Jonathan Gresham has accomplished more before the age of 30 than most achieve in their career. The Atlanta, GA native first appeared on Ring of Honor Wrestling in the 2011 Top Prospect Tournament and since then has wrestled in 12 countries in four continents, proving to be one of the premier technical wrestlers in the world.
It is with great excitement that Ring of Honor Wrestling announces that Jonathan Gresham has officially signed a full-time contract and will be in action in Baltimore this Saturday, April 8!
Gresham has competed in ROH on a freelance basis, picking up wins in singles and tag team competition in between his extensive international travel schedule. With a repitoire of hundreds of submission moves, including his patented Octopus Stretch, Gresham has the ability to defeat opponents of any size or experience level.
At age 29 with a decade of experience under his belt, Gresham is already one of the planet’s best grapplers with even greater potential. Gresham has impressed ROH fans so much in his appearances that he has been one of the most in-demand stars for fans of the Best Wrestling on the Planet. Come see Gresham compete LIVE this Saturday in Baltimore!
The names of Davey Vega and Mat Fitchett are well-known to Midwest wrestling fans, but the national wrestling scene has only recently begun to discover the talents of these skilled competitors.
Both men started their careers with Dynamo Pro Wrestling before branching out to the Lethal Wrestling Alliance, which would later become St. Louis Anarchy. Vega was first known as a tag team competitor and teamed with Johnny Vinyl to feud with The Ego Express(Steven Kennedy & K.C. Karrington), leading to Kennedy & Karrington becoming the first LWA Tag Team Champions when they defeated Vega and substitute partner Dingo. After that, Vega focused on singles competition…after holding the NWA Missouri Title in Dynamo Pro, he went on to capture the LWA Heavyweight Title from Gary Jay in December of 2009. Vega held the title for most of 2010 before dropping it to Evan Gelistico; this occured shortly before the transition to St. Louis Anarchy and Vega spent most of that promotion’s existence chasing the title.
Davey Vega explodes with a clothesline on ROH Star Jonathan Gresham.
In that time, Vega competed against some of the best wrestlers in the world and scored victories over many of them. That list included such names as Davey Richards, Kyle O’Reilly, Johnny Gargano, Arik Cannon, A.C.H., Michael Elgin, Roderick Strong, Chris Hero, Jonathan Gresham, D.J. Z, T.J. Perkins, Chip Day, and Martin Stone. In his final opportunity at the gold at St. Louis Anarchy’s last show, Vega finally capitalized by winning a triple threat match with champion Fitchett and Gary Jay for the title! Vega will continue to carry the championship in Pro Wrestling Championship Series as the “Gateway Heritage Title“.
As for Fitchett, his career took a similar path and he squared off with many of the same competitors as his often-time tag partner Vega. In fact, Fitchett and Vega were Tag Team Champions in both the Chicago-based All-American Wrestling and the Kansas City-based Metro Pro Wrestling!
TJ Perkins found WWE gold in 2016, but before that he and Fitchett put on a wrestling clinic at St. Louis Anarchy.
The “Dirty Rook” took his lumps in his early LWA and SLA career, enduring hard-hitting battles with the likes of Arik Cannon, Akira Tozawa, Alex Shelley, and his trainer Dingo. Fitchett was frustrated after several near-misses in title matches against Darin Corbin and Gary Jay, leading to him taking a sabbatical from SLA competition; however, it turned out that he was hiding under the mask of “Dangerous Deveroux” as he competed for SLA and PWCS. Fitchett had an uphill battle against Gary Jay as the champion rode a wave of momentum, holding the title for over two years with title defenses against some of the toughest competition in the country. Winning a thirty-man Anarchy Rumble in late 2015 finally propelled him back into title contention…and in February of 2016, Fitchett finally ended Gary’s monumental title reign to reach the top of the mountain!
Fitchett didn’t shy away from challenges as he defended his title against Evan Gelistico, T.J. Perkins, Jake Dirden, and Paco Gonzalez…but on STL Anarchy’s final night, he lost the title to Vega.
It took several years for both men to gain attention in the national independent wrestling scene, but their exposure in AAW and Beyond Wrestling has turned the heads of many onlookers. Now forming the “Blood Brothers” tag team in the National Wrasslin’ League under the names Davey Gibson and Matthew Grundy, the two look to add more tag team gold to their already impressive resumes! These two men have been considered the Midwest’s best-kept secrets, but that secret is finally getting out!
Look for an exclusive MWR Future Star artwork honoring Davey Vega and Mat Fitchett for their achievement from acclaimed artist Dartallion Allen Jr. in the future.
If you would like to sponsor the MWR Future Star Plaques for Davey Vega and Mat Fitchett then please contact MWR at flairwhoooooo@yahoo.com. The cost is 50.00 each or $100.00 for both (two plaques) and you will receive a past MWR Yearbook, a Tyler Black (Seth Rollins rookie card) and a mention on the MWR Website.
2016 MWR Award
Future Star: Kevin Lee Davidson / Todd Letterman
2015 MWR Award
Future Star: Redwing
2014 MWR Year Awards
Future Star: Daniel Eads
Future Star: Elvis Aliaga
2013 MWR Year Awards
Future Star: Raphael King
Future Star Alexander Rudolph
Jojo Bravo vs. Sammy Guevara: Young Texas standout Guevara was making his SLA debut here. Jojo had been frustrated in his recent outings as officiating miscues had led to several losses. While the traditional face-vs.-heel structure often falls by the wayside in Anarchy(more on that in a bit), Sammy was decidedly the arrogant punk as opposed to the longtime favorite Jojo.
After a fine opener, Jojo won with a modified backslide in 9:33 and proclaimed “I still got it!” Good for him.
Angelus Layne made her first SLA appearance in quite some time. I’m a fan…she’s a cool person with a unique look compared to a lot of female wrestlers. Would like to see more women’s wrestling in the area in general, but I seem to mention that approximately once a commentary. At any rate, she said that her goal was to win the St. Louis Anarchy Title as she only had one prior title shot(when Gerald James was champion). That prompted an interrupted by The Cause(minus Adam Caster) and words were exchanged over who truly deserved a title shot(Angelus or Mr. Gelistico), setting up Angelus vs. Mr. (Everett) Connors for the following night’s show. Gelistico officially took up Heavyweight Champion Mat Fitchett on his open challenge for the evening.
