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Ed Slak

Shane Douglas
Interview by Chuck North and Ed Slak
Former ECW champion Shane Douglas talked to Chicagowrestling.com's Ed Slak and Chuck North at a recent Pro Championship Wrestling show. Douglas spent one day as the PCW champion before losing the title back to John Burke.

He talks with Slak and North about his early career, how he used to spell his last name with two s's and why so many people think he's related to Paul Orndorff.

ED: How long have you been wrestling for?

SHANE DOUGLAS: Going on 22 years.

ED: What made you decide to become a wrestler?

SHANE DOUGLAS: I wrestled since I was 6 as an amateur. When it came time to get a job after college, there weren't a ton of jobs available in 1986. So I wrestled from on and when I graduated in Eddie Gilbert offered me a job with the UWF in Texas. I decided that any job is better than no job. So I figured I'd be there for a couple of months and find a real job. Well the real job never came on and here I am 22 years later still doing it.

CHUCK: Did you ever have any doubts when you started, like maybe this isn't for me?

SHANE DOUGLAS: No, actually I always enjoyed the business. I like being around it. I've been very negative. When you hear public comments about the business it sounds overly negative because I usually tend to talk about those negative things that have happened. On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being miserable negative and 10 being utopia, the business has been a 7-8 to me. I've seen things. I've been afforded a lifestyle that I would have never been able to afford with teaching or anything using a degree. I've been to places in the world I would've never seen otherwise. So overall I've had a very positive experience in the business.

CHUCK: Would you let your son become a wrestler?

SHANE DOUGLAS: I would never want my son to get into this business because you see how cut-throat it is, how two-faced people are, and how they'll lie for their own agenda. But I don't want my son or anyone else that I love to be involved in the business because I've always assumed that they'd go out and make a living doing other things, but not involved in the business.

ED: You mentioned how you talk negative about the business, why is that?

SHANE DOUGLAS: It gets a bit disconcerting after 20 years to have people that you've broken in with, people that you had sleeping in your house 20 years ago because they couldn't afford to get a hotel room, like Mick Foley, go out and write a book that basically slams you. You know, when you've been nothing but a friend to them. But he did it because he knew he would find a receptive audience where he was working at the time. So it's that kind of stuff that I take umbrage with. To me, friendship is absolute. (Pointing to Ed) If I'm his friend and you don't like it (pointing to Chuck), fuck you. It has nothing to do with you. But what I won't do is say fuck him (pointing to Chuck) to appease you (pointing to Ed) if he's my friend. And yet that's what most people in the business do. So I can say that I've had people like Tracey Smothers and Taz that I've maintained friendships with, it's nice to see, you know.

CHUCK: Do you remember your first match?

SHANE DOUGLAS: Yeah, sure do. It was Thanksgiving day, 1982, in West Virginia. It was a barbed wire match, oddly enough. It was me and Dominic Denucci vs. Big Foot and Frankie Williams. Walking into the ring I got my ass caught and stuck on the barbed wire. Dominic reached over and pulled it out of my ass and I bled the rest of the match. So when you look back and think where my career would go with ECW and how ECW was so violent, that's where I would make my name in the business. So it was sort of full circle. My first match was a barbed wire match in West Virginia and I made $14.50 for it. I've asked a hundred times, what was the 50 cents for? Why not $14 or $15? (Laughing) I guess the 50 cents was for the blood.

ED: What was the first name you used?

SHANE DOUGLAS: I used my real name for a long time. I forget the order they went in. I used Mike Kelly whenever I went to do jobs in the WWF way back in. I worked Butch Reed up there. I worked with Jake Roberts. I worked with Randy Savage. I worked with Paul Orndorff. At one point I was working up in Canada with Frank Cannon, he wanted me to use something other than my real name. He looked at me and said you look like Paul Orndorff's brother or cousin or nephew, so we're going to call you Troy Orndorff. Funny thing is, I only used it 3 or 4 times up there and it stuck because if you remember about 10 years ago, there was a rumor going around that Paul Orndorff died. Everybody kept coming up to me saying that's terrible about your brother, that's terrible about your Dad, that's terrible about your uncle. I would say, "what are you talking about?" They go, Paul Orndorff died. I'd say, "he's not my dad, he's not my brother, and he's not my uncle." It stuck. A lot of people heard that and it stuck through the years. People to this day will periodically ask me if I'm related to Paul Orndorff and I only used it, maybe 4 or 5 times.

CHUCK: When did the name Shane Douglas come about then?

SHANE DOUGLAS: Shane Douglas I got in when I went to UWF. Eddie Gilbert and Missy Hyatt, oddly enough, came up with it. He had the idea of calling me either Shane or Cody. Shane Martin didn't sound right. He was going through all these different incarnations of Shane something. And Missy Hyatt was sitting there, and in a ditzy manner she goes what about Shane Douglas? And it stuck. We looked at it and it sounded right. When I first started using it, it had 2 s's at the end. If you look back at early autographs, like the first month or so, I did an ss at the end. So if you've ever seen an autograph that says Shane Douglass, you know that was from the very beginning when I was Shane Douglass. Then I changed it to Shane Douglas with just the one s. I've been Shane Douglas ever since, except for Dean Douglas.

ED: You signed with the WWE in the early 90s correct?

SHANE DOUGLAS: I signed with them in I left WCW and went up there and had an uneventful run as an upper mid-card guy. They were just getting ready to do a big push with me. Vince wanted to see if he could create a rock star. Since I've dabbded in music; I played the drums, I played bass guitar, I sing a little bit; I sound great in the shower, they thought they could but me in the studio and, with some help, make me sound pretty good. Jimmy Hart had written 2 songs, Rockin' the Halls and American Girls, which later would become an entrance song for, I think, The Stallions who used American Girls. The video that Mariah Carey first shot in high school, in black and white, was derived by the guy who was going to do the video for Rockin' the Halls. It was supposed to be shot in the same location that Mariah Carey shot hers. We did three versions of the song. We never actually recorded them but we came up with three versions; one that was bubble gum, one that was heavy metal, and one that was rock. The one that sounded the best for that song was the rock song. They were going to do those 2 songs on disk. Vince wanted to see if he could create a rock star. So that's when they came up with the whole idea of the Bon Jovi look with the tear away denim outfit, the poncho, and the western look. At that same time was when Bon Jovi did the Young Guns Soundtrack. So my dad came down with emphysema and lung cancer right around that same time and I had to leave the road. So I left and went home and that pretty much ended the run there the first time. So I don't have anything negative to say. The first run there was fine. They treated me well, the pay was ok, and it was pretty much what I expected it to be. The second run up there in was when I had most of the trouble. That's why I have negative stuff to say.

ED: What was your first match then?

SHANE DOUGLAS: I have no idea. I can't remember. I blank on that one. I don't keep mental track of that sort of thing. But I do know what my record is.

ED: So what made you go to WCW?

SHANE DOUGLAS: I left WWE and I went home to spend time with my dad and I taught school for a couple of years. In 1993, Marty Janetty called me. He had talked to Kip Fry. Kip Fry came in and he had talked to Marty Janetty, and Marty Janetty had given me an idea of doing like a New Rockers type thing to use me and him. We were going to get paid $4,000 a week. It was more than I had ever made in the business. So I agreed to leave teaching and go back and do that. After I attended my resignation in teaching is when that girl died in [Janetty's] house at a party or something and he got caught with cocaine on him. Kip Fry immediately broke off relations and it killed the deal with me, but I had already left teaching so I had to go down there and wrestle. In the meantime, Bill Watts came in and offered me $300 a night to be renegotiated in 3 months or 6 months, depending on what contribution I made. Three months later they put me with Ricky Steamboat and we became the World Tag Team Champions. That all panned out, it went in the other direction for me there. I left WCW in because I had injured my shoulder and they wanted us to drop the belts to the [Hollywood] Blondes. I wanted to do it right, I'm all about business. I wanted them to wait till I got back from the shoulder injury then we would have an angle with the Blondes and drop the belts right.

CHUCK: What happened with that situation?

SHANE DOUGLAS: As I can recall, instead they put Ricky Steamboat and Tom Zenk under masks and called them Dos Hombres. Ricky Steamboat and Tom Zenk were the two that wrestled and lost the belts in Atlanta that night. They went out of their way to make me look really bad. They basically jobbed Zenk out in the match to make me look bad because they thought I was fucking them somehow by being injured. This really angered me because time and again, Lex Luger would stub his toe, take 6 weeks off, and never be questioned or bothered about it. You go out and tear your shoulder out and have to have reconstructive surgery and somehow you're fucking the company. It just really pissed me off the way they did it. And what was cool about it was before the end of that match Ricky Steamboat wanted to prove that it wasn't Shane Douglas. So as the match ended, he pulled his hood off and Zenk couldn't have because it wasn't me. So that was his way of telling the world, look it's not Shane Douglas. He helped me cover my ass in that match. But it so pissed me off in a way that WCW did that, it basically turned me off to wrestling. I was fed up with the wrestling business. So I decided to walk away from the wrestling business.

CHUCK: What did you do after that?

SHANE DOUGLAS: I went back home, started teaching again, and decided I was done with wrestling. At that time Eddie Gilbert, who gave me my break back in UWF, started running the ECW, Eastern Championship Wrestling. He called me up and kept offering me a job. Every single day he was calling me and I kept saying no, I was done with wrestling. And he kept calling me making a better offer, offering more money and I kept saying, it's not about the money Eddie. it's not about that. I'm not interested. he called me up and was like what if I let you do this and what about this, and what if I let you book, and do this and write story lines. Finally he offered me the only thing nobody ever would, to be the lead heel. Because up to that point in my career everybody said Shane Douglas was nothing more than a mid-card babyface. So when he offered me the role as the lead heel, that caught me a little bit. So I thought I'd go in and do it for a little while. I always wanted to say that when I left the business that I learned everything about the business, as long as you can give me a chance to do it. So I did it and got smitten again. And I went back and I got caught by the wrestling bug again and stuck it out and rode the ride. I remember the first day there, Terry Funk said to me, "How long do you think we'll ride this train before it runs off the rails?" figured it would be a month or two or three and it would be bankrupt or whatever. Six months later we were like wow, it's still going. Then a year later, holy shit it's still going. By that time it became a reality that ECW was possibly going to stick around for a while. It turned out to be a 7-year run that did pretty well and I think it still could have been around but Paul Heyman did the impossible, he killed the perfect dream.

Part 2 of Shane Douglas' interview with Chicagowrestling.com's Chuck North and Ed Slak focuses on his role in the beginning of ECW, and also his frustration during his WWE runs.


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CHUCK: What was it like when you first won the ECW title, and threw the NWA title down?

SHANE DOUGLAS: It's surreal. I mean when I looked up at heaven and I said, ³here we go dad,² I said that because I knew my dad was because I knew my dad was such a big wrestling fan and I knew he was watching from up there and that he would have been very proud of me for winning the World Title and for what we were about to do, throw down the NWA Belt. It was a chance, like you hear those opportunities that come up once in a life time that you could do something that would be remembered forever that will go down in history in the legacy of the wrestling business.

In football there are big events, the first Super Bowl, the advent of the forward pass, just different changes and rules and stuff like that. Things that become milestones in those sports. And in wrestling, the throwing down of the NWA belt was a milestone because it set the course for ECW and showed the wrestling business what wrestling was going to become in the '90s, very edgy, very in your face, very realistic, and it caught on. So I was very proud of throwing down the belt because it was a real big deal to me. Not to sound corny or like a mark but anytime a company puts you as their guy, it's pretty much an admission by the company that they believe in your in ring ability to draw fans to the building and sell tickets. So from a realistic perspective, from the inside perspective, from a smarks perspective, that was ECW's way of saying, "We believe that Shane Douglas can take this company into the future." From the fans' perspective, it was their way of saying, "We dig Shane Douglas as World Champion."So from both sides, the smart mark and work side of it, it was really a cool event in my career.

ED: What were some of your favorite matches in your ECW career?

SHANE DOUGLAS: Every time I worked Taz, I enjoyed it. I liked working with Terry Funk in the early years. I liked working with Sabu after I went back after '95. He and I certainly had a better understanding of each other.

ED: In your opinion, what was your biggest feud in ECW?

SHANE DOUGLAS: There were several of them. Sabu, Terry Funk, Taz.

ED: What was your overall perception of ECW as a whole?

SHANE DOUGLAS: I was a big mark for ECW. I used to sit in the back and watch the monitor and watch the matches because I really dug what I was seeing. The guys were busting their asses, they were working hard, and we were innovative. Every single week you would see the guys go out and bust their asses to do better than they did last week. I was a mark for it. I had never seen it in the business. I had always heard that's what wrestling used to be. I had never seen it until 1993-94 in ECW. All of a sudden you started seeing what wrestling should be and I got caught up in it. I really, really respected guys in the dressing room. I really, really respected the fans. I really respected Paul Heyman for doing what he was doing. I mean, it was one of those occasions where all the planets and stars lined up the right way and trying to duplicate it would be like catching lightning in a bottle twice. I don't think you'll see another ECW. It was just one of those things that happened. It was a phenomenon and there's no formula to a phenomenon. You throw your cards out there and think things happen or they don't. We just got fortunate and for us they did happen.

CHUCK: What did you think of the ECW fans?

SHANE DOUGLAS: The biggest task for the ³Franchise² as a character was to attract more fans and to keep the company base growing. So it's very difficult from the standpoint of not only playing the lead heel, but also trying to deal with the fans, to get them to come to the table and watch what we were providing. So it was a real fine line to walk and you see a lot of times how the fans responded to the ³Franchise². The ECW fans were very smart and they knew what their role was. They knew that I was a bad guy, so they should boo me. But then on the same token, when the ³Franchise² go out and ³cut the fucking music², you would see the fans pop for that because they knew what the ³Franchise² character was. The ³Franchise² character basically was going out and saying what they were thinking. They wanted to tell Vince McMahon to fuck off. They wanted to tell WCW to kiss their ass. But they didn't have the avenue to do it. So here was this character in their face, coming out, and for the first time saying what they were thinking. So the ³Franchise² character, at the same time, was both a heel and a baby face. Heel in form, baby face in style.

ED: What led you going back to the WWE in '95?

SHANE DOUGLAS: Well, my first run in WWE you start falling into that whole trap and the mindset. The game they played with me was ³timing is everything.² You know, you're the hottest property in wrestling right now, which in '95 I was pretty hot. They started making me promises that in blind sight were bogus. They were bullshit. If I knew then what I knew now, I'd be able to say no to them. You try and start a family and you see that ECW is an incredible amount of work to do in getting the company over and you think you have the opportunity to go up there to the big boys and make some money fast.

I marked out. I dropped my defense and I started buying into what they were telling me. I took it and it turned out to be a very bad move for me. I believe that everything you do, good or bad, in your career and life is a learning experience. The man you are the day you die is a summation of all the experiences in your life, good and bad. If life's good, everybody has bad in their life. Instead of letting it eat me up and hate devour me, somebody told me a long time ago ³don't let it rent space in your head.² So I decided to try and use that, as much as I got fucked, trying to keep it from being personal in my head. Instead of getting mad and going out to punch walls, I'm going to shove it up Vince's ass. I'm going to go back to ECW and I'm going to fucking show Vince McMahon what he lost out on, the talent that he had and could have made money with.

CHUCK: So how was it when you went back to ECW?

SHANE DOUGLAS: I went back to ECW determined to do bigger and better things than I did in my first run at ECW. So I got bigger, stronger, faster, and more prepared wrestling move wise. I had a more of a repertoire the second time I was there and I went back in with a fire light under my ass that I hadn't had in my career before that because I wanted to shove it down somebody's throat and up somebody's ass. And that was Vince McMahon. I went back, and thankfully the door was still open for me to do it. I think Vince McMahon, truth be known, kicked himself in the ass for allowing guys like Shawn Michaels to tell him that I wasn't a capable hand when Paul Heyman, with zero resources, was able to take the same piece of talent, the same person, and make Pay-Per-View with it and take a company from being this big to this big.

Not that I take full credit for that, because it was a team effort, it was every one of us. I had only a part I played. But the ³Franchise² character played an integral part in getting the fans to tune in there, being the mouthpiece, and pointing the way. The other guys would follow suit. If you look back with the timeline, I'm the guy that started that style of promo. The other guys started following me then. So it was a case of follow the leader. The followed a successful form and then started adapting it to their personalities. All the people that were in ECW started taking their style and moving it around the path that Shane Douglas had laid down. It became a joke in the dressing room that I'd get so going with my promos that I'd come back into the dressing room and Terry Funk would say, ³Stop shooting on the World, Shane Douglas.² It was what brought ECW attention.

Did I burn bridges by doing it? Probably. Did I limit the amount of money I could have made in my career? Probably. But on the same token all I can go on is what I did with my career and I honestly believe that the ³Franchise² is the best thing that ever happened to my career. The ³Franchise², in the end, was the guy that shot those promos and probably wouldn't have been as successful as he was at the time. ECW certainly wouldn't have been as successful as we were had Shane Douglas not been shooting promos.

Personally, it probably wasn't the best move for my career, but for the business, for the fans, and for ECW it opened a lot of other doors, so I'm proud of it. I probably made less money, but I can give a shit about the money obviously. I was more interested in the fact that the fans got entertained by what we did and that they found an alternative and that we changed the face of wrestling. And let's face it, Vince McMahon is where he is, went where he went, not because of the ratings in the late 90s, but because of what he was doing or what he thought of or what he created, because he copied a style that Shane Douglas showed him the pathway for. So in that way, my legacy is secure in this business and nobody can ever take that away. Could I have made more money? Probably, but would I have made more money if weren't the ³Franchise²? Who knows? So I'm content with what I did.

ED: Do you feel that they misused you?

SHANE DOUGLAS: Absolutely. I mean they had the same character. Lets face it, Troy Martin took the same skills to the WWE that I had with me in ECW. It wasn't that I wasn't able to work with these young, great, inexperienced guys in ECW. If anything it's a slap at the Shawn Michaelses and the Razor Ramons because they couldn't take a guy as capable as Shane Douglas in a great matches. I've always said Shawn Michaels was a tremendous talent. Razor Ramon played his gimmick very well and was a capable in ring hand. But if you can't take guys that capable and put them in the ring with a guy like me that's capable and have good matches, obviously it wasn't me in the ring that was fucking up.

I wasn't going in the ring trying not to have a good match. It must have been them because if I can go in the ring and have a good match with Sabu, with Chris Chetti, with everyone that I've been in the ring with in ECW, then why shouldn't I be able to have one with Shawn Michaels or Razor Ramon? You have to ask them that because the problem is on their side of the story. So they definitely misused me. But Vince McMahon didn't realize what was going on with these guys going up to him and saying, ³don't give the belt to Shane Douglas, give it to my friend over here.² If you can't see through that, what that is, the Vince isn't as intelligent as I thought he was. And I don't think Vince is dumb. Vince is a creative genius, businessman. I think that he allowed himself to let people come in and basically run his company and steer the direction of the company. I think it's laughable that a guy like Vince McMahon would do that.

CHUCK: What was it like being in WCW before it closed?

SHANE DOUGLAS: Frustrating. It was great to get the paycheck. I will be eternally grateful to WCW for giving me the contract that they did. But at the same token, every week, to get to look at that TV board and see the lineup and to see what was on there and what they didn't have me doing and each week the ratings were getting worse and worse.

I'm thinking, you got Lance Storm sitting there, You got Billy Kidman sitting there, Eddy Guererro, Chris Benoit, Dean Malenko, Perry Saturn, you have Shane Douglas sitting there and you keep going with Hulk Hogan or Ric Flair? I mean, what is wrong with this picture? And it was just frustrating to see that we had so much capability in the dressing room and yet the ³Powers That Be² kept forcing the Vince Russo's and whoever else to use the Hulk Hogan's and the Ric Flair's and the Lex Luger's, when the fans were clamoring to see something different.

So it was just frustrating but I'll be eternally grateful for the paycheck they gave me. It's just frustrating because I honestly believe we could have whooped Vince's ass in a head to head battle if we were allowed to do what we did best. If they would have allowed me to go out and shoot promos like I did in ECW and allow Flair to fire back and allow other people to go out there and give the best they could instead of, ³Let's let Hugh Morris win this week and you'll beat him next week, then next week we'll let him win, and the week after that we'll have him lose.² There's no continuity there. I honestly believe they had the talent to turn it around and they chose to acquiesce instead of fight. It's embarrassing for a company the size of Time Warner.

