Missouri Wrestling Revival

Mark This Down

Posted by Admin on January 27, 2008

“Mark This Down”
by “Smart” Mark Anthony

Note from MWR: “Smart” Mark Anthony is a pro wrestling aficionado, Internet advocate, and aspiring wrestling manager with strong opinions and a blunt personality. The views expressed in his column do not necessarily reflect the thoughts, opinions, or feelings of MWR or the MWR staff.
It’s time for another edition of the fabled MWR column, “Mark This Down”.

Well, fabled might be too strong of a word, but you catch my drift. This time around, I’ll tackle people who take wrestling way too seriously.

Yikes! What?

That’s right, I said it. There are people out there who take professional wrestling even more seriously than I do… and that is scary.

You know, I have to claim these individuals as my people… my peeps, as it were… but sometimes they go too far. They complain for the sake of complaining. They stir up drama for no other reason than to make themselves feel important. It becomes difficult to believe that they are even wrestling fans at all.

“This worker is under pushed and I’m pissed off about it.”

Somebody has to do the good old J-O-B. Get over it. Usually the best jobbers are those that can actually move, because they can sell their opponents move as actually effective. That’s not to say that every main eventer needs to be the Great Khali to balance things out, but hopefully you catch a brutha’s drift.

“They are shoving this wrestler down my throat, so I’m never watching the product ever again”

Funny how they say that, yet seem to know more about what is going on in the product than everybody else who is still watching…

“Your fans are too rowdy and they run other fans away/cheap beer is bad, mmmkay.”

This is what I’ve been seeing around the Midwest lately. It’s stupid, really. If the promotion in question were really doing as terribly as some would like to believe, then I don’t think they would have any problem politely asking the fans to tone it down a little bit for the sake of better business. That’s not to say that the die hard fans aren’t running some new fans away. No, not at all. The great thing about it is that if it bothers you then there are a host of other promotions in the area to go to. There is no reason to stir up drama about it. Just say your opinion, let your word be your word, and don’t be a bitch about it. Yes, I said it… bitch.

I can’t say that hanging around a rowdy crowd at EVERY wrestling event would be fun, but luckily there are alternatives and I am a grown ass man who can be somewhat professional when required to.

The above quotes are only a few examples of what I am talking about. We as wrestling fans have an obligation to criticize the things in the business that we do not like. That’s why the Internet was invented (Thanks Mr. Gore!). Unfortunately, when everything out of your mouth (or in your forum/blog posts) is negative about wrestling, you lose all credibility. You become a pisser and a moaner as opposed to an authority on anything. You need to leave the pro wrestling world and go read some comic books, hang out at a Star Wars grand opening, or something equally nerdy if you feel the urge to get your rocks off.

I’ve been around for awhile on the D/L (that means I have been in the area inconspicuously for those that don’t know), as it were. I’ve witnessed people here in the Midwest wrestling scene going on and on about this promotion selling cheap beer, or that promotion going under because they “just couldn’t hang”. I’ve heard about the wrestlers who have attitude problems and all of the egotistical promoters. Most of this talk is drummed up by the drama queens of the net that feel a need to be a part of something, but can only do so if they have some sort of dramatic mess to be a part of.

I compare this phenomena to the high school atmosphere. Remember back in the day (some of you have to go way back) when there were people that were impossible to like, yet always seemed to be part of the “in” group? I remember those days, and I remember that those people stayed in that cool crowd because they always managed to drum up some sort of drama between this girl and that girl… or this jock and his girlfriend… or this teacher and that teacher… you know what I’m saying?

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Midwest wrestling is struggling as a whole. Those out there that do nothing but tear it down are doing nothing to help the situation. They need to shut the hell up or start doing something positive. Give a little time, give a little effort… but for the love of God be CONSTRUCTIVE!

Word.

I’m out!

