“Combat Tested, Mother Approved”
Issue 2

by Joshua Ray

More from the mind of the MWR owner.

When I first made the decision to get involved in professional wrestling, I knew that writing was the way to get there. I’m not saying that I am the best out there, but I’m acknowledging that I do have a God-given talent for taking my thoughts and putting them into words on paper or in a digital method of some sort. There is still much for me to learn before I become an all-knowing source of professional wrestling knowledge and business sense, of course. However, I seriously doubt that even if I was the most knowledgable on the topic I would brag about being so.

A few years back, I wanted to do some form of writing for WWE. I didn’t like the product, and I had plenty of experience operating within a strict and confining political environment while making my feelings known and respected. I felt that I was a great candidate for such a career path.

Unfortunately, I quickly learned that WWE has a different criteria for a writer than what I initially believed. Not to be discouraged, I started reading into the business side of professional wrestling in general. I’d love to say that my studying days are over but I think most people, whether fans, promoters, or wrestlers, understands that the business is constantly changing. There are differing opinions on whether the change is for the better or for the worse, but the consensus is that there is always change.

I began contacting every wrestling promotion in California that I could find, as that was where I was located. Pro Wrestling Guerrilla was very polite and told me that there were no openings for me to contribute to the writing aspect of their business. A few smaller promotions never really got back to me at all. At last, my prayers were answered when Roland Alexander contacted me and offered me an internship for All Pro Wrestling in Central California near San Jose.

Roland was a friendly guy. He wanted to put me to work as an intern on the production team. Unfortunately, a major change in my life due to a combat related injury in Iraq gave the Army reason to give me a medical discharge and I was forced to relocate my wife and son. I had missed out on an opportunity, but had learned that it was possible to get my foot in the door as long as I constantly maintained the professionalism, discipline, and persistence that I had gained from the Army. Roland has a bad reputation among most people involved in wrestling, but at least he planned on giving me a chance.

The next stop for me was Missouri. My wife wanted to settle down in Lebanon, MO, our hometown. I didn’t know of any promotions in the area so I did an internet search and through a series of events came into contact with Ed Chuman of NWA Midwest. Mr. Chuman was very helpful and informative, patching me through to Central States Wrestling (CSW) and then owner, Martin Thomas. Martin sent me some DVDs of the CSW product and I was instantly hooked.

I wrote for a few e-feds (internet roleplay-based fantasy wrestling organizations), conducted recaps and interviews for Martin, and generally felt like I was appreciated for the work I was doing. I’d like to think that I started to build a reputation for myself, and that is what lead to me focusing my energy into Missouri Wrestling Revival.

I still have dreams of becoming more involved in the business of professional wrestling. For now though, it’s important to take smaller steps, plan, and let everything fall into place. The more knowledge I have about the business, the more I find that I want to change about it. Recently, there have been good people that have chipped in to help me out with no other motive other than to befriend me and talk about shared interests.

Tobi Hope of Powerhouse Wrestling, good friend and MWR columnist Brian “Flair” Kelley, “Smart” Mark Anthony, Peter Hahn, and Jeff (isageek), to name a few. St. Louis Wrestling Community and the owner, Mad Conservative Crimefighter, has been a big help and drove initial traffic to my site.

Hopefully my saga in pro wrestling will continue…