WWE Performance Center

The Performance Center in March 2025.
Predecessor	Florida Championship Wrestling
Founded	July 11, 2013; 12 years ago (2013-07-11)
Headquarters	5055 Forsyth Commerce Road, Suite 100,Orlando, Florida, U.S. Unit 30-31, Great Cambridge Industrial Estate, Lincoln Road,Enfield,London, England, U.K.
Key people	Paul "Triple H" Levesque (EVP of Talent Relations, Head of Creative and Chief Content Officer) Shawn Michaels (SVP of Talent Development Creative) Matt Bloom (VP of Talent Development, Head Coach) Sara Amato (Assistant Head Coach) Robbie Brookside,Steve Corino,Lince Dorado,Fit Finlay, Johnny Moss,Norman Smiley,Terry Taylor (Coaches)
Owner	TKO Group Holdings (Endeavor)
Parent	WWE
Website	Official website

WWE Performance Center (WWE PC) is a group ofprofessional wrestling schools owned by American companyWWE. They serve as tryout andtraining facilities for WWE, and also containsports science andmedical facilities as well as live events and production studios. WWE currently operates two Performance Center locations, with the first opened inOrlando, Florida on July 11, 2013, replacing the training facility of WWE's formerdevelopmental territoryFlorida Championship Wrestling. A second branch opened on January 11, 2019, inEnfield,London.^[1]

The Performance Center in Orlando temporarily became the home venue for WWE'sRaw,SmackDown, and205 Livebrands in March 2020 due to theCOVID-19 pandemic, with its weekly television programsMonday Night Raw,Friday Night Smackdown,205 Live, andMain Event, as well aspay-per-viewevents (includingWrestleMania 36) being recorded in a studio at the Performance Centerwith no audience. In August 2020, WWE movedRaw andSmackDown's closed productions to an arena setting dubbed the "ThunderDome" — which used a larger-scale production more in line with its touring shows, but with avirtual audience.

TheNXT developmental brand was subsequently moved to the Performance Center in Orlando in October 2020, moving from its former home atFull Sail University. Following the move of theNXT program to the Performance Center, the school's main studio was reconfigured as the "Capitol Wrestling Center" (CWC) to suit the look and feel ofNXT programming. Unlike the tenures of the Raw and SmackDown brands at the Performance Center, NXT's move was permanent, with the brand remaining at the Performance Center even as COVID-19 restrictions were lifted in June 2021. The CWC name was dropped in September 2021 as part of a relaunch ofNXT, which saw a second reconfiguration of the studio.

In 2025, the Performance Center in Orlando became the home venue of WWE'sLFG andEvolve programs.

The Orlando facility covers 26,000 square feet (2,400 m²) and includes seventraining rings (including a special padded ring for high-flying moves), a strength and conditioning program, and editing and production facilities including an ultra-slow camera and a voice-over room that performers and on-air announcers can use to practice.^[2][3] The facility was opened in 2013 and replaced the training center at WWE's former developmental territory,Florida Championship Wrestling, which was based inTampa and had been serving as WWE's developmental headquarters since 2008.^[3][4][5]

The WWE Performance Center trains around 65 to 70 wrestlers at any one time. Trainees have a variety of experience levels, from beginners with non-wrestling backgrounds to experienced wrestlers from theindependent circuit. Wrestlers train to improve their in-ring performance, strength and conditioning, as well as working on their characters and personality. Aspiring referees, ring announcers, commentators, and backstage interviewers also train at the Performance Center. The trainees train full-time, while also performing atNXThouse shows and appearing on theWWE NXT television program. In addition, established WWE main roster performers often use the facility for training and injury rehab, while mentoring new trainees.

The Performance Center uses former wrestlers as trainers. The inaugural head trainer wasBill DeMott, who departed the company in 2015 and was replaced byMatt Bloom.^[6] Other trainers have includedSara Amato,Robbie Brookside,Norman Smiley,Adam Pearce,Ace Steel,Scotty 2 Hotty,^[7] andSarah Stock.^[8]Dusty Rhodes was responsible for developing the trainees' microphone skills and wrestling personas until his death in 2015.^[9] The Performance Center occasionally invites guest trainers, notablyMike Quackenbush,Kevin Nash, andScott Hall.^[10][11][12]

In addition to training contracted performers, the Performance Center is also regularly used for tryouts which operate on an invite-only basis and include athletes from a wide variety of backgrounds, including established domestic and international professional wrestlers,amateur wrestlers,NFL andNCAAfootball players, and individuals from a range of other sporting and non-sporting backgrounds.^[13][14][15]

A secondBritain-based Performance Center opened inEnfield, London, England on January 11, 2019.^[16] In April 2019, WWE announced plans to open additional Performance Centers in India and China.^[17]