“The Outlaw” Ken Phoenix vs. Kevin Lee Davidson: Phoenix has made a handful of appearances on Ring Of Honor television and this was his St. Louis-area debut. He had a rough time of it as he was attempting to be the fan favorite against K.L.D., who was decidedly the heel of the match but gets a lot of fan support in this area.
The match was good otherwise, but it had to suck for Phoenix as he did his best to play to the fans only to get a lot of boos from the K.L.D. supporters. Davidson won with his signature spinebuster in 6:25; that move tends to disrupt ceiling tiles in low-clearance buildings such as the Alton venue.
Heavyweight Champion Mat Fitchett came out to set the ground rules for his title reign. (Previous Gerald James had set it up that his defenses would be best-of-three-falls.) Fitchett’s rules were simple: No countouts, DQs, or time limits so a decisive winner would be established. Okay then…SLA has relaxed rule enforcement anyway, though they do have time limits(as established in the Gerald James-Davey Vega sixty-minute draw).
Paco Gonzalez, Mike Outlaw, Nick Cutler, & Jason Roberts vs. The Cause(Tag Team Champion Mr. (Evan) Gelistico, Mr. (Danny) Adams, Mr. (Everett) Connors, & Mr. (Austin) Blackburn): I don’t think co-Tag Champ Adam Caster was specifically advertised for the SLA weekend, but Blackburn probably saw more in-ring duty than anticipated. This was advertised as Paco recruiting a team of “upstarts” to fight The Cause; Outlaw was the only other known quantity on that side. I think I had heard Cutler’s name in the past(central Illinois guy?) but hadn’t seen much of him; apparently he and Roberts are both trainees of Michael Elgin.
The match was more competitive than I would have guessed and Blackburn tagged into the match out of a desire to prove himself…but that backfired as Paco pinned him after a Death Valley Driver in 10:40. Paco’s teammates left ringside as Paco confronted Gelistico, saying HE deserved a title shot(having given Gerald James a good fight recently)…that prompted a gang attack by The Cause until Jojo Bravo made the save.
Jojo and Paco challenged The Cause to a tag match for the following night’s show.
Roscoe Eat Lisa(“Zesty” Zakk Sawyers & “The Big Mustache On Campus” Mikey Mcfinnegan) vs. The Viking War Party(“American Viking” Alexandre Rudolph & “Littlest Viking” Jake Parnell), Tag Team Title Contenders Tournament:
This was part of a mini-tournament to determine the next challengers for The Cause with four fan-favorite duos competing for that right. While Sawyers has done week in recent months for both SLA and PWCS, he and McFinnegan were probably the underdogs in this matchup against the Vikings. The Vikings were their usual rambunctious selves, throwing chairs into the ring before the bell…Parnell headbutted the top turnbuckle until the pad fell off, then he threw the pad into the crowd and they played keep-away with it…heh.
Parnell tried to hide the pad in his tights…um, no. When he pulled the pad out of his tights, his driver’s license fell out…har har. (Do Vikings drive?) The Vikings tried to bum a smoke from Zakk before things officially got underway, to no avail. I’ve only recently seen more of the Sawyers/McFinnegan tag team, though they’ve been working together for quite a while now. They had a lot of false finishes between them, ending with McFinnegan getting the surprise pin on Parnell after an assisted Air Raid Crash in 12:40.
“The Leader Of The Pack” Stephen Wolf vs. “The Lone Star” Curt Stallion: Wolf was scheduled to face Trik Davis who was M.I.A. for the whole weekend as far as SLA was concerned. (This wasn’t directly addressed until the following night’s show.) All things considered, this show was pretty good about having face/heel matches as Stallion was in rulebreaker mode. This was a solid bout, though fans weren’t too familiar with either guy; Wolf won with a Blue Thunder Bomb in 12:40.
Gerald James(w/ Dorian Victor) vs. Jonathan Gresham: This was a battle of fan favorites as James has effectively turned face in SLA. Gresham has been getting a lot of attention in the Midwest in the past few years and also made a few appearances on Ring Of Honor television, upsetting Cedric Alexander and wrestling Roderick Strong for the T.V. Title. This shaped up to be a good battle between two smaller strikers, with Gresham having a slight edge in the technical aspect of the game as he focused his attack on James’ arm.
After the standard fighting-spirit exchanges and near-falls, Gerald got the win after a kick to the knee followed by a sliding forearm smash in 12:18. That seemed oddly short, all things considered. Cue mutual respect and all that.
Ricky Starks vs. Alex Castle: Starks made a lone appearance on NXT several months ago(as an unnamed-on-TV enhancement talent), so he’s gotten the big head and believes he’s inevitably WWE-bound. However, he competes on the indies FOR THE FANS~!…he’s clearly disingenuous, but he’s entertaining enough that the fans like him anyway.
That set him up as the fan favorite against the more traditional heel Castle. Starks blatantly copped a few familiar-looking moves and sequences, even saying “I’m sorry, I love you” before a superkick attempt(which missed). Starks won clean with a ropewalk DDT in 9:26, but the highlight was the post-match promo: Starks told Paul, err, TRIPLE H that his return to NXT would have to wait because he wanted to wrestle FOR THE FANS OF ST. LOUIS ANARCHY! He wants to continue to compete for the fans…wait for it…then, now, and forever. Forever…forever…forever…forever…forever…etc. Tremendous.
The Hooligans(Devin & Mason Cutter) vs. Team I.O.U.(“The Down-South Dandy” Nick Iggy & “The Music City Mutt” Kerry Awful), Tag Team Title Contenders Tournament: These teams have gone around the proverbial horn with each other on the Midwest independent scene, but this was my first time seeing one of their battles in person. This was the all-out brawl that you would expect, complete with one of the Hooligans’ favorite sequences:
They sit in chairs in a circle with the opponents and they just punch each other in the face as hard as possible. I know some people look down on the fighting-spirit sort of exchanges(“I’m going to let you hit me!”), so your mileage may vary on stuff like that. The exchange took place on the floor, leaving poor Brandon Tolle in a quandary about whether to count them out.
I.O.U. have worked as rulebreakers in St. Louis Anarchy despite being fan favorites in other promotions(which was how they competed in High Risk Wrestling last year), but then the Hooligans are likely to get cheered either way. I always joke that I lose track of which Hooligan is which, so I have to rely on the Bella System to figure it out: Wait for one to yell out the other’s name. (This was before the Bellas became distinctly different-looking.) This eventually got back into the ring and they traded the standard high-impact offense, ending out of nowhere as Devin pinned Awful with a sunset flip off the second rope in 11:31. The Hooligans were set to face Roscoe Eat Lisa on the following night’s show for the next shot at The Cause.
