Greg Hamilton making a ring introduction for SmackDown.
WWE
Greg Hamilton is a storyteller.
Though the role of a ring announcer in combat sports is often overlooked, Hamilton’s role in WWE—and now in PFL—is of the utmost importance. When done correctly, ring announcers can be immortalized through nostalgia like Howard Finkel, become viral sensations in short order like Samantha Irvin or even enjoy elusive longevity like Hamilton himself, who now announces across multiple combat sports promotions.
Hamilton’s ring introduction skills have evolved over time. In WWE, he was a charismatic, if not irreverent, presence who set the tone for every match through standardized ring announcements that he made his own. Now performing ring introductions for PFL, Hamilton’s storytelling skills are on full display. Instead of the standard “location/weight/name” intros applicable to all wrestlers, Hamilton is safe to spread his wings and tell the full story of who the fighters are and why fans should care.
“There’s quite a bit that’s different [between WWE and MMA ring announcing],” said Hamilton in an exclusive interview.
“I started as a host. I started as a morning show host on CBS in San Antonio. When I got to WWE, my job at first was to create and develop a host program for the live events. So there wasn’t just a ring announcer, but actually a host going out and interacting with the crowd. Then all of a sudden, Brandi Rhodes left and I got a call and they said, ‘Hey, Brandi’s leaving, you’re going to do SmackDown starting next week.’ So I fell into announcing, which I think has been my greatest asset because I’m not trying to sound like anybody because I didn’t know how to try to sound like anybody.”
“So I just try to create energy and storytelling. And then going on to the biggest adjustment, there’s a couple things. There’s believing in myself that I could do it because one thing I can say is PFL feels like more of a sport in the big leagues as opposed to entertainment.”
“In MMA, there’s so much homework because every single show you’ve got 12 fights and it’s different fighters every single show for the most part. I mean, guys will fight two, three times a year, versus SmackDown, where I could give you that roster in my sleep. I mean, Roman Reigns, Pensacola, Florida, 265 pounds. You know what I mean? So it’s research going into all of the fighters, their backgrounds, there’s more in their introductions. So I really put in a lot of work and a lot of homework leading into each show. That’s provided a lot of personal growth for me, learning how to do that and figuring out my own style of creating my cards. How do I want to announce them? What story do I want to tell about them when they’re coming to the cage?”
Greg Hamilton announcing for PFL.
Greg Hamilton on Instagram
Hamilton’s continued evolution is a product of his trial-by-fire education in WWE. Hamilton’s six-year stint with WWE all came under the watchful (if not micromanaging) eye of the since-departed Vince McMahon. Hamilton gained notoriety for his over-the-top introduction of Vince’s son Shane after Shane McMahon won the WWE World Cup at Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia. This caveat highlighted another major difference between MMA and WWE, as the creative aspect behind every personality in WWE can be the difference between ring announcer and household name.
“In wrestling, man, creative can either make you a superstar and a Hall of Famer or a creative can get you cut," said Hamilton.
“I get people trying to maneuver in the world of wrestling because that’s their livelihood and creative is a big part of that. So getting over with the writers and the creative part, that's a big deal.”
Hamilton remains a fan of pro wrestling and MMA across the board. As a key figure of PFL, a challenger combat sports league, he was happy to see the recent launch of MVP Productions, which aired their debut fight on Netflix where Ronda Rousey made short work of Gina Carano.
“I thought the production was out of this world,” said Hamilton. “I thought it was fantastic, which Netflix only does that one way. They only do fantastic. I thought it was an interesting card. I thought that’s the lane of MVP in the MMA world if they get into MMA. I also think it was Netflix dipping their toe in the MMA water to see what kind of interest there would be should they start to carry any kind of MMA. But I thought it was an entertaining card. I didn’t find it as serious as UFC or PFL, but there’s a lane for that. That's what MVP does. That's what they're good at. So I thought it was an entertaining show and the production was out of this world.”
UFC answered MVP’s superfight with a supercard of its own when the Trump-adjacent promotion celebrated the President’s birthday for the unprecedented (and polarizing) UFC Freedom 250 card on the Whitehouse lawn. UFC claims a disputed number of 17 million viewers, but despite a more high-profile card that was promoted like a Super Bowl, UFC Freedom 250 aired on the much smaller Paramount+. As a result, the event was outdrawn by MVP’s Rousey vs. Carano on Netflix.
Hamilton has not seen UFC Freedom 250 yet, however he was impressed with its production as well based on highlights.
“Some of the camera shots I did see were very, very creative and unique," said Hamilton. “More importantly, for the first time—probably ever—MMA was the biggest topic in the country (regardless of what people thought, good or bad) and that’s a great thing for our sport and could lead to more eyeballs and conversations, which is exciting for us.”
Greg Hamilton performs a ring introduction for PFL Cage Fighting.
Credit: Greg Hamilton/PFL
Since Hamilton’s departure from WWE in 2021, the promotion has changed so much it is literally an entirely different company. In September 2023, WWE merged with UFC to create TKO Group Holdings. In the three years since TKO was founded, both WWE and UFC have seen windfalls of revenue from TV rights deals, sponsorships and record-breaking live gates.
But with an increasingly corporatized America comes TKO fatigue. This was a hot topic of conversation during WrestleMania 42, which came under scrutiny for sacrificing match times to spam commercials.
“It’s no secret that [WWE and UFC] are going to take sponsorship money any which way they can,” said Hamilton.
“But I don’t mind the logos on the mat and everything. And the one thing I do like about this is that—you’ve got to understand, too—during my time [in WWE], we weren’t allowed to do anything. I had to get off of Cameo even. I got called into talent relations for tagging a restaurant once and I paid for the meal. I was like, ‘Man, I love this place.’ I tagged the restaurant [on social media], walk in the arena and a referee’s like, ‘Talent relations wants to see you.’”
“They asked, ‘Why are you tagging restaurants?’”
“I said, ‘Because it was really good?’”
“And you remember Zelina Vega had to get off of Twitch. My point to all that is this TKO era is also allowing people to make extra money through these sponsorships and that I love for them. So that’s the upside to it. The logos and the matches stuff don’t really bother me."
Greg Hamilton is on Instagram @Hostgreghutson and is a cage announcer for PFL. All quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.
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