*****

Justin Credible
Interview by Chuck North and Ed Slak

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Justin Credible spent Saturday, March 29, working for Pro Championship Wrestling against Lethal Lee, a match Credible lost. Credible was one of three former ECW champions to visit Chicago's independent federations in March, joining Raven (RCW) and Sandman (PCW).

Credible took time out after the show to talk with Chicagowrestling.com's Chuck North and Ed Slak about his time as Aldo Montoya in WWE, his time in ECW and what he's up to now.


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CHUCK: Who did you like growing up?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: Ric Flair and Ricky Steamboat.

CHUCK: Where did you train?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: With the Harts up in Calgary in December of '92. Lance Storm trained up there the previous year. So he was helping out with the next year's camp, which I was in. So he was also instrumental in my training.

CHUCK: What was it like being trained by Stu and Bret?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: It wasn't really like that. I mostly trained with Keith Hart, so I wasn't in there with Bret or Stu. That's more myth than anything these days. Keith ran the camp and they always had Alumni helping out. It was a lot different than the stories you hear of the dungeon.

CHUCK: Did you have any doubts when you first started?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: I went at it full steam. I started when I was 19, so I gave it one big chance. I have been really lucky. I've always been fortunate enough to be working for WWE or ECW. I didn't expect to make it like that or that quickly so I got lucky I guess.

CHUCK: Were you with USWA?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: For a brief period of 6 weeks in 1997.

ED: How did you get into the WWE the first time?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: Really, I was in the right place at the right time. They were looking for some young talent, and I happen to be of Portuguese decent, and that's what they were looking for.

ED: Where did the Aldo Montoya character come from?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: The creative geniuses at Titan Towers. What was I going to say? It was a great opportunity that enabled me to do other great things. It was a good stepping stone. I wouldn't change it if I could, to be honest. It was cool.

ED: Did you enjoy playing the Montoya character?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: I didn't enjoy it, but I was so happy to be there at 19 years old. I was just having a great time being on the road and working for the WWE. I didn't care. I kinda knew it was lame, but what are you gonna say right? When you're touring with the WWE at 19 and making good money, you can't bitch.

ED: How did you become part of the Kliq?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: Just by being around those guys. Everyone thinks it was like a membership, like you had to be a certain way to be a part of the Kliq. What really bonded a lot of those guys together, including myself, was that we were all huge fans of the business. That's one thing that was always discussed when we were in the cars together. We just loved the business and loved wrestling, and I think that's what kept us all together and that's why we always hung out with each other. Those stories these days get overblown.

CHUCK: Was the power you guys had really over exaggerated?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: If there was that much power, then why am I not there? And why was I gone the first time? It's all exaggerated.

CHUCK: What were you initial thoughts of Vince McMahon?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: He's very intimidating and a very powerful individual. Powerful as in what he can do in this business for you or against you. He's a scary dude, cause he's muscled up too. Big in stature and big in power.

CHUCK: Did anyone in the WWE like the idea of the Slammy awards?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: I really don't know. That was a couple of years before my time.

CHUCK: Any matches that stood out back then?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: No, not at that point. I didn't have any big matches or important matches. The Royal Rumble actually was my biggest match. I put on quite a showing for myself. So that I would say, at that point, would be the highlight.

ED: What's the reason you left the WWE the first time?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: Money. It just wasn't enough.

ED: Did WCW make you an offer when you left?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: Nope. I went straight from there to Paul E. and I guess he seen something. The rest is history.

CHUCK: How did you get into ECW? Just by knowing people?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: Yeah, basically. I knew Paul E. previously and I knew Chris Candido from the WWE, who was influential in ECW at the time. I got Chris to put in a word for me, he got me a match, and I just came down and that was it.

ED: Where did the name Justin Credible come from?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: Paul E. made it up. I don't know how he came up with it. One of those mad genius things I guess.

ED: How did you enjoy your time in ECW?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: It was great, the best time in my career. It's going to be hard to compare with what I did over there. It was a lot of fun.

ED: How did you like being partners with Lance Storm?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: I loved it. I thought it was awesome. I never thought it would happen. We both enjoyed it equally I think. If you ask him the same question he'll tell you. It was very pleasurable and enjoyable because he trained me and we have a lot of the same techniques. As much as we are different wrestlers, a lot of the basics we do are similar. If you ever want to dissect a match, dissect Lance and me. It's funny because even though we're two totally different wrestlers, the way we do certain things are exactly alike. Trivial stuff like shooting a guy into the ropes or certain bumps that we take or certain moves that we deliver, we do it the same way.

CHUCK: After the invasion angle started, they tagged you guys a couple of times. How come they didn't do it more?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: I don't know. I guess the geniuses up there didn't see it either. Actually one of the times was up here, when we wrestled at the Allstate Arena against Edge and Christian.

CHUCK: In ECW, did you know ahead of the time that you were getting the belt, or was in just a spur of the moment thing?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: Spur of the moment. At least I think it was a spur of the moment. I'm sure Paul E. had it planned for a while, I hope. I just found out that day.

ED: How did you feel when you found out you were getting the title?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: Well, in this business you don't tend to take that stuff too seriously, being that wrestling is predetermined; belts really don't mean anything, anymore at least. I was happy because you do see yourself as being a credible enough person to hold a title like that. You feel proud to do it because you're considered one of the best amongst your peers. It's not a real belt so you don't really win it. You get psyched when it happens. It acknowledges that you're at the top of your game.

ED: Right after you lost the belt, ECW started to go under. Did you guys know it was ending or did you guys hope it wouldn't?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: We hoped. I hoped. We knew too much. I knew too much. I was real close with Paul. I knew all of the shit that was going down. I was probably one of the first ones to jump at that time. I think Jerry Lynn and I went fairly quickly after that.

ED: What were some of your favorite matches in ECW?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: Me and Sabu from Anarchy Rules, I liked that. Anything from me and Jerry Lynn was good. I liked the 4-way we did here from November to Remember too. The whole year of 2000 was really memorable for me. I had some really good matches.

CHUCK: Jerry Lynn said it was your idea to put the belt on him.

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: I just thought that Jerry was the right guy for the belt, and he was. I'm a very unselfish kind of person and I just thought it was the right thing to do for business. He deserved it. He worked real hard for a lot of years to get it.

ED: Would you say Jerry Lynn was your biggest feud in ECW?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: Either me and Jerry or me and Dreamer. Tommy and I had a long feud. The most memorable series of matches would be me and Jerry.

ED: How was your relationship with Paul Heyman?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: Close at first, but rocky now at best, for no apparent reason. We just grew apart. A lot of shit went down between all of the ECW stuff.

CHUCK: What was the locker room like in ECW compared to the WWE?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: It was a lot more fun, a lot more camaraderie, a lot more friends, and more laid back. It was just a lot of people wanting to help each other. WWE is just a lot of snakes ready to stab you in the back. You couldn't even compare, it's crazy.

ED: What led you going back to the WWE the second time?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: ECW was done and they offered me really good money. They offered me a really good opportunity to work with Sean [Waltman], who's a real good friend of mine. It was the next big step. And how wrong was it?

CHUCK: Did you enjoy the X-Factor?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: Yeah, I really did. I liked it a lot. [Sean] did too. We still talk about it. I don't think we got a fair shot. A lot of things were against us. Albert really didn't fit in. I know what [Sean] was trying to do with bringing Albert in because he wanted to have a big manager type guy like Kevin [Nash] was with Shawn [Michaels]. That's what we were trying to accomplish, to have a big manager to back us up because we were like little bumping guys. Creative was against us because Sean had a lot of personal heat with some of the writers. It was doomed from the get go but we felt it could have worked if it was done correctly.

ED: Whose idea was it to start X-Factor?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: I think it was Sean's. Yeah, I think it was his idea.

CHUCK: You worked the Sunday Night Heat before WrestleMania. How was that?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: It was a really cool experience. I remember the Astrodome had like 65,000 people. Walking out there I turned to Sean and I was like ³Whoa². It was literally like a sea of people. It was incredible. It was amazing that all of those people are all focusing on you. It was real cool.

CHUCK: What led to you leaving the WWE this last time?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: I got fired.

CHUCK: There was a rumor that they let you go because your weight was out of control.

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: That's not true at all. I actually slimmed down a lot. There was a rumor out there that I was dead though.

ED: Did they give you a reason why they let you go?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: No. They probably should have. I wasn't really caring much at that point. I was showing up late and doing what I wanted. So I had it coming. If they didn't fire me, I would have fired myself.

CHUCK: We didn't see you for a while then all of a sudden you were wrestling Batista.

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: Yeah, that's because I was having good matches with him on the road so they had no one else to put him with. It's like they forget you can wrestle sometimes and you have to remind them.

ED: Do you feel that you were misused?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: I feel that. I don't blame anyone for anything. I do feel to some degree that I was misused. To other degrees, I think that once X-Factor stopped they didn't know what to do with us in singles. I just started loosing interest at that point because I knew nothing was going to happen for me there. I guess a combination of both. I think they definitely misused me. A couple of things I can see were my fault, but most of it didn't do that much harm. All that matches that I can look back on tape were at least solid.

ED: What companies have you been working for since you left there?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: Just XPW. XPW and some Indy companies.

CHUCK: Would you ever consider NWA/TNA?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: They've been calling me. To this point I've said no only because I don't really know or trust Vince Russo to be quite honest. I'm trying to avoid it if I can. I'll probably go there eventually because I don't see XPW being enough to keep me just passing. This is how I make a living and I don't see [XPW] being able to hold my salary, so I'll probably do TNA sooner or later.

CHUCK: What is the best rib you've seen?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: When I got drunk and challenged the Undertaker to a drinking contest in Germany, and I had dread locks as Aldo. I passed out and Taker cut all of my beads off and put them in the M&M jar on the tour bus.

CHUCK: Have you had any embarrassing moments or seen any funny things in the ring?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: Nothing that I can remember right now. Nothing that I can think of off hand that would be funny.

ED: Do you have any good PL Myers stories?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: Today there was a guy in like a motorized scooter for old people trying to cross an overly crowed highway, a big overweight dude, and it said Italian Stallion on the back. We had seen him on the way back from Toys R Us.

ED: You guys were shopping at Toys R Us?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: Yes, for me, for my Star Wars action figures.

CHUCK: What did you think of Lethal Lee tonight?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: He was good. He's a real nice guy. I think he's got a lot of potential. He's got a good look and he can go in the ring. We had a couple of missed things in the match but it wasn't anyone's particular fault, just some bad luck. He was fine. He was there for everything. It was cool.

CHUCK: What do you think about Chicago fans compared to fans around the country?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: I think they remind me of New York and Philly fans, and what I mean by that is that they're some of the rowdiest crowds. They get so into it. It's a positive thing. Chicago's probably the best, if not the best ECW market we ever had, as far as volume and fanfare. It's definitely one of the best places to come and work.

ED: So would you come back to PCW?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: Oh absolutely.

ED: What are the future plans for Justin Credible?

JUSTIN CREDIBLE: Just to keep doing this and hopefully someone will start running a good promotion. Hopefully XPW takes off. I like what they have to offer. I think if they get their shit together it'll probably be the best bet for me. That's up to them. They bounced my check last week so shit isn't that good.

*****

Steve Corino Interview
Chicagowrestling.com's Ed Slak and Chuck North sat down with Steve Corino after the Chicago Power Series. Corino talks with them about his beginnings, time in ECW, he career in Japan, and a few other topics.


ED: First off, when did you start your career and with who?


CORINO: I started in September of 1994 at a wrestling school in Redding, Pennsylvania about 80 miles west of Philadelphia, under Tom Brandy who was Sal Sincere in the WWF. I did further training with Dory Funk Jr. when he was with the WWF in Stamford.


ED: When did you start with ECW?


CORINO: December of 1998.


ED: Who was your first opponent there?


CORINO: Nova.


ED: How was that match?


CORINO: Well, (laughing) considering how gay he is, it went pretty well.


ED: Everyone always badmouths Nova.


CORINO: (laughing) He’s so easy to badmouth. No, Nova’s cool. I’ve always had a fun time wrestling him. I had known him from the Indys before, so it was comfortable to get in there with him for the first time in ECW.


ED: What was your favorite ECW moment?


CORINO: The night I wrestled Dusty Rhodes in Ft. Lauderdale. That was such a highlight when you’ve watched somebody all your life and you’re looking across the ring from him and you know you’re going to wrestle him. That was the most exciting moment of my career up until now. Just the thought of being around Dusty Rhodes, and that whole feud that we did, was like magic for me.


ED: What was it like when you first went to Japan? How did the wrestlers and fans react toward you since you were from America and they hadn’t really seen you before?


CORINO: They had seen stuff in the magazines when I was the NWA champion, so I wasn’t totally unknown. That helped a little bit. When I first started going there I tried to be like all of the Japanese wrestlers, no facial expressions. Just go in there and fight. I didn’t think it was getting over so one day I decided I was just going to be myself. I just did what I do. That’s what got over and now I’m one of the bigger guys over there. It’s such a great place to wrestle.


ED: You haven’t been in Chicago for 2 years. How is it being back for the
first time since then?


CORINO: Oh, it’s great. I’ve always loved Chicago. Whenever ECW came out here, we always had a great time. Jack Victory and I would always stay an extra day or two here, after the shows were over. We’d go to Wrigley or Comiskey Park. It’s great to be back. The crowds in Chicago have always been real hot. It’s always a pleasure to work in front of them.


ED: What are your thoughts on your match tonight?


CORINO: I thought Double M was really good. I just got home from Japan on Wednesday, so I’m a little tired and beat up. I was actually hoping I could keep up with him. He’s really good. He’s a good listener and he knows what he’s doing in there. It was a pleasure to be in there. I think he’s got a good future. He knows what he’s doing in there and that’s the name of the game. A lot of guys today don’t know what they’re doing. They go in there and do a bunch of moves that don’t mean anything. He took his time and made everything matter. That’s what I liked.


CHUCK: Do you have any good Jack Victory stories?


CORINO: Oh yeah, of course. There was one time we were in Atlanta. Me and CW [Anderson] were so cheap that we would stay with Louie E. Dangerously and Jack on the road and we’d always sleep on the floor to save money. Atlanta always had the real cheap hotels, so me and CW would get our own room. Jack went out into the lobby and was drinking. He loved Atlanta; in fact, he owns a bar down there too. I get a call at like 8 in the morning to come over to his room. I went over to his room and it looked like he had just broke his water. He had a circle around him. I said, “What happened?” He goes, “I
pee’d the bed.” I go, “What happened?” He says, “I took some sleeping pills and then I kept drinking. I had this dream that I had to go to the bathroom.” So I said, “Are you going to tell anybody?” He’s like, “I’ve already called like 10 people.” He was calling everybody in the locker room. For the next hour he just sat there as all the boys, like Dreamer, Francine, and Jerry Lynn, were coming into his room and seeing this big puddle of piss around
him. Then he tells one of the maids not to tell anybody. She ran down the hallway. He comes out of the room and they’re all whispering and pointing at him. He’s like, “So what, I pissed the bed.” Yeah, a 35 year old man pissing the bed.


CHUCK: The last time you were here in Chicago was when you won the ECW Title. We were there. How did that feel?


CORINO: I didn’t know till almost 4 that I was winning. Everybody thought Justin [Credible] was winning. It was a total surprise to me. I was so honored to win the Title, especially in Chicago because I’ve been a Cubs fan my whole life. So it had an extra meaning. Sandman was the one that told me. He’s like, “Tonight it’s you kid.” I go, “Yeah, we’ll do some good stuff.” He goes, “No, you’re up.” I said, “What? What kind of drugs is Paul
smoking?” Apparently the ones that don’t pay the boys.


ED: At that point did you guys know that ECW was over with?


CORINO: No, (laughing) I still had faith for a couple more weeks. You know, he’s a great motivator; I’ll give him that. I mean he could sell ice to the Eskimos. I believed in him until December and then I knew it was over. We were too far behind to get back into it. Once we started loosing all of the syndication on TV, I knew it was over.


ED: As much as you talk about how you hate Paul Heyman, what are your real
feelings about him?


CORINO: I don’t hate him as much as I hate my ex-mother-in-law and Keanu Reeves, so he’s not like all way on the top of my list. Personally, I think Paul made the wrong decisions on how he handled it. Professionally, the guy can write, the guy can manage; he can get heat inside the locker room and out. He does a great job. The character Paul Heyman on Smackdown is phenomenal. And with his writing skills, I think Smackdown is a hundred times
better than Raw. You can never fault him for being creative and giving guys chances. But, you know, I won’t be sorry when he dies.


CHUCK: Why haven’t we seen you on NWA/TNA one time in the Gauntlet for the Gold?


CORINO: Because of my Japan schedule. I am only home for two weeks now and
then, and to work for Vince Russo, I’d probably rather go to jail. I still believe in pro wrestling. I read the greatest thing on the Internet. I never go to the Internet sheets, but a buddy of mine emailed me a link to a site. It was like Sean Waltman’s issued statement. I was yelling Amen. I left him a message on his cell phone. That guy is poison. There’s too much sex in wrestling now, when are we going to go back to the sport of it?


CHUCK: From one Cubs fan to another, what do you think of the Cubs hiring Dusty Baker?


CORINO: I thought hiring Don Baylor was good. I think hiring Dusty Baker is even better. They still need some players though. I’ve been rooting for them since 1982, so I’ve suffered 20 long years. I’m always excited to see the Cubs though. That’s a team that could lose every year and everyone is still loyal to them. Screw the Sox.


CHUCK: You talked a little about Double M, what did you think of the rest of the guys you seen tonight compared to the others you see around the country?


CORINO: You know what I liked here? Everybody had wrestling boots and wrestling tights. Everybody looked like a wrestler tonight. You know, they had guys in shape. You don’t see that much anymore. You go to some wrestling shows, the ring is a mess to begin with, then you have guys in jeans and t-shirts where I didn’t know if they paid for a ticket or if they were in the locker room. They all have the look like the Hardy Boys but they forget that the Hardy Boys used to wear tights. The WWF made them wear the pants. It gets on my nerves. I was real happy to see that everybody looked like a wrestler. I thought it was great. That match between Brandon Bishop and Ace Steel was sick. I thought both of them put on a hell of a match. I mean those guys busted their ass. It was real exciting to see. I love when guys respect the sport of pro wrestling, I hate when we use the term the business. I love when
they respect the sport of it and go out there and they work hard. They want these people to go home thinking they seen something special. Whether it was 250 people or 5,000, they want everybody going home thinking they seen something special. You’ve got to respect that.


CHUCK: Is there anything that you want to do before you retire?


CORINO: Oh god, I don’t know. I have too much jetlag. Yeah, when I can figure out a way, number one, that you can go from Tokyo to Philadelphia, and two, without getting jetlag. I’m going to invent the right drug for that. But really, Zero One’s going to have a championship title coming in around March. I’m trying to prime myself into position for that. I’d love to headline the Tokyo Dome one day. New Japan does it, now All Japan’s going to do it. Zero
One’s gotten to the point to where they’ve grown so much over the last year and a half that I’d say within the next two years we’ll be doing the Dome. To headline the Dome is like WrestleMania. I’m going to be seeing more countries too. In January I’m going to Australia, in March I’m going to Italy, it’s just cool seeing all of the different countries and stuff like
that. I don’t know if there is anyone I’d like to wrestle that isn’t retired. I get to wrestle Terry Funk in December so I am really hyped about that. Notice I used the MC Hammer “hyped”. (“Can’t Touch This” was on in the background)


ED: Would you say that Steve Corino has developed into a better wrestler over his career? We always read that since you went to Japan you have become a better all around wrestler in a sense that you are learning the Japanese Style.


CORINO: Yeah. I’ve always tried to adapt to every style, but with the Japanese style you really have to learn how to shoot. You have to adjust your style. That’s one thing, I spend hours upon hours in the Dojo training, learning submissions, and learning different techniques. I try to be a student of the game. It’s quite a compliment to say that after 8 years in I
am getting better. That’s all I want to do is get better. The ECW style is not going to go over in Zero One. You have to adjust to their style. The ECW style I had to learn too. It’s definitely different. The beginning and the ending of ECW were totally different for me. So I just try to adjust. It’s pretty much a big compliment for me that people think I’m getting better.
I’m just trying to learn.


CHUCK: Name 3 people, living or dead that you would invite to dinner.


CORINO: Eddie Gilbert because I want to know what kind of matches he is booking in hell. Me and my buddy Guillotine Laggratt, as horrible as it seems, were driving to a show and started to make a list of the guys who have died over the last 20 years to see who’s in heaven and who’s in hell. (laughing) I’ll tell you what; hell’s got a pretty good roster. Definitely
Eddie Gilbert because I was always a big fan of him. If there is a God, I’d like to ask him why the hell ECW went down after I bought a house. Third person, Jane Seymour. Fifty years old and I’d still…yeah. She’s hotter than fish grease.