Your Trip to Space Mountain

Posted by Admin on January 23, 2008

Your Trip On Space Mountain

By Brian “Flair” Kelley
Another Monday night is upon us and pro wrestling’s biggest show will be on, WWE’s Monday Night Raw. Will I be home to watch it? Well, there is a chance that I will come in late and watch it tomorrow. Maybe it could be a week later.

How, you may ask? Well, because of one of the greatest inventions since the TV, TIVO. TIVO allows you to set your TV to record a show prior to it coming on. With the push of a button you can have a season pass to all of your favorite shows such as Survivor and American Gladiators… and to boot you can even skip the commercials! Earlier today I asked myself how this technology shaped the way I have been able to watch wrestling.

It seems like only yesterday that I had a mere 3 channels living in the country. I would wait all week to watch pro wrestling on Saturday nights with All-Star Wrestling after Saturday Night Live. To see such stars as Harley Race, Bulldog Bob Brown, and Rufus R. Jones in action in towns that seemed like they were millions of miles away (though it was less than an hour’s drive at times) was a great treat. I came from a family that did not like wrestling, so there was no chance of going to see it live. If I was lucky, sometimes there would be a special WWF Saturday Night show with Hulk Hogan before my favorite All-Star Wrestling. I would be treated with back to back shows of my first love, pro wrestling. For some reason there were many times when All-Star Wrestling was a rerun, though. It was a lot better than the times when it wasn’t on at all and the western program “Branded” starring Chuck Connors took it’s place (to my chagrin).

I loved wrestling so much that I would wake up early on Sundays and skip church so that I could see if the weather was nice enough for a channel that broadcasted pro wrestling out of Texas. World Class Championship Wrestling would broadcast without a picture, but I could hear the play-by-play of wrestlers like One Man Gang and the Fabulous Freebirds. It brought excitement to my ears.

Then there was that day (I don’t remember the exact day) that All-Star Wrestling featured a wrestler that was brought in to defend his belt against the Central States’ best. I watched a wrestling show on TBS that Saturday evening at my Uncle’s that introduced me to the wrestler I would look up to, and embodied my pro wrestling love, “The Nature Boy” Ric Flair.

The man was everything I wanted to be. He had all the ladies and he could really talk. His promos sold me, mainly because he told me he was the best and also had the belt to prove it. Yes, he made me believe… and boy, did he work me over! Anytime I could get in town on Saturday nights (which wasn’t very often) I turned on the TV to see what Flair had done. With the money I had earned by mowing yards and doing other odd jobs, I never missed an issue of Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) at the newsstand. I swear, I would read them over and over again… always checking out the rankings in each organization and stories of dream matches like Flair versus Hogan.

I was fortunate enough to live in the coming age of the VCR, and if I got to rent an event such as Wrestlemania or Starcade then the show was months (if not years) old. That didn’t deter me from watching every match or promo on that tape over and over again, loving every minute of it.

One Christmas right before I turned 16, Santa brought me a VHS titled “Road Warriors: Tag Team Champs”. It was only 30 minutes long, but I got to relive the history of the tag team that introduced me to “Iron Man” and prompted a search through my father’s albums at the age of ten to find the album “Paranoid” by Black Sabbath. That jump started my love for Heavy Metal. If there ever was a perfect VHS then this was it, as you had the Road Warriors at their best. They nearly caused a riot as they destroyed a very young and future great Curt Hennig and his father Larry “The Ax” Hennig. All this and more can now be found easily on DVD in the WWE’S “Road Warriors: The Life and Death of the Most Dominant Tag Team in Wrestling History”.

Fast forward to the present, and pro wrestling has changed considerably. It seems like there is a show on every day and a PPV every Sunday. I feel that there is possibly too much wrestling, but you can contribute some of my lack of interest to the fact that some of the magic has been taken out of the sport since Vince McMahon broke down and said that pro wrestling is in fact sports entertainment. I can’t really say that, though, because it has allowed me to know the wrestlers better as they are more accessible for autographs and pictures (which of course I enjoy).

