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Between the Turnbuckles

Posted by Admin on September 15, 2008

Between The Turnbuckles
By Peter Hahn

I am quite sure that most readers of Missouri Wrestling Revival already know the great news, but for those that haven’t heard yet, Ring of Honor is going to debut in the St. Louis area on December 5, 2008! Seeing as the event was recently announced and is months away, we can only speculate on what Ring of Honor is going to give the fans of St. Louis. Hopefully, over the next several weeks, I will be able to give an idea of what we can expect at Ring of Honor’s St. Louis debut and more.

Part 1 – New Markets in 2008
So far in 2008, Ring of Honor has expanded into three new markets. I say “expanded” and not “debuted” because Ring of Honor has already returned or has announced returns to each of these markets. It should also be noted that Ring of Honor has announced debuts in several other markets as well, and if the trend continues Ring of Honor will be returning to these markets once again after several months.

As it would be when testing a new market, one would want to present a really good card with recognizable names (to bring in the fans) and follow through with great wrestling (to bring back the fans). We all know that’s how most independent wrestling shows are when we determine whether we will go to a show or return for another. What’s great about Ring of Honor is that it is a great mix of both, with more emphasis on the quality of wrestling compared to their television counterparts. Ring of Honor will definitely want to put their best foot forward in St. Louis, just as they have with debuts in the past.

We all know, or at least should, that Full Impact Pro (Ring of Honor’s sister company) is based in Florida and has been running shows since 2003. Many wrestlers that have appeared in Full Impact Pro have also appeared in Ring of Honor. Ring of Honor made their debut in Orlando, Florida in late March with two huge shows: “Supercard of Honor III” and “Dragon Gate Challenge II.” Both of these cards were highlighted with top stars from Ring of Honor taking on popular stars of Japanese promotion Dragon Gate. The fans were already familiar with many of the wrestlers, both from Ring of Honor and Dragon Gate, as many had previously been appearing in Full Impact Pro regularly.

In early May Ring of Honor made their way to Manassas, Virginia for a show titled “Southern Navigation.” While Manassas, Virginia may not be in the South, it is in the general direction compared to where Ring of Honor holds most of their shows. Several months later Ring of Honor tested out Toronto, Ontario and ended up with one of the largest attendance turnouts in Ring of Honor history! This show was titled “Northern Navigation” as it was their first venture into Canada. Could the debut in the St. Louis area be titled “Western Navigation?” It’s a good guess based upon past expansions this year.

The shows in Manassas and Toronto were filled with Ring of Honor’s top stars including: Chris Hero, Delirious, Brian Danielson, Claudio Castagnoli, Austin Aries, Jay & Mark Briscoe, Tyler Black, Jimmy Jacobs, Necro Butcher, Ring of Honor World Champion Nigel McGuinness, and appearances by Pro Wrestling NOAH’s Naomichi Marufuji and Go Shiozaki. Ring of Honor doesn’t let down when it comes to bringing together the best talent on the independent scene and from overseas. Based upon past shows, Ring of Honor’s debut in St. Louis is sure to be explosive!

Tune in next week as I speculate on what Ring of Honor will bring to the fans in St. Louis!

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The Kari Williams MMWA-SICW Recap

Posted by Admin on September 13, 2008

MMWA-SICW September 6, 2008 Recap

by Kari Williams

MMWA-SICW’s return to South Broadway Athletic Club this month enticed fans with high profile matches, controversy and even the surprise return of a former champion.

Johnny Courageous battled Waco to top off a memorable night. Both competitors were as determined as ever to control the match up, as each had his moment of glory. Waco tried to control the match as best he could, all the while wearing Courageous out with numerous pinfall attempts. At one point, Waco had Courageous hanging upside down in the corner of the ring and delivered an imposing dropkick to the helpless American hero. In the closing moments of the match, Courageous was able to get in a bit of revenge against his foe, as The Big Texan—who Courageous has feuded with in the past—interjected himself in the bout, causing so much confusion that Courageous squeaked out a win with a quick roll-up on Waco.

The prior encounter was all in good fun as two fan favorites—Jeremy Lightfoot and Mr. Bibbs—gave the fans everything they had. Bibbs and Lightfoot went nearly 15 minutes, and each man once again proved why they are adored by the fans—they will do anything to please the crowd. Lightfoot controlled the first half of the bout, connecting with numerous aerial moves and, of course, his signature chops, that have caused some fans to call him “Sir-chops-a-lot.” The tide changed for Lightfoot when Bibbs was able to stop the Indian warrior instantaneously, almost as if Lightfoot had run directly into a freight train. Bibbs then looked as if he would secure a win, but it was not to be. Lightfoot smashed his boot square in Bibbs’s face and followed that up with a headscissors from the top rope. Victory soon followed, and the two men shook hands after the match, signifying their friendship.

One word can describe the previous match fairly easily—Chaos. A.J. Williams and “Night Train” Gary Jackson relentlessly fought The Connection’s Phil E. Blunt and Jerome Cody, who were accompanied by Travis Cook., in a tag team elimination match. The winner would then get a chance to take on the reigning champion, Kevin X. From the moment the bell rang, bodies were flying every which way, and one could hardly keep up with the action at hand. Less than a few minutes into the fight, Williams, with an assist from Jackson, launched over the top rope and crashed to the floor, making sure to take The Connection with him. For most of the brawl, Cody, Blunt and Cook did everything they could to put the odds in their favor, regardless of whether or not it was legal. Eventually those tactics caught up to the Junior Heavyweight Champion, and Williams was the first man eliminated. Jackson then had to face his adversaries at a disadvantage. Not one to give up, Jackson threw everything he had at Cody and Blunt, managing to come out on top—but not without controversy. The final two competitors—Jackson and Blunt—each claimed that they had the other’s shoulders pinned, however the referee ruled in favor of Jackson. That prompted Blunt to request a re-match with Jackson at some point in the future.

In a somewhat calmer match, the Battle Royal Championship was on the line because Commissioner Keith Smith forced Lumberjack Gabe to forfeit either the tag team title or battle royal championship. According to MMWA-SICW rules, a wrestler cannot hold more than one belt at a time. After much hesitation, Gabe refused to give up the tag team belts, proclaiming that, “The Lumberjacks will always be tag champions.”

The bout consisted of Jeremy Lightfoot, Mr. Bibbs, A.J. Williams, Shaft, The Big Texan, Waco, Blunt, Dave Vaughn, Cody, and Brandon Espinosa who made a surprise return earlier in the evening. Throughout the bout, Cody snuck out of the ring through the second and third ropes, giving himself an unfair advantage. However, he got what he deserved in the end, as The Big Texan eliminated Cody to become the new Battle Royal Champion.

Dave Vaughn took on Shaft before competing in the aforementioned match. Vaughn’s vicious persona shined bright, as he attacked Shaft before the bell had even rung. Once the match actually got underway, both men tried to outwrestle each other with technical skill, although Vaughn seemed to have the advantage in this area. Nonetheless, Shaft was able to catch Vaughn at a weakened moment and clasped on the ankle lock with relentless force. Unfortunately, both men let their egos get in the way, as they both shoved the referee out of the way and continuously struck each other, until the match was called as a double disqualification.

Two powerhouses wrestled in the second match of the night, as The Big Texan attempted to defeat one-half of the tag team champions in Lumberjack Abe. Neither man gained a clear advantage but both showed their will to win. There were a decent amount of pinfalls from either man, and both tried their best to outsmart the other. To the disappointment of fans in attendance, the bout ended in a time-limit draw.