CHUCK: If you were stranded on a desert island for one year, what one woman
and one meal would you want to have with you?


CORINO: Oh definitely Jane Seymour, and something to keep me going…. oysters
apparently. No, no, pizza. I love pizza.


CHUCK: Simon Diamond and Julio Dinero come into MCW a lot. What were your
thoughts on them two guys?


CORINO: I’ve always liked Julio. Simon and me always used to be partners before we were in ECW. Now there’s one guy that probably the smartest guy in the wrestling business book wise. I mean he’s got 2 degrees, he’s so smart. It’s a shame; he’s such a good talker. When I first got into wrestling I used to watch him talk and that’s how I wanted to be. So I learned a lot of my talking skills off of him. He’s a great guy. The best way to describe Julio is that he is a great hand. He’s never your number one guy, but he’s also a guy that’ll never hurt you either. He’s always going to have a good match and people are always going to care about him. If I were building a huge promotion, Julio would definitely be on my list.


ED: When you’re in Japan you don’t see your family much. How do you work with that?


CORINO: It sucks because I’m so close to my son. He’s six, but he just learned how to read and everything. I email him everyday and he emails me. I mean, it’s funny because it takes him like a half hour to type two sentences. It’s just so cool, I talk to him everyday. When I’m home I try to spend as much time as possible with him. He came to Japan with me in July and then he’s going back in January for a week with me. I can’t wait. We had a blast the last time.


CHUCK: What’s your favorite soup?


CORINO: Double chicken noodle, Campbell’s. I just had some for breakfast yesterday.


CHUCK: Do you prefer pens or pencils?


CORINO: Pens. I have great penmanship. A pencil’s like a dog. A dog always makes mistakes, so you figure if you have a pencil you can erase it. With a pen you’ve got to get it right the first time.


CHUCK: Who did you always travel with in ECW?

CORINO: Jack, CW Anderson, and Lou E Dangerously.

CHUCK: Who was the better driver?

CORINO: Jack. He would never let us drive. Jack was the veteran, he would never let us. He had to be almost dead before he’d let us drive. It was great; I would just sit in the back. We always used to get like and SUV because Jack and Lou would help with promotions so they got their car and hotel paid for. So CW and me were such freeloaders. We never had to pay for the car or the hotel so it was great.

ED: Do you plan on coming back to Chicago anytime soon?

CORINO: Hopefully. It’s funny because January and February are always weak
months for me and I’m already booked up. Hopefully March or April. I’d like
to get out here in May or June so I could see a Cubs game.

CHUCK: Do you have a good PL Myers story?

CORINO: No, actually I don’t. He’s like the king of Chicago. I see him
everywhere. Every time I come to Chicago, I see him within a half hour.

CHUCK: We’ll have to treat you to a Cubs game.

CORINO: Oh yeah, definitely. I have a funny story about a Sox game. Tommy Dreamer like talked our way, like 10 of us, into a suite at Comiskey. Rob Feinstein from RF Video has always been a big goofball. He tells Dreamer, “I’ll be back, I’m going to go check out the stadium.” Almost like 5 minutes later Dreamer is like, “What the hell is Feinstein calling for?” He gets all the way up against the window. Feinstein put in these teeth to make him look like he was retarded. He was dancing on the third base dugout and the cops didn’t want to get him down because they thought he was retarded. Then he had Todd Gordon and Paul Heyman paged over the loud speaker and on the board.

CHUCK: Would you want to one day headline a WrestleMania or just stay where
you’re at?


CORINO: I would like to be the next Stan Hansen. I want to make my career in Japan. Even with being over there 26 weeks, it lets me be home 26 weeks a year. I love it. I love the style, I love the culture, the bosses, everything. It’s such a great place to wrestle. I enjoy it so much.


ED: Anything you want to say to the Chicago fans?

CORINO: Yeah, visit my website stevecorino.com. I swear one of these days
I’ll update it. I’m working on a huge commentary. It’s like 7 weeks of funny
stories, a hell of an Uno game. Do you guys know Lo Ki?

ED:Yeah.

CORINO: He may look like a monster in the face, no emotions stuff like that.
Put a good Uno game in front of him and he becomes human. Me, CW, Frankie,
and Lo Ki had a battle, our scores were up to like 7,000. I can’t believe
we’re all talking to each other still. So if everyone wants to visit the
site, sometime next week I should have it up.

ED: Thanks for your time Steve.

CHUCK: It was a pleasure.

CORINO: Thank you guys.

*****

Ryan Boz speaks
Interview by Ed Slak
Ryan Boz - who is making his Revolution Championship Wrestling debut March 1 in LaSalle - talks with Chicagowrestling.com's Ed Slak. Boz also will be making his NWA-MCW debut soon. Boz talks about his title run at LWF, as well as his thoughts on his training and where he's worked:


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ed: How did you get into wrestling? Who did you start with? Who were you trained by?

Ryan Boz: I was a big fan of wrestling growing up. I went to my first LWF show because I was working with a relative of Thunderpants who persuaded me to come to their show. I enjoyed the show and thought I could wrestle. So I called the hypeline and left a message and waited for the call for tryouts. I started in October of 1999 with Grudge, Mini J, The Latinos, Freak, Shibuya, Maniac Scout and a ton of other guys that quit. When I first came to the LWF Acid was the trainer and later Jay Jensen. After they left, Mimic, Havok, Machine and myself trained under Brandon Bishop.

Ed: Who was your first match against and how did it go?

Ryan Boz: Grudge. At the time I thought it was a decent match. I look back at it now and cringe. We really didn't have a clue about psychology or anything like that. We knew we wanted to show he was this big powerhouse guy, so I took all these power moves from him. We didn't know anything about restholds at the time so when we start getting blown up I threw him out of the ring and told him to stay out so I could catch my breath. He kept trying to get back in but I was still sucking wind so I kept kneeing him to keep him out. He ended up beating me with his finisher and I became the first Hot Potato Champion.

Ed: You were head trainer for the LWF, correct?

Ryan Boz: I was never the head trainer. That was Acid, then Mimic. I would run drills for the veteran guys and show them some spots we had learned from Brandon but I was never their trainer.

Ed: How did it feel to be their world champion for as long as you were? It was a year wasn't it?

Ryan Boz: I felt honored to be the champion for a little over a year. The champion is usually the focal point of the promotion and I really enjoyed playing the part. I just wish I hadn't gotten hurt so I could have passed it to the next guy the right way.

Ed: Are you done wrestling for the LWF?

Ryan Boz: I would hope not but time will tell, I guess. I haven't heard anything from them since I told them I couldn't work the show in February.

Ed: Do you have any heat with Billy Whack?

Ryan Boz: Not really. I really think he's a great guy. We have different opinions about wrestling. His focus is on his promotion, the LWF, whereas I'm looking to get myself more exposure and advance my career right now.

Ed: You wrestled for IWA Midsouth recently, how did you like it there?

Ryan Boz: I absolutely loved it! It was pure wrestling entertainment. It's not all about a big production and massive soap opera storylines. They have separate locker rooms for heels and faces and I never knew who I was facing till I got to the arena. So there wasn't a whole thing about practicing spots or anything like that. If you're lucky you get 5 minutes to talk over some stuff then you don't see each other till you're in the ring. You have to bring it stiff there too. If you try bringing it weak or walking your way through your match, the crowd will eat you there. They've seen so much great wrestling that they expect it. It was a total learning experience for me. Nobody there knew who I was so I had to get over with the fans and the workers. All the veterans were really helpful too. They'll critique your match. When you get back to the locker room you'll find out what you did right and what really sucked.

Ed: Tell us about your matches there, how do you think they were?

Ryan Boz: My first match in IWA was brutal. Devon Fury and myself just didn't click that day. We ended the match early. It was terrible. My next match was against Corp. Robinson. I had a blast. I was finally starting to relax and just wrestle. I knew Corp. did the hard-core but he really impressed me with his wrestling. My last match in IWA, so far, was against Chris Hero. We only went about 10 minutes but I loved it. He was so easy to work and really helped get me over. I hope I can work Hero more.

Ed: You are wrestling for RCW March 1st, how did that come about?

Ryan Boz: Double M gave me some info back before RCW started and told me to email the guy. At the time I was the LWF champ and I really didn't want to work any other shows in the area. It was kind of a hassle because I was trying to get the belt over so I really couldn't go and job on someone else in the area's show. It just wouldn't look right and wouldn't be fair to demand the promoter put me over. So after I rehabbed my neck and started working again I contacted JayRep and let him know I was interested in working for RCW and we talked and here we are.

Ed: Are you looking forward to it?

Ryan Boz: I'm really looking forward to working in RCW. The roster is stacked. The fans are great. I went to watch a few shows and was totally shocked at how in to the action the fans got. They aren't sitting on their hands or waiting for missed spots to yell "you Fucked up." They go to watch wrestling and be entertained.

Ed: I also noticed that NWA/MCW Midwest has you up for their March 29th show. Is this true?

Ryan Boz: Yes, it's true.

Ed: How Did that come about?

Ryan Boz: I met Ed Chuman at the I8 Power Series show and we exchanged information and he asked for a promo tape. I sent him a tape and we stayed in contact. Ed called me and let me know they interested in using me for their show on March 29th. I hadn't heard from LWF concerning their show in March so I agreed to take the booking.

Ed: Is there anyone you are looking forward to wrestling in NWA/MCW?

Ryan Boz: Where do I start? Look at the roster: guys like Dominion, Priest, Ace, Chetti, and Brandon Blaze, just to name a few. It's like being a kid in a candy store. It's a total fresh start for me with tons of possibilities.

Ed: Who have been some of your favorite opponents in your career?

Ryan Boz: CM Punk, Danny Daniels, Vic Capri, Havok, Chris Hero, Double M, Acid, Supreme

Ed: What has been, in your opinion, the best or few best matches of your career?

Ryan Boz: CM Punk at Crestwood, Vic Capri at Midlo, Acid at Midlo, Double M at Bourbon Street submission match, Danny Daniels in Muskegeon,Mi, Chris Hero at IWA, and Supreme at Midlo right after I had won the LWF title.

Ed: Where do you plan to go from here with your career?

Ryan Boz: I really don't know. I just want to keep getting better and see how far I can take it.

Ed: Is there anyone you hope to wrestle before you retire?

Ryan Boz: Adam Gooch, the Icon of Intercourse and Dr. Death Steve Williams

Ed: What do you think about the state of pro wrestling right now?

Ryan Boz: I think people were just getting sick of the stupid soap operas, let the wrestlers tell the story in the ring. Video skits should be a compliment to the wrestling not vice versa.

Ed: You have an ongoing feud with Steve Boz stemming from the I8 shows. What are your thoughts on him and your upcoming match with him?

Ryan Boz: I hate him. Not really. Steve is a really nice guy unfortunately both shows were we have met one of us has been banged up pretty bad. At the I8 Tournament his hip was pretty wrecked and at Power Series my neck was still messed up and my left arm kept going numb. I'm hoping we both can come into this match healthy and go balls out and steal the show. We almost had them rioting after our match at the tournament.

Ed: How about we play the name game. Let¹s start with Billy Whack

Ryan Boz: Evil genius. You have to give him credit. He took a backyard fed and made it one of the top feds in Chicago. He keeps it running despite the numerous rumors of its demise. He's a real fun guy to be around he always makes me laugh.

Ed: Double M

Ryan Boz: Smoothest man alive. He might not have been a chick magnet but he should have been. He makes picking chicks up look so damn easy. Seriously, he was my first real feud in the LWF and he helped legitimize me. I was coming off the whole Hot Potato thing. He's a riot.

Ed: Vic Capri

Ryan Boz: Class Act. I was honored to get to work him before he decided to call it quits. I wish he could have gone over to Japan and worked. Fans should appreciate everytime he's on a show because he's going to put on one hell of a match and the sad part he's probably not going to be wrestling much longer.

Ed: Ian Rotten

Ryan Boz: I owe him a ton. He gave me an opportunity in IWA. He's a real straight shooter. He gave me a heart to heart speech after one of the shows, he was all covered in blood from his I quit match with Bull Pain. It was pretty surreal and memorable. I really hope to work for Ian again soon.

Ed: Jay Repsel

Ryan Boz: Seems to have caught lightning in a bottle. He's got things on a roll in RCW. I really appreciate the opportunity

Ed: Brian Zenner

Ryan Boz: I've only met him in passing. He seemed polite.

Ed: Acid

Ryan Boz: Showed me how to bump and run the ropes. He's a real cool guy who's going to kill himself in the ring one of these days. He's nuts. We haven't always agreed on things but I respect him. I just hope he can stay in one piece.

Ed: CM Punk

Ryan Boz: The Devil. When I first started with the LWF it was right after "the split." Anything that went wrong was basically his fault (laughs). He was EVIL! Or so they said. I think he takes a lot of heat for being so opinionated he's a great wrestler there's no denying that. I owe him a lot. It was him and Ace Steel that put a word in with Ian and got me into IWA.

Ed: Mimic

Ryan Boz: We haven't always seen eye to eye on things but I do respect his ability. He's a fun guy to hang out with outside of wrestling. I hope he gets serious about wrestling again. He should be working every weekend.

Ed: Mike Broox

Ryan Boz: Broox was the guy we could voice our complaints or bounce our ideas off and he would take them to Whack for us. He always is looking out for the boys. He has a great ring persona. I wrestled with him and against him. He just turns it on. He'll bump all over the building for you.

Ed: Mr. 187

Ryan Boz: The guy is HUGE! I really haven't spent much time with him but what I have seen is that he is very respectful and cordial to everyone backstage. I hope he is successful.

Ed: Maverick

Ryan Boz: Total smartass! He is always hitting you with the one liners. I had a blast working a feud against him. He messed his back up and is still out. He's a real cool guy once you gain his respect.

Ed: Synn

Ryan Boz: He's got a great look a ton of natural athletic ability. He's come along way. Hopefully he can keep the momentum and take full advantage of all the tools he has.

Ed: Ben Jordan

Ryan Boz: Saving the best for last? Everybody is going to expect me to blast Ben. I'm not going to do it. I don't agree with some of the things Ben says or posts on message boards but I also recognize that right now Ben bleeds LWF. He says a lot brash things and comes off disrespectful at times but I know he's just saying what he believes right now; that LWF is putting out the best product. Ben's heart is in the right place it just seems his head is stuck in the wrong one. Just kidding.

*****

Cybersurfing with Sonny
Pro Championship Wrestling's Sonny Rogers will answer questions fans send to Chicagowrestling.com. To send questions to Rogers, send email to Chicagowrestling.com's Al Lagattolla at [e-mail]. Questions will be sent to Rogers.

1. Who was your favorite tag team partner?

SONNY: My favorite tag team partner was probably Jonnie Stewart when we were the Beach Boys in the later 80's with Windy City Wrestling. Then Windy City bookers Paul Heyman and later Steve Regal wanted to put the tag straps on us but unfortunately it wasn't meant to be. Things happened that put a few of us on a different path but it was a great time and when I seen Jon earlier in the year during an AWA shot I did in Case Grande, Az., we reminisced about it. Of course nowadays my favorite tag team partners are those that let me work the apron, lol. Every so often I'll pop in a video of a Beach Boys- Tokyo Bullets match from that time era. I'm sure by today's standards the average person would say the matches were lame but we all drew heat. Kind of a lost art.

2. Where was your favorite place to wrestle?

SONNY: So many places I traveled to but I guess the AWA will always stand out as my favorite because it was a great learning experience and plenty of opportunity. Wrestling's elite like Nick Bockwinkel, Bobby Heenan, Tito Santana, Jesse Ventura, Adrian Adonis, Baron Von Raschke, Mad Dog Vachon, Dino Bravo, Jim Brunzell, Greg Gagne, Bobby Duncum, Jack Lanza, Ken Patera, Rick Martel, and so many others were all a part of it. I enjoyed doing work for Pat O'Connor and Sam Muchnik in St. Louis during the original NWA days with Harley Race, Ric Flair, Bruiser Brody, Kevin Von Erich, Spike Huber, Bob Sweetan, and so many other greats. I'll always kick myself because in 1980 my first year in the biz Wally Karbo offered me the AWA ring job but like the knucklehead I am I turned it down. It would have been a tough job, driving the truck to Minneapolis, Green Bay, Milwaukee, Rockford, Denver, Omaha, Winnipeg, and an endless road of spot towns. Of course like the post office the good old reliable ring man has to be there rain, snow, or shine. Working the Detroit- Windsor Ontario territory for George Cannon and Al Costello was great and the old NWA Florida and Mid Atlantic, Carolinas was great.

The WWF was a great ride especially when they were flying the likes of myself, Tom Stone, Jake Millemun, Mike Moran (Disorderly Conduct), Rick "Frank Vizi", Bull Pain" Gantner, Tony Leone, Chris Curtis all throughout the country for TV. Of course the dozen or near a dozen AWA TVs I did in Las Vegas were great. I could have done without a few of those red eye flights back to Chicago from Vegas. I look at all the hoopla that everybody raises when so and so works a heat match or gets the so called dark match and I wish them all the best but in reality they are there to follow the footsteps of yours truly, Stone, Leone, and the old gang but the bottomline is getting the pay day, doing good, and getting asked back when they are in the area. With so few companys running on a frequent basis it's a cattle call of talent vying for 3 spots especially in today's WWE. Better chances of hitting the Illinois Big Game or Powerball.

What are your thoughts on wrestling today compared to wrestling when you first started?

SONNY: I guess most of us can always speak about our grandfather or perhaps other relatives that would say to the effect " back in my day we had to walk 10 miles to school and back in the rain, snow, and heat" or maybe " WW2 the big one I got my head shot off by the germans and I had to walk home" and so on and so on. It was very much like that when I started in the biz in 1980, many of the veterans sharing their memories of driving thousands of miles on dirt roads, 2 lane roads, etc. and this was all years before the interstate system in the u.s.a. came about. working with nagging injuries that would have you literally in tears, working 6-7 days a week, the backstabbing, the office politics, the bologna blowouts, sleeping in your car or maybe @ an all night movie drive in, or sharing a small hotel room with 3 or 4 of your fellow workers, etc. To this day a few veterans on the kayfabememories.com message board will share those stories on the various territory boards (AWA, NWA, Florida, Memphis, Alabama, WWWF, etc.)

Those stories from many of those veterans when I started in the business in the early 80's and what I learned from my mentor Bob Sabre are vital important things that I could never put a price on. 99% of what all these old timers told me still are true to this day. Some of the advice given to me was good old Sonny shrugging his shoulders and thinking " those things can't happen to me" but surprise surprise I learned through trial and error that those so called old farts were right and to this day are still right. Today 23 years later the game plan to be a superstar in the wrestling business in the shortest amount of time has been modified but the end result is that 98% of the time the end results are the same as I went through and just about every worker in past generations. The majority of workers breaking into the business in the last 10 years are not prepared psychologically for the business to deal with rejection, letdowns, injuries, dealing with the assorted scum bags, backstabbers, cut throats, and the like.

The late NWA promoter told me back in 1980 @ an NWA TV I was doing in St. Louis that it takes 5 years in the business just to get established, gain valuable experience, make contacts, etc. So in essence a person is a rookie for 5 years. Over 2 decades later if a person who breaks into the business doesn't see himself being in the WWE, NWA-TNA, a lucrative Japan or overseas contract etc. they walk away from wrestling and this all happens in the first 9 months to 2 years. Of course you get those few that after training in the business for 9 months to a year then they have the know how to open up there own training school. oy vay. Others are just typical punks, troublemakers, know it alls, etc. Some people try to reinvent the wheel and then later find out that the wheel turns the same way.

This is a business that if you have 2 or 3 close friends that you can confide in then you are doing good. Everyone else is an associate. The first few years in the business I spent were the time of my life and I can speak that for so many others that broke in the biz around the same time period I started. Some people nowadays from their first day in the biz on are just miserable and missed out on a great time, kind of like Dickie Roberts child movie star" I won't mention names but I see some of my peers on the cw.com boards talking about beating the crap out or taking liberties with this guy that guy etc. I hear others talking about how this guy sucks, that guys company sucks, there all yarders, I'm the shit, etc.