Mat Fitchett vs. Mr. (Evan) Gelistico for the Heavyweight Title: Gelistico seemed to play it straight for a while, despite being the obvious rulebreaker in the match, but SHENANIGANS~! were afoot in the big picture. Fitchett appeared to be on the verge of victory after a piledriver but Mr. Adams and Mr. Connors distracted the ref. Brandon Tolle ejected them from ringside, to the point that he physically chased them out the front door! In the meantime, Fitchett tilt-a-whirled into a DDT and went for a pin; that prompted Mr. Blackburn to make his entrance in a referee’s shirt to count two before stopping short. Gelistico decked the champion with the Rulebook and Blackburn nearly made the three-count, but Angelus Layne pulled him out of the ring and dealt with him in short order. Evan brought in a chair, but Fitchett turned the tables and hit a cradle piledriver on the chair…OW. Tolle returned to the ring just in time to make the three-count in 15:42…woo. Fitchett would go on to face the winner of the night’s main event…and he crossed paths with his longtime friend and tag partner Davey Vega in the aisleway.
Davey Vega vs. T.J. Perkins: TJP’s career has taken some interesting paths in recent years…he competed for Anarchy a handful of times, but TNA commitments took precedence as he held their X-Division Title as Manik(formerly Suicide). Since departing from that company, he has competed for EVOLVE and recently qualified for WWE’s Cruiserweight Classic…cool for him. Vega currently holds the All-American Pro and Metro Pro Tag Titles with Fitchett and recently made his Ring Of Honor debut in a dark match. However, the SLA Title has eluded him…he hasn’t held singles gold in quite a while(he’s been Lethal Wrestling Alliance Champion and NWA Missouri Champion in Dynamo Pro). Vega’s recent track record against national stars has been pretty good as he holds wins over such names as Chris Hero, Roderick Strong, and El Generico(whatever happened to THAT guy?).
It was a really good competitive battle between fan favorites and the audience wasn’t as invested in the match as I would have thought…hmm. In what came as a surprise to some in attendance, TJP got the tapout win with a modified heel hook in 16:14 and earned the title shot at Fitchett the following night…leaving Vega frustrated once again.
It is a pleasure to have with us today pro wrestler and owner of St. Louis Anarchy Matt Jackson, better known to wrestling fans as Pierre Abernathy. Since his debut in 2003, Pierre has made an impact in the wrestling scene in many aspects of the wrestling business. Pierre, thank you for taking the time to speaking with us at Missouri Wrestling Revival
Pierre: No problem, thanks for having me.
MWR: What was your first memories of pro wrestling and who did you look up to growing up?
Pierre: The first pro wrestling event I can remember watching live was WrestleMania VI with Hogan vs. Warrior.
I was a huge Hogan fan so when he lost that sucked for me. I can remember going to the STL arena watching all the WWF live shows and I was at the only show WWF did at the old Busch Stadium, so that was cool.
MWR: The first opportunity that I got to see you in action was in Lawrence, Kansas for NWA Central States Wrestling as you and Gary Jay lost a three way to Nick Tyson on September 30, 2006. At that point you had been wrestling a little over than three years. How did you get your start in pro wrestling and who were the most helpful in your success?
Pierre: I first got my start when I met Jordan Lacey, he bought a ring and we were going to train in it. The issue was that he didn’t have the training to train us and to his credit he knew that. Most guys would NEVER admit that they had no business training people but he did. We later met Adam Raw and Nick Tyson and they did our training.
Adam Raw- Photo Michael Van Hoogstratt
From there they started the LWA and we worked there and branched into Gateway Championship Wrestling. Unlike most guys, our trainers did not travel, so we didn’t have a lot of help getting out of town shots. It was Matt Sydal and Delirious who taught us in a 12-hour seminar that we needed to get in a car and get out of STL and make résumés and start sending them out and do seminars all over and that is what we did.
MWR: What early match that you had gave you the confidence to succeed as a pro wrestler?
Pierre: Honestly I can’t think of one match. I always had confidence in my promo work more than my wrestling at the start. I think if I had to pick a break out match, I had a three-way match with Gary and Dorian Victor kind of early on that I liked. Plus, working Gary every weekend in a new state we could feel ourselves growing as wrestlers every week.
MWR: You would be part of the group that would spearhead The Lethal Wrestling Alliance. Who else were involved and what is the legacy of that promotion?
Pierre: Honestly I didn’t have anything to do with the start of LWA. LWA was started by Adam Raw and Jordan Taylor. When Jordan went into the Navy it went into the committee of five guys: Adam Raw, Nick Tyson, Frank Cashion, Mike D and Tim P ( I don’t want to butcher the spelling of their last names).
Jordan Lacey has been a part of the most brutal matches in the modern era of STL wrestling. Here he wars it out against the former MWR Future Star winner Alex Rudolph.
So Tyson was supposed to write the shows and book the talent but he wasn’t doing it, so I would in the background write the shows and send them with him to meetings and no one would know about it and he would get the credit. Fast forward a few years, he was going to quit, so Raw was kind of freaking out thinking he would have to write the shows all himself. I had to tell him I was really doing it all this time, which shocked him and so then I started writing and booking talent from there. Years later when the others quit, it became myself, Raw and Jordan Lacey. In the end of LWA, it was just me and Jordan Lacey.
Many of the top rising stars int the sport has made their way to SLA.
MWR: Fans at LWA were blessed to enjoy some great matches featuring local talent against many of the top stars in the world. Not too long ago, Austin Aries was the TNA World Champion, Davey Richards was a Ring of Honor World Champion and most recently one half of the TNA Tag Team Champions with Eddie Edwards, and Samoa Joe is quite possibly the most talked about free agent in the world today, but they all entered the squared circle at LWA.
These matches along with other stars including Delirious, Mike Quackenbush and The Motor Machine Guns against LWA homegrown talents are featured on the DVD US vs. Them (click here to purchase). What memories stand out about this historic matches at LWA?