Despite an action-packed night, the opening bout was more than likely the most surprising, as Brandon Espinosa, a former MMWA-SICW Junior Heavyweight Champion, appeared with the company for the first time since January of this year. He was welcomed back whole-heartedly and had the majority of fans behind him as he attempted to defeat Bobby D. Espinosa wrestled a techinically sound match against D, incorporating some of his signature moves that Broadway fans remember him for. D appeared at times to be disgruntled that fans cheered Espinosa, which may have caused him to use as many illegal tactics as he did. Despite Espinosa’s advantage, when he attempted a frogsplash and D moved out of the way, D capitalized by rolling up the former champion and cheating his way to victory by grabbing Espinosa’s tights for leverage. In spite of this, Espinosa walked away from the ring with fans cheering for his performance.

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Your Trip to Space Mountain- Bobby Lashley and WLW

Posted by Admin on September 11, 2008

Your Trip to Space Mountain

By Brian “Flair” Kelley
flairwhoooooo@yahoo.com

I woke up on Saturday morning and almost decided to not attend the WLW event that evening as I would be checking them out the next weekend in Moberly. I was also concerned that I would not be able to get tickets as it may be a “sell out”, But as the morning came to a close, I couldn’t resist. My girlfriend and I left for Sedalia, Mo for W.K. Chevrolet where former WWE Superstar Bobby Lashley was to sign autographs.

While waiting in line the Noon Day Optimist Club announced that they had tickets for sale, I picked up second row tickets and was all set for the evening. Before I knew it some kids in the line were excited and yelling “He is here, Bobby Lashley is here… and he is huge!”


When I first caught sight of Bobby, the child was right, he was huge, he was all smiles and, with kids jumping up and down around him, he gave them high fives and exclaimed he was glad that they were there. He headed to the table to sign Autographs and take pictures. We took our pictures and said hello to one of my heroes, Harley Race, and headed off to supper prior to the show.


The show started off with Akiyago taking on Brian Breaker in the opening contest. Akiyago is despised by the fans and he used mind games to keep Breaker from using his power to his advantage and was able to get the win. But before he left, he couldn’t resist the urge to antagonize the fans, who were not happy that he had won.

Akiyago has Brian Breaker on the ropes.

Up next was fan favorite “The Vietnam Phenom” Bao Nguyen taking on the newcomer Dustin Lane in his wrestling debut. The match started off in a slow pace and before I know it the two wrestlers where hitting each other with exciting moves as the action went back and forth which led me to believe that this was not Lane’s first match. I was later told that in fact, this was his debut in wrestling so I witnessed history as Lane was able to get the win when he rolled up Bao with a small package. Though Lane was able to get his first victory, I am sure that Bao Nguyen will look to even the score in their next encounter. I hope to see the rematch to see these young guns go at it.

 

Dustin Lane lets Bao know he is a quick learner.

WLW at this point had an intermission and Bobby Lashley came out and took pictures inside the ring and once again he was all smiles. I enjoyed watching him interact with the fans young and old. He picked up one young child with one hand and teased that he would throw him out the ring over the top rope only to bring him back in the ring and all the while the child was smiling from ear to ear. You know that kid will be telling the story to all his friends at school on Monday morning. He played with one female fan by getting on one knee and she could not believe her eyes as her face turned red. She too would have a story to tell. To say the intermission was worth watching would be an understatement.

Prior to the match Stacey O’Brien even gives the ref Martin T a hard time.

Up next was what I like to dub the future of women’s pro wrestling: Amy Hennig taking on WLW Womens Champion Stacy O’Brien . I was fortunate to say that I was able to see Amy in her wrestling debut in Eldon and her first opponent was this same Irish troublemaker. The first match up Stacy really used Amy’s inexperience against her and at times made her look foolish in her attempt to break into the WLW Womens Title hunt.

Amy Hennig proves to Stacey O’ Brien that she may be a rookie but she will not be pushed around.

You could tell Amy had worked hard and learned from her mistakes in her first encounter and was giving Stacey fits throughout the match. Though Amy had improved immensely since the first time they met, Stacy was always one step ahead of the one who she sarcastically calls “Little Miss Perfect”. Stacey seized the opportunity with the ref out of position; she put her feet on the ropes to get the pin on Amy. As Stacy would say ” That is soooo Stacey O”.

There is no doubt that Amy is WWE bound but I would be shocked if Stacy wasn’t there to greet her. Amy will get another shot for the WLW Women’s champion this weekend as she will face off once again in Moberly,MO on September 13, 2008. It is a match that I highly recommend you come and check out.

The next match up would feature two of the most charismatic wrestlers on the WLW roster Dinn T Moore and Michael Strider. Dinn T Moore has floundered in the WLW since his departure with Brandon Tatum and that may have attributed to him just barely missing the Missouri Wrestling Revival Top 100. Make no mistake about it, there are few in the Midwest that can get under the fans’ and wrestlers’ skin like the former WLW Tag Team Champion. He has the talent to win any match he is a part of.

On the other side of the ring you had one of the hardest hitting wrestlers in the Midwest. Strider has taken on some of the best in the business and really can work a crowd to his advantage. This would be a very interesting match as both men look to move up the ladder to the WLW Heavyweight Title currently held by “Dangerous” Derek McQuinn.

Dinn T Moore shows that the heavyweights in the Midwest can fly as well, as he goes up top to hit Michael Strider with a big move.

At first, Strider got the upper hand on Moore to start the match and as Moore regrouped outside the ring the fans chanted “chicken”. Strider urged him to return to the ring for a beating and when Moore returned, he withstood some more punishment from Strider. With one mistake from Strider, though, Dinn T put the heat on Strider – knocking him down with one big move after another. Strider continued to get up and each man did not give an inch. The fans were cheering on Strider for the bad guys have won all the matches in these evening to the fans dismay and Strider was there last chance to celebrate, Dinn T Moore though had other plans and was able to get the win this evening with a roll up along with the tights pulled ,as he left the ring, Dinn T bragged to the fans know that he is among the WLW elite. The fans last hope for happiness would be Bobby Lashley.

In the end what promised to be a hard hitting match lived up to the expectations, with another future battle between these two foes a must see.

The Main event would be none other that a 3 way match with Bobby Lashley, NOAH’S Go Shiozaki and one half of the current WLW Tag Team Champions Marc Godeker.

The wild card in this match would be Godeker, Godeker and his tag team partner Steve Anthony have the skills that is reminiscent of a great tag team that went by the name of “The Steiner Brothers” in their prime, but unfortunately Steve Anthony has been healing from an injury due to a match earlier this year so Marc has had to go out solo for the time being. How would Marc be able to respond to working with two of the best in the business? We were about to find out.

 

Bobby Lashley enters the WLW ring for the very first time.

The crowd was like mini WWE with the crowd going nuts when Lashley hit the ring with the crowd giving no doubt to who their favorite was, Lashley’s two opponents must have came up with a game plan prior to the match as they worked together to start the match, but Lashley was in World Championship form and was overpowering two wrestlers who are no lightweights themselves and then something happened… Lashley slammed Shiozaki hard onto the mat and when Shiozaki cried out in pain and reaching for his leg, help came from the WLW staff as they rushed to assist the Japanese Superstar. Lashley went to assist Shiozaki with Godeker outside the ring and, with Lashleys guard down, Shiozaki showed his true colors and attacked him as Godeker quickly entering the ring to assist him. The two wrestlers who each come from a different background had one thing in common and that was to get a win off the former ECW Champion but when it came to the time for each of them to get the pinfall on him, they broke up the count before the other one could get the win.