One of the first things I learned in the biz from the likes of Sabre, Baron Von Rashcke, Bockwinkle, Al Costello, etc. is to never trash talk a company, burning a bridge because those same people that we meet going up the ladder we meet those same people going down the ladder. Why blow future paydays, gimmick money, etc. Plus you are only as good as the person you work so if you look like shit then he looks like shit. That's another part of the business that is not being handed down to trainees. If so and so who runs the ABC wrestling school in Alsip, IL. is a bitter disrespectful person and has other bad vices then the result the majority of the time is that he is going to pass on his beliefs and philosophy to his trainees. If time travel were possible there are currently about a dozen current workers on the Chicago scene that have my " it's been your pleasure I shit gold bullion, etc. that I would love to take them to the early 80's and see them all get a royal asskicking from Wahoo McDaniels, Pat O'Conner, Ronnie Garvin, Bob Orton, Dick Slater, Greg Valentine, Bruiser Brody, Terry Gordy, etc. But oh well time travel doesn't exist.

I'll close by saying that I kind of keep hope that someday in the near future that the old territories come back thus providing more work for the boys and gals. With the TV ratings, house show attendance, ppv buys, merchandising revenue so down for the WWE, I just don't see Vinny Mac pulling a rabbit out of the hat anytime soon. NWA-TNA is not setting the world on fire as well. Storylines should be slowed down, too much tits and ass. More on the mat wrestling just my opinion. Those in the biz today and even those who mock the old timers should never forget the Lou Thesz', the Buddy Rogers, the Verne Gagnes, Gorgeous George, the Bruisers, Crushers, Flairs, Bockwinkles, the Funks, the Briscos, the LOD, and an endless list of past wrestling greats that blazed the trail for today's and future wrestling.

2. One of my favorite memories of you was seeing you when I was a student in South Bend, at the St Joseph center. I remember you working a guy called Sheik Ali something or other, and tagging with a Hulk Hogan look alike. Any idea what happened to them, and how was it working in that federation?

SONNY: Ah yes the Century Center in South Bend, Indiana in the Bendix Theatre part of the Century Center. Very nice building on the banks of the St. Joseph River. Paul Heyman and ECW did one event there a few years ago but as urban legend has it ECW was not allowed to come back to the building due to some damage. The century center was a culture center mainly used for art exhibits, beauty pageants, dog shows, ballroom dancing, floral shows, auto shows, etc. Very plush facility.

Anyhow getting back to your questions the Hulkster look a like was Matt Samson whose real name was Matt St. Clair. Matt stayed in the business for about 3 years. Matt did one WWF tv taping with the late Chuck Greenlee (Sgt. Rock) in 85 or 86 I believe when all of the WWF TVs were done in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. and in Allentown, Pa., Matt worked a six man I think against John Studd, King Kong Bundy, and I think the Missing Link. I think the next night in Allentown, Pa., Matt Samson worked Adrian Adonis and Dick Murdouch in a tag. Urban legend had it that Samson was not well received in the WWF amongst the boys due to the Hogan look. Hulkster totally fabed Samson @ both TVs.

Sheik Ali Rajhid was Rob Falcionne, who was an injury attorney. The last time I seen Rob Falcionne a few years ago @ a Chicago Heights event, Rob stopped practicing law and I believe works with the Illinois tollway. Rob also was a timekeeper for the then Illinois state wrestling and boxing commission. I took Rob to an AWA TV taping as Rob Falcon, I think, in Stevens Point, WI, @ UW-Stevens Point.

Chicago Championship Wrestling in 1984 headed by Vito Brancato (Tony "Razor") DiVito and Terry "the hammer" Scholl ran the first ever wrestling event @ the Bendix Theatre part of the Century Center in June of 84 to a sold out crowd of 750. I think I worked Bruiser Scott Reynolds in a 15 minute broadway on that show. I was doing a bad rock n roll Buck Zumhofe gimmick minus "all of my daughters" lol. Chicago Championship Wrestling ran the building on an every 4-6 week basis for over a year but the crowds were dwindling more @ each event due to mostly stale and lame storylines.

Just after the wicked Spike Huber - Michelle Afflis divorce in 84 (Michelle was Dick the Bruiser's daughter) Vito and Terry brought Spike in for a Century Center event just after Spike's WWA Indianapolis title reign and of course after the divorce. We were hoping that Spike would spark interest and get the houses back up but it did very little. Funny thing was when Spike showed up to the building I was the only one that recognized him amongst the boys. Some of the boys in the dressing rom thought that this so called athlete was here trying to work a tryout match. For whatever reason Spike had straight hair, bleached it blond, and had a goatee. Spike worked Tony Leone, I think, on that event until Spike grabbed the house mic and said a few words most of the crowd didn't believe that this was Spike Huber. All that was missing was Rod Serling's voice heard overhead.

I presented the idea to Scholl and Vito about letting myself and Tom Stone help with the booking and storylines but I got the old trap door treatment when I presented the idea. Towards the end of the CCW run @ the century center I did a heel turn on Golden Boy Mike Summers that got quite a bit of heat so one would think that the next event has summers wanting my head on a platter due to the heat we generated but for whatever reason I'm back as a face against Scholl with no acknowledgement or follow up of my hideous heinous act of cruelty I did to Mike Summers. Somehow Vito got into Doc Brown's DeLorian, hit the 88mph, went back in time to that Century Center event where I had instant hardening of the arteries and corrected the space time continuam. 1.75 jiggawatts of stupity I guess.

I was gone from CCW after I received heat from Vito and Terry after doing a few shots for Spike Huber's new company in French Lick, Indiana and Anderson, Indiana. This was the 250 mile rule back then lol. A fellow named Mike Schwab cut a deal with the Century Center and ran a few shows there in late 85 and 86 but didn't draw much better. On one event I worked a soon to be business associate named Sam DeCero who was Super Maxx @ the time just coming off of his WWA Indianapolis tag team title run with Madd Maxx (John Richmond, Eli the Eliminator) just a footnote to add that on a few other Mike Scwabb events in some Indiana armorys I worked a fellow by the name of Al Snow in 86.

CCW had a late night tv time slot on Chicago Sportschannel for about a 4- 5 year run but again bad storylines and bad matches lead to their demise. Bruiser Scott Reynolds (Scott Helton) is a high school principal @ a suburban Chicago high school. Scott has totally distanced himself from the business and has never told any of the h.s. faculty of his days in the biz and refuses to acknowledge it. Iron Mike Samson, Rockin Randy Ricci, KC Knight, the Golden Boys (Mike Summers, Jimmy Holiday), Hawkeye Cody Hunter (CCW, Mr. Smith) were some of the talent I recruited to leave Chicago Championship Wrestling and come to Windy City Wrestling.

Great memories of South Bend and CCW. A big hello and tongue in the ear kiss to some of my old cohorts of CCW such as Zebra Kid, Lumberjack Jim Barr, Curly Rich, Sam Reynolds (Sam Suka), Lord Humongous (Lou Lewandowski) Mike Tolos, Rich Schultze, Mike Larrucci, Big Joe, Jose Orlando, Shakey, Mark Dartell and so many I can't remember @ this time but Chuck Greenlee (Sgt. Rock) r.i.p. I miss you so much and wish you were still here.

QUESTION: Sonny, do you have any personal dressing room storys or any encounters that you can share about Bruiser Brody, Andre the Giant and Andy Kaufman?

SONNY: Everybody has a Bruiser Brody story. Frank "Bruiser Brody" Goodish is another one of those phenom talents that left this world to soon. I didn't have the opportunity to know Brody that well on some of the same events that I worked on but he was always very cordial with me and was a huge Cub fan. Brody had mentioned that whenever he was in or near Chicago that he would always try to find the time to get out to the Friendly Confines @ 1060 W. Addison. Brody was pretty rough with the boys @ tv tapings especially with the big boys. As lady luck would have it I worked Bruiser Brody @ an AWA tv in 84 in St. Cloud, MN. Brody just came in as a monster heel to replace AWA heels Jesse Ventura and "Dr. D" Dave schultz who had departed to the WWF to get big $$ and title runs with the Hulkster. Brody came in as a hired gun by Sheik Adnan el Kaissey. Frank came over to me and just said basically you know what I do so just sell and let me bark to the crowd and cameras. Of course after seeing my then 22 year old life go by my eyes I said "anything you want Frank just call it." Overall it wasn't really that bad but after Brody gave me the gorilla slam to set up the flying knee drop finish, I seen Brody launch himself in the air to deliver the knee drop finish. I can't be sure but I think Brody's hangtime in the air was equal to many of NFL Hall of Famer punter Ray Guy's kicks. Quite light when he came down. I did get busted open though when I accidently took a kick to the back of the head, ramming my mush into the canvas. It was my fault so i never held a grudge with Mr. Brody.

It has always been said that Brody kicked the bejesus out of a then young cocky Lex Luger in a cage match during the old NWA Florida territory days. Luger climbed out of the cage before the finish and hightailed it to the dressing room and then out of the building. When Brody was working in the old Dick the Bruiser Afflis WWA Indianapolis office, there was a dressing room brawl between the two bruisers over some low payoffs that Brody received from some recent houses another time I had heard that Brody pulled a gun on DTB in the dressing room.

In 1988 Bruiser Brody was brought into work an International Amphitheatre event in Chicago against John Nord the Barbarian (90's WWF Berzerker) @ the time Paul Heyman was Sam DeCero's booker for WCPW. The event drew a crowd of over 5,000 people. A Brody-Nord cage rematch was set for an August Amphitheatere, but in July, Brody was murdered in Puerto Rico.

Just another footnote to add about Bruiser Brody: A gentleman named Brad Davis ran a company out of Watseka, IL. and had Sam DeCero's old tag partner John Richmond (Madd Maxx, Eli the Eliminater) as his booker - @ a couple Watseka events and I think another one in East Chicago, IN., Brody worked John and @ a Watseka event Brody worked a huge guy who worked as the Commando. The Commando relocated to Watseka for a few months, wrestling and bouncing @ a few bars. The Commando was a fellow named Mark Calloway who you all know as the Undertaker.

ANDRE THE GIANT: Another guy that I didn't really know that well but always cordial. Tremendous athlete in his younger years. Andre many times hit some impressive looking drop kicks and was quite agile on his feet compared to his later years. Andre knew his time on earth wasn't long and lived life to the fullest. My mentor Bob Sabre partied with Andre, Verne Gagne, Billy Robinson, and Baron after a couple Amphitheatre shows. I remember Sabre telling me that they were all @ the old Gossage Grill in Itasca, I think in the wee hours of the morning. Bob, Verne,and Robinson were totally annihilated from partying all night and according to what Sabre told me was that Andre was on his second wind. Sabre dropped Andre off @ the airport that morning and it goes without saying that Andre's tracker beam took him right to the nearest O'Hare terminal bar where he stayed until boarding time on his flight.

Kind of sad that around 89 I think John Studd was in the old stay out all night disco (pre Shaboom days) after a Rosemont Horizon show talking about how he hated working Andre in the last few months. Studd was telling Mr. Bill and I that he used to enjoy working Andre but after Studd's face turn in the WWF, he was working a totally different Andre. Studd made mention that Andre was extremely stiff and their program died a slow death.

There is also the infamous time when Andre sat down on Bad News Brown (Alan Coage) in the corner and Andre had a major case of diarhea and I suppose Andre thought that it was good a time as any to relieve himself on Bad News Brown. Poor Bad News Brown, he really lived up to his name on that unfortunate night.

Andre would never allow himself to be seen with or being photographed with fellow giants like NBA players Kareen Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain, Manute Bol, Bob Lanier, Bill Walton, etc. because that was the advice that Vince McMahon Sr. gave to Andre years ago.

Many don't know this but Andre (Andre Rousinoff) was a late round NFL college draft pick by the Washington Redskins in the early 70's as a defensive end.

ANDY KAUFMAN: I met Andy Kaufman @ an AWA Amphitheatre show when he was in the middle of his hot program with Jerry Lawler that had the famous David Letterman show, Kaufman tossing hot coffee into Lawler's face - @ the time the Memphis office was doing talent exchange with the AWA and took the Lawler-Kaufman feud up north to Chicago in 82 I think.

Kaufman put a bounty on the head of Lawler and Bobby Heenan and Ken Patera were there to answer it as part of the program. If anyone has read the Bobby Heenan book, Heenan talks about Kaufman as being very odd and that was how Andy Kaufman was in the dressing room. Just kept to himself until match time. I shook hands with him complimented him on his work as Latka Graves on Taxi. He said thank you and that was pretty much it. I found it amazing that when I read Jerry Lawler's book, Lawler made mention after Kaufman died that Kaufman did not cash a single payoff check during his entire run in Memphis and with Lawler. I always enjoyed "my breakfast with Blassie" that Kaufman did with Fred Blassie. Every so often it pops up on cable. Well worth seeing funny stuff especially the dry wet towels that Blassie gave Kaufman.

Do you remember the first card that you attended as a fan?

My first wrestling show I attended was in 1971 @ the International Amphitheatre in
Chicago I was 9 years old @ the time. The main event was Dick the Bruiser, the Crusher,
and Bull Bullinski against the Ffabulous Kangaroos and Blackjack Lanza with
Bobby Heenan and "Crybaby" George Cannon in the Kangaroos (al Costello and Don
Kent) and BJ Lanza' corner. Wilbur Snyder against Mad Dog Vachon, Red Bastein
vs. Lars Anderson, Moose Cholak vs. Larry Henning, Hercules Cortez vs. Jack Bence,
and I think Paul Christy against Angelo Poffo or the Big K in the opener. kind
of strange looking back realizing that Bruiser, Bullinski, both Kangaroos,
Cannon, Snyder, Moose, Hercules, Bence are all deceased. great show, great heat,
and a sold out turn away crowd. quite a few brawls in the crowd. I remember
another Amphitheatre show I attended a short time after that show had a main
event of Baron von Raschke and Hans Schmidt against Haystacks Calhoun and Moose
Cholak with Verne Gagne defending the A.W.A. strap against Lars Anderson. an
"unknown" Phenom from Manchester England named Billy Robinson coming off of 2
upset wins on A.W.A. TV over Shozo Kobayashi and BJ Lanza worked this show if
memory serves. I also remember an early 1972 event @ Addison trail high school that
had the Blackjacks (Lanza, Mulligan) with Bobby Heenan against Bruiser and
Sailor (seaman , lol) Art Thomas plus Moose against Baron von Raschke, The Masked
Professor against Angelo Poffo and the opener that had Paul Christy against Jim
Dillinger (Chris Colt) that same year I attended an Amphitheatre show that
had the A.W.A. tag champs Nick Bockwinkle and Ray Stevens against the former A.W.A.
Tag Champs Ccrusher and red Bastein, Billy Robinson against Ivan Koloff, dirty
Dusty Rhodes vs. Bullinski a rookie named Don Muraco taking on Jack Pesek and a
match that had my mentor in the business, bob Sabre against Angelo Poffo.
about a year later there was this red haired crew cut 300 lb guy named Ric Flair
just out of Verne Gagne's training camp put over art Thomas, Paul Christy, and
Moose on Amphitheatre shows that year. the 1972 Soldier Field show that had a
Cage Match Main Event of Bruiser and Crusher against the Blackjacks and Heenan
with former boxing champ Jersey Joe Wolcott was a classic. interesting
footnote was that Heenan spewed in the ring after the match. Verne Gagne
defended the A.W.A. title against Ivan Koloff and I remember seeing a young trim André the
Giant beating Butcher Vachon and Larry Henning in a handicap match. Andre hit a
dropkick or 2 in that match and @ the time was rather light on his feet. in
1979 on an event @ the Amphitheatre I didn't attend had a main event of Verne
Gagne against then A.W.A. champion Nick Bockwinkle, Bobby Heenan interfered in the
match causing Verne to lose and to have Nicks hand raised shortly thereafter
there were about 5 or 6 gunshots heard that hit a few people sitting @
ringside. the bullets were meant for Heenan but apparently Bobby turned away @
the last possible second to avoid being hit. the incident made headline news on all
the Chicago TV stations and newspapers. very scary. the gunman was never
apprehended by the Chicago Police Department.



Sonny, any Bob Luce stories?

I didn't really know Bob Luce very well but he was cordial in the few times I spoke with Bob and his
wife Sharon lass who by the way was a former female worker. I remember Bob Luce
had a daughter named Robin, she was a hottie. The old Sonny hormones were in
overdrive whenever I seen her, lol. from around the early mid 60's Bob Luce was
the frontman promoter for Chicago and the surrounding area for the A.W.A. and
the Indianapolis W.W.A. which was owned by Bruiser and Wilbur Snyder. Luce owned an
advertising agency and would use his advertising magic to plug Amphitheatre
events and Hammond Civic Center events and a few spot shows whenever they came
about. I even remember the wrestling hotline phone #'s that had a recorded
Luce voice hyping the next Amphitheatre, Hammond Civic Center events (312)
729-4080 and 312-729-4866. Luce made most of his money when he was involved in
the wrestling business through his advertising business bens auto sales, millers
pub, candor electric, one stop, jimmy Holmes clothing stores, the Polynesian
Paradise restaurant, Sanfratellos restaurant were just only a few of the sponsors
that Luce obtained through his advertising company for the then channel 26
wrestling champions TV show out of Indianapolis and the future channel 44 bob
Luce wrestling show that was so red hot that channel 44 repaired the show 3 times
a week. the Bob Luce wrestling show was kind of an early prequel to the later
WWF Tuesday night titans and WWF primetime wrestling shows from the 1980's on
the USA network. Luce in general was not treated very well by bruiser and was
basically a flunkey in bruisers eyes I know that Verne Gagne was not a fan of
Bob Luce as well. Verne eventually became the Chicago promoter in name for
Chicago AWA-WWA amphitheatre events in 82-83 I think. my trainer Bob Sabre once
told me that he seen Verne totally lambaste Luce so bad in an amphitheatre
skybox that Luce was almost in tears. I do recall seeing Luce a few times in a
sedate condition after several hi balls and mass quantity of beer consumption.
Bob Luces hall of fame exhibit he had @ every amphitheatre show throughout most
of the 70's and early 80's generated some good extra income for Luce. Bob Luce
to this day I believe still has all of his wrestling videos from the
Amphitheatre and Bob Luce wrestling shows that he sells on line unfortunately I
don't know the current website add. the Soldier Field Blackjacks- Crusher- Bruiser
Cage match, the studio segments where Pepper Gomez had a Volkswagen roll over
his "cast iron" stomach, Jimmy Valiant jumping on Peppers tummy off a ladder,
the famous Ox Baker heat punch segments delivered to Johnny Kace and ex sox
announcer Bob Elson, an Ox Baker- Baron von Krupp interview, TV announcer and ex
worker Sam Menacker punching out Bobby Heenan leading to a huge run of houses
for Menacher vs. Heenan gimmick matches, old Amphitheatre footage of Bruiser
and Crusher against Dusty Rhodes and Dick Murdock, Andre the Giant and Dr.X
against Bockwinkle and Stevens, Bruiser vs. Ernie Ladd the Hammond Civic Center
Mexican Strap match that had Bobby Heenan bleeding buckets against Pepper
Gomez, the street fight match that had the Legionnaires (r Sgt.. Jacques René
Goulet and Pvt.. Don Fargo) against Moose and Pepper with the stipulations that the
winners had to rip the clothing off there opponents , Billy Red Cloud against
Heenan in an Indian Chain match and so much more. radio and TV icons such as
Chet Coppack, al Lerner, and John Donaldson received there starts on the Bob
Luce wrestling show. the WWZ had Bob Luce in for an event or 2 not to long ago. I
have heard rumors that Bob Luce has started to write a book. last I heard Luce
still resides in Glenview, Illinois


Do you believe the Hardcore and Strong Styles have hurt the sport?