Pierre: There are tons of thoughts I have about that. The two big ones being the first “name talent” we ever used was Alex Shelley and our fans hated him with a passion because he was facing their guy in Nick Tyson and when Tyson tapped him out the legit emotion that came after is what this business is about to me: real emotion. The Second was Samoa Joe: A lot of people were saying behind my back (but I hear everything) that I was making a big mistake putting Dorian in that match and not Adam Raw, and to be honest at that time Raw was a better wrestler than Dorian—hell, Dorian was only a few years in, I think. However, Dorian grew from that match and it taught him how to step up… That’s my job: I have to force you to go outside of your comfort zone and step up to the plate, because if you can’t I need to know that before you fall on your face in maybe a way bigger situation. That night Dorian stepped up and grew from it.
MWR: You are a member of the famed Submission Squad with. Time has shown that you guys are among the most entertaining tag teams in the country, but early on in your career you teamed up with Evan Gelistico against Davey Vega and Gary the Barn Owl to showcase LWA for Chikara’s King of Trios 2009. In a weekend filled with top Indy wrestling stars like Bryan Danielson (Future WWE Champion Daniel Bryan), Austin Aries, and El Generico (WWE’SSami Zayn) , the match would receive chants of “DON’T COME BACK!” Many men after that night may have given up, but it only shows how much heart that the four of you had, during that time. Many people snickered and counted you out, but you guys have had the last laugh by becoming among the most traveled talents in the country. Looking back what went wrong, what could you have done different and what advice would you have for a young wrestler that would experience such a situation?
Pierre: I would say that you cannot let what people say bother you. When that happened to be honest it didn’t bother me, it did more the other guys for different reasons. Vega because he lacked confidence anyway so that almost killed him, Gary because the ECW arena was his dream and we just got booed out of it and Evan because he loved the idea of working Chikara. I am telling the God’s honest truth that it didn’t bother me because I was expecting it the whole time. Here you have the biggest weekend of the Chikara calendar with legit stars from all over the world and then you have four dudes from a company in Missouri that none of them knew.. How were they supposed to treat us? Plus, we did ourselves zero favors because of the way we worked the match. We are known for our personalities and we showed zero of it and that is what sucked. However we made a lot of money after that match because people wanted to see if either A) we really sucked or B) they knew we didn’t and wanted to bring us out. So I would do it all again, plus we went back there in 2014 and killed it, so it came full circle for us.
MWR: As I mentioned you have traveled around the country, including Canada. What has been your personal favorite places to wrestle and why?
Pierre: I love most every trip but I’ll pick one place and say ACW in Texas. Texas was like my second home for many years and I love the fans and friends I made there. Some of my favorite memories came from hangouts I had in Texas.
MWR: For seven years the LWA was known for an alternative style of wrestling that combined strong style, hardcore, comedy and good times for the fans, but a new day came that saw you announce the merging with the Texas based promotion known as Anarchy Championship Wrestling (ACW). That decision has allowed the fans to see many of the top stars of the Texas area make their way to the Midwest, while giving the young stars in this area to grow by challenging themselves against other top talents that may not have a chance to work with. In your eyes, who have taken advantage of working in the land of Anarchy and who are some of the top young stars that fans should have their eyes on for the future?
Pierre: Since we started Anarchy, we have seen ACH become a top star in the USA and I won’t do what a lot of others do and try and take credit for that man’s success. His success has helped us grow, so thank you to him.
Gary Jay and Davey Vega are in my opinion the two top guys in the area and they prove that every time they work in a ring. The fact neither of them are under a contract is a shame. The Hooligans are guys you have seen grow in Anarchy. Christian Rose has been tearing it up other places for a while but our fans are finally seeing how good he is. Two guys who I think could be the next 2 big stars are Jo Jo Bravo and Mat Fitchett. Jo Jo has gotten really good really fast and it’s up to Fitchett how far he wants to go. He has been ready for a long time now. One guy to watch I think is Everett Connor; I call him my new project because he is a good kid with potential.
The only guy who I think may be worse now than he was when we started SLA is Evan Gelistico… [sarcasm]
MWR: The Submission Squad was ranked number 12 in 2011 in the MWR’S top 30 tag teams during the MWR years. Four years later, the SS is still running strong, even capturing the Metro Pro Wrestling Tag Team titles recently as the Commission.
Because LWA and later SLA did not have tag belts along with the outside travel, it may have hurt your rankings in the poll. That year a team that you guys know very well the Hooligans were ranked number one, and are currently the St. Louis Anarchy tag team Champions. What has made the Hooligans and the Submission Squad such a great rivalry?
Pierre: We just have good chemistry and we strive to do the same thing and that’s have a great match. We clicked since the first match we had at an IHW show in Dupo IL.
At one time we worked with the Hooligans at least once a weekend for like five months in a row, I think… Plus those guys love tag team wrestling as much as we do so it’s easy, The Hooligans are amazing talents.
MWR: SLA has recently been the home of double shot weekends in Alton, Illinois. You have promoted events for years, what are the advantages and disadvantages of having back to back events?
Pierre: Well it doubles the stress. I mean we have only done two, so I really do not know yet. I’ll say the advantage is for the fans as they will get 2 events a weekend instead of 1. As we keep going with this I am sure more advantages and disadvantages will come clear.
MWR: St. Louis Anarchy events have always been a can’t-miss show as talents around the world have been in action during each of your events. Men like Kyle O’Reilly, Michael Elgin, Chris Hero, the Young Bucks, Davey Richards, Akira Tozawa, and TJ Perkins have all appeared in the past. Who would you like to see that has not appeared yet?
Pierre: We used him in LWA but I really want to bring our fans Alex Shelley as he was supposed to work a show but got hurt. I am hoping to bring some more guys from overseas in. To be honest we will always use that name talent that people have come to think about when thinking of SLA but I am wanting to use more guys who are great but not maybe as well known…. Like there are Gary Jays and Davey Vegas all over the USA who are great but just can’t get breaks and I want to give them their breaks because you never know who could be the next ACH that you just are overlooking.
MWR: On August the 21st and 22nd, Circus Maximus 2015, an event what many fans say is THE event of the year for SLA? Circus Maximus has always delivered with a great mix of national talent as well as the top rising stars around the country. I am going to do a rundown of this years’ SLA talent pool for the double shot weekend and I would like for you to give your thoughts on them. We will start off with the current SLA Champion Gary Jay.
Pierre: Hardest working man in Anarchy, he tears down the house every time and then is the first person to lead people in tearing down the ring. He gives his all to the company and should be getting more chances outside it.