A perfect ambush from Go Shiozaki.

This was a very exciting match as the crowd was rallying Lashley to get back on the offensive. When Lashley would get the edge, Godeker and Shiozaki would stop the momentum and vice versa. It looked to be a shocking ending to Lashley’s WLW debut but when the two new friends had a disagreement, Lashley struck and overwhelmed them with power and speed and in the blink of an eye Lashley and the crowd were as one when he was able to pin Godeker for the 1-2-3. Though they were unsuccessful, Go Shiozaki and Godeker shook Lashley’s hands out of respect for such a great match.

During the main event Marc Godeker proved he was more than capable of hanging with some of the best in the business.

The question I had on whether or not Godeker would be able to hang with the two Superstars was answered with a resounding YES, as he more than held his own in one of the most exciting matches in WLW history. A match that will go on in history in WLW along with, Derek Stone’s battles with the great One Man Gang, Kenta Kobashi taking on Wade Chism and when a young Trevor Rhodes defeated Rick Steiner and Wade Chism in a Three-way match to win the WLW Heavyweight Title.

Before the night was over Bobby asked for the microphone. With Lashley’s speech and his actions throughout the day, he made me a fan of his for life. He stated that he had a passion for the sport and he missed the fans, he said that he does what he loves, not for the money as he has plenty of that, He also said that he has a desire to be back on TV soon. He encouraged any fans that saw him on the street to not be shy and come up to him and shake his hand and introduce themselves. He said that he doesn’t take very many independent bookings but when a WWE Hall of Farmer calls you and tells you to work a show, you listen. He thanked not only Harley, but his wife BJ for the opportunity to work with WLW and to be close to the fans once again.

Because I took the drive to Sedalia I was able to meet one of the most impressive wrestlers in person that I have ever seen, and quite frankly is one of the few that is better than advertised. Bobby Lashley has all the tools to be on top of the sport and I am amazed that TNA has not jumped on him as he could really be the one guy who they could sign that could make a difference in closing the gap between the two organizations.

I hope to see you at an independent show soon and, till next time, drive carefully, take care of yourself, and don’t forget to check out Missouri Wrestling Revival.

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MWR July and August 2008 Awards

Posted by Admin on September 8, 2008

Missouri Wrestling Revival’s July and August Awards!

The MWR 100 pushed the awards back for July and August, but don’t think that we have forgotten. After much deliberation and even more effort, MWR releases the July and August award winners! Winners were selected by committee.

Here are the winners and runners up for July and August 2008, respectively:

MWR July Wrestler of the Month

KC Karrington [LWA]


Always a tremendous talent, KC arrived as a viable main event wrestler in the survivor series streetfight at LWA’s Circus Maximus. He had the match won as the sole survivor before being ambushed by his girlfriend.

1st Runner Up – “Rockstar” Jimmy Rockwell [3XW]
2nd Runner Up – Tyler Black [AAW]
3rd Runner Up – AJ Williams [MMWA-SICW]

Others receiving votes:
Brett Gakiya, Abu Colossus.

MWR August Wrestler of the Month

“Delicious” Devin Carter [3XW]


After winning the 3XW Heavyweight Title in June from gage Octane and defeating Mark Sterling for the 3XW Pure Title in July (retaining heavyweight gold in the process), Carter solidified his claim as the best in Iowa by defeating former champion Octane in a rematch.

1st Runner Up – The Searcher [FTW]
2nd Runner Up – “The Future” Donovan Ruddick [LWA/FTW]
3rd Runner Up – “Bloody” Harker Dirge [NBWA]

Others receiving votes:
CJ Eparza.

MWR July Tag Team of the Month

Northstar Express (Darin Corbin & Ryan Cruz) [3XW/AAW]


Corbin & Cruz successfully defended the 3XW Tag Team Titles in a four way match in July, defeating Mad Dog McDowell & Krotch, Midwest Ground & Air and Ricky Kwong & Jimmy Rockwell. On top of that, they defeated the top contenders The Phoenix Twins in AAW to get closer to a rematch for the AAW Tag Team Titles.

1st Runner Up – Maximum Destruction (Sage Ramsey & Jason Wells) [NMW]
2nd Runner Up – LONRs (Mark Sterling & Darrien Sanders)
3rd Runner Up – Ego Express (KC Karrington & Steven Kennedy)

Others receiving votes:
None.


MWR August Tag Team of the Month

Feature Presentation (Eric Ruffington & Blake Steel) [NMW]


Ruffington & Steel defeated the seemingly unbeatable Sage Ramsey & Jason Wells for the NMW Tag Team Titles, capitalizing on the breakup of the champs in pure Feature Presentation fashion.

1st Runner Up – Windy City Classic (Danny Daniels & Trik Davis) [SCW/AAW]
2nd Runner Up – Phoenix Twins (Tweek & Dash) [AAW/SCW/AAPW]
3rd Runner Up – Danny Ice & Davey Boy Sloan [Renegade Pro Wrestling]

Others receiving votes:
None.

MWR July Promotion of the Month

Lethal Wrestling Alliance


LWA finally scores the Promotion of the Month honors after producing the best overall show in the St. Louis area for the month of July in Circus Maximus. Fans have been on record as saying that the LWA has consistently improved since the beginning of the 2nd Quarter of the year!

1st Runner Up – Elite Pro Wrestling
2nd Runner Up – Pro Wrestling Phoenix
3rd Runner Up – New Breed Wrestling Alliance

Others receiving votes:
None.

MWR August Promotion of the Month

3X Wrestling

After celebrating their third anniversary in July, 3XW followed it up with the first 3XW show in August in the entire history of the promotion!

1st Runner Up – Elite Pro Wrestling
2nd Runner Up – Scott County Wrestling
3rd Runner Up – AAW: Pro Wrestling Redefined

Others receiving votes:
Juggalo Championship Wrestling.

MWR July Woman of the Month

Stacy O’Brien [WLW/MMWA-SICW]


The WLW and MMWA-SICW Women’s Champ defeated a very hungry Amy Hennig in Hennig’s pro wrestling debut. The pressure of wrestling an opponent from a legendary family of wrestlers was nonexistent for O’Brien. That is the mark of a true champion.

1st Runner Up – MsChif
2nd Runner Up – Sara Del Ray

Others receiving votes:
None.

MWR August Woman of the Month

Alexis Lightfoot [MMWA-SICW]


Lightfoot won the MMWA-SICW Women’s Championship from Stacy O’Brien in the month of August, making a statement that she is the best in the St. Louis area and fans should take notice.
1st Runner Up – Stacy O’Brien

Others receiving votes:
None.

MWR July Personality of the Month

Tiffany LaFane [LWA]

In a month where her former boyfriend wins the Wrestler award, it makes sense that she is selected as the Personality of the Month. One of the most talented and charismatic women in wrestling, LaFane shocked the LWA and her boyfriend KC Karrington by leaving him in violent fashion at LWA’s Circus Maximus.

1st Runner Up – Bud Chaplin [National Wrestling Coalition]
2nd Runner Up – KL Snow [3XW/Magnum Pro/PWP]
3rd Runner Up – Crimefighter [St. Louis Wrestling Community]

Others receiving votes:
None.

MWR August Personality of the Month

Shad Tally [NBWA]

Shad made news this past month by getting signed to a WWE developmental contract as a referee. Wrestlers get a lot of recognition for their work here in the Midwest, but it’s nice to see a great talent like Shad Tally get recognized by “The E”.

