Missouri Wrestling Revival

By Justin Kendall from the Pitch.

Retirements in professional wrestling almost never stick (no wrestler has retired more times than Terry Funk). But Michael Strider insists that his retirement is for real.

The first clue that he’s serious may be the way he answers the phone: “Hi, this is Justin.”

Strider’s real name is Justin Appleberry. He understands how people might be skeptical that he’s leaving the bloody brawls with forks and razor wire.

“The only thing that would be different for me than those guys is, they make a living at it,” Strider says. “I make my living working at Ringside/Combat Sports. I don’t want to get beat up any worse than I already am, so it’s a good time. … I’m getting older and getting ready to start a family and everything, and I want to be able to play catch with my kids and go to Little League and be able to move around halfway decently.”

Click here for the rest of the interview