MWR: Tommaso Ciampa
Pierre: I’m looking forward to seeing him in SLA. He’s a tough dude so guys will have their hands full with him.
MWR: Davey Vega
Pierre: The “Ace of Anarchy” isn’t just a nickname, it is who Vega has become. He went from a guy who would legit vomit before a match to a guy who I know will always have one of the best matches on the show. He’s the man.
MWR: Mat Fitchett
Pierre: The Dirty Rook could be a star if he is able to really hit the road and do it. Sometimes though real life things are more important but he’s an awesome talent.
MWR: Jonathan Gresham
Pierre: He won’t be at Circus Maximus, but he’s an amazing hold for hold wrestler who stole the weekend at Gateway to Anarchy.
MWR: Jo Jo Bravo
Pierre: One of the top up and comers in Anarchy. He has held his own with some of the best in the world.
MWR: Christian Rose
Pierre: Great talker and wrestler and our fans are getting to finally see that. Plus, behind the curtain I love talking good and–even better–shitty wrestling with Rose more than maybe anybody.
MWR: Matt Cage
Pierre: He’s a lot like Rose in that he has been tearing it up other places and our fans will finally get to see more of that in Anarchy.
MWR: Angelus Lane
Pierre: The 1st lady of Anarchy. I am very proud of Layne. She has grown by leaps and bounds as a wrestler and she improves every event we have.
MWR: Viking War Party
Pierre: Going to have to buy me chairs if they keep breaking them. Both guys are awesome. Alex I have known since before he started, I am happy every time I see them work and get better and better.
MWR: Ricky Starks
Pierre: Big deal in Texas and I think he can do the same here so keep your eyes on him as I think he is going to do well.
MWR: The Cause: Mr. Gelistico, Mr. Raw, Mr. Adams, Mr. Everett
Pierre: We will have to see.
MWR: Zakk Sawyers
Pierre: The 2014 Anarchy Rookie of the year. He’s not a rookie but was in Anarchy and he stepped up huge. A hard worker in and out of the ring and really appreciates his spot on the roster and he earns it.
MWR: Mikey McFinnigan
Pierre: Kinda just starting to see what he can do. He will do well in Anarchy, he’s very entertaining.
MWR: Jeremy Wyatt
Pierre: The best LWA champion of all time. Jeremy is one of my favorite wrestlers and is a pure class act to deal with outside the ring. Jeremy makes no bones about his wrestling days coming to an end and I’ll be sad to see him go, but he’s a guy who will leave better than he came in and how many guys can honestly say that. He’s always done anything I asked him to do and I don’t think Jeremy knows how much I respect him and appreciate his run with the LWA title.
MWR: Steve O Reno
Pierre: Honestly, I worked him in ACW and I knew he was good. Other than that I have only seen his two matches in SLA and that is it. I think he is very entertaining and he can wrestle, too, so I think big things are on the horizon for him.
MWR: Bolt Brady
Pierre: I think his change in attitude will be good for him in SLA. I like making people do stuff they may not be used to doing. Bolt is a pro and will do great. He’s getting a lot of miles under him too which is awesome. I like Bolt a lot.
MWR: PACO
Pierre: In SLA, he became a star in one weekend. Taking Trik Davis to the limit and taking a hellish beating from Gary Jay. I think Paco is a hungry kid who will do big things.
MWR: Pierre, Thank you so much for joining us today, it is always a treat to get to speak with you. How can fans follow you and the world of St. Louis Anarchy?
Pierre: I am on Facebook under Pierre Abernathy and Twitter is @PierreAbernathy. You can like SLA on Facebook at Saint Louis Anarchy and on Twitter @stlanarchy. Thanks for the time!
Saint Louis Anarchy presents Circus Maximus 2015
Stage One: Friday August 21st Stage Two: Saturday August 22nd
Live from Spaulding Hall Club in Alton IL (402 E 4th Street)
Doors Open at 6:30pm, Shows Start at 7:00pm
Tickets (PER NIGHT):
Front row: $15, Second Row. $12. General Admission. $10 in advance all tickets are $15 at the door
$1 BEER, FULL BAR AND FOOD. Please do not record show or stand on chairs
Also special guest musicians Mental Fixation (Stage 2 only)
STAGE ONE MATCHES SIGNED:
Main Event Trios Action: Team Anarchy: Davey Vega, Mat Fitchett, Angleus Layne vs. Team BOSS w/Dorian Victor and Greg Jovi: Gary Jay, Christian Rose, Jeremy Wyatt
Tag Team Titles on the Line: The Hooligans (c) vs. The Cause (Mr. Adams, Mr. Everett)
Zakk Sawyers vs. Tommaso Ciampa
Grudge Match: Alex Castle vs. Matt Cage
Jo Jo Bravo vs. PACO
Steve O Reno vs. Mikey Mcfinnigan
BOSS vs. Anarchy: Bolt Brady w/Greg Jovi vs. Ricky Starks
STAGE TWO MATCHES SIGNED:
Saint Louis Anarchy Championship Match (NO TIME LIMIT) Gary Jay (c)w/Dorian Victor vs. “Ace of Anarchy” Davey Vega
Mat Fitchett vs. Former ECW/WWE Star LITTLE GUDIO
Christian Rose vs. Tommaso Ciampa
Matt Cage vs. Zakk Sawyers
Sugar Dunkerton vs. Steve O Reno
TALENT SIGNED FOR CM WEEKEND:
Saint Louis Anarchy Champion: Gary Jay
Saint Louis Anarchy Tag Champions: The Hooligans
Davey Vega
Mat Fitchett
Tommaso Ciampa
Jo Jo Bravo
Christian Rose
Matt Cage
Angelus Layne
Viking War Party
Sugar Dunkerton
Ricky Starks
The Cause: Mr. Gelistico, Mr. Raw, Mr. Adams, Mr. Everett
Zakk Sawyers
Mikey Mcfinnigan
Jeremy Wyatt
Steve O Reno
Bolt Brady (stage one)
PACO (stage one)
Donovan Danhausen
Brendan and Randy Phillips are all smiles at SICW.
MWR Owner and Editor Brian Kelley: For many father and sons a night of pro wrestling is a wonderful way for them to spend time some quality time with each other while taking that rollercoaster of exciting night of wrestling action that will be memories for them for years to come. Today, I am joined with Randy Phillips and his son Brendan: . Guy, I would like to thank you for joining us at Missouri Wrestling Revival.com
Randy: Thanks for having us Brian!