1st Runner Up – KL Snow [3XW/Magnum Pro/PWP]
2nd Runner Up – BJ Race [WLW]
3rd Runner Up – Crimefighter [St. Louis Wrestling Community]

Others receiving votes:
None.

MWR July Match of the Month

8-Man Survivor Series Streetfight:
Submission Squad vs Ego Express & Bearded Men from Space Station 11 (7/12/2008 in O’Fallon, IL) [LWA]

It all came down to a bloody KC Karrington and the bane of his existence, Davey Vega. KC’s girlfriend came out and shocked the LWA crowd by kicking her boyfriend below the belt, ensuring a Submission Squad victory. This will go down as one of the craziest brawls in LWA’s history. Want proof? The police were called!

1st Runner Up –

AAW Heavyweight Title Match:
Jerry Lynn (C) vs Tyler Black
(7/12/2008 in Berwyn, IL) [AAW]

2nd Runner Up –

EPW TV Title Match:
JD Hughes (C) vs Brandon Thomaselli
(7/25/2008 in Oak Lawn, IL) [EPW]

3rd Runner Up –

Hype Gotti vs Jaysin Strife
(7/5/2008 in Council Bluffs, IA) [PWP]

MWR August Match of the Month

Ladder Match for the NGW Heavyweight Title:
Brett Gakiya (C) vs Nick Brubaker
(8/16/2008 in Pekin, IL) [NGW]

An exciting match that saw Gakiya give Brubaker a Spanish Fly from the top rope through a table on the field!

1st Runner Up –

NWA Missouri Title Match:
Dingo (C) vs “The Rebel” Jeremy Wyatt
(8/1/2008 in Fenton, MO) [CSW]

2nd Runner Up –

3XW Heavyweight Title Match:
“Delicious” Devin Carter (C) vs Gage Octane
(8/15/2008 in Des Moines, IA) [3XW]

3rd Runner Up –

Streetfight:
Tyler Cook vs Zac James
(8/16/2008 in Council Bluffs, IA) [PWP]

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Referee Wrestles Through the Indies

Posted by Admin on September 6, 2008

Doubletake:

Referee Wrestles Through the Indies

By Kari Williams

[Styles refs for LWA in this photo taken by Kari Williams.]

As two large men collide in the center of the ring—or worse, outside of the ring—one vital person must be there to make the important calls. “Stylish” Kurt Styles is one of the men who dons the striped shirt and knows both sides of that scenario. He has even done double-duty on the same night.

“I remember my first show I wrestled on. I wrestled Sly in the opening match under a mask, and then had to go coast to coast (all matches on the card)… except one other match, but I got taken out of that one by my first chair shot. It got kind of rough doing it at times though,” he said.

The wrestling referee has been lacing up his boots since October 2003. He wrestled his first match in April 2004, but has been reffing since his days training with LWA.

Styles was also trained in the now-defunct MAX promotion by Luke Roberts for approximately four months.

“I actually went to school with some guys that were training, and they knew how much I liked professional wrestling and how I wanted to get into it, and the LWA was just starting up and they said, ‘You know, well, we need some more guys,’” he said.

His desire sprouted from a young age, as he watched “The Heartbreak Kid” Shawn Michaels take on “The Hitman” Bret Hart in their classic 60-minute iron man match at Wrestlemania XII.

The Stylish One has traveled to Illinois and places as far as Michigan for his duties as a wrestler. Companies such as Heartland Championsip Wrestling (HCW) and Rampage Pro Wrestling (RPW) have had Styles as well, helping him to pursue his dream.

“I know there [are] so many guys in this business that don’t actually make it anywhere, and I don’t want to be lost in the shuffle,” he said.

Currently, Styles holds the HCW Light-Heavyweight Championship—which is the highlight of his career thus far.

“I’d say one of my favorite matches was down in Heartland Championship Wrestling, where I’m their Light-Heavyweight champion, and it was for the belt, and I was wrestling Kado McShannon, and it was just a lot of energy in the match, and the crowd was really hyped up into it. We did a lot of crazy stuff,” he said.

With switching between being a referee and wrestling, one could imagine that the transition would be difficult. However, according to Styles, “you’ve just got to have a different mindset, be more aware.”

Whether wrestling or being the mediator between two behemoths, Styles is available for bookings and can be reached through http://www.myspace.com/kurtstyles or through e-mail at sunshine_kurtstyles@hotmail.com.

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Combat Tested, Mother Approved (featuring Mark Sterling)

Posted by Admin on September 1, 2008

Combat Tested, Mother Approved

by Josh Ray (MWR Owner-Editor)

In this edition of my “Combat Tested, Mother Approved” column, I bring back an old interview that I conducted before I started this site. It’s an in-character interview for Central States Wrestling that I conducted of arguably the best wrestler in the Midwest, Mark Sterling. In it, he discusses his opinions of me, Michael Strider, Dingo, his wrestling skills and his self-proclaimed championship belt.

I loved this interview because it was a chance for me to really get involved in the wrestling scene upon my return to Missouri last year. I was still a relative unknown to the area and wanted to work for a promotion in some sort of writing capacity. As I’ve mentioned before, Ed Chuman of NWA Midwest and Martin T of Central States Wrestling really gave me a start, so CSW was a natural fit for my first work.

Here is the complete article:


One Hell of a Performer
The Mark Sterling Interview

By Joshua C. Ray

The name “Mark Sterling” elicits some very strong knee-jerk reactions from CSW fans. Some despise the man, almost to the point of full unadulterated hatred. Others have respect for him, as he has wrestled some of the best that the sport has to offer and, more often than not, emerged victorious. He’s the type of guy that people aren’t lukewarm about. They either like him or they don’t. There is no in between.

These days there are more and more people jumping over to the side of the fence where Mark Sterling isn’t appreciated or held in high esteem. He’s become obnoxious and borderlines on deranged. He revels in the fact that he is in shape and is quick to point out the people who aren’t in the crowd.

He’s basically the type of guy that many wrestling fans hated when they were in school… or at least that is what he told me when I finally got to sit down with him for an interview last week. I was given the assignment almost two months ago, but Sterling repeatedly told me that I was nobody of importance; a loser who didn’t deserve to be graced with his presence.

I get paid to tackle the hard subjects, though, so I finally wore the man down (by paying him half of my interview money) and got the interview. Enjoy it in its entirety:

Josh: Mr. Sterling, first of all let me tell you that it is a pleasure to finally be able to sit down and talk with you. You’ve made yourself scarce in recent months. Is this because of the loss of the Kansas State Title to Dingo?

Sterling: No, it’s because I am out getting laid by hot bitches. But you wouldn’t know anything about that, would you? You nerd mark ass mark!

Josh: I’ll go ahead and put that on the record that according to you I am a “nerd mark ass mark” and that you have been out “getting laid by hot b*****”. It’s all really interesting to know. Riveting.

Okay, now that we have that out of the way… what has been going on in your mind the past couple of months? You’ve seemed to gain an edge and have become more… um… deranged.

Sterling: What are you, my psychologist? If you were, I’d fire you for being stupid.

What’s been going on in my mind, huh? Well, mostly sick ways to put a hurting on every single wrestler in the world. I belong at the top of the food chain, so I am focusing all my energy on how to stomp out everyone that gets in my way.

In my spare time when I am not training my ass off or pleasing some dumb slut, I am playing violent video games, watching horror movies, or writing down all my ideas on how to tear off someone’s arm, leg, neck, or whatever.

If you weren’t such a tool, you might notice that in every match I have I find a target and maliciously attack it. So basically, most of my thought process is about how to break bones in ways that I find amusing.