Prior to theCOVID-19 pandemic, WWE hosted theirHalftime Heat event on February 3, 2019 at the Performance Center in Orlando.^[18] A year later on March 12, 2020, WWE announced that due to the COVID-19 pandemic (which resulted in the suspension of many professional sports leagues), live episodes ofRaw andSmackDown would air from the Performance Centerwithout an audience until further notice, beginning with the following day's episode ofSmackDown. The company had begun filming episodes ofNXT without an audience atFull Sail University the previous day, although the March 11 episode was filmed at the Performance Center and was the last show produced with a live paying audience.^[19] On March 16, it was announced thatWrestleMania 36, set to take place on April 5 and previously scheduled forRaymond James Stadium inTampa, Florida, would instead be moved to the Performance Center, again without an audience and would expand to two nights taking place on Saturday April 4 and Sunday April 5. The two night format would later be adopted for all subsequent WrestleMania events.^[20]

The Performance Center continued to host episodes ofRaw,SmackDown,Main Event, as well as thepay-per-viewsMoney in the Bank (which was also held atTitan Towers inStamford, Connecticut),Backlash, andThe Horror Show at Extreme Rules, before the shows and pay-per-views moved to the new, larger-scale "ThunderDome" staging (under similar restrictions, but with avirtual audience on ribbon displays) at Orlando'sAmway Center, beginning with the August 21SmackDown and that weekend'sSummerSlam. In December, the ThunderDome relocated toTropicana Field inSt. Petersburg, Florida before moving toYuengling Center in Tampa in April 2021, and being discontinued entirely in July 2021 with the resumption of touring shows.^{[21][22][23][24][25]}

In October 2020, beginning withNXT TakeOver 31,NXT and205 Live moved to the Performance Center (from Full Sail University and the ThunderDome at Amway Center, respectively, as the205 Live brand was being subsumed byNXT), using a reconfigured version of the facility's main arena branded as the "Capitol Wrestling Center"—an homage to WWE's precursor, theCapitol Wrestling Corporation. It was designed to reflect the look and feel of NXT programming, with a virtual audience similar to the WWE ThunderDome on an LED screen in the studio, and areas for limited outside spectators divided by plexiglass walls decorated withchain-link fencing.^{[26][27][28][29]}

ForTakeOver: Stand & Deliver in April 2021, the plexiglass wall dividers were removed and live audience capacity was increased.^[30]TakeOver: In Your House in June lifted almost all COVID-19 protocols, expanding its seating capacity to around 300, and removing mask requirements and the virtual audience.^[31] While Raw and SmackDown resumed a live touring schedule in mid-July,^[25] NXT's move to the Performance Center was permanent. On September 14, 2021, the venue received a new set design as part of the "NXT 2.0" relaunch; the Capitol Wrestling Center name was dropped at this time.^[32] The venue later became the host of WWE's other developmental programs,NXT Level Up,LFG, andEvolve.

In August 2015,Orange County Sheriff's Office deputies shot 29-year-old Armando Alejandro Montalvo outside the Performance Center in Orlando after he threatened them and ignored commands. Montalvo was "obsessed" with female wrestlerAJ Lee and made numerous attempts to trespass through the facility, despite an injunction against him by WWE.^[33][34] Days after the shooting, Montalvo claimed he wasbipolar when he was questioned by detectives. He faced trial in February 2016 on charges of aggravated assault, resisting an officer with violence, and trespassing. A public defender representing Montalvo has entered a written plea of not guilty on his behalf.^[35]

On April 19, 2018, WWE filed an emergency restraining order against Montalvo after he returned to the Performance Center the previous month and harassed the employees. In addition, Montalvo posted a threatening message to WWE wrestlers and staff on hisInstagram account.^[36] On May 7, 2018, Montalvo was arrested for missing his court date with WWE.^[37]

The first WWE Performance Center facility was opened on July 11, 2013. The Performance Center replaced the training center of WWE's former developmental territory,Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW), which was based inTampa and had been serving as WWE's developmental headquarters since 2008.^[4]

The British branch is located at the Great Cambridge Industrial Estate inEnfield,London, England,^[38] and was opened on January 11, 2019.^[16] The center, which served as the headquarters of WWE'sNXT UK brand, is 17,000 square feet and includes 2 rings.^[39][40]

The following are the events that have been held at the Performance Center in Orlando:

• Full Sail University
• WCW Power Plant
• UFC Performance Institute

• Official website

• WWE
• WWE in the United Kingdom
• Professional wrestling schools
• Schools in Orlando, Florida
• Schools in London
• Professional wrestling in Orlando, Florida
• Professional wrestling in England
• 2013 establishments in Florida
• 2019 establishments in England

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Use mdy dates from January 2025
• Official website different in Wikidata and Wikipedia