Brian: Randy, let’s start off with you my friend. Where did you grow up and what were your first introduction to pro wrestling and who were you a big fan of?
Randy: I grew up in Homestead, Florida. It’s about 1 hour south of Miami. Born and raised until the age of 21. My first recollection of wrestling was Wrestlemania 2 with Hulk Hogan and King Kong Bundy in the big blue steel cage. I can remember sitting on the living room floor just amazed at how big Bundy was and how cool it was that Hulk could move around for such a big guy around the ring. Obviously in the early to mid 80’s, most kids gravitated towards Hulk Hogan. He was my guy to cheer for. I can remember having the tear away Hulk shirt that my mom watched me tear away and cringed cause that meant she had to buy another one lol. I had the old WWF ring and one Christmas got all of the wrestlers LJN produced. I can recall like it was yesterday waiting in anticipation for Wrestlemania Vand the Mega Powers exploding. My cousin and I used to be the Mega Powers (he was Randy Savage and I was Hulk and his sister was Miss Elizabeth).
Brian: Did your dad and you make any wrestling events and what were some of your memories that you recall?
Randy: Dad was really into wrestling for as long as I can remember. He grew up with Championship Wrestling from Florida with Dusty Rhodesand the Briscoesand of course, the big dog back then, the NWA (National Wrestling Alliance). I remember like it was yesterday when Dad took me to my first ever live show, Royal Rumble 1991 at the Miami Arena in Miami.
Of course, Hulk Hogan was my pick to win the Rumble and The Ultimate Warrior was gaining speed to succeed him as the man as he was the WWF champion. I remember my dad screaming at me because Randy Savage was racing down during the Warrior vs Sgt Slaughtertitle match and he hit Warrior with the scepter. The crowd went crazy and we had a new champion. Dad said Hulk had to win the Rumble so he could take the title off of Slaughter at Wrestlemania VII. From then on, Dad had to order the WWF pay per views so we could watch them all. Mom was a big 4 Horsemen fan, especially Tully and Arn. She always threw up four fingers and told me that this is the symbol of excellence. If the WWF or WCW was in town, we went, house show, tv or ppv. I can recall going to Spec’s (CD store) and meeting The Rockand D’Lo Brown for autographs when The Rock’s autobiography came out. When my wife and I were dating, we heard on a radio station that Hulk Hogan would be in Key Largo to help promote the new gym owned by Kevin Sullivan. We drove 30 minutes to meet him.
Brian: In today’s mainstream wrestling (WWE,TNA,ROH) who are your favorite wrestlers?
Brendan: WWE – John Cenais my favorite! I also like Sheamus, Dolph Ziggler, Roman Reigns & Lucha Dragons. ROH – Moose, Michael Elgin and ACH
Randy: WWE – Triple H is my all time favorite. I also love to watch Randy Orton, Seth Rollins, Bray Wyatt& Dolph Ziggler. TNA– Before they moved to Destination America, I was a big fan of Bobby Roode, Austin Aries& Taryn Terrel. Since they moved to Destination Amaerica, I do not watch them anymore and only catch the spoiler tapings to stay in touch. ROH – Moose, ACH & The Addiction. ROH is broadcast locally and I started watching them heavily since the wrestlers also come to High Risk Wrestling.
Brian: Prior to making it to a MWR coverage promotion, did you and Brendan attend any of the mainstream events and do you have any fond memories of meeting any of the stars or some of the matches.
Randy: Since Brendan is only 6 years old, we haven’t been able to attend any events as the cost is so high and I don’t want to take him and sit in the nosebleeds where he’ll possibly lose interest. He likes to be up close and that’s just not feasible at this time.
Memories that will last a lifetime with be Brendan and his father spending time so close to the action of wrestling at an Indy event.
Brian: What was your first local promotion that you attended and how did you hear about it?
Randy: The first local promotion I attended was SICW to meet Ted Dibiase. I liked his page on facebook and heard he would be there. I then looked up SICW on Facebook and we then attended. Brendan’s first show was High Risk Wrestling and we heard about them through Facebook as well and I liked their page. The Belleville fairgrounds in only 20 minutes from us so I took him to see if he would enjoy it.
Brian: Thankfully, the shows were good enough for you to return. What and who did you enjoy from that event ?
Brendan: SICW – Ricky Cruz& the Midgets. HRW – Moose, Michael Elgin, ACH, Uhaa Nation, Chuck Taylor, reDRagon,& Mike Outlaw
Ricky Cruz and Herb Simmons have been two men that have worked to bring back fans like Randy and Brendan to events that have featured some of the biggest moments in the Midwest.
Randy: From SICW, I liked Ricky Cruz straight away as he had a great flamboyance to him even though he was a “bad guy”.
We hope to have the opportunity to meet him and get a picture at a future show. Honestly, the legends were bringing me to the SICW shows and then we started to enjoy the wrestling. Brendan always asks me who the good guy and bad guys are so he knows how to cheer for them. He has been to enough shows now to know who these guys are and he wants whoever Travis Cook brings out to lose, lol. As for HRW, Frank (the promoter) and I conversed before and during the show and he was kind enough to bring out their champion, ACH for a photo op and the Magic Man Jack Sinn to show him a few magic tricks.
Brendan loved having his photo with the exciting Ring of Honor and High Risk Wrestling Superstar ACH.
The sheer size of Moose instantly caught Brendan’s eyes as well. We have since purchased their DVD’s and watch them from time to time. We also got to meet Bobby Eaton at the first HRW show we went to in October and Brendan asked me who that was? I said, that’s Beautiful Bobby. Brendan went up to him and said, your Beautiful Bobby? Bobby said, I don’t know about Beautiful, but yeah, I’m Bobby Eaton! Lol. I loved it. We got autographs from him and pictures.
Brian: Since that time you have made your way to a few other events. What other promotions have you checked out and what show was your favorite and why?
Randy: We have seen SICW and HRW so far. I don’t like to travel too far for an event, so these promotions are local for us. My favorite show was High Risk Wrestling, Makes a Great Stocking Stuffer as we got to see reDragon, Michael Elgin and ACH. Those guys tear it up no matter how many people are there as long as we cheer loud and I can’t find anyone more pumped to see them than Brendan and I. As for personal appeal, I truly enjoyed meeting the One Man Gang as he was just so genuine to Brendan and couldn’t believe that a 5 year old, at the time, came just to see him.