What you think is an “edge” or me being “deranged” is called being the BEST! You can only get as good as me by devoting all your energy to wrestling. Everything I do in my life has something to do with furthering my wrestling career. It’s making money at a day job to buy new gear or wrestling tapes. It’s working out in the gym 5 days a week, and training in the ring twice a week plus going to matches on weekends. It’s shoot fighting with your only close friends to improve your conditioning. It’s studying tapes of the best wrestlers, like Finlay and Regal… not watching indy-riffic bullshit. It’s called having an attitude, and maybe you might call it “deranged”, but it’s how I am… I don’t care if people hate me, are scared of me, laugh at me… deep down they know that I am all business.

Josh: Well, I will say that the fans have a newfound respect of you and your in-ring ability in the aftermath of your loss to Dingo. The only problem with that thought process is that there are others that don’t need to act as maliciously as you do to get that job done. Don’t get me wrong, though… I have a lot of respect for you as a wrestler.

I’m getting off topic, though. What are your thoughts on Dingo’s title reign? I’ve heard that you called him out for a rematch.

Sterling: Hold up, hold up, hold up. Who is getting what job done?

There is no one, I mean NO ONE that can touch me when it comes to getting things done in CSW. Being aggressive and violent is the ONLY way to get things done. Just ask the best in the world: Triple H, Finlay, Regal… they wrestle with intensity and FIGHT for their wins.

My goal is to be at that level one day, so anyone in CSW that thinks they can get in my way is going to suffer and get tortured mercilessly.

Now back to your mark ass question….

So far Dingo’s title “reign” has been pathetic. He defended the Kansas title last May and beat two retards in a three way match.

Tony Morales is in CSW randomly, he has been in what, 5 matches here? If he was committed to really wanting gold, he’d be here at every show. So beating him doesn’t impress me. Jeremy Wyatt is garbage, so beating him is like beating up a trash can; it just makes you end up looking filthy and gross. Nuff said.

Who did I square off in my two year reign? Gee, I don’t know… I beat everyone’s favorite fat-ass Michael Strider twice, wrestled TNA’s Abyss three times, and defeated Steve Fender and Wade Chism, both of which are veterans of NOAH in Japan. I also beat Ace Steel, who everyone knows is one of the best out there right now.

So in summary, Dingo’s title reign is crap! He hasn’t proved anything to me! I made him suffer for half an hour last October, I destroyed him a ladder match at DWTS 3, and just because he got a fluke win over me in March, I promise you he was miserable for weeks after that match, since I brutalized him so bad.

Next question?

Josh: I guess my next question would be why weren’t you granted an immediate rematch if Dingo just picked up a fluke win over you? Are you trying to say that the “powers that be” in CSW have purposely kept you away from Dingo to milk his title reign for all that its worth? That sounds a little far fetched. Dingo has a lot more talent than you are giving him credit for.

Sterling: Well, duh! It’s obvious management holds me back. They can’t stand me. They know I make everyone else look foolish. All the boys in the back hate me because they know I am light years beyond them when it comes to this biz, so they bitch at management to get me out of the main events.

Management threw everything in the book to get the Kansas Belt off of me. Then, I finally make one mistake and thumbtacks backfired on me against Dingo…

Our third anniversary show “X Marks the Spot 3” comes around and I am not in the main or semi main event?

Look at what I’ve done for this company since April 2005! I consistently put on the best matches, month in, month out. Hardcore matches and Ladder matches with Abyss, Street Fights with Tyler Cook, wrestling clinics with Ace Steel, Steve Fender, and Hype Gotti… all of my matches in CSW are great. Most of them are classics. I am the best wrestler in this area, hands down. There isn’t a single person that can perform like me. I am the perfect blend of charisma, aggression, superior technical ability, hardcore/brawling, a sculpted physique, and athleticism. You name it, I got it. I have no holes in my game, unlike all these puds I have to share a locker room with each show. No one is in my league when it comes to delivering the goods.

Josh: That was one long winded method of saying that you are the best. I get it.

You think very highly of yourself, and in some respects you’ve got reasons to believe that. What I want to know is this: what’s next for you?

Sterling: NO! In ALL respects I have reason to believe that, not some. You better stop your snide little mark ass comments before I slap the nerd out of you.

(Sterling gets up at this time, ready to punch me square in the face.)

Josh: Okay, okay. No more smart comments from me. I swear. So much hostility coming from you… I’m glad I get paid to do this.

We’ve heard rumors that CSW’s August show is going to have a surprise. Are you going to be part of this surprise?

Sterling: You’re talking about the August 25th show? Why don’t you buy a ticket and find out when you get there? When you get there you can give me some more money for putting on a superior match.

Now, back to your question earlier:

What’s next for me?

Winning. A lot.

Showing the fans that I am better than them and f*cking up their so called heroes.

My goal is to be one of the best in the world, to maximize my potential, to achieve my destiny. I will not stop until I am satisfied. I have a hunger that is ferocious. But there are some issues that hold me back. All the bubble butt babes that want my c*ck are a prime example. What can I say? I like to get my rocks off….

Being in this god-forsaken Midwest is another one of them. Most of the wrestlers in this area are just “ham n eggers”. I crave to test myself. I am going to work tirelessly to realize my ambitions.

Josh: Since you speak ill of the Midwest, I guess I should follow up with another question.

Do you ever envision yourself going after Michael Strider’s CSW Championship Belt? In my opinion there would be no better way to show up the fans and mess up their “so-called heroes” than by winning the CSW title while in the Strider Nation. You’ve beat him before, but the only way to really make the fans pay would be to take the title from him.

Sterling: Oh, trust me. Every time I watch his matches on the locker room monitor, I think of all of the evil things I would do to him.

Management won’t book it though. For some reason, that goof Strider sells a lot of T-shirts, so they aren’t going to put him in a match that they KNOW he will lose, and lose badly mind you.

(Sterling laughs. The laughter could be best described as maniacal.)

It would cost them money. As soon he loses that belt, their goes all of the money from those ridiculous, white trash Strider Nation shirts.

So yes, I would love the chance to beat that b*tch within an inch of his life in front of all of the fans of CSW that have put him on this pedestal. I have already dominated the Kansas Title scene and everyone knows that I would totally dominate the whole Central States title picture. It’s only a matter of time before wrestlers the world over will fear and respect me. Maybe not tomorrow, next month, next year… but I won’t stop until the world knows what the Midwest knows, and that is that Mark Sterling is one hell of a performer.

Josh: I couldn’t have come up with a better send off for this interview. Mr. Sterling, I appreciate your time. You’ve finally let this “nerd mark ass mark” interview you. You conducted yourself in a remarkably civil manner, too… that is, when you weren’t insulting me. Thank you very much.

Sterling: Thank God this is over. I could feel your nerd vibes and it was making my life a living hell.

Now go do something with your life. Don’t be jealous that I’m a wrestler and you’re not!

Information on Central States Wrestling and Mark Sterling can be found at http://www.cswwrestling.com. Join their message board community at http://cswwrestling.informe.com.

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Amy Hennig’s Pro Wrestling Debut

Posted by Admin on August 24, 2008

So Close to Doing the Impossible
Amy Hennig’s Pro Wrestling Debut and WLW Results

by Joshua Ray
Owner-Editor
inadvertent.nerd@gmail.com

You would think that a guy who lives an hour away from World League Wrestling in Eldon, MO would make it to a WLW show more often, but alas that hasn’t been the case. After attending my first Eldon WLW show on July 26, 2008, that is definitely changing.