The Internet Age has allowed me to keep up with all that is happening in the world of wrestling, keep in contact with fellow fans and build friendships with them along the way. I now know of shows that are headed my way farther in advance, and know more about the sport than ever. Many have complained about the impact of the Internet, but I must say it beats paying nearly $10.00 an issue for my beloved magazine PWI only to be given watered down information.

That brings us full circle to the beginning of my article and TIVO, the device that allows me to watch wrestling when I want. Once, I would hurry to make it on time to watch wrestling with my friends because I didn’t want to hear about it second hand. Now, my son always says “Dad, your not even watching it, your listening to the show while checking out the web”. He definitely has a point. If I hear something that appeals to me then I just push the rewind button, and truthfully I don’t see a whole match anymore due to that.

What once made shows like Saturday Night Live, David Letterman and any pro wrestling show special and “must see” has lost that pizazz with technology such as TIVO.

Times have changed, as they should, but at one time I took a break from wrestling for almost 10 years because of these changes. WCW closed the doors and my wrestling love was lost. Thankfully, my love for pro wrestling was reborn when I took a trip to Lawrence, Kansas to see an independent show put on by Central States Wrestling. It rekindled my love for the sport, and unlike TIVO or DVD, at a live independent show you need to keep all eyes focused. You never know what you may miss, because you can’t push a button to see it again. For that 3 hours you have the sport the way it should be.

I hope you enjoyed your first “Your Trip On Space Mountain” and I want to see you at a show soon.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged: Bulldog Bob Brown, Curt Hennig, Fabulous Freebirds, Harley Race, Larry “The Ax” Hennig, One Man Gang, Ric Flair, Road Warriors, Rufus R. Jones, Vince McMahon, WCW | Leave a Comment »

The Kari Williams MMWA-SICW Recap

Posted by Admin on January 19, 2008

MMWA-SICW Recap for January 12, 2008

By Kari Williams
Heartfelt farewells. Backstabbing betrayals. Controversial refereeing. All of these events encompassed Mid-Missouri Wrestling Associaton-Southern Illinois Championship Wrestling (MMWA-SICW) January 12 show in East Carondelet, which started the year with a bang.

In the main event, Jerome Cody took on Jeremy Lightfoot, with Shaft as the special guest referee. Although a fairly even match up in the beginning, Lightfoot gained the advantage by the five minute mark, and the two competitors traded blows in the corner. While controlling the match, Lightfoot attempted his signature chops, but Shaft prevented him from doing so and forced Lightfoot out of the corner. Lightfoot ended up hitting Cody with a DDT but was unable to capitalize because he had a minor confrontation with Shaft. The match ended swiftly with each man having his shoulders down on the mat when Shaft began the count. However, Shaft only saw Cody raise his arm before the three count, therefore causing Lightfoot to lose the contest. The night ended with Lightfoot calling out Shaft, and when he didn’t come to the ring, Lightfoot went to the back to confront him. To see what develops further, one must venture to East Carondelet, Illinois on February 16.

The previous contest pitted Junior Heavyweight Champion A.J. Williams against one half of the newly crowned tag team champions, Dave Vaughn, in the first title match of the evening. Beginning with an exchange of holds, neither competitor gained a definitive lead over the other. Just after the five minute mark, Williams gained control, scoring a two count on the challenger. Williams then went to the top rope and connected with an elbow drop, but was unable to secure victory, as Vaughn’s foot rested on the bottom rope. In the closing moments, Vaughn prepared for a spear but Williams telegraphed it and leapfrogged over his opponent and landed a super kick on Vaughn for the win at 9:56.

