that it's impossible to have a great match without a great referee. Is that a fair statement?
I think it does go hand in hand; obviously if you have a competent referee in the ring, he can make a good match seem better. I hate to say that a bad referee would drag down a match, because that would take away from the talent in the ring, but a bad referee wouldn't help the match, put it that way!
Wrestlers view refereeing a bit differently from people who referee a lot. It's like saying that because I'm always in the ring with wrestlers, that I should then be able to work a match properly. It doesn't happen that way, because I'm not trained in that field.

The general feeling is that referees must be inconspicuous, but there have been some top referees who were impossible to miss, such as Tommy Young.
I'm a huge fan of Tommy Young. I got to see him live at the Maple Leaf Gardens, and he's the first referee that I can honestly say I noticed. His style was unique; I hesitate to say flamboyant, but definitely animated. It's fine to have that different style, but all referees should not be like that. Everyone should have their own style, but still maintain that uniformed enforcing of the rules.

How does a referee improve? Is it all about experience, or is there a lot of homework in between matches?
I think it's a mixture. The training helps, especially if you've been trained by somebody who made a career out of refereeing. Experience is also a huge factor, as the more you work in the ring, the more you learn. You're constantly learning in there.
I would suggest that looking at tapes of the top officials is the way to go. I stole a little bit from everybody over the years, just by studying their styles and taking little bits and pieces. You have to always be on your toes, embracing the evolving nature of the business and your role.

What is the hardest aspect of refereeing to perfect?
Communication is key, because you want to be able to communicate with the talent, without making it obvious. Believe it or not - and I see a lot of the young guys having difficulty with this - there's also a challenge getting the right cadence in your counts. I'm a big proponent of keeping it the same, whether it's at the beginning or end of the match; some guys have good cadence right up until the finish, then they count a little slower to add drama.
Positioning is very important, too. As an example, when Wrestler A has Wrestler B in a chinlock, the referee needs to know where to stand, especially if the event is televised. You've gotta be aware of where the cameras are, but at the same time not hide the wrestlers' faces from the audience. You have to keep all that in mind, yet remain in positions where it looks like you're doing your job.

What's the best time to communicate with the wrestlers during the match?
When the guys are using holds, you can lean in a little closer, looking like you're checking to see if it's a choke, and at the same time speak softly to communicate. One thing I might do, when the wrestlers are about to lock up in the centre of the ring, is casually walk behind one of them to give a cue. There's a lot of experimenting that you have to do, to find different things that won't get noticed.

What are your thoughts on referees taking bumps? Right from the get-go, I always said that while a lot of people train to bump, a referee shouldn't bump like a wrestler. If you get clotheslined, you shouldn't take a perfect flat-back bump - it should look quite awkward, almost clumsy. At the same time, you need to master that without hurting yourself! A referee bump should be used for a good reason; it shouldn't be just as a transition spot, or simply for the sake of it. It has to mean something.

Similarly, we've seen referees get into shoving matches with wrestlers. That was always a Ric Flair favourite.
That would definitely be a spot that Ric would call! I've been fortunate enough to have done that with him in the past, and it was really cool to do, but that's more of an entertainment thing. You wouldn't see something like that happen so much today in WWE, because they discourage physical contact between the wrestlers and the referees. If you treat it as a legitimate sport, you'd never see that. In WWE, they're trying to keep that authority on the referee as much as possible.

You were the referee in the ring during the tragic incident involving Owen Hart in 1999. That's obviously the most extreme of circumstances, but when something happens that's unexpected, such as an injury, how important is it to keep calm?
With Owen, that was definitely an extreme situation, so I can't really equate that with somebody who accidentally gets their bell rung, or something like that.
When it comes to an injury in the ring, where somebody maybe gets knocked out for a few seconds, the safety of the wrestlers is paramount, especially in today's WWE. The referee has to make a judgement call on occasion, because nine times out of 10, when you ask the talent if they're okay, they'll answer yes - even when they shouldn't, for their own good. They might get mad at you, but you have to look out for their safety first, because sometimes they can be their own worst enemies. That's one thing that has changed over the years: referees try to be more aware now, and have the balls to stop the match if they have to. It's better to be safe than sorry, because you'd rather the injured party was working again tomorrow, instead of being out for six months.

If there was one piece of advice you could give to rookie referees, what would it be?
Definitely to study, constantly learn and absorb information like a sponge. Don't be afraid to talk to veterans and pick their brains; they're not all gonna tell you the same thing.
One other thing is to appear confident when working a match. If you start to look tentative at all, then the fans won't buy you as an authority figure in the ring. If you look tentative, then people will ask why you're even in there.

Jim Korderas' new book, The Three Count: My Life In Stripes As A WWE Referee, is available at ECWPress.com/ThreeCount