WLW presented a great show at the Eldon Community Center, right next to the old Harley Race Wrestling Academy, on July 26, 2008. The crowd was loud (more on that later) and the wrestlers gave it their all. You can’t ask for anything more!

Earlier in the day I had the opportunity to sit with my good friend Brian “Flair” Kelley and his girlfriend at the Eager Beaver in Eldon as we waited for Eugene to arrive for an autograph signing. My wife accompanied me to Eldon that day, and the four of us had a great visit. I’ll tell you right now, the burgers at the Eager Beaver were pretty good.

Another enjoyable part of the time at the Eager Beaver was getting to chat with Harley and BJ Race for fifteen or twenty minutes about wrestling. I first talked to the Race family in April in my hometown of Lebanon, MO and even though it was a great event and I had a good talk with BJ, I was worried that I might have made a bad impression on Harley. Before writing this, only my wife really knew about that fact. I was very impressed with Harley Race and his genuinely kind and humble personality. I was just concerned about I came off. Everyday is a learning experience and you should always strive to learn from your mistakes, but life is too short to learn exclusively from your own mistakes and I definitely didn’t want April’s interactions with him to be on that list of mistakes I was forced to learn from.

My concerns were put to rest when I chatted with both about WLW’s upcoming training camp with Pro Wrestling NOAH September 15th through the 18th as well as wrestlers that I thought they should keep their eye on. My opinion is worth the same as sand is in Iraq (I’m still digging some of that sand out of crevices, but I digress), but I appreciated him listening and responding to what I had to say.

Eugene arrived, but Brian and I were more content to chat and watch Eugene interact with the young kids to harass him about an interview. One classic exchange between Eugene and a boy went like this:

Kid: You’re my favorite wrestler, Eugene.

Eugene: Well why are you wearing a John Cena shirt, then?

That one got a loud reaction from everybody in the Eager Beaver. Of course Eugene still graciously gave the boy an autograph. I have no doubt that this young boy will remember that conversation for the rest of his life, and that is what pro wrestling is all about. This is why I love it so much.

My group left the Eager Beaver and had some extra time on our hands, so BJ was kind enough to let us tour their brand new facility. It is located right next to the restaurant. The highlight for me was Harley Race’s office. He had the old Central States Championship and his old NWA Heavyweight Title on display. To me, those things are awe inspiring.

Now is the time for me to poke a little fun at my buddy Brian. He knows he messed up, plus even though he’s my friend I really don’t like him very much. While BJ Race was giving us a tour, Brian asked her how she felt when Harley won the NWA Heavyweight Title. Well, back when he won that belt, she didn’t know he even existed! They were married years later. She still answered him, verifying this fact, but I still thought it was funny since I know he knew that already. That’s Brian for you, though. He asks the hard questions… the really hard questions… as in the questions that are impossible to answer. It’s okay, though… later in the evening during Eugene’s first match, I yelled Eric instead of Eugene for some reason. Classic.

I still didn’t corner Eugene for a quick interview. One of these days I’ll learn to do my job. Hopefully I will have another opportunity. I was too busy taking in the new facility to think about such trivial things as doing what I’m supposed to. Next you’ll be asking me to actually watch a wrestling match or something.

I was impressed with the Eldon Community Center when we arrived there for the show. It was large for the size of the town, and very clean. Michael Strider, Tyler Cook, and Domino Rivera arrived and said hello to Brian and me. I didn’t know what the lineup was going to be for the night, but I was personally hoping for Domino Rivera to make it onto the show. I think the guy is talented and deserves more recognition than he currently receives. A match I watched recently between him and Derek Stone was good, and he’s been working great matches for Central States Wrestling over the past year as well.

Once in the building, my main complaint was that the merchandise was hard to get access to. Over the course of the night I was able to chat with Tyler Cook and Bao Nguyen, both of which are becoming favorites of mine, but it was hard to squeeze up to the tables and it always felt as if I was in somebody’s way.

The first match was “Vietnam Phenom” Bao Nguyen vs Akiyago. Akiyago received a lot of negative attention from the crowd and was hit with the first of too many “chicken” chants, led by the guy sitting right next to me. I love to hassle guys as much as the next person, but I try to come up with more to insult them than just “chicken”. Akiyago defeated “Vietnam Phenom” Bao Nguyen by pinfall, using the ropes for leverage. Martin T was the ref, so of course I gave him a hard time. Martin is a great guy and has humored me on many occasions away from the ring, but he has a tendency to call the match in a way that makes my favorite wrestlers lose. Not cool.

I’m not sure, but I believe the next match was Tyler Cook vs Brian Breaker. I think that Breaker is a great wrestler and Tyler Cook is one of the brightest prospects out there, but it seemed in spots that they had a hard time against each other. Cook flirted with Brian’s girlfriend and my wife entirely too much, making me feel guilty that I hadn’t rubbed baby oil all over my body or tanned recently, but I feel I’m sexy enough without all of the added benefits. Cook managed to pin Breaker, so I guessed I’d better leave him alone. Lord knows that he received enough “tighty whitey chicken” chants to last a lifetime. Oh well, at least they added two words to the first matches “chicken” chants. Who am I to complain?

Next up was Michael Strider vs Marc Godeker. Godeker wrestled a good match and is really a talented guy. I need to make it a point to chat with him at the next show I make it to. Hopefully his tag team partner, Steve Anthony, will be recovered from his broken leg and I can see them in tag team action. Even thought Strider was blatantly cheating, I couldn’t help but cheer him on. I think I was the only one… and since Martin T was the ref again for this match, he made sure that Strider lost. I’ll bring some of my basic training birth control glasses for him next time around. Maybe then he can call the match the way I want it called. I’m a paying fan. I should get what I want.

I didn’t know the next match would be taking place, but I didn’t complain. It would see the pro wrestling debut of Amy Hennig. Her first match wasn’t going to be easy, though, as she was given the unenviable task of facing the WLW Ladies Champion, Stacey O’Brien. Amy Hennig is one of the number one prospects for the Midwest, but after that match I want to be sure to tell you that it isn’t simply because her father was “Mr. Perfect” Curt Hennig or her grandfather was Larry “The Axe” Hennig. That would be selling Amy short. She definitely has the tools to make a name for herself without the last name attached. In this particular match, however, she came up short. O’Brien is a talented veteran and one of the best in the Midwest right now. She used it all to her advantage and retained her title.

It is important to note that there was a chant throughout the crowd during this match that I felt was inappropriate. In my personal opinion, some individuals forget that we are not the close friends of a professional wrestler and should not act as such when in the crowd. A chant of “Do it for your Dad” started through the crowd and was very uncomfortable for me to hear. Ms. Hennig did an excellent job of acknowledging the chant and being gracious, but the fact of the matter was that it isn’t really something that should have been chanted during a wrestling match. I can’t speak for Amy as I do not know her personally, but talking with Brian after the evening concluded confirmed my feelings. Brian approached me and said that he felt embarrassed to be a wrestling fan with that chant going. Enough about that, though.

Things were about to liven up a bit, as a six man tag match was about to get under way. WLW Heavyweight Champion “Dangerous” Derek McQuinn, Dinn T Moore and Michael Strider knew that they were supposed to face former WWE star Eugene and the WLW Tag Team Champions. Unfortunately Marc Godeker’s tag team partner, Steve Anthony, was on the injured list for what looked to be a broken leg. Godeker came out with a microphone and told the men standing in the ring that he had a new partner. This partner was a man whom Derek McQuinn hadn’t beaten for the title… Keith Walker!

Walker was more than up for the challenge and the team of him, Eugene and Godeker frustrated their opponents for most of the match, but in the end fell victim to underhanded tactics. Derek, Strider and Moore picked up the win.

The end of the evening featured a battle royal. Ten men got in the ring to do battle and possibly earn the right for a Heavyweight Title shot in the near future. Brian Breaker, Tyler Cook, Bao Nguyen, Akiyavo and others entered the ring, but the last three were down to Michael Strider, Eugene and Dinn T Moore. The odds seemed stacked against the lovable Eugene. Amazingly enough he made it out as the victor!

It was a great night of action at the Eldon Community Center! I was happy to visit with Brian and see some terrific wrestling only an hour from my home.

Next up for World League Wrestling is a big Sedalia, MO show on September 6, 2008 featuring Wrestlemania 24’s hero Bobby Lashley! One week later World League Wrestling and Pro Wrestling NOAH join forces for a very promising training camp. Pro wrestling legend and current World Wrestling Entertainment agent Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat will be in attendance on behalf of the WWE. More information can be found by going to http://www.harleyrace.com/.

I hope that you have enjoyed my personal reflection on WLW’s July 26, 2008 show in Eldon, MO. I encourage you to go to one in your area or support your local independent wrestling promotion. Everyone wants options over the current WWE product, but it is up to you to make those alternatives successful!

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MWR Spotlight: Abu Colossus

Posted by Admin on August 20, 2008

Abu Colossus

By Brian “Flair” Kelley
Photo Credits: Gary Giaffoglione for Pro Wrestling Phoenix

Abu Colossus is a mountain of a man. Standing at 6″5 and weighing 280 LBS, the Pro Wrestling Phoenix Champion not only brings power to the ring but uses his speed to electrify the crowd. As soon as his entrance music, Ludacris’s “Move”, hits the PA the fans go wild and his opponents know they will have their hands full.

Abu has dominated the PWP ring for over three years while waiting to claim what he has always felt was rightfully his: the Pro Wrestling Phoenix Championship. That goal was achieved on May 10, 2008 at PWP’s 3rd Year Anniversary Spectacular when he was able to defeat Babyface” Tony Cortez, Jaysin Strife, & “The Rebel” Jeremy Wyatt in a 4-way Elimination Match for the title.

Tony Cortez will be the first to tell you that he was the longest reigning Champ with an amazing 20 months and that the belt will return around his waist yet PWP has claimed that we are in “The Era of Colossus”. Cortez and his partner in crime, Hype Gotti will pull out all stops to make sure that the Era is more like a Moment. Cortez and Gotti, once bitter enemies, now collectively known as Simply the Best, are sure to be a thorn in the side of the current champ.

Abu grew up a wrestling fan and took special interests in the Bret the Hitman Hart along with Hall of Famer Ricky Steamboat. He was trained by “Irish” Mick Tierney and has worked hard building his reputation as one of the most respected wrestlers in the area. He also utilizes former ECW Champion Tazz’s suplex to punish his opponents along with signature moves the Two Handed Choke Slam and the Colossal Slam.

[Abu hits a Two Handed Choke Slam.]

I had the chance to talk to Jeremy Wyatt and asked him how he approaches a wrestler with the talent that Abu possesses. He said, “Abu is a guy who can be classified as a true heavyweight, there’s not many guys his size working the Indies. You might be able to wear him down if you can keep him from getting a hold of you but he’s not a guy to try and trade shots with. Seems as if he has stepped up his game a bit in the last year or so. With his size and strength, I think he should look to branch out a little more and try to work more places.”

I was able to track down Independent wrestling’s best kept secret, Abu Colossus, the night before he would defend his title at Raising the Bar against the winner of the 2008 Phoenix Challenge, “Number One” Brett Young on August 16th in Council Bluffs, IA .

When I asked him what his favorite matches were to this date, he was quick to say PWP’s December 9, 2006 Candy Cane Chaos match with Michael Strider that ended up in a double DQ. It was a match that took the big man to his limits and led to a dog collar match at PWP’S Year of the Phoenix . A Match with Mark Sterling on November 18th at PWP’S In Your Church was a close second as he feels Sterling is among the elite in the business.

Michael Strider had this to say about the man whose nickname is the Big Hurt:

“Abu Colossus has a million dollar look and I knew every night that we wrestled that I had to bring my ‘A’ game. That guy is just starting to show his full potential”.

[Michael Strider had his hands full during a Dog Collar match that you can purchase on the PWP DVD Year of the Phoenix 2.]

Abu takes great pride in representing Pro Wrestling Phoenix and working with the upstart wrestling promotion Magnum Pro Wrestling. He looks forward to showcasing his skills with the best to prove to the fans in the Midwest that he is the standard that all wrestlers should be compared to. The names that he would like to work with on the national scene were TNA wrestler Abyss, Samoa Joe and Bryan Danielson. In the Midwest he would love to hook up with NWA/CSW Missouri Champion Dingo, Gage Octane, Brian Ash and Mitch Paradise.

When asked if there was anything that he would like to say to the fans he replied “We love what we do and we appreciate their support and we hope that they know that the Independent wrestlers will give a 100% to entertain. They are the reason we do what we do.”


Final thoughts

As a fan of Independent Pro Wrestling I look forward to seeing some of the best take on each other and there is no doubt that Abu Colossus should be in the sights of all promoters and would add to the show instantly.

Love it or hate it, the truth of the matter is fans enjoy powerhouse wrestlers and they are few and far between in this area. Abu is something special and I would love to see how 3XW Commissioner Todd Countryman and his men, Mark Sterling and Gage Octane would deal with this monster of a man. Maybe Casanova will need some assistance with 3XW Champion Devin Carter after turning on him at 3XW’S “On a Stick” show this past month.

Central States Wrestling in Kansas has stated that they will be making a comeback soon and though the talent in the company is plentiful, Abu would be a force from the start, and the fan favorites could use a little help with the “In Crowd” or the Barrio Boys, two factions that have been terrorizing the fans and their favorites in the area.

Let’s not forget that Lethal Wrestling Alliance president Luke Roberts is looking for a man that can defeat the Future Donovan Ruddick. Why not bring in an outsider to do their dirty work. Yet who knows maybe the Future will contact Abu to help him in his dominance of LWA, a combination that could prove unstoppable.

Pro Wrestling Phoenix fans are fortunate to have one of the most exciting wrestlers in the Midwest as their champion and some big matches will be in Abu’s future with the very talented roster that PWP now boast to have in Number One” Brett Young, Jaysin Strife, Rebel” Jeremy Wyatt, Arya Daivari, The Anarchist” Arik Cannon, Mark Sterling, Tyler Cook and familiar foes Simply the Best gunning for the title.

You can check out Abu Colossus at Pro Wrestling Phoenix http://www. prowrestlingphoenix. com/ where you can purchase DVDs and find out who he will be up against at future shows. He can also be found at Magnum Pro Wrestling at http://www. myspace. com/magnumpw . Booking info for Abu Colossus http://www. myspace. com/abucolossus

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MWR Spotlight: Gary the Barn Owl

Posted by Admin on August 13, 2008

A Barn Owl Soars Toward Victory

By Kari Williams

Gary the Barn Owl soared into the hallowed ring of professional wrestling before he was even old enough to spread his wings and take flight.

Back in high school, Peter Townsley, Pierre Abernathy and Gary “used to always want to be wrestlers and we just jumped around in the backyard like a bunch of idiots.”

Townsley, who, at the time, worked at the Gravois Grill in Fenton, MO, ran into Jordan Lacey, his wife, Dawn, and Hellraiser.