In his final match with MMWA-SICW, Brandon Espinosa took on Saladin in a 20 minute time-limit bout. Espinosa gained the early advantage, aggravating Saladin with a test of strength challenge, but Saladin took over moments later. A fairly even match, with neither competitor gaining the upper hand for an extended length of time, Espinosa controlled the final minutes of his final match. He connected with a boot to the face and then hit his signature move, the mood swing, at the 10:14 mark. After having his hand raised in victory, Espinosa spent his final moments in an MMWA-SICW ring thanking the fans.

After a brief intermission, the MMWA-SICW title was on the line, pitting the champion, Kevin X, against fellow Connection member “Hot Shot” Tommy Knight. Before the bout even began, X asked Knight to lay down for the three count. But Knight, not wanting to let a golden opportunity such go to the wayside, said that he would fight. Though a fairly one-sided match, with X in control for the majority of the time, Knight hit a few key spots. One notable moment for Knight came near the closing stages of the bout when he connected with a flying cross body from the top rope and got a near fall on the champion, proving that he has what it takes to become a champion in the company. Nonetheless, X was able to secure his victory with a powerbomb and the three count at 10:56. Moments after the match had concluded, The Connection turned on X, beating him relentlessly, even going so far as to “pin” him in the middle of the ring, showing their true colors.

Kahyman was in action as well, battling Connection member, Phil E. Blunt with Jerome Cody. In the opening moments, Kahyman had a slight advantage which was quickly overturned by Blunt. By the five minute mark, Kahyman had gained the upper hand but only enough to capture a two count. Soon after the pin, Blunt scored with a powerbomb gaining a decisive advantage. Despite Blunt’s multiple attempts to pin Kahyman in the closing seconds of the ten minute match, the bout ended in a time-limit draw.

The second match of the night was between Moondog Rover and Brewer. Moondog had a clear advantage nearly the entire bout, with Brewer getting in little offense. Filled with typical Moondog shenanigans, Moondog barked at the fans, “peed” on the referee and tried to take the shoe of a fan in the front row. In the end, it was essentially Moondog who prevailed by getting the pin.

In the opening bout, one half of the newly crowned tag team champions, Mr. Bibbs, took on Waco. The action spilled to the outside early on with Waco gaining the advantage by the five minute mark. The first pin attempt came from Bibbs, with Waco getting his shoulder off of the mat at the two count. For the remainder of the match, Waco remained fairly dominate with Bibbs barely gaining an advantage. At the ten minute mark, Waco nailed Bibbs with a DDT and went for the quick pin but only got a two count. Waco then went for another DDT, securing himself the victory at 11:02.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged: A.J. Williams, Brandon Espinosa, Dave Vaughn, Jeremy Lightfoot, Jerome Cody, Kahyman, Kevin X, MMWA-SICW, Moondog Rover, Mr. Bibbs, Phil E. Blunt, Saladin, Shaft, Tommy Knight, Waco | Leave a Comment »

Mark This Down

Posted by Admin on January 18, 2008

“Mark This Down”
by “Smart” Mark Anthony

In the first installment of “Mark This Down”, I let things fly off the top of my head. In this installment, I will cover two previously announced topics. The first is my take on the current Midwest wrestling scene. The second topic covers my picks for an elite Midwest stable.

I will remind you from the very beginning, take everything in this column as gospel. Why? Well, because I am the official voice of the Internet, for one. Anything you read on the Internet is true. Go read my first “Mark This Down” column if you have any questions. If you read it and still have questions afterwards, e-mail me.

My take on the Midwest:

Midwest wrestling is struggling, folks. Don’t get me wrong – there are positive signs, strong promotions, and talented wrestlers, but we’re a long way away from the glory days. From what I see, there are too many promotions, not nearly enough business savvy promoters, and basically no continuity.

I’ve heard the arguments over and over and over again that Indy promotions in the Midwest don’t draw well enough to have continuity between shows. The only problem with that is that not having any sort of continuity between shows, and in a lesser case between promotions, hurts the big picture. Remember the big picture, guys? The big picture is what a promoter should be looking at BEFORE he starts his wrestling promotion.