Brendan: My favorite show was HRW, What High Risk have you done for me lately?. My favorite match was Bolt Brady v.s. Mike Sydal
Brian: Out of the local wrestling stars who have you enjoyed the most and why?
Brendan: I like to watch Mike Sydal, Bolt Brady, Moose, & Chuck Taylor
Michael Elgin is as dedicated as they come in the ring wrestling against the top stars around the world as well as out of it with his fans.
Randy: I enjoy watching Moose, ACH, Ricky Cruz, reDragon, Michael Elgin, Jonathan Gresham.
Brian: You have attended both SICW and High Risk Wrestling, and both have been willing to bring in legends of the sport including the likes of the One Man Gang, Ted Dibiase, Bobby Eaton and Nikolai Volkoff. Randy, you and I grew up with these stars, but prior to making your way to meet them, do the two of you check out old videos of these and Brendan, which one has been your favorites from your dads younger days to watch wrestle?
Randy: Before we go meet a legend, I look them up on the internet and show him pictures. If I have a DVD with them on it, I show Brendan as well.
Brian: I have been a fan of wrestling myself for all my life. During that time I have met some that I really loved, but when I met them in person I was disappointed, and on other occasions have met wrestlers that I became bigger fans of once I did meet them due to their actions to myself and other fans around me. Which one out of those legends has been your favorite to meet in person?
The Phillips join the One Man Gang Army.
Brendan: One Man Gang was my favorite legend to meet. And I asked my dad to buy me a OMG t-shirt to wear. We also got a picture with him.
Randy: My favorite legend to meet so far has got to be the One Man Gang as we discussed earlier. We got to meet Ace Cowboy Bob Orton last week in East carondelet.
When so many people have nice words to say about you, then it must be true. That is the case as we hear another testament to the kindness and down to earth of one of the greatest tag team wrestlers ever, Beautiful Bobby Eaton.
I also garnered a better appreciation after meeting Bobby Eaton as he is just so humble and acts like it’s a pleasure to meet you rather than it is to meet him. So classy.
Brian: You have also had the opportunity to meet the likes of Trevor Murdoch, Michael Elgin, ACH, redDragon and Moose. Out of these or any of the other Indy superstars or former WWE wrestlers you have seen wrestle at this level, whos matches have you enjoyed and why?
Brendan: My favorite match to watch was for the HRW High Risk title, ACH v.s. Ricochet.
Randy: reDragon has amazed me the most as they wrestle at such a high speed that you can’t help but get excited watching them. I get pumped up for Michael Elgin as I love the long standing vertical suplexes he does. He is also very humble and is easily approachable for pictures and just talking in general.
Brian: If I was to start a promotion and I came to you and asked you what I should do to improve on what you have seen, what would it be?
Randy: I know everyone’s not perfect but I see little things like the wrestlers or referees not exactly knowing the rules of certain matches or promotions. For instance, at HRW last time, we had a three way match and the wrestlers had to tag in and out to always keep it one on one. Didn’t make sense to me as the same style match but a 5 way had all of them in the ring at once. Just consistency issues. HRW has no count outs, but one referee kept trying to count them out and we are screaming at the referee that there are no count outs in HRW.
Brendan’s grandparents Maw Maw and Paw Paw.
Brian: What are your upcoming events you hope to attend and if someone was to ask you why they should purchase a ticket to a local wrestling event, what would you say?
Getting photos and autographs with Volkolff at SICW.
Randy: HRW moved to Cahokia, IL. So we are pumped to see who Frank brings in next. SICW keeps bringing the legends that we have to go see and we are truly grateful for that.
Herb was also kind enough to surprise Brendan with letting him hold the SICW Classic title.
Brian: Randy and Brendan thank you so much for joining us today with this interview. I always enjoy seeing you guys at the events that we cover and I feel safe to say that I speak for all the promoters and wrestlers in the Midwest that we appreciate your support of pro wrestling by attending the events and we hope to see you in 2015 soon.
Last night at St. Louis Anarchy we caught up with one of our favorite wrestlers, Angelus Layne as she teamed up with Brandon Espinosa against the Hooligans in a thrilling battle. At the end of nigh she stated that she was hoping to help a friend with a fundraiser for their dog Trista. At the bottom of this post you will find Trista’s story and why the money is needed.
She will be at St. Louis Anarchy and hopes that you will find it in your heart to come up and help, and if you are unable to attend, please check out the Gofundme page here.
St. Louis Anarchy is red hot and tonight they will have the finals of SLA tag team title tourney is set as The Hooligans battle Christian Rose and Jeremy Wyatt. Also already announced are
ACH vs Louis Lyndon Davey Vega vs Jonathan Gresham
A off the charts night of action is planned. . Be there
4/18/2015 St. Louis Anarchy (Alton, Illinois) Alton Knights of Columbus 405 East 4th Street Doors Open at 6:30pm, Show starts at 7:00pm Front Row $15 in advance, $20 at the door (only 50 seats available) Second Row $12 in advance $15 at door General Admission $10 in advance $15 at the door
Help Little Trista Get Better!
For being only a year old Trista sure has been through a lot. Originally housed in a shelter in Louisiana, from there she was driven all the way to a shelter here in Vermont. You see down south shelters are overcrowded and pups are often euthanized if a home is not found for them fast enough. It’s because of this that volunteers have started to transfer pups up north so that they are spared and given a chance to find a loving home.
Trista was one of those pups. When we adopted her late last year all we knew really was that she’d come from Louisiana and that she’d been treated for heartworm. We were assured that she’d completed treatment and was in good health. Given how happy, playful and loving she is we had no reason to think otherwise!
We bring our pups in every spring for yearly check ups to make sure they’re healthy. Because of her previous run in with heartworm Trista was tested for it and to our shock it came back positive. Trista was given a second more thorough test for heartworm as pups who’ve been treated for it sometimes give false positives. Unfortunately that test too came back positive.
In addition to that unfortunate development a lump on her abdomen that we were assured by the shelter was nothing was in fact a hernia.
Trista has been a beacon of love, joy and entertainment for us in the short time she has been a part of our family. We love her and are committed to seeing that she gets healthy. We need help though.
All told, between the heartworm treatments, the surgery for her hernia, and the follow up visits for both, her Veterinarian bills are expected to total at least $1600, possibly more. This is simply too much for us to handle on our own. So with great reservation we’re asking for your help.