I'll probably be kind of bias on this series of questions due to the contrasting styles of old school which was my upbringing and new school. the hardcore - strong style has had success with a few of the Japan companies, of course ECW, and even Chicago based LWF. the WWF had great success with those 2 styles in the last few years as did WCW to a lesser degree but as anything in life nothing stays the same and today's trend of what's hot and then tomorrow's what's not hot come into play. the hardcore style certainly changed the face of the business and more then likely spawned backyard wrestling across the country. I certainly tip my hat to those eager young businessmen who had the hindsight to market the backyard wrestling videos and the result was a boatload of money for most while many of the others jumped on the bandwagon and sure kept the hospital E.R.s.'s quite busy emulating broken glass matches, barbwire matches, jumping off the 100 year old oak tree in the backyard or in front of the house etc. quite a few of these young lads found there way into professional wrestling some with success some just never getting a clue but to a few of them to perform in front of a live crowd a few times a month I suppose is blue collar bob being a part of the every Tuesday night bowling league or touch football every Sunday morning or even playing in a softball league every week with cement truck drivers, construction workers, etc. terry funk, Sabu, and Mick Foley were probably more or less the pioneers of hardcore wrestling and I guess you can throw Tommy Dreamer into that list as well and they are all great guys but a person like mick foley reached the penthouse suite in the WWF for about a 7-8 year period and god bless Mick because i'm happy for all the financial and personal succsee Mick has reached but in the last few years it looks like all the hardcore style and insane bumps that Mick Foley took has caught up with him. Foley basically does the Fred Sanford walk due to hips, knee, back, neck, etc. injurys. the trap that Mick Foley fell into was his unbelievable bumps that he took for example off the top of a cage going through a table, falling through the cage in his unforgettable cage match with taker, and on and on now Mick Foley has a problem and that problem is "what do I do to top that next pay per view, raw is war tv, etc.? a short time later came public enemy, the Dudleys, Sandman, Spike Dudley, Tazz, etc and now it becomes a game of who can top who, kind of a friendly competition I guess. professional wrestling maybe has a career expectancy of 5 years if lucky due to the hardcore, high risk moves style of the business today before the human anatomy cries uncle. the days of the Verne Gagnes, Wilbur Snyders, Nick Bockwinkles, Wahoo McDaniels, Lou Thesz, Pat O'Connor, etc. of talent working into there 50's and 60's are an extinct breed Ric Flair may be the last of the dinosaurs. the current state of the business is in the shitter because everybody has shot there wad and again the how do you top that question rears its ugly head again. Billy Whack and Mike Broox were brilliant in tapping into the hardcore wrestling market in the later 90's and did quite well with it but as time marches on things change and the word diversification comes into play and it looked to me that they approached and tackled that problem a long time after the horse ran out of the barn. i'm not gloating about it because I hope that LWF comes back strong in the future. the hardcore, high risk, strong style of wrestling companies will always have there cult following such as Ian Rotten's IWA and it appears that they did quite well this past weekend in there Highland, Indiana debut. 2004 as I mentioned in a few threads should be an interesting year as the business continues to go in a downward spiral and eventually the long lasting traditional wrestling companies like WCPW, classic, powerhouse, PCW, a few companies in the south will weather the storm and continue to prosper in the big picture. of course I could be wrong but if I knew the future I would find out the winning numbers on the next powerball jackpot and Illinois big game jackpots.
*****

Dominion's Opinion
NWA Midwest champion Danny Dominion will answer questions fans send to Chicagowrestling.com. To send questions to Dominion, send email to Chicagowrestling.com's Al Lagattolla at [e-mail]. Questions will be sent to Dominion, who promises to answer all questions that are wrestling related:

1. As you look back on your career what was your most fulfilling moment? Why?

DOMINION: I would have to say opening the Steel Domain and training/teaching students to the best of my ability. I enjoy helping those who deserve it. There is nothing better than to see some of the guys I brought up getting opportunities in half the time I did. That was the whole point. I'd hate to see it take 8 years of someone's life to get a chance like it did in my case.

2. If you could do it all over again, what would you have changed in your career?

DOMINION: I would have changed locations. The Midwest had a horrible reputation. It's funny that it is now getting a damn good one due to the guys who trained at the Domain. Also, I would have gotten jacked up a few years earlier.

3. If wrestling wasn't the career path for you, what would you be doing now?

DOMINION: Well, I certainly can't say it has been a career. I've had fun and made some cash but I've probably shelled out much more in supplements, training , gear, etc. If I never went into wrestling, I probably would have stayed in college(which would have been a good idea anyway) and kept my chemistry major. By now I would have been a mad scientist developing anti-aging drugs and such!!Really!!LOL

4. What is the best piece of advice you received on your journey in the wrestling field?

DOMINION: Ahhhhh, excellent question that will take forever but I'll try to shorten it up.

Probably all the ones I ignored! In this business things change daily. If you speak your mind, you are fucked, if you keep your mouth shut, you're fucked also. I'm straight forward and pull no punches. I guess you just need to know when you can and can't say things, for example: While I was in Sydney Australia, I was asked by one of the main bookers what I thought about the PPV and how it was all set up (matches, angles, stupid skits, etc). This was asked right after the pre-PPV rehearsal. Being one of my friends, I figured I'd tell him the truth(or how I felt). I said it was awful and would suck(which if anyone saw it you can vouch for my opinion) Maybe I was too harsh!?! Why start off a show with a lucha ladders match and have them both bleed when the main event is a cage match? Why were all the matches "gimmick" matches"? Dog collar match, ladders, tables, cage, four way girls match where two of the girls in it never even watched wrestling let alone been in a ring. How idiotic. People came to see something they barely ever got in Australia ... wrestling ....not stupid skits made up by Glenn Gilberti ...not chicks who have never been in a ring that look like shit...not Road dog barely able to stand, let alone work.

Also, never bust your ass for something for years to have an asshole who you shook hands with flush it down the toilet. Example SDW in St. Paul. Ace and myself busted our asses for promoter Ed Hellier. We allowed him to use OUR name that meant more to us than any dollar amount. He decided to piss on all of our hard work and then locally copyright our name without our permission. Where I come from, a handshake is your word. This asshole single-handedly killed it and now doesn't even draw 100 people and doesn't even use his broadcast TV slot (which Mortimer Plumbtree got for him). Half the time they put on re-runs or worse yet an old 70's movie. One Word for Hellier..ASS--HOOOOOLE

Bring them on people!! Ask anything!

What did you think of the state commission and its representatives?

DOMINION: I first thought that having a governing system over pro wrestling was bullshit. It's a work! Soon after the demise of the Commish, I realized that once gone, it opened up the doors for all the idiots to run rampant in Illinois. Having rules and regulations chased broke-assed, lazy people away from running shows that would just kill venues. I think having a commision that is un-biased and helpful would be a positive, not a negative. Unfortunately, the athletic commision was not like this at all. Besides Jon Spahn, all those guys were complete assholes for the most part, especially the jag-off running it at the end(forgot his name). Actually, if I ever saw him on the street I'd run his arrogant ass over and make him a hood ornament.

When running shows, a representative would have to be present at the venue. If it was Spahn, no problem. If it was anyone else, they usually would collect their 10% and run like theives in the night (after bitching and moaning about having to be there). In closing, I don't miss the old commision one bit, yet would appreciate one that would prevent morons from killing venues(and each other) throughout the state.

2. Dave Taylor has been known to run a tune up seminar/camp for workers already trained. Some wrestlers have the desire to learn more. I know that a lot of workers from around this area have big egos, but some don't. Have you considered doing a type of seminar/camp like this for wrestlers?

DOMINION: Yes I have thought about it. I am actually throwing a few ideas around and may do something like that a few times a year. I'm no Dave Taylor....he could show ya some cool shit from way back.....intricate submissioms and tie-up holds a la Billy Robinson. Those old school guys from Europe have forgotten more shit than some of us will ever know, yet, there are things that a guy like Taylor couldn't show you that others could. Taylor isn't going to show you a lucha spot(especially the hokey ones thank God!). These camps are neccesities if you really want to step your game up. There is not one guy around here that couldn't use this from me or one of the old Domain trainers/accomplished workers. Again, say what you want about me or my opinion but the most knowledgable, well rounded school EVER in Chicago was the Domain.

QUESTION: Whasaap danny? I just read the interview where Punk says he wants nothing to do with "the way he (dominion) makes your living." I know you and Punk are hating each other like Coke hates Pepsi (lol) but what did he mean by what he said? Can you explain?

DOMINION: LOL. Well, I see that Punk is still the same old hypocrite that he has always been. First of all, I make money many different ways. One definitely isn't sucking cock to get to the top. I currently decided to leave the strip club I was working at and head over to a different club where the money is better. I do not start employment there until the second week of August for I want to enjoy the rest of the summer with my girl and son. The money is incredible there and it will allow me to focus on other business ventures that I would like to start soon. I also do some personal training on occasion if the money is worth my time.

Also, what would Punk know about making a living anyway? Whenever he was around me he did nothing but mooch meals and make excuses why he never paid the remainder of his tuition at the Domain. One of the reasons that I closed shop was due to the fact that I had to chase guys like him around for a measly $40 a month to pay rent and electricity. He certainly didn't seem to care where the money was coming from then, did he.

If (Punk) is speaking in terms of anything that I may have occasionally indulged in or helped fellow workers out with, it certainly doesn't seem to bother him if the people he hangs out with or dates does. He talks about his disdain for drugs and alcohol and it looks like he cites this as one of the reasons he doesn't care to "hang out" w/ me. If he'd look around him before he opened his arrogant mouth he'd see how hypocritical he is. His straight edge stance is just a way to attract attention to himself He is much like Maryln Manson or Dennis Rodman, he is a staple for the mindless. Take away the cheezy tattoos, the 3 toned, bullshit hairdo and what do you have? A rude and whiny young man.

(Punk) himself said he hasn't spoke w/ me for over a year yet he seems to know an awful lot about my personal life doesn't he. This is old news, I was cool w/ him at the last show and wanted to bury the hatchet one way or another. I don't hold grudges. We went out and clowned around (in the ring) and all was cool. Like I said, he puts on a good front. Just remember that it's a fun time as you climb the ladder, unfortunately it's not so fun on the way down. In our world of watered-down, one hit wonders in the entertainment business, one is flushed down the proverbial toilet as fast as they were made "stars.

Still, I wish (Punk) the best, honestly I can be steaming mad at him or others that I considered friends but no matter what, if there was a problem, I'd be the first one to drop everything and help them. I can't change who I am and unfortunately, neither can Punk.

QUESTION: What happened to the Steel Domain shows that ran a few times in the greater Chicago area a few years ago?

DOMINION: It began to be way too time consuming. I took on 90% of the responsibilities and just couldn't do it all. There are other variables also. I'm sure I could have done things a bit differently and might have gotten better results. Plus the venue we had changed supervisors which ended our relatinship there.

QUESTION: What's your favorite match?

DOMINION: Tough one. Some that come to mind are me vs crowbar in Austrailia(crowd was huge and crazy for everything) Ace and I vs Punk and Cabana at WWZ's first show. Priest and I had a good one in Minnesota and Streamwood. I had a great time working with Ace vs Tommy Drake and Bison Smith for Pro Wrestling Iron last summer too.

QUESTION: What's your favorite match from each of your trainees (and also Ace and Pearce)?

DOMINION: That come to mind: Punk vs Cabana 2/3 falls in Minnesota. BJ Whittmer vs Priest, Ace vs Punk(pick one from Minnesota) Pearce vs Rick Steamboat.

QUESTION: How did you and Ace split up the training at the Domain?

DOMINION: It was usually Ace on Tuesday's and me on Thursdays. Sunday was kinda open practice. Other guys helped a lot as well (Pearce, Quinn, Noga, Black Dagger, Len Walker). Forgive me if I forgot anyone.

QUESTION: What do you think about the development of each of your trainees + Ace and Pearce (from a professional, not personal, standpoint). What do they do well and what do they need to work on?

DOMINION: Punk's development stands out, as does Priest's in all aspects, yet he doesn't get the credit for it. He will soon though. Bradley has become a brick shithouse and has improved a ton in every aspect. He still needs to put shit in better(preferably without killing someone). He also needs to stop breaking ring ropes and landing on the back of his skull. Cabana has toned down on the nonsense spots and "Tommy Rich" selling and has improved his psychology and persona big time. Ace hasn't changed except for the fact that he is seemingly getting better at promoting himself and getting ahead. He still needs to take opportunities and make the best of them by taking control. As for Pearce, I didn't even know he was still doing much.

QUESTION: What did you think of Punk's 93-minute match against Hero? What about the 55-minute tables and ladders match?

DOMINION: Never watched them. Sounds like a hell of a lot of abuse on your body. He needs to save those matches for WWE or Japan so that he can pay his therapy bills when he can't do it anymore.

QUESTION: What is the best training center in the area? In the country? In the world?

DOMINION: Local: MCW because of Priest. US: who knows...OVW or PWI (not chicago goofs, Morgan and Modest). World: New Japan

QUESTION: What do you think about Punk's prospects of being a trainer at ROH? What are his strengths and weaknesses as a trainer?

DOMINION: A good worker doesn't always make a good trainer. You need self control, patience and reliability(not Punks best attributes) His strength is that he trained in the proper manner with us and knows firsthand what needs to be done.

QUESTION: What makes a good trainer? How can someone who is a limited worker (like John Burke) be widely considered a good trainer?

DOMINION: Patience, reliability,self-control,knowledge of every style, knowledge in personal fitness and nutrition, knowledge in what it takes to get to the next level ... as in what WWE and Japan want(not always the most important things unfortunately) but most of all experience outside of a 20 mile radius of where you run. Burke hasn't done a bad job. He can explain things pretty well from what I hear but I have no first hand knowledge on how he trains therefore I shouldn't be an asshole and go by someone elses opinion.

QUESTION: What do *you* need to do to improve?

DOMINION: I need to know if this is what I even want anymore before I ask myself what i need to improve on. In my opinion, I need to work on proper breathing techniques in the ring to keep my heartrate lower. I need to look like I did last year at this time, which can happen within a couple months if need be. I need to go with the flow more and not let liars, hypocrites and overall shitheads bother me within the business.

QUESTION: Since you mentioned that Hellier "locally copyrighted" the name "Steel Domain", have you trademarked the name "Steel Domain" nationally? What about "Danny Dominion"? What *is* a "local copyright" anyway? I thought copyrights were done on the federal level.

DOMINION: Dominion is trademarked and has been for a while. Steel Domain was locally service marked in Illinois but not the U.S.(way too expensive at the time) It may still be service marked here but not sure. It is in Minnesota, but it ain't worth the paper it's servicemarked on since brainless Ed Hellier drove it into the ground (hardway).

QUESTION: What is the prognosis on a future for the Steel Domain? Would Ace Steel be involved?

DOMINION: I am throwing some ideas around now. Ace would most likely not be invoved although would be asked.

QUESTION: What are your professional goals?

DOMINION: Not really sure at this point. I just want to have fun doing whatever I do. I would like to work Japan more than anything else "wrestlingwise" WWE does little for me right now. I have many alternatives but am waiting til summer's end to star focusing on what I will do.

QUESTION: Why are you not in WWE or TNA right now?

DOMINION: I guess I got frustrated at the WWE changing their opinions on what they wanted every month. I also have a hard time smiling at someone I think is worthless ... kinda makes it hard getting a gig ya know. There are way too many chiefs and not enough worthwhile indians in WWE. As for TNA, probably my stance on the way they did things when I had my tryout. Also getting shit-canned from ex-names that I wrestled circles around in Austrailia. They don't like someone who does their job better than they can, especially one who devoted much more time and took it much more seriously. Maybe if I got freakishly big like Stiener or Batista I'd be in by now. ... Eh, I'll pass. I want to live to see my kid's 16th birthday. I think I know what TNA does ... they form 4 lines, one at each turnbuckle, then they see what idiot can go to the top and make the loudest most sickening thump on the mat and hire them.

Danny, what are your thoughts on the WWZ?

DOMINION: Well, Steve (Turbo) is a very good promoter. He puts time and effort into getting fans to his shows. He has the best set-up in the area also (smoke, lights, screens, Chela). The problem is this ... Once he gets the people to attend the shows, all goes downhill once it starts. Here is a list of things I would work on if I were the WWZ officials.

a. Make sure the talent that is advertised shows up. It looks awful when only 2 of the 4 "names" show.

b. Stop putting guys in the ring that are nowhere near ready This is a problem with just about every promotion that also has a school. When are these promotions going to learn that they should not be obligated to book a student until he has the skills to at least work a seasoned vet and listen. I had this problem at their last show in a 3 way with Priest and their trainee. The kid seemed like a decent guy but he couldn't even throw a somewhat believable work punch. Also, in a very disrespectful move, he decided to change the finish of the match. YOU NEVER DO THAT!!! I don't give a fuck who has ulterior motives against who (I will not get into them because it has nothing to do with me). As a rookie, you especially do not do that. He was supposed to roll Priest up for the finish but instead gave him what he calls his finishing move. Priest went with it and took the fall. It was ridiculous. I know who called this at the last minute and this is why I will never work with WWZ again. It was disrespectful, not to mention they didn't offer myself, Priest or Priest's boys a fucking dollar. I never agreed on a number anyway but just assumed I'd take whatever given since it was in my old neighborhood and my mom could come and see me work. I guess you need to have your own amusement park if no one wants you in theirs.

c. The matchmaking is horrible as is the majority of the talent. There is no control in the lockerroom and the shows run ridiculously long. Next Question...

2. Why do so few wrestlers in Chicago have quality physiques when there are plenty of non-competative bodybuilders at gyms across the state who do have good physiques? Is it really that difficult to learn how to workout and have a quality diet?

DOMINION: One word: LAZINESS! Everyone wants shit handed to them. Getting results from working out takes a long-term commitment and hard work. It is a lifestyle you have to lead. Most would rather light up a smoke, grab a beer and pick up McDonalds instead of showing that they really want to be a professional (actually sounds like me as of late).

3. Along the same lines as the last question... Why do you feel that according to Ben Jordan there is such a slow down in people going to wrestling schools?

DOMINION: Lack of interest. Also, how many guys get anywhere who train at these schools?? How many schools have a decent track record?? Ohio Valley maybe? How many schools have a clue?? Maybe two in Chicago IMO (MCW and NAWF). All the others are as useless as a pubic hair on a toilet seat.

what was more fun in WWF for you - Stealing D-von's collection plate or helping to save Rock (when he was trapped in) the ambulance?

DOMINION: Definately the collection plate!!! Shane Mcmahon was setting the whole deal up and I spoke up and said that it may look better if we did it this way and he loved it. Shane was a cool guy to talk to because he wanted others input unlike most in the business. I did that with a hairline fractured bone in my foot that I got the previous weekend in SDW jumping from the top rope to the floor. I got mad props in the back for making D-Von look great and got paid double what they told me I would get. The ambulance thing sucked and was boring.

2. You are always billed as the NWA Midwest champion. Does NWA Midwest do any shows? Will you defend the title at the next MCW show? What was the deal, by the way, with NWA and MCW? It was confusing.

DOMINION: MCW and NWA are no longer working together. I will be defending the Midwest belt in Green Bay at ACW/NWA show on September 26th against Cabana and Horace the Psycopath in a three way.

3. Would you like to take a moment to shoot on Ace Steel?

DOMINION: Sure. I wish him the best, as I always have. We had a great friendship for 15 years. I can't remember once when we actually ever argued with each other or fought about anything. He thinks I'm bitter about the business not providing for me, yet I'm really not I wish I would have gotten an opportunity in WWE or even more Japan but it hasn't happened....yet. I'm not done. I'm 29 and starting to feel really good again...Very positive! I always have been a positive person believe it or not. If it never happens, at least I had a great time and awesome memories!! I also made great friends. I can travel all over the country and have friends to hang out with. Maybe Ace is the one that is bitter. He hasn't done any more than I have and he's been busting his ass even more as of late. He should have been in Japan a long time ago in my opinion.

I am bitter however, about 2 guys that I considered to be closer than family with (him and Punk) putting me down and treating me as if I am a complete waste of their time. I had a very difficult time in my life where I doubted if I wanted to live. They were informed and said "well, there is nothing we can do about it, we don't want to be around the negativity." I should have gotten the clue then I guess. Good thing people like Adara and Priest were around just to let me know they were there. That's all I needed. There was never a time that I wasn't there for Ace. Unfortunately I am a very emotional person. Having my best friend tell me he doesn't want to ever speak to me and not be able to give me one reason why seems to bother me a bit. What kills me is that if either one of the two really needed my help,even now, I'd still drop everything and be there for them. I guess I am the "dummy" as they called me after all.

4. Are you entertained by Dipshit's columns?

DOMINION: I may have read maybe one. He seems to have somewhat of a grasp on reality unlike most indy wrestlers/personalities. He seems to have a lot of heat for speaking his mind much like me.

5. Any good memories of working with Sam (DeCero) and Sonny (Rogers) at Windy City? Can Windy City ever get back to being the best in Chicago?

DOMINION: Windy City was a blast when everyone was screwy and ribbed each other. It was sooooo much fun. Now it is a shell of its former self. Will it ever be good again.....I highly doubt it.

6. Are you going to do more stuff with (Pro Wrestling Iron) and (Mike) Modest? Any wrestling out of state?

DOMINION: I'd love to go back out to San Fran and work with PWI. Modest is a class act. Ace and I had a great tag match with Bison Smith and Tommy Drake that was aired on Noah TV in Japan. I am trying to get back into my idea of ring shape. I did take about 8 months off and need to get my mind into the business again. I am now regularly working up in Minneapolis again for Force1 wrestling and it will be what SDW would have been if Hellier wasn't such a scamming piece of shit. I will reclaim what is mine along with all the boys who deserve it. I also am doing NWA/ACW Greenbay and am looking forward to it. I like working up north because I have had many good times with the boys up there and enjoy being on the road with guys who like to have fun doing what they are doing. No need for higher than mighty attitudes!! Whether you work for ring of Honor or PCW, it still doesn't give you the right to look down on someone else.

7. I have a bad memory, but did you really wrestle on a WWA tour in a dress? Why?

DOMINION: Yes I did. It was asked of me to do it since I had the experience of "directing traffic" with womens matches. It was decent considering 2 of the 3 chicks never even watched wrestling let alone do it. The other (ADARA) had a partially torn miniscus in her knee. The boos started when I ripped their tops off and their pasties were bigger than their tits. The people felt robbed and I didn't blame them. I also worked every night for 11 days where I worked Crobar in some real good matches. I also tagged with Nathan Jones against Lenny and Lodi in some fun matches. Why would I not go to Austrailia with names like Brett Hart, Jarrett, Konnan, Fagwell, Road Dogg, Juvi, Lawler, etc?

8. More of a comment: Every time I see you on the site, you are usually angry and bitter towards everybody who talks to you. I think you don't have much to be angry about, you have your health and a body that can still get lucky with the ladies. Perhaps some therapy would help you feel better. Who else in Chicago needs therapy in your "humble" opinion?

DOMINION: Who do I seem bitter and angery towards?? Punk maybe?? I should, considering the way he acts and puts me down after all I did for him. I always told the boys at the Domain to always put each other over before you put yourself over. Never forget where you came from. Seems like Punk forgot some of the most important things I talked about every day. He says Ian Rotten did nothing for him yet I don't recall any other promoter putting him in the ring with Mysterio and Guerrero for 3 nights. Then he tries to imply that I am "immoral" in everyday life. Boy, he's one to talk! As for getting lucky and having my health, you are right. I am lucky to have a real cool chick who has never nor will never turn her back on me nor will I to her. Health can go at any time unfortunately. Everyone seems to need therapy at some point in their lives. It would probobly help everyone.

*****

All American Wrestling

Quick results

1. The CIA defeated Ego Fantastico-Tony Scarpone after Ego accidentally hit Tony with a Shining Wizard.

2. Willie "The Bomb" Richardson defeated Tristian Hayze.

3. Weston Benton defeated Stu Early.

4. Ladies Night Out defeated Down (Chris Styles-The Lost Soul), The Gravediggers, and The Vanilla Shakes in a 4-way elimination match.

5. In the "Survival of the Fittest" match, which did almost last an hour, Ego Fantastico won that by last eliminating Tony Scarpone.

More detailed results will appear soon.

*****

WCPW Results:

web.archive.org/web/20040611205139/www.geocities.com/wcpw_fan/

Brandon Thomaselli - "The Iron Saint" Vito & Sal Thomaselli
"State of the Art" Jayson Regin Jay Jensen Stryc-9 Bryce Benjamin Dan Lawrence Zero Tony Scarpone

*****

PRO CHAMPIONSHIP WRESTLING

Results from May 29

Details courtesy of PCW

Remi Raines over Wally Wilde thanks to James Thorhill distracting Wally and allowing Remi to get the pin

PL Meyers came out and informed everyone that Michelle Morgan had to be stripped of the Woman's title due to serious knee injury.

This is not a work, Michelle Morgan has been having knee problems for some time including several surgeries but she kept on trying to come back but this time, after she goes under the knife, she will be done with active pro wrestling.

Samantha Hart over Sensational Sascha to become the new Woman's champ.

During the Martini Moment, Golden Boy Mike Horning brought out a bag of names and told everyone that he was susposed to wrestle Tony Rican but due to numerous shots to the head, Rican is unable to wrestle.

He said that he will pull out a name and if that person can beat him, then Rican will get a title shot at DN3. So Horning pulled out a name and it Val Fuego Roacha's name. Rican didn't think it was a fair drawing so Horning agreed to pull another name and it was......Roach's name once again.

Mike Horning vs Val Fuego Roacha

Horning thought he was going to have a easy time with The Roach but Roach just wouldnt lie down. This turned out to be a tougher match than Horning expected. The Golden Boy was able to hit his finisher on the roach and got up to celebrate but out from the back came Puerta and he was pushing a cart that had the Roach tied and taped to a chair with a paper bag over his head and wearing nothing but his boxer shorts. Puerta was then pulling pieces of tape off the legs/chest/arms of the Roach pulling out his body hair. This distracted Horning and that allowed Roach? to get the 1-2-3 and then Roach unmasked and it turned out to be Tony Rican. Horning was quite upset but informed Rican that at DN3, he will get a shot at his most valued possesion and get the chance to win the prize.

Southern Comfort over Pretty dangerous thanks to constant outside interferance from The Snog. After the match Puerta came out and set up the match for Dream Niget. Southern Comfort Vs Pretty dangerous along with their partner...Dusty Rhodes.

Brandon Bishop made his PCW debut against Lethal Lee, Before the match, Ringmaster told Bishop if he wins, he can be part of the 3 Rings. Lee and Bishop went to a double count out. After the match, Bishop told RIngmaster that he didn't lose, Ringmaster agreed and welcomed Bishop to the 3 rings

PJ Benton vs James Thornhill

PJ Retains the Midwest title after refere Lou Tuffano gets knocked out and Lethal Lee came out and attacked PJ and hit his finisher and then Wally Wilde came out and hit Thornhill with a chair busting him open the hard way and then PJ was able to get his arm across Thornhill thus retaining the title.

Earlier in the show, PL called out Jarod Priest and demanded that he let his intentions be known if he is with the connection or against the connection, Priest just left the ring.

The Chicago Connection vs Team Dammit for the tag titles.

PL Myers got his answer when Jarod Priest showed his true colors and hit GQ with a chair to retain the tag titles. After the match Willie and GQ challenged the Connection to a 2 out of 3 falls match at Dream Night.

Main Event

Rick Knight /The Butcher W/Mr Puerta vs Johnny Mac/Sacrifice went to a no contest that resulted in a 4 way elimination match for the PCW heavy weight title at Dream Night 3

then 6/06/04


*****

PCW 2004

DREAM NIGHT MATCH:

PCW women's champion Samantha Hart vs. Super J

SAMANTHA HART

Interview by Al Lagattolla

PCW women's champion Samantha Hart may not be able to compare with the recent influx of women brought in by IWA MidSouth, but she does have character. Her distinct style certainly will come into play Saturday at PCW's Dream Night show in Oak Lawn, as Hart defends her title against Super J. She talks to Chicagowrestling.com's Al Lagattolla about her character, how far she'll go to get a reaction and what Dream Night means to her:


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AL: You are PCW's women's champion. How did that come about and what does that mean to you?

SAMANTHA HART: I had a match with Sensational Sascha for the title in Summit when Michelle Morgan was stripped of the women's title for not being able to defend it. I got the win with the stunner. I consider it an honor and a chance to represent PCW.

AL: You definitely have a lot of character, and you don't seem to mind the audience getting a few laughs in on you. ... how would you describe your character and what reaction do you hope for?

SAMANTHA HART: I'm happy with any kind of reaction I can get, as long as the crowd is into it. I guess you can describe my character as an 80s dominatrix sex freak who wants to have as much fun as possible. So in other words, I'm a rock chick and I can wrestle, too. I've been a heel and a face, so as long as the fans are into it - if they love me or hate me, it's all good.

AL: You wear some interesting outfits. Where do you find them and where do you get the ideas for them?

SAMANTHA HART: I've got my own style of outfits. I like to come out with unique things, so basically if I like the look I'll wear it. As to wear I shop, I like a lot of S&M stores. They usually have what I need there.

AL:What should fans expect from your title defense at Dream Night?

SAMANTHA HART: You can expect a good match and for me to defend the title at all costs. I'll take on anyone.

AL: What makes Dream Night special?

SAMANTHA HART: Well, it's PCW's biggest show of the year, and this is the time to put up or shut up. Everything has been leading up to this night. Dreams are going to come true, and others are going to be shattered - and as an added bonus, the outside talent.

AL: What do you do best? What would you like to do better?

SAMANTHA HART: As to what I do best, I have an open mind and I'm willing to take chances. I'm always learning new things and give 100% in what I do.

AL: What made you decide to get into wrestling? Has it been what you thought it would be?

SAMANTHA HART: I've always been a fan of wrestling and always loved the sport. I was lucky enough to have met a lot of my wrestling heroes. I was just always into the sport, so I went to the next level and decided to join. At first, I really did not know what to expect, but everything has been cool. The people are cool to work with and I totally love it. It's a lot of fun.

AL: Where did you get the name Samantha Hart?

SAMANTHA HART: I had gotten my name from one of my trainers, John Burke, when I was training at the gym.
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DREAM NIGHT MATCH:

PCW champions Chicago Connection vs. Team Dammit (with Paul Ellering) in a best-of-three match for the titles.

TEAM DAMMIT - Germel Quinn and Willie Richardson

Interview by Al Lagattolla

Germel Quinn and Willie "Da Bomb" Richardson have enjoyed a long run as a tag team for a while, but they now are looking for new gold. They both recently have found a home at Pro Championship Wrestling after a successful run at Windy City Pro Wrestling. They are preparing for their first Dream Night - though both have participated in WCPW's signature event - Battle of the Belts - so they do have experience in that type of show.

GQ and Richardson talk via e-mail to Chicagowrestling.com's Al Lagattolla:


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AL: You have Paul Ellering in your corner? What will that be like?

Willie: For me and Germel this is an experience like no other. We have never had the opportunity to have a manager of this caliber.

Germel: He has an awesome reputation. This will always remain one of the highlights of our careers.

AL: What would it mean to win the PCW tag titles at Dream Night?

Germel: Repect.

Willie: We have always looked for the recognition we feel we deserve. Winning the tag titles will definitely be a way to start accomplishing that. We consider ourselves to be hard workers and want the credit that comes along with that.

AL: How have you enjoyed your time at PCW?

Germel: PCW has shown us a lot. It has been an experience that i would not trade for anything. I appreciate everything they have allowed us to do.

AL: How are you and GQ working as a team?

Willie: It's been 5 years and we know each other well. Before we were a tag team, we wrestled against each other many times, so we instinctively know the ins and outs of one another. With that kind of experience we feel that we can wrestle anyone.

AL: How has 2004 gone for you so far?

Germel: We are achieving our goals slowly but surely. We are waiting for the right opportunity to come along and give us what we are looking for.

Willie: There are a few companies we are looking to hear from, but time will tell if the second half the year will pick up.

AL: Are you excited about Dream Night? How do you think it will compare to Battle of the Belts?

Willie: We have never had the experience of doing a Dream Night show, so I guess we'll have to tell you once it's over. Battle of the Belts is a huge show and we are hoping that Dream Night will be the same. I anticipate it being an unbelieveable event.

AL: What has been your favorite match so far? How do you expect this match to go?

Willie: All of the matches in the tag tournament were great. We were happy to be invited and even happier to get so far. We were able to really elevate our wrestling skills. We are looking to really excite the crowd and hoping the outcome will be in our favor.

AL: t's a best of three match ... what's it gonna take to win twice?

Willie: What we will have to do for the first win is simply wrestle. Although we have wrestled the Chicago Connection before, we have not shown them everything we have. It's definitely going to be a battle of stamina.

Germel: The Connection works well as a team we will have to out wrestle them thoroughly to expect another win.

AL: Where else have you been wrestling? Where else would you like to be wrestling?

Willie: PCW is where you can see us on a regular basis.

Germel: There are other places we want to wrestle. We would like to do TNA. Although Willie has been as a single, we would like to do it as a tag team. We would also like a chance at IWA Midsouth shows done in Highland ,Indiana. Wreslting the RCW champions would also be a great opportunity. Every opportunity means something.
--

PL Myers last year spent part of Pro Championship Wrestling's Dream Night in a kilt, while a bagpipe band played as he spoofed Roddy Piper's gimmick. He also had a coconut smashed over his head by Jimmy Snuka. This year, his Chicago Connection will defend the tag titles against Team Dammit - which will be managed by Paul Ellering.

Myers talks via email with Chicagowrestling.com's Al Lagattolla and Chuck North about the Dream Night concept, his expectations and what it'll be like to try to beat a team managed by Ellering, a man who managed his heroes, the Road Warriors:

CHUCK: What is it that makes Dream Night so special for the fans and for the workers?

PL MYERS: When the the idea of the Anniversary Show "DREAM NIGHT" started, I said DREAM NIGHT is the dream for every worker to walk out the tunnel with a huge show with bells, whistles, a large number inattendance, and makes them feel it's their time to shine. For the fans it's where they can see legends and the PCW Superstars giving it their all for an affordable price $10. The workers know how much time/effort/money PCW puts into this show, it gives them a platform to excel, in front of the co workers, peers, fans, and their heroes, since all eyes in the Chicagoland area are on PCW. So DREAM NIGHT is many ways is my baby, if it's successful it's because of a team effort. If it doesn't I take the brunt of the burden, and thankfully since day one I haven't had to think non-positive on my ability, my success is due to the PCW owners and the outstanding roster.

CHUCK: How long is the planning for DreamNight 3, when did it start?

PL MYERS: Every successful business has to have vision. Our success is just that, planning the future beyond month to month, and DREAM NIGHT 3 was being laid out before DREAM NIGHT 2. DREAM NIGHT 3 has been shaped and molded for 12 months since last year. DREAM NIGHT 4 is already booked for June 25, 2005, because all roads to DREAM NIGHT in PCW, and the roster need to know the next 12 months and dates, which 10 out of the 12 dates are booked.

AL: Your tag team - the Chicago Connection - is going against Team Dammit, managed by Paul Ellering. What's it like going against a team managed by Ellering, and do you have anything special planned for him?

PL MYERS: First of all let me state the Chicago Connection (Jarod) Priest/ (Jay) Phoenix wrestle as a cohesive unit, and would I put money on the against any other team in US and you'll see who gets over and works better together. I am proud to be associated with them.I see us as a team giving PCW or any other company - NWA-TNA/WWE - a great match. With that said TEAM DAMMIT has given their all against us, and have put on classic matches with us, They are a team who I respect and have a great reputation in Chicago and I look for this match to go the distance. Going against Ellering is a a huge step for me, after working with the greats like Heenan in March. now with Ellering it helps me improve to be the best at what I do just like the PCW superstars wrestling the top guys in the industry to improve their skills.What I have planned for Ellering is the same fate as any manager that gets in my way, they find out this is my profession and they're my stepping stone to the next level.

AL: What does it mean to have Animal back? I know you were the Road Warriors' biggest fan, and the death of Hawk hit you hard. Have you been able to keep in touch with Animal?

PL MYERS: First of all when any one loses someone to death, espically when it comes out of nowhere it's tough on anyone. Hawk was my hero and I became a close friend to him. It's great knowing that your hero is a great person inside, who was a huge influence, my mentor, and helping developing me to the next level and believed I would get there one day. It's still a day to day hardship for me to keep in the business when he' s not around, but I still do because of his faith in me to succeed to be the best. Having Animal back is important. PCW is his home and Ellering's home in Chicago, and having him on the show is important. The Road Warriors helped make Dream Night what it is. I have kept in touch up with Animal since the services for Hawk in FL where I spoke for the fans of Hawk and his friends at the services, and kept him informed on what's going on in PCW.

CHUCK: Because of what happened last year with the Road Warriors (they won the PCW tag titles) , was the plan to bring them back this year?

PL MYERS: Before Hawk passed away the idea was to bring them back, and after Hawk passed, the idea was to have them come back. The Road Warriors' home in Chicago is PCW, they reunited for thie first time back in Chicago in 2001 in PCW, they headlined DREAM NIGHT 1, PCW was the only company in the US to celebrate their 20-year career along with bringing in Paul Ellering, 20 years and 1 day removed (June 6 1983-June 7 2003). PCW and the Road Warriors fans were able to enjoy the moment on the day and see them win the PCW titles, the last titles they held together with Paul Ellering and their first indy title with Ellering. That is being part of somthing special, history. So you can see why Ellering and Animal are back. They're back in the company they call home, PCW.

CHUCK: What will Dusty Rhodes role be in DN3?

PL MYERS: First and foremost it is a honor and pleasure to have this legend come into PCW. Dusty Rhodes will be in a 6 man match, Dusty will be tagging with a tough team ROCKET/EATON, Pretty Dangerously, vs Southern Comfort, so Bionic Elbows will be flying all over.

AL: Jerry Lynn vs. Chris Sabin. While most are sure this will be a solid match, there have been some who suggested it might be more beneficial to have them wrestle PCW guys at the show. What was the reason for having them against each other? Do you think it's a good move?

PL MYERS: This is the first time we have brought in two guys to work each other, every other time PCW has had the PCW roster work with outside talent. We always try new ideas and matches to see what works. I think it's a good move. Trying new things in front of new PCW fans to see what gets their attention might have us bring in more guys to add to the roster. And it could bring a new mix to the shows.

CHUCK: Last year you had a four-way title match, where the whole Sacrifice-Rick Knight thing started. What should we expect from this match?

PL MYERS: Rick Knight has had memorable matches in this building - Street Fight Match with Jimmy Blaze Oct 2001, which Knight won, and this 4 way Chicago Street Fight match is going to be a physical, intense match. Throw in the Butcher who has reputation for tough, violent matches - DREAM NIGHT 2 last year. The PCW Champion Sacrifice who has survived the hardcore matches thrown at him, and don't forget the X factor Johnny Mac (where you can make the signal with the hands to put him over). My money's on him. His attitude and history in the business - former Frat Boy Member w/Double M - makes him a dangerous player in the title hunt. And I will win my bet with Mac very soon.

AL: What are your attendance expectations?

PL MYERS: Each year I want PCW to move on a upward climb(1st Show 2001 Rebirth 900) (2002 Dream Night 900+)(2003 Dream Night 2 1,065) This year, I want to beat last year's numbers, and keep seeing the roster improve with every show, and show the fans of wrestling the growth of PCW.

AL: You earn great praise for your promotional dealings, but I know you'd rather get it for your managerial work. Does it bother you that you're recognized more for your promo skills?

PL MYERS: No, because the skills in front of the crowd, I keep improving on, and I'm learning behind the scenes. These skills will make me a better overall manager/worker in this industry who can offer a wide range of abilities for a long time to come. I have been able since 2001 to help build a successful PCW which is now known in the industry with a great reputation, and which helps get my name out there. So being known as a guy in the business at other indy shows and to fans at the WWE evnts helps me promote PCW, me and pro wrestling. Hopefully one day, it will lead to a future in WWE or NWA-TNA as "The Shot To TheTop" PL Myers.

CHUCK: You will have quite a night managing, you we expect anything unusual from you? (i.e. Piper thing from last year.)

PL MYERS: All I can say is EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED, when it comes to me. I don't do anything just because, I am here to prove the fans/ critics/ and the industry I am the best at what I do managing/promoting, etc. (CW.COM MANAGER OF THE YEAR 2003)

AL: How do you think PCW has been able to deal with losing a group of guys at the end of last year (a large group left and launched All American Wrestling)? I know some of them were close friends to you .... is it hard without them?

PL MYERS: Since the split its been beneficial for both sides. It's given our guys who are with us a chance to step up and to take the ball and run. Turnover keeps a company fresh and keeps guys on their A game never knowing when the focus and ball is given to them. It's hard in some ways but just in life I have to learn to adapt to the situation no matter what it is. I wish them nothing but success.

AL: What is the best thing about the Chicago Connection? How did the group get its name?

PL MYERS: Just like I said there's nothing stopping the Chicago Connection but ourselves. We're the best at what we do, you got the best manager in the business, aka the most powerful man in Chicago, ME. You got the vet of PWI/PCW Whiplash who has held the Midwest title and is competing for his belt again and will win. You got the most underrated and underexposed tag team who can compete with any tag team on any level(WWE/NWA-TNA) - Priest and Phoenix. They are like a precision clock, one knows what the other is thinking. If they stay on the right track together, as a team, they can become one of the best. That's what the best thing about the Connection is, knowing that we can and will one day compete on a national level. There are no egos in the group,and brought together by being told at one time in our respective careers we would not succeed, and we proving we have succeed it once again at DREAM NIGHT. The Chicago Connection was formed with me and Kingpin in 2000, we did what we wanted we showed up in limos at Indy shows, because we could, became larger than life, In PCW has had many changes in The Connection since 2001 but the group is larger than life , as our motto says perception becomes reality, were everything your not and nothing that you will be.(since the Connection has been in PCW every former and current member has held a title in pcw and elevated guys who by the standers was told they couldn't get over and did with us)

AL: What are your goals for 2004?

PL MYERS: My goals for the next 12 months is to keep the reputation we have built on. We are the ones that are the 1st to bring in the big name talent to the Chicagoland area for the fans to enjoy for $10, (SANDMAN/ BILL ALFONSO / FRANCINE/ THE ROAD WARRIORS/W PAUL ELLERING / VAMPIRO / JERRY LYNN / JUSTIN CREDIBLE/SHANE DOUGLAS/ JIMMY SUPER FLY SNUKA / BOBBY HEENAN/ CHRIS SABIN /& DUSTY RHODES) Build our fan base up with each show, showcase the superstars of PCW and keep the fans of Chicago knowing our motto: EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED with PCW.

CHUCK: Anything else you would like to say about show?

PL MYERS: First of all to AL, CHUCK, ED, ETC (The Chicago Wrestling.com Staff), thank you for all your support for this great event. To the people reading this interview this great event is JUNE 26 at the Oak lawn Pavilion, 9401 Oak Park Ave., doors open 6 bell time 7 tickets are only $10, 11 great matches. Be part of history in Chicago once again, the only place to be is DREAM NIGHT 3.Expect the Unexpected on Saturday night.
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Tony Rican has a chance to win Pro Championship Wrestling's cruiserweight title this weekend at PCW's signature card - Dream Night - at Oak Lawn. He faces cruiserweight champion Mike Horning. Rican talks via e-mail to Chicagowrestling.com's Al Lagattolla about Dream Night, how a smaller guy approaches matches against those much bigger and why he stayed with PCW while others left for All-American Wrestling earlier this year.


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AL: You have a chance at PCW's cruiserweight title. What would it mean for you to win it at Dream Night?

TONY RICAN: The Cruiserweight Title in PCW has carried a lot of weight to it. For a while before the split a lot of people said PCW had the best cruiserweights in Chicago,
and now we are trying to rebuild that and re-establish that. So holding a belt that was held by what people considered to be the best in the area would be an honor.
On top of it to win it at PCW's most important show of the year would be outstanding.

AL: I'd assume you've wrestled Mike Horning before. What will be different about this time?

TONY RICAN: I have wrestled Mike a few times in the past, whether it was at MSPW, Powerhouse or PCW I feel we have always had a solid match.
All of those though have been a lead up to this, testing each others' limits and learning just how far we can push. This match will give us both a chance to use all
we have learned about each other in ring. So between all we learned and the forum we are using it in (Dream Night III) I think there will be a higher intensity level there.

AL: You have been able to wrestle a few other places, and I expect you'll have more opportunities in the future. How would you describe 2004 so far?

TONY RICAN: So far it's been a wild ride. I have learned so much in the opening months of this year. A lot of it has come from working with new people and going new places.
I should be training at the undergound again soon, which what little time I was able to go helped me a lot. Also I have made a couple trips to PA. to work with
John Rambo's NWL/HoPW which was a blast. I am trying to learn more and branch out more and so far '04 has been great for that.

AL: What made you come up with the name Tony Rican? Has it worked out for you so far? I would think it gets across a few things right away.

TONY RICAN: Tony Rican is actually my real name, well first and middle name. My dad was nicknamed Danny Rican when he moved here since it was a lot easier for friends
and co-warkers to say than his real name so it's kind of the family name now, my son is also Tony Rican. It's gotten across some of the information on who I am,
I mean it makes it pretty obvious I am Puerto Rican.

AL: Obviously, your height could be a factor in a lot of ways in wrestling. How tall are you, and do you find it harder because you're a smaller guy?
How do you approach matches against those your own size, against guys bigger?

TONY RICAN: I'm 5-7 so yeah in the world of wrestling I am pretty small guy. I do find it a little hard due to my size I am limited to what I can be to a promotion.
Then again I know I will never have the pressure of being the Heavyweight Champion and flagship worker for a company, too, so it allows me to always just have a good time.
As far as my matches... a lot of hit and run, whether the guy is my size or larger I am going to use my speed and agility to my advantage. I am going to try to keep a match
high paced and tire my larger opponents out, and just plain out move them.

AL: What makes Dream Night special?

TONY RICAN: From the short time I have been around it's just the pageantry of it all. Everyone goes out of their way to try and make it a big night.
Production quality goes up, everyone steps up their game to give you that something extra and the names that come in. Dream Night I had the Road Warriors,
II had them and Snuka, and now III has Dusty, Animal, Ellering, Lynn and Sabin... makes you wonder who will be in for IV.

AL: Last year at Dream Night you did a high-impact move that I'm sure didn't go as planned - a shooting star press, and your head hit a table.
Does Dream Night mean you'll pull out another special move like that? Or will last year's mishap make you more careful?

TONY RICAN: I almost hit my head, I pulled through enough to have my shoulders and upper chest hit. The problem was I had done a regular shooting star only once,
and that was earlier that day into a crash pad. I think had if I practiced the move more than once I would have been ok, but I figured heck I was a gymnast I can pull it off
(yeah right!). Chances are I will have something big to pull out again this year. What it is I don't know, I already did a Phoenix splash to the outside last November so
upping the bar on big moves is kind of hard, but I will have something big.

AL: Is there anyplace in particular you'd like to wrestle in the near future? Is there anyone you'd like to face who you haven't faced yet?

TONY RICAN: Near future.. I wouldn't mind going to IWA I have friends who work there and hear nothing but good things. Wouldn't mind either working with PWI-MW.
Locally that I haven't faced yet I would love to work Brandon Thomaselli. When he started in PCW I thought man I am gonna have great matches with him,
then the split happened and we went with different options, but now we are in the same locker room in MSPW. As far as non-local talent I would love to work with guys
like Sean Waltman, AJ Styles, Jerry Lynn, Chris Sabin .. and the list goes on like that. Though I have a lot to learn before I am on their level.

AL: What made you stay in PCW? What do you like about the fed?

TONY RICAN: When the split happened I was invited by a couple of guys to go with AAW, and it was nothing against any of them I have friends in that locker room I still
talk to on a regular basis. Thing is though PCW is where I started, and yeah someday I will move on and work other places but for right now I am going to stay and help them out.
If I had left PCW to go with AAW, though I wouldn't had my chances in MSPW which has lead to some good training and some great experiences for me.
PCW is where I get to explore and have fun, I get to try new things and see if they work.

AL: How would you describe your character in PCW? Is it the same as what you are elsewhere?

TONY RICAN: I'm a fun loving ladies man (boy does that sound like a cheesey singles ad). It's just as much about wooing the women as it is winning the match,
and if I can't win, at least I will look good for the ladies. I play off of women's like of Latin men, I guess. I dance, I give out roses and do a strip tease each
show for a women, that has the ladies hooked. Then I go in the ring and work my ass off to try and hook the male fans with my work.
I am pretty much the same except when I travel to PA where I am a pompous pretty boy.
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Pro Championship Wrestling

Dream Night 3

Review by Chuck North

PCW Dream Night 3, I am not sure how it opened I walked in while the second wrestler of the opening match was basically done with his entrance. Stubz has bought out PL Myers and Mr. Puerta and is the new 100% owner. I would say honestly there were maybe 500-600 people there, nowhere near as crowded as last year.

The first match was Golden Boy Mike Horning versus Tony Rican. Rican hit a nice 450 splash, took a wicked looking bump on a receiving end of a sling shot into the chairs in front couple of rows. This match ended in a double countout. Commentators told the crowd ³when something like that happened here, we chant PCW PCW!² This was after a nice move by Horning.

Next was the women¹s title match with champion Samantha Hart vs. Super J. Then Ryan Kross comes out and says he wants to be in the match, so it is made a three way dance. Kross¹ promo before match was the funniest moment of the night. Kross hit a kryptonite crunch on Super J and pinned her, and celebrated not knowing it was an elimination match and Hart rolled him up to retain the belt.

Wally Wilde and James Thornhill were next in the loser leaves PCW match. The commentators on more than one occasion in this match said wow you can really hear the crowd chanting Wally sucks Wally sucks Wally sucks, (no one is chanting anything) and so on until the crowd caught on and went with the chant. The ref took a bump; Thornhill put Wilde in cloverleaf Wilde tapped. But a few minutes later Thornhill tapped to a cloverleaf. Thornhill is now gone from PCW.

Ring Master came out and talked about how PCW didn¹t really book Animal, and talked about how Animal broke Ring Master's collar bone last year. Ring Master then introduced Julian the Warlock, who wrestled Remi Raines. This match got very good at the end, Remi hit some nice high flying moves. Raines did get the win over JTW, with a full nelson into some sort of face buster. After the match Johnny Mac came out for some reason only to get a DDT from JTW.

Ring Master then introduced Chad Falcon, to wrestle Warm Carlos, but before the match could start Brandon Bishop came down and attacked Carlos. Paul Ellering came out to tell Ring Master, Animal was there. So a tag team match formed with Animal and Warm Carlos against Brandon Bishop (no dragon slaying tonight) and Falcon. The crowd came alive for Animal with a lot of LOD chants. Animal did not look happy at all, seemed to be mad at something. Animal pinned Falcon with a power bomb. Sonny Rogers was the special guest referee for the match.

Next was intermission where Dusty Rhodes, Jerry Lynn, and Chris Sabin were all signing autographs for $10.

After intermission was time for the ladder match between Whiplash, Lethal Lee, and PJ Benton. Lee nailed Benton with a brain buster type move on a ladder, while Whiplash was outside the ring; Lee walked up and grabbed the belt, and is the new Midwest champion. Decent match did not live up to last year's. The one end of the belt got ripped off when Lee took it off of the rope holding it.

Next was Jerry Lynn and Chris Sabin, which was by FAR the best match of the night. This match had the usual Jerry Lynn and Sabin moves with some nice spots and good technical wrestling. It was a very good match; Lynn won with cradle pile driver. It looked like quite a few people left after this match. These two guys really did a great job in this match.

Next was Team Dammit with Paul Ellering against the Chicago Connection with PL Myers, this was a 2 out of 3 falls match. The first fall had Priest pin GQ (I believe) when GQ went for a suplex, but PL grabbed his foot and Priest fell on top of him. The second fall was a DQ when Jay Phoenix hit Willie with the belt. The third fall occurred when Willie went for a sunset flip on Phoenix and GQ super kicked Phoenix, Willie rolled him up and got the pin Team Dammit are the new PCW tag team champs. Commentators again told the crowd to chant the, hey hey good bye song at Chicago Connection cause they lost the belts.

Next was the four way elimination hardcore match for the PCW belt, between Sacrifice (champ) vs. the Butcher, Rick Knight, and Johnny Mac. First elimination was when the Butcher hit the diamond stunner on Johnny Mac and pinned him. The second was when The Butcher hit the diamond stunner on Sacrifice and pinned him. After Knight and Butcher fought for a while, all members of the Chicago Connection came out and looked like they were going after Knight, but attacked Butcher. Knight and the Connection beat up Butcher, till Knight hit what I think was suppose to be a DVD on Butcher to become the new PCW champ. PL came out and celebrated with Knight. This match was very sloppy and very long. The crowd was dead, there was a big, "We want Dusty" chant going on through this match, and the arena lost people again.

Next was the six man tag match with Dusty Rhodes and Pretty Dangerous against Southern Comfort. Dusty was super over with the remaining crowd, big pops for the elbows. I couldn¹t tell you what happened during this match when Dusty was not in the ring. Pretty Dangerous hit a Demolition style finisher to get the win.

That was the end of the show. PCW did announce they would soon be bringing in Ricky Steamboat, AJ Styles, Christopher Daniels, and others. Dream Night was not as good as last year's. The commentary was awful, especially when they had to start a lot of the chants. They also had a bell they rang when one of them said a stupid joke, which should have been rung a lot more. The crowd did start to shrink after the Animal match, by the last match I would say there were probably about 350-375 people there. Most of the crowd was dead except for matches that featured the big names.
--
Wayne Pettit intv w/ Sonny Rogers

Jan 2003
Part3

WAYNE: What is the best advice that you could give to those who are just starting
out in the business?
SONNY: The best advice I can give to anyone getting in the wrestling biz is what my mentor Bob Sabre told me in 1980. I have and always told anybody looking to get in the business, always persue your back up goals if wrestling is not in the cards, go to college, learn a trade or profession, etc. Because one injury is all it takes to snuff out the dream. Always have something to fall back on. The late NWA promoter Sam Muchnick told me in 1980 that wrestling takes up to 5 years to get yourself established, gain your experience, make your contacts, etc in my opinion that hasn't changed. Today there are virtually on every street corner pro wrestling schools, many who are unfortunately run by people that don't have a clue themselves what they are doing. They do not teach respect, protocol, the history of the business, the tradition of the business etc. The end result is that most of these trainees who did not do there homework as far as checking out professional wrestling schools end up retraining @ a more reputable school. Time and patience is the biggest virtue that most trainees don't have anymore, if they are not in the WWE, Japan, Europe in 9 months to a year they get flustered and usually are in the professional wrestling boneyard, just another statistic. When a trainee sometimes tells me after a short amount of training "this isn't fun anymore" my reply is this isn't a friggin episode of the Bozo show with clowns, jugglers, the grand prize game, etc. Mental toughness and discipline is a vital part missing today in a great many trainees everywhere. I posted last year sometime on cw.com the business is comparable to working on a cotton plantation during the civil wars most of the promoters are the so called masters while the talent are the hired hands or the slaves. There is no pension in this business, there is no 401k profit sharing program, there is no injured reserve, disabled list, or paid sick days. There is no health insurance available in rasslin, there is no union representation to handle grievances, money disputes, benefits, etc. The chances of making it to the WWE and making the monster payday are nil. Better chance of hitting all the big game or powerball lottery numbers. Jim Brunzell, T-bolt Patterson, Jesse Ventura, and a few other workers in the past tried to organize the wrestlers but they all went down in a flame of glory. The WWE's "tough enough" shows on MTV come off as a glorified "American Idol" show. I may be wrong but that's my opinion. The Vince McMahons, the Vince Russos, the XPW's, the Japan companies may give you that big money run but they have to feel that you are going to make them a boatload of money, get TV ratings, get people to buy the pay per views,etc. If you are not producing the revenue, ratings, etc. for any companies said talent is either sliding down the totem pole or out of a job or both. Professional wrestling is the biggest cut throat business out there, if you have a few friends that you can confide in that's great everyone else is an acquaintance or associate. Another thing there is bad advice out there everyplace, ex associates whether they come from PCW, wcpw, lwf, wwz, mcw, etc. They will promise you a condominium @ Lakepoint Towers in gold coast Chicago, they will tell you of the great $200 payoffs, all the opportunities that await for them in the WWE, nwa-tna, etc. just to get you to leave whatever company you work for. I won't mention names but we had a few that left PCW for the so-called elevator ride to the penthouse suite, after being recruited by ex disgruntled and or unhappy associates. Most of them after a few months wanted back with PCW, but they made the mistake of doing an exit interview with cw.com and other various wrestling websites saying "#### those jaggoffs @ PCW", I'll be working every weekend and be in the WWE 365 days from now"... "They were holding me back", "if your not an investor you don't go over" etc. When they try to return to PCW it makes it difficult for us to welcome back talent that left on bad terms. Time sometimes heels wounds, so you can never say never. Bob Sabre and some other old timers including Baron Von Raschke always said when leaving a company always thank the person and don't shit talk them as you walk out the door because you never know what tomorrow brings. Never burn a bridge because no matter how good or bad an experience has been show dignity when leaving and chalk it up to experience. There were several times I wanted to tell a few promoters to take a flying #### @ a rolling doughnut and to pound sand up there ass, but you always should move forward. Another thing I'll tell a trainee is to seek advice from a person who knows the wrestling business, not a money mark nor an Internet wrestling mark. Study video footage of workers from the past and present. Condition, condition, condition, you don't have to be Arnold, Michael Clark Duncan but look athletic, look like your a wrestler.

WAYNE: Will you be involved with the wrestling scene out west? There were a couple of messages on the board that seemed to indicate there might be some opportunities out there to work with some guys.

SONNY: I received an email from my partner Jonnie Stewart and he asked me if I was interested in doing an AWA event for him and Dale Gagne in Casa Grande, AZ. in March. Casa Grande is about 40 miles from Chandler, AZ, which is where I'll be. I conversed with the Navajo Kid who I believe runs a company in the Phoenix area. Navajo kid and some of his trainees and/or workers in his company were @ the WWE Raw in Phoenix a few weeks ago, they were the "judges" during the Triple H and Scott Steiner pose down segment on raw. Vito (Airborne) mentioned an event I think in Tempe, AZ. on Feb.5th that he will be on and invited me to attend, I'll try to make the event if all possible. Another trainee from my past Adam Pearce asked me to contact him once I get settled in. Adam currently resides in San Diego. I'll play it by ear as to what happens I'll have to see if I fit into their plans on a regular basis or part time basis. I'm not certain if the Arizona and California companies are into the old school style of the biz. I'm kind of particular who I work as well because of the risk of injury and the fact that I'll be 41 in March, the recovery time is a tad longer then when I was in my 20's. I did a WWF Superstars TV taping in Phoenix in the 80's @ the old Veterans Memorial Coliseum. The Veterans Coliseum is to Phoenix to what the International Amphitheater was to Chicago. The Vet Coliseum is still in use but the America West arena is the main arena for major events. the America West arena is next to the Arizona Diamondbacks, Bank One Ballpark. Justin Roberts has been very helpful as well in regards to getting me hooked up with some of the local companies. I know Nick Bockwinkle and Scott Casey run a training center and events in the Las Vegas area I'll shoot them a call or email as well.

[CW .org .info .net]

Interview with referee Jimmy Strons
Posted by AL LAGATTOLLA on 5/20/2001, 11:34 pm

Jimmy Strons admits he lucked into his two-year ride in the WWF.
Strons was 21 years old and self-trained when state of Illinois official John Spahn spotted him at a Lunatic Wrestling Federation independent wrestling show in the south suburbs.

With Illinois one of three states that required state officials present at professional wrestling events, those officials were allowed to designate one referee for any event. Spahn asked Strons if he would be interested in being that referee at the next WWF event.

Strons was working his second event as a professional.

“Everything happened for me really fast,” Strons said. “I had just turned 21 and had done one professional show. Then here I was at the Rosemont Horizon in a WWF ring.”

Strons, now 25 and a student at Northern Illinois University, spent two years working for the WWF at shows in Illinois and Wisconsin. He has become one of the top referees in Illinois and still works for the LWF and also Midwest Championship Wrestling, where he will be Saturday at the MCWÂ’s first-ever TV taping in Chicago Ridge.

He no longer works for the WWF.

“It’s a complicated story,” Strons said without revealing details. “I did something I was supposed to do, but I really don’t think I did anything wrong.”

He didnÂ’t work for the WWF on that first day - a WWF Raw show in Rosemont.

“I just hung around and watched the show,” he said.

But Strons made a good impression with WWF officials and by February 1998, he was called on to work at a house show in Springfield.

“My very first match was Kama vs. Savio Vega,” Strons said. “It was the very first match of the card. I still remember it. At one point, Kama had Savio Vega in a chokehold and he was really choking him. I was still very green and I didn’t know that. Savio was literally pulling at my jersey because I wasn’t asking him if he was OK. But it was my very first match.”

Later in the card, he became the victim of a WWF practical joke.

“There was a match, Kane vs. Chainz,” Strons said. “You know how Kane would bring up the lights (and explosives) when he dropped his arm. Well, I was being worked. The guys were saying when Kane drops his arms, you have to run through the ropes and back up the ramp, because you’re afraid. But nobody told Jack Lanza, who was the road agent there. So Kane comes in, he reaches out his arms and I’m running through the ropes, up the ramp and Jack Lanza greeted me and said, ‘What are you doing? Get back in the ring.’ He was furious, because none of the guys told him what they told me. They told him later.”

Strons spent a week touring with the WWF when head referee Earl Hebner injured himself.

“He was trimming a branch in a tree and he fell out of the tree,” Strons said. “They asked me to come along with them. That week was absolutely crazy.”

Strons traveled to Milwaukee, Madison, Green Bay and Rockford. During the tour, he made his first appearance on Raw.

“It was Kaientai vs. Luna and the ICP freaks (the Oddities) and it was pretty crazy,” Strons said.

He said he was asked to go to North Carolina, but already had missed a week of school and could not afford to miss any more time.

His experience taught him the WWF isnÂ’t as bizarre as those who read about it on the Internet are led to believe. He said backstage is fairly calm.

“The guys show up, they get dressed, they talk,” Strons said. “They’re normal people. You’re sitting there and Mankind is on the phone with his credit card. The guys are just playing cards and they’re joking around. It’s just like work, you have a boss who tells you what to do. It’s a normal job, but it’s on TV.”

He said many would have you believe WWF stars feud constantly behind the scenes, but he said most wrestlers get along nicely.

“It’s quiet, it’s calm,” Strons said. “They throw ideas back and forth. There isn’t much anger.

“I’ve only seen a wrestler get angry once.”

He said the upset wrestlers were angry over an ad-libbed spot in a tag match.

“It was their match to go over and one of the other wrestlers stole their heat,” Strons said. “He added a spot that wasn’t supposed to be there. He went over, but it wasn’t his turn. I won’t name names.”

He said he nearly was able to work Owen HartÂ’s final match as Strons was in Rosemont with the WWF the night before HartÂ’s death in Kansas City, Mo.

“I watched a hockey game with Owen Hart the night before he died,” Strons said.

He worked a lot of dark matches when the Hardys, Edge and Kurt Angle were working them.

“The Hardy Boyz and I came in together,” Strons said. “They did dark matches and didn’t actually have a gimmick. I did a bunch of their matches when they did dark matches. Edge did dark matches. I actually did two of Kurt Angle’s matches before he had a gimmick.”

He says he isnÂ’t happy about the way his stint ended, but he understands he was fortunate to even get the chance. He said many have worked a lifetime for such an opportunity.

“It’s probably the biggest slap in the face if you think about it,” he said. “Some referees have been working for 10 years and they can only dream of being in a WWF show. I did two shows and it was like, here you go. There are guys in this business their whole life just to be in the WWF ring, to be on live TV. Here I am, self-trained and 21 years old and I’m in the Horizon. The first night, I got paid $300 and I didn’t do a thing. I felt like I should have been paying them.

“It’s the most funny thing in the world. It’s really screwed up.”

He said he just happened to fit what the WWF was looking for.

“I have the perfect stature to be a referee,” Strons said. “I have a clean-cut look. I’m not very big and I’m an outgoing person. That makes me marketable as a referee. If you’re above 5-foot-10, you’re not going to be very marketable as a referee. They like smaller referees. That helps make the wrestlers look bigger. You put a 5-10 guy in with guys like Jayson Reign and Double M, the referee is going to be the biggest guy in the ring. In the WWF, I was the tallest one, and I’m 5-7. Jack Doan is 5-5 and Earl Hebner is 5-6.”

Strons said he was amazed to watch the LWF grow from the backyard.

“I just happened to come in at the right time,” he said. “They were doing it for two or three years and I never thought it would get as big as it did. When we first started in Lemont, we were drawing 600 people. That’s at $10 a head and that’s pretty crazy. We only had one guy trained and he wasn’t a major wrestler at the time.”

He said he never would discredit the LWF because of where they began and said others who began in LWF should stop criticizing the place

“The backyard is probably the best thing that ever happened to me, the best thing that happened to a lot of wrestlers,” Strons said. “(Former LWF wrestler) CM Punk always rips on yarders, but he was the biggest backyard wrestler ever. He was all backyard, all the time. It took another guy to get trained for him to get trained. He was a yarder when he was doing LWF stuff. When I hear him talk about yarder, yarder, he’s the biggest hypocrite ever.”

That is not to say Strons doesnÂ’t respect Punk.

“He’s a good wrestler and he was a best friend of mine, but he burned so many bridges,” Strons said. “I hope I’d never have to work with him again.”

But if the situation arose...

“If he did an MCW show, yeah, I would do his match,” Strons said. “I’d be as professional as I could be. We wouldn’t go out to dinner. I just think it’s funny when he calls people yarders. He forgets, he’s a yarder, too. I’m not embarrased. I started in the backyard. Who cares?”

Strons said many remain with the LWF out of personal enjoyment.

“It’s a fun time,” he said. “You know everybody. Double M has accomplished everything he can, but he still does it. I know Jay Jensen left, but it’s just because he wanted to get away and spread his wings. He just didn’t want to be involved anymore.”

He says the LWF is becoming more organized. He said he respects MCWÂ’s professionalism.

“I show up there, and I get with the wrestlers and talk about what has to be talked about,” Strons said. “I do my thing. I get paid. I go home. It’s a well-run organization. It’s well thought out, well presented. The wrestlers come to wrestle and the referees referee. It’s everything you enjoy about the wrestling business. Let the wrestlers concentrate on wrestling and the referees concentrate on refereeing and you’ll have a happy locker room.”

Strons had a memorable exchange with former ECW star Simon Diamond in a comedy spot in MCW. Strons was able to execute a few moves on the wrestler.

“If I didn’t get a chance to touch a wrestler, if I never put my hands on a wrestler, that’s fine,” Strons said. “It made me look good, but that’s not the object of the game. The object is to put the wrestler over and make sure they get their spots, let the wrestlers know how the crowd is reacting. I can make things look more dramatic than they really have to be. There are three people in the ring – two who get the excitement and one who helps them.

“In MCW, guys like Double M, Jay Jensen, Jayson Reign and Airborne can have all the glory. They deserve it. The fans don’t pay to see me, they pay to see them. It’s my job to make them look good.”

[CW .org .info .net]

Rob Van Dam on ECW's last days
Posted by AL LAGATTOLLA on 5/21/2001, 2:56 am

Rob Van Dam talks about ECW's last days:
"I don't even know if I could draw a line, this is where they started to show they were heading to bankruptcy," Van Dam said. "I had been with them since January of 1996. When I came in, I came in making a fraction of pay I was making when I left.

"It was built up to where it there wasa Big 3. It looked like it was going to take off. We had the magazine, videogames, pay per view, national TV. But even during that time, there was a period when the boys' checks were bouncing and guys were stressing bad. We made it thorugh some rough times.

"There was a point where I knew I had passed the point of no return. I was highest-paid guy, and I was owed the most money. TNN never helped ECW take a step up. ECW was swept under carpet. ECW signed guys up to contracts, many for pretty big money.

Van Dam then left the company.

"I thought leaving would help ECW out," he said. "The hole of debt was getting deeper and deeper. But at the same time, having me at he shows would help the show out."

He said he was disappointed he didn't get to say goodbye at the pay-per-view event scheduled for January. The event eventually was canceled.

"I was very excited about going back in January for the pay per view," he said. "It was the last chance to wrestle in my favorite group, in my favorite ring in front of my favorite fans."

...

The Van Dam interview should be up shortly.

[CW .org .info .net]

More from Robby Dawber on Battle of the Belts
Posted by AL LAGATTOLLA on 5/25/2001, 3:23 am

Windy City Pro Wrestling's Robby Dawber said the stacked ring to be used for the Badder Ladder royale has been set up at WCPW's training center.
"I've been able to jump in there and see what it's about," Dawber said. "It's a little bit scary."

Dawber said he likes this year's concept better than last year's 120-man, 3-ring battle royale main event.

"There had been a lot of talk about wanting to do something different to top what happened last year," Dawber said. "The stacked ring idea was Dipshit's concept and I know there were a lot of different things batted back and forth. The more it got talked about, the more people liked it. Some thought it was not too feasible, that it would be too hard to build a ring like that. They managed to pull it together very well.

"It's going to be a great spectacle in terms of a live event."

Dawber said the ring is an awesome sight.

"When I saw the rings set up, I was like oh wow," Dawber said. "It's like having a building in there. ... It's like having two steps of a staircase right next to each other. If you fall from the top of the second ring, it's a pretty legitimate fall."

Dawber said he could see experimenting with the stacked ring in the future.

"I wouldn't be surprised to see the stacked ring return," Dawber said. "If you do the stacked ring once, well, now what can you do with it? Windy City is definitely breaking some ground with the concept."

It will be Dawber's second ladder match of the night and the third of his career. Earlier on Battle of the Belts, he will challenge lightweight champion Mike Masters in a TLC match to be won by the first to put his opponent through two tables.

Dawber said the first ladder match of his career was in PCW/PWI against Flyboy TK. Dawber said he came out rather unscathed.

"I remember I took a face bump on the ladder and ended up with a cut on my finger," he said. "I remember walking from the backstage area to the bathroom and cleaning out the nasty cut from my finger and thinking this was my monstrous injury from my ladder match."

Dawber is thrilled WCPW is bringing in Rob Van Dam to challenge for Terry Allen's league title.

"When people were discussing things to do for Belts, it crossed my mind that this would be the best guy not locked into a contract with the then-Big 2 we could actually get and mean something," Dawber said. "Too often, independent wrestling shows feature wrestlers from an era of long ago. While I respect that era, I don't really think it works in terms of drawing a lot of people. Independent wrestling appeals to hardcore fans."

Dawber said Van Dam is worth whatever it costs to bring him to Battle of the Belts.

"My guess is Rob Van Dam costs quite a bit more money than the average unsigned worker the independent shows want to bring in," Dawber said. "If you want to do something special, Rob Van Dam is someone you want to bring in and Battle of the Belts is something special. And it's great to put him against a great worker like Terry."

Although many would say Allen's style is vastly different than Van Dam's, Dawber said he anticipates a great match.

"Terry is one of those guys who is pretty versatile," Dawber said. "He's good about adapting his style and he's one of the few guys in Windy City I have yet to work a match with.

"Sometimes you watch two guys who wrestle the same style and I find it kind of boring. It's sort of like if you play a wrestling video game and put Hulk Hogan vs. Hulk Hogan. It's good to have a mesh of styles and definitely, Terry is up to meshing well with Rob Van Dam."

[CW .org .info .net]

Robby Dawber on Battle of the Belts
Posted by AL LAGATTOLLA on 5/25/2001, 3:23 am

Windy City Pro Wrestling's Robby Dawber said the stacked ring to be used for the Badder Ladder royale has been set up at WCPW's training center.
"I've been able to jump in there and see what it's about," Dawber said. "It's a little bit scary."

Dawber said he likes this year's concept better than last year's 120-man, 3-ring battle royale main event.

"There had been a lot of talk about wanting to do something different to top what happened last year," Dawber said. "The stacked ring idea was Dipshit's concept and I know there were a lot of different things batted back and forth. The more it got talked about, the more people liked it. Some thought it was not too feasible, that it would be too hard to build a ring like that. They managed to pull it together very well.

"It's going to be a great spectacle in terms of a live event."

Dawber said the ring is an awesome sight.

"When I saw the rings set up, I was like oh wow," Dawber said. "It's like having a building in there. ... It's like having two steps of a staircase right next to each other. If you fall from the top of the second ring, it's a pretty legitimate fall."

Dawber said he could see experimenting with the stacked ring in the future.

"I wouldn't be surprised to see the stacked ring return," Dawber said. "If you do the stacked ring once, well, now what can you do with it? Windy City is definitely breaking some ground with the concept."

It will be Dawber's second ladder match of the night and the third of his career. Earlier on Battle of the Belts, he will challenge lightweight champion Mike Masters in a TLC match to be won by the first to put his opponent through two tables.

Dawber said the first ladder match of his career was in PCW/PWI against Flyboy TK. Dawber said he came out rather unscathed.

"I remember I took a face bump on the ladder and ended up with a cut on my finger," he said. "I remember walking from the backstage area to the bathroom and cleaning out the nasty cut from my finger and thinking this was my monstrous injury from my ladder match."

Dawber is thrilled WCPW is bringing in Rob Van Dam to challenge for Terry Allen's league title.

"When people were discussing things to do for Belts, it crossed my mind that this would be the best guy not locked into a contract with the then-Big 2 we could actually get and mean something," Dawber said. "Too often, independent wrestling shows feature wrestlers from an era of long ago. While I respect that era, I don't really think it works in terms of drawing a lot of people. Independent wrestling appeals to hardcore fans."

Dawber said Van Dam is worth whatever it costs to bring him to Battle of the Belts.

"My guess is Rob Van Dam costs quite a bit more money than the average unsigned worker the independent shows want to bring in," Dawber said. "If you want to do something special, Rob Van Dam is someone you want to bring in and Battle of the Belts is something special. And it's great to put him against a great worker like Terry."

Although many would say Allen's style is vastly different than Van Dam's, Dawber said he anticipates a great match.

"Terry is one of those guys who is pretty versatile," Dawber said. "He's good about adapting his style and he's one of the few guys in Windy City I have yet to work a match with.

"Sometimes you watch two guys who wrestle the same style and I find it kind of boring. It's sort of like if you play a wrestling video game and put Hulk Hogan vs. Hulk Hogan. It's good to have a mesh of styles and definitely, Terry is up to meshing well with Rob Van Dam."

[CW .org .info .net]

Battle of the Belts - The Card
Posted by AL LAGATTOLLA on 5/25/2001, 2:23 pm

Battle of the Belts is planned for Saturday night at the Hammond Civic Center in Hammond, Ind.
* League Champion Terry Allen faces Rob Van Dam
Â
* New Thing Robby Dawber faces lightweight Champion Mike "The Masterpiece" Masters in a TLC Match. The winner is the first to put his opponent through two tables.
Â
* Angel will defend her women's championship
Â
* Heavyweight champion Willie "da Bomb" Richardson will face "All That" Steve Boz. Boz has worn every championship he has been eligible for in WCPW, except the heavyweight championship.
Â
* Baltazaar will defend the middleweight title
Â
* Los Mexicanos will defend the Tag Team title.Â
Â
* Naughty by Nature will challenge The Brotherhood for the 6-Man Title.
Â
* Vito "Two Fingers" Fontaine will defend the Bare Knuckles title against Mike Anthony ... with "The Don" Sam DeCero as special guest referee.
Â
For information, call [phone] or [phone], or visit WCPW's website: windycityprowrestling.com

[CW .org .info .net]

RVD on ECW TV title reign
Posted by AL LAGATTOLLA on 5/26/2001, 3:24 pm

Rob Van Dam, headed to Windy City Pro Wrestling's Battle of the Belts show tonight in Hammond, Ind., talked about how he made the ECW TV championship an important event.
"When I had the TV belt, that was when everything turned in my favor," Van Dam said. "I bet Bam Bam Bigelow, and then I had a match against Mikey Whipwreck and it was the first time I had all the fans on my side. I fought hard to have the best match on every card. Fans would say, 'Hey Rob, when are you going to have a chance at the world title?' I said the TV title means more. And it did. I almost had it for two years and I was undefeated. At that point, the belt did mean a lot to me. I was the longest-reigning champion in recent history and I was undefeated until I had to give it up because I broke my ankle. I never lost the title. It did have a lot of honor and I made it mean a lot. It was going to be the best match on the card every night and it didn't matter who the world champ was or who was the tag champs as long as the fans were chanting, 'RVD, RVD.' "

[CW .org .info .net]

Todd Gerth's MCW show review
Posted by REVIEW, TODD GERTH on 5/27/2001, 7:15 pm


On Saturday night, May 26, Midwest Championship Wrestling returned to the Frontier Park Fieldhouse in Chicago Ridge. It was mostly a good enough night for wrestling, but there were no real standout matches, and the night ended on a sour note. Not the way you'd want your first TV taping to go.
My streak for arriving on time to indie wrestling events ended at one, as I showed up a half hour late. I missed Grudge vs "Double M" Magnificent Mike. Apparently LWF Champ Grudge is using the name Steven Anthony in MCW. I hear Anthony won the match, which would be the expected result when the champ for one organization works for a close competitor. I wasnt too sorry to miss this match, since I wasnt impressed with Grudge at the LWF's last show (the only time I've seen him work) and I dont believe MM has the skill to carry an untalented opponent.

The first match I saw was Mick vs Synn. I believe Synn, another LWFer, may be using the name Michael Synn in MCW. Or maybe it's Mykkyl Synn; who knows? He had a forgettable match against Grudge/Steven Anthony at the last LWF event. Mick is a decent worker with a drunken Irish gimmick. Is our imagination so limited that the best we can do for new gimmicks is to find previously untapped ethnic stereotypes? Oh well, that said, Mick is a perfectly adequate comedy wrestler. He seemed to be leading Synn through this match, though Synn did a better-than-expected job of hitting his marks and selling and whatnot. I saw a lot more out of Synn in this undercard comedy match than I did in his LWF world title match. I had to wonder if what I heard was true -- that LWF workers are constrained by the demands of their fans to work the no-psychology, no-pacing, no-selling style they exhibit. No matter how much Mick was carrying Synn, it cant explain why Synn was, for instance, selling Mick's double purple-nurple better than he sold Grudge's offense at the LWF show. I had to wonder if maybe I *did* miss out by not catching the opener. At any rate, this match was constructed well. Some of the execution was spotty, so I'd probabl only go *1/2 on it, but for an undercard indie comedy match, that's perfectly acceptable. Synn won with, as I recall, a wacked-out uranage that's probably his finisher.

Next up was the MCW tag champs, Airborne and Jay Jensen, defending against APW's Donovan Morgan and Vinny Massaro. This match seemed a bit rushed. I never felt that they got into a good groove. It wasnt bad, though. The last time I saw Airborne's valet Apryl, she was the main negative in a very good Airborne vs Low-Ki match. She often played to the crowd during important moments in the match, distracting from the action. Fortunately, this time she stayed in the background. A valet doing virtually nothing is *way* better than a valet doing too much, so that was nice. The opening was heated, with all four going at it at once -- one pair (ie one face and one heel) inside the ring and one pair outside. After some action, the heels would get control. The heel inside the ring (Morgan) would throw his opponent out while the heel on the outside would throw his opponent in to switch things up. It was a fun little sequence, and somewhere in there, Airborne hit a nice Asai Moonsault from the ropes onto Massaro, who caught him with his back. Eventually, the heels took control on Airborne. Most of this part of the match was serviceable, but it never got much of a focus. Airborne got a few hope spots, but often they were somewhat ill-conceived, since they left Airborne in easy reach of his partner to make a tag, even though the storyline of the match dictated that he could not yet get it. That was probably mostly the fault of Airborne, though I can think of one time when the APW team had a lapse in ring positioning. That said, I think Airborne definitely belongs on the DVD500. He might not get that high yet, but I'd put him above Evan Krrragious, anyway. He has solid highspots, sells well, takes moves like Low-Ki's kicks and Massaro's high-angle back suplex, has a ton of potential, and doesnt have any major flaws that I see. Jensen was harder to gauge, as he didnt actually wrestle much. Once he finally got the hot tag, he pulled the old swerve on Airborne (via a nice dragon suplex) and joined the APW team. Isnt
that finish worn out yet? Have we not yet gotten sick of the gaping logical hole in the fact that Jensen was fighting the APW guys earlier in the match (a staple paradox in this booking)? I guess it's hard to expect innovation from a group that has the lack of vision to call themselves "MCW", but really... Anyway, as I said, this match could have been quite good if not for the goofy booking and if it had really settled down. As it is, it's hard to go above **.

Michael Modest came out to congratulate the APW team and give an APW shirt to Jay Jensen (just in case anyone in the crowd hadnt figured out that this angle is a blatant rip-off of the nWo). This segued into the Modest vs Jayson Reign match. I've yet to understand the Modest hype. He's certainly a good worker, but I've never seen
anything from him to suggest that he's #18 in the world. I hoped
that seeing him live would bring me around, but no luck. Modest's
first transition to offense was based around yanking Reign's arm
over the top rope. From there, Modest pulled out an assortment of
arm-based offense. Good stuff. Modest built to a cross-armbreaker
-- a crucial point in the match. The logical outcome would probably
be a quick rope-break, as it was too early to do a serious tease of
the finish. However, Reign sold the cross-armbreaker like a chinlock, kind of lolling around a bit, but never evoking the image of a man in desperate pain.

The crowd, which had been buzzing for most of the event to this point, noticeably quieted. They werent buying what was going on, and neither was I. Reign eventually got to the ropes for the break. At this point, if Modest was a top-flight worker, I believe he would have realized that Reign was not equipped to pull off the story he was going for, and he would have adapted. However, Modest kept at it, continuing to make arm
submissions the focus of his offense. Two times later in the match, Modest put on a Fujiwara arm bar, and both times Reign sold it poorly and the crowd drifted away. There were some other nice moments in the match; I can think of a transition on the outside that Modest probably called, which culminated in a nice flippy crossbody from the apron from Reign (though the transition would have been better if Reign had sold the arm better between the initial reversal and the solidifying of the switch to offense). The finish of the match involved Modest arguing with the referee