Where’s the investment? Where’s the promoting and advertising? Are these promotions simply run as a hobby?

Some promotions have a few things right. They don’t look down at their fans. They keep those fans up to date on what is going on, and do whatever they can to bring the fans back to their website to check for updates. No updates for a promotion’s website is the equivalent of telling the fans that you have shut down. Add a video interview from time to time. Allow writers such as myself or the editor of Missouri Wrestling Revival to help make the promotion more believable and accessible to the fans.

My point? When you show the fans that you care, they start to emotionally invest in your product.

Emotional investment becomes monetary investment.

Come on, guys! This is not rocket science! I won’t mention any names, out of respect for my employer, but people know which organizations I’m talking about.

I’ve heard promoters talk, and it all seems to boil down to a defeatist attitude. They are content to dabble in their hobby… to hell with the wrestling fans. They’re positive that money can’t be made.

I have to ask, “So, why run a promotion?”

The most harm done to the independent wrestling scene are the fly-by-night craptacular promotions that have sprung up all over the place with no real goal in sight.

On the positive side of things, the wrestlers want to work. I have read comments on wrestlers’ blogs and have received a few e-mails from them as well, all stating that they are bummed about the lack of work they’ve had. Some haven’t worked a show in six months! Many of them are disheartened by the cancelled shows, failing promotions, and lack of cooperation here in the Midwest… but they still want to perform and would support any organization that gave them the opportunity.

I want to break it all down into my first ever Midwest Wrestling Report Card.

Promotions: C
There are some strong promotions out there, but with the overall show infrequency, continuity issues, and plethora of cancelled shows, this area of Midwest wrestling is definitely suffering. It definitely needs improvement.

Wrestling Talent: B+
I could go on and on about the talented wrestlers, referees, managers, and announcers that are out there, but I won’t. I will say that with Midwest talent such as Awesome Kong, Dingo, Delirious, and Tyler Black moving up to ROH and TNA, it’s a sign that the wrestlers aren’t the problem.

Fans: B-
The fans are, no doubt, the double-edged sword of Midwest wrestling. Some are extremely negative to the point that it’s hard to believe they are wrestling fans. Some are so loyal that they’d sacrifice their first born son in a show of dedication to a wrestling promotion. A strange mix, and yet there is an untapped potential for more casual fans to go to Midwest wrestling events. Will the crazy negative/loyal fans turn them off of attending?

Overall: B-
Let me know what you think about my first attempt at grading pro wrestling in the Midwest!

My picks:

As I mentioned in the last installment and earlier in this one, I have put a lot of thought into who my picks would be for a bad ass Indy Midwest stable… one that could wreak havoc on promotions across the entire Midwest. Here are my picks, and the logic behind them.

Michael Strider
The voice of the stable when I’m not talking. Strider has the charisma and in-ring ability to be this stable’s poster child. He’s currently the CSW Heavyweight Champion, and he’s not afraid to get dirty.

Mark Sterling
He’s got ring psychology on lock and while he can piss a person off like nobody’s business, people can’t help but admire his tenacity and talent. He’d be my guy to go after any secondary titles, with the assumption that if Strider falls, he’d easily slide into his place as voice of the stable.

Tyler Black
A young guy with the ability to be a very shady character. He’d be my ambassador to AAW and SCW, and would make sure that if my stable came to those areas they’d get nothing but respect.

Keith Walker
I can think of nobody better in the Midwest to be in the Arn Anderson role of enforcer. He’s big, he’s bad, he’s currently the WLW Heavyweight Champion. If he eventually goes to WWE, he lends even more credibility to my awesome stable.

So, what did you think? Agree with my picks? Think I need to have my head examined. Let me know!

Until next time!