If you’re in a position to help we’d truly appreciate it. Any amount, large or small, helps. We love Trista. She enriches our lives so much that the least we can do is make sure that she is healthy and happy.
Please help if you can and share this please. Thank you so much.
High Risk Wrestling Presents “What High Risk have you done for me lately?” on Sunday afternoon February 15th at The Belle-Clair Expo Center, 200 S. Belt East, Belleville, IL. 62220 with a matinee start time of 3:00PM Doors and 4:00PM Bell time!
Proving Ground Pro‘s final event of 2013, Emergency Response, was a huge success and an absolutely wild night of action. New champions highlighted the best night of P.G.P.’s first year with a record crowd and hottest show to date!
“America’s Favorite Son” Ruff Crossing is one of the few men today that has the package to match Jake Dirdens tenacity in the ring.
Jake Dirden brings the pain to Crossing in route for the PWP Title. …Could these two men be heading towards a feud that could last for years?
With P.G.P.’s Franchise title vacant going into the evening, a one night,four man tournament was set to crown a new champion. The first round pairings were Ruff Crossing vs Tyson Dux and Jake Dirden vs TaDarius Thomas. “America’s Favorite Son” Ruff Crossing was able to move passed Canadian star”Textbook”Tyson Dux in a match that pushed Ruff to his limits.
“Textbook” Tyson Dux looked to take the “America’s Favorite Son” Ruff Crossing to school early on.
Dux’s scientific mat skills were almost too much for Ruff Crossing, but the big cowboy surprised Tyson with a roll up and moved on to the evenings main event. In the other first round match “Dirdey Jake Dirden overcame TaDarius Thomas in a classic battle of size versus speed.
TaDarius Thomas is a powerful man with a huge upside. Here he wisely tries to keep Dirden grounded.
TD showed the skills that made him P.G.P.’s first Franchise Champion by bringing his “A” game, putting Dirden in a tough spot on several occasions. In the end the size and power of the 6’10” bearded wild man proved too much for TD and “Dirdey” scored a pin off a huge driving choke slam, moving him on to the championship main event. The main event was then set, Ruff Crossing versus Jake Dirden for the P.G.P. Franchise Championship. This match had no time limit or disqualification, a winner must be decided. This stipulation resulted in Dirden calling Crossing out to the floor to start the match, this was a wild street fight from the opening bell. Spilling in and through the crowd from the get go, Crossing versus Dirden was and absolute old school classic that seemed to culminate in “Dirdey” Alabama slamming Ruff through an extremely stiff table. Somehow Crossing managed to kick out on the 2 and continue the match. Unable to get the 3 count Dirden appeared shocked and seemed to be taken out of his game, this allowed Crossing the opening he needed to hit Jake with a high impact lariat and score the pin. Congratulations to Ruff Crossing, new P.G.P. Franchise Champion.
Zero1 X World Champion Jonathan Gresham can fly and wrestle with the very best in the world.
P.G.P. Cutting Edge Champion”The Apex” Blake Steel changes the tide with his power advantage.
In the surprise shake up of the evening, P.G.P. Cutting Edge Champion”The Apex” Blake Steel was taken to a 20 minute time limit draw with Zero1 X World Champion Jonathan Gresham. This was the proverbial wrestling clinic. Both men executed solid game plans, but neither could gain a submission or 3 count before the time limit expired. With the crowd wanting 5 more minutes, Gresham and Steel seemed ready to make that happen. Before the referee could call for a restart, Mario Andrew Crivello interrupted the proceedings and cashed in the Cutting Edge Golden Ticket he had won earlier in the evening. This forced Blake Steel into a second title defense against a rested and ready Crivello. After kicking out of several early pin attempts, “The Apex” began to get the best of Mario and seemed on the verge of winning, but a distracted ref left an opening for Crivello’s manager “Mouth of the Midwest” J.P. To throw powder in Steel’s eyes.
NEW P.G.P. Cutting Edge Champion Mario Andrew Crivello
This allowed Mario Crivello to score the pin and take the title. Congratulations go out to new P.G.P. Cutting Edge Champion Mario Andrew Crivello.
Matt Knicks on fire.
Hooligan opponents beware , if what you see in the next two photos happens to you, then you are in deep trouble.
Proving Ground Pro Tag Team Champions The Hooligans (Devin and Mason Cutter) successfully defended their titles in a fast and furious match with The 2 Star Heroes(Chris Castro and Matt Knicks).This one had moves and high flying that defied description. A great showing by the 2 Star Heroes came up just short. Congratulations to The Hooligans on a big win.
The power of Alex Rudolph made an impact in the battle royal.
Could this be the next the PWI ROOKIE OF THE YEAR? Raphael King enjoys beating on Jake Parnell.
Gary Jay thought he was lined up to win the golden ticket…..but
The 10 man Golden Ticket Gauntlet was won by Mario Andrew Crivello who overcame 9 opponents to earn the Golden Ticket and a shot at the Cutting Edge title. The other entrants were Abe Jackson, Gary J, Jack Rebel, The Great Akuma, Alex Rudolph, Jake Parnell, Randy Ray, Mr. Nice and Raphael King.
Colonel Gimp’s Mobile Home Militia
Derek Moss explodes!
Devyn Nichole hoped to chop down Melanie Cruise.
Poor Perry Winkle finds himself in the grasp of Melanie Cruise.
Two of the most entertaining wrestlers in the Midwest ,Evan Gelistico and Tripp Casidy
Colonel Gimp’s Mobile Home Militia, consisting of The Bum Rush Brothers(Shorty Biggs and Outkast) and Melanie Cruise crushed The Addiction ( Perry Winkle, Derek Moss and Devyn Nichole).
Jester Yorick from way up top.
Jester Yorick and Machine accompanied by Shonda Boomer defeated Tripp Casidy and Evan Gelistico.
Just over two weeks after winning the Zero 1 USA x-Division title from Oliver Cain in Mattoon, Illinois, Gresham becomes a Quadruple Junior Heavyweight Champion by defeating Takuya Sugawara at Zero1 (Tanaka 20th Anniversary) and K-DOJO at the Korakuen Hall.
ZERO1 International Jr Heavyweight Championship..
NWA Jr Heavyweight Championship (white belt)…
ZERO1 USA X-Division Championship…
2012 Tenkaichi wiiner which gave him a Championship to hold.
Missouri Wrestling Revival 