“We got the flyer, called the number and ended up wrestling out in a field doing God-knows-what, basically we had no clue what we were doing, and then we eventually met Nick Tyson and Adam Raw and then it kind of snow-balled into the LWA, which snow-balled into us training,” Gary said.

His initial training began with Lacey and the XWA and was then followed up by Raw and Tyson. Under those two, Gary trained every Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday for approximately a year and half, until he officially began his career.

However, his passion for the sport was born long before he ever set foot in a wrestling ring.

“I can just remember everybody used to like football, and then I just did not want to watch football because I just thought it was boring… I remember seeing Macho Man, his hat was pretty shiny; I liked it,” Gary said.

Flying around the Midwest for nearly four years, Gary notes one simple detail that intrigues him the most about stepping between the ropes.

“I like the physicality. For some odd reason, I’m a glutton for getting my ass kicked. I love it; it’s a good time, and I just like entertaining people,” Gary said.

Along with Evan Gelistico, Jordan Lacey and Billy McNeill, Gary helps to form The Bearded Men From Space Station Eleven—a group that Gary has associated himself with for as long as he can remember.

“When I was born I had a beard. I was the wierdest looking kid, I can show pictures but people will kind of laugh and gawk, so I just keep those at home. So, honestly, ever since I was born I’ve been a member [of the Bearded Men]. My mom has a beard, that’s really awkward, but she’s momma. Momma from Space Station Eleven,” Gary said.

The group formed because the Submission Squad was ganging up on Gary, and he needed help, so he joined forces with Gelistico, who was having his own problems within the Sexual Dynasty, of which he was a part. Lacey and McNeill—who is credited with naming the faction—enlisted as well, and the Bearded Men have been going strong for nearly two years.

Gary and Gelistico flew the coop, so to speak, and returned with AWA-PPW Tag Team Titles, which are from Indiana. On his own, Gary currently holds the U-30s belt, from IWA-Texas, based out of the San Antonia and Dallas area.

Despite the plethora of gold he currently holds, Gary’s greatest feat thus far was his LWA championshp reign.

“My biggest accomplishment is probably being the LWA champion…because I started off as just a trainee here, and they gave me the ‘Gary the Barn Owl’ gimmick, and at first I didn’t like it, and I started really warming up to it and getting in to it. Just basically, becoming from say your opening card guy and now I can main event, open a show, I can do anything because obviously I’m the greatest thing ever. Not really, but you know,” Gary said.

Locally, Gary can be seen wrestling for Lethal Wrestling Alliance (LWA). However, for one keen on travelling, he can be spotted in promotions such as NWA-CSW (Kansas and Missouri), IWA-Texas, PWI-Texas and PPW-Indiana, among others.

Gary the Barn Owl Fast Facts:

Most Important Lesson From Wrestling: Wrestling has taught me respect. That’s the biggest thing. A lot of people might say it, or not, but just respect, and how much you put in and how much you get out of it, you have to work really, really hard to make it to the point where you’re making it a living. So, those guys on TV, even if you don’t like them or you don’t like them because they’re not good or bad, those guys bust their ass, and I give them all the credit for it.

Favorite Match: (One of three favorites) I wrestled Mike Quackenbush and Evan Gelistico in February. That was a really fun match. Evan and me go way back. We met when the XWA/LWA started. We used to hate each other. But now we’re cool. We’re like brothers. He’s like a brother from a different mother—or alien, I really don’t know. We wrestled Quackenbush in a three way, and that’s just overall learning experience was fantastic. Mike Quackenbush is a great athlete, has a really good mind for wrestling and he brought a whole different style to what we were used to.

Dream Matches: I’d say A.J. Styles from TNA. Out of anybody in WWE, I’d wrestle Paul London because I really like Paul London. Either him or Brian Kendrick. It’d be really cool if it was Brian Kendrick and London verus me and Evan, that’d be a good match. Let’s see, anywhere on the indies, I’m a really big fan of El Generico, I don’t know why, I just really like El Generico’s work.

Who Has Taught Him the Most: I’ve learned the most from Nick Tyson, he’s the one that really got me focused because it’s hard to get me focused on certain things. But, he really drilled it in my head the respect thing, and just you can go out and have a good match, and he’d tear me apart. We’d watch it, and he’d tear it up, and about the small things that make things look even better, that I don’t notice it, but the fans notice or other people notice.

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When a “Rock” Meets a Hard Place

Posted by Admin on August 10, 2008

When a ‘Rock’ meets a hard place
Rocky Johnson’s appearance in MMWA-SICW

By Kari Williams

An uncertain buzz filled the tiny East Carondelet Community Center on July 19. Fans were packed into the building, anticipating the appearance of a bonafide legend—Rocky Johnson—who was on hand for his induction into the St. Louis Wrestling Hall of Fame. However, Johnson contributed more to the show than his namesake alone.

Johnson was involved in an altercation with The Connection’s Phil E. Blunt and Jerome Cody, along with their manager Travis Cook.

MMWA-SICW Wrestler of 12 years, “Wild Child” Billy Diamond, saw Johnson’s involvement as more than meets the eye.

“It was an honor to have Rocky Johnson there. There are always going to be times that you get star struck, but they remind you that they are just people dedicated to the same craft you are. Having anyone like that on our show is not only a benefit, but a very big honor,” Diamond said.

Despite his “cameo” of sorts with MMWA-SICW, Johnson relays the fact that the road he took to get to where he is today was not an easy one.

“It took 40 years for me to get here. It took a lot of struggling. It took a lot of hard work. It took a lot of striving. It took a lot of aches, pains, broken bones,” Johnson said.

During that time, the father of The Rock did not think about giving up—not once.

“I never ever thought of [giving up]. I [ran] into some rough times because in the 60s and 70s, and when I came to the south—not so much in Canada—I ran into some racial prejudice, I ran into a lot of that stuff. But it just [gave] me the incentive to go on,” Johnson said.

However, not every wrestler had the mindset that Johnson did. MMWA-SICW Wrestler Mr. Bibbs suffered a back injury in 2006 and questioned returning to the ring.

“It gave me quite a scare to think and wonder if I was ever going to be able to play with my children and live a normal life that I was used to,” Bibbs said.

Injuries can occur at any level of wrestling—Johnson suffered three broken ribs, a punctured lung and knee surgery—but he feels that it is that desire to succeed that holds back independent wrestlers.

“They don’t have that ‘eye of the tiger.’ If they have a job making $300 a week, and then they can they can get [into] independent wrestling and make $600 a week, they’re satisfied. They don’t have the eye of the tiger to make it in any sports,” Johnson said.

Bibbs, however, has a slightly different take on Johnson’s perception of the indy scene.

“Nothing against Mr.Johnson, I deeply respect the man, but I strongly disagree with him. I know a lot of guys in this business that, if given the chance, would out work some of the so called superstars,” Bibbs said.

Although on the same level as Bibbs, Diamond sees where Johnson is coming from. When Diamond first started in wrestling, he was told that there was not an abundance of money involved on the independent level.

“It is your responsibility to make an impact with the people. It’s all on you to seek out going to another level. It can be done, but often because of families or other jobs or other commitments it’s hard to chase it as much as you would like. It does happen though and that ‘eye of the tiger’ never say die attitude is what gets you there,” he said.

That attitude may be alive and well in some of the wrestlers that Johnson saw on his return to the St. Louis wrestling scene.

“Coming back here, I like to look at some of these youngsters and see—hope—some of them will get a chance. I’ve seen a few that probably could make it, but I think what they [have] to get today is that ‘eye of the tiger,’” Johnson said.

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