Mark This Down

Posted by Admin on January 10, 2008

“Mark This Down”
by “Smart” Mark Anthony

Note from MWR: “Smart” Mark Anthony is a pro wrestling aficionado, Internet advocate, and aspiring wrestling manager with strong opinions and a blunt personality. The views expressed in his column do not necessarily reflect the thoughts, opinions, or feelings of MWR or the MWR staff.

For the first edition of my column, I’ll just take a big step forward and get this thing started. With my brash style, I’m sure that the good people at Missouri Wrestling Revival have already issued some sort of disclaimer about me to start this column out. Might as well skip my ego-infected self-introduction.

If you can’t tell by my nickname and whatever publicity that MWR has given me thus far, I’m a fan of the Internet and all of the professional wrestling communities that have sprung up because of it. Sure, Internet wrestling fans have a bad reputation for being severely and unabashedly negative, but there isn’t anyone who can run a wrestling organization like a wrestling fan with access to an Internet-capable computer. I mean, our opinions are numerous, we have no concern for the money involved in running a promotion, and damn it, we have standards. Five star standards, if you weel (imagine me saying that with the best Dusty Rhodes voice humanly possible without being the American Dream, himself).

In keeping with the mission of my sponsor, Missouri Wrestling Revival, I think it is important for me to point out that without fans like us the independent wrestling scene would really be suffering. We are typically known as an indy promotion’s “super fans”, due to our loyalty and willingness to spend hard earned money on indy products. Yes, we’ll stream a WWE or TNA pay per view every chance we get, but if somebody asks us to burn a copy of that Ring of Honor DVD or even a Central States Wrestling or New Midwest Wrestling show, then we’ll slit their throats!

How can you complain about die hard fans like that?

I’m here to represent this minority group. We’re the vocal majority, but often our voices are scattered and ineffective. TNA Booking is living proof of that fact. I volunteer to step up and be the focused voice of my people. Along the way, I will do what Internet wrestling fans live for the chance to do… improve wrestling in general and bring selected talent with me to the top!

You want to be my protege? Well, you’ve got to be entertaining, fast, and willing to listen to my guidance. No overly muscled idiot with three moves in his arsenal is ever going to make it in this business if I have anything to say about it. You have to have an attitude, of course, but when it comes to the Internet community, you best be knowing what’s up!

You’ve got to have respect for my peoples, yo!

MWR has given me the opportunity to become the great leader I always knew I could be. I thank them, but I can’t guarantee that I’ll always say things that they agree with. I’m an ambitious and opinionated guy. Those two qualities and public forums do not mix well. If they stick with me, though, I can promise greatness!

That’s it for me and this edition of Mark This Down. In the next edition, I’ll break down what I feel is wrong with indy wrestling today. I’ll also reveal to the world which four current Midwest wrestlers I’d kill to manage as part of an “Independent Super Stable”.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged: Dusty Rhodes | Leave a Comment »

Next Entries »

Missouri Wrestling Revival

Giving Back to Midwest Pro Wrestling!

Post With Us

Follow Us

Recent Posts

Archives

2015 MWR Yearbook on Sale

Pro Wrestling Tees

CAC

Rob Schamberger Art

Rings and Cages

Windy Wine Company

Wrestle Talk Podcast

Galaxy Wrestling All Stars Comics

Piekutowski Sausage

Mark This Down

Your Trip to Space Mountain

The Kari Williams MMWA-SICW Recap

Mark This Down

Mark This Down

Missouri Wrestling Revival

Giving Back to Midwest Pro Wrestling!

Post With Us

Follow Us

Recent Posts

Archives

2015 MWR Yearbook on Sale

Pro Wrestling Tees

CAC

Rob Schamberger Art

Rings and Cages

Windy Wine Company

Wrestle Talk Podcast

Galaxy Wrestling All Stars Comics

Piekutowski Sausage

Mark This Down

Share this:

Your Trip to Space Mountain

Share this:

The Kari Williams MMWA-SICW Recap

Share this:

Mark This Down

Share this:

Mark This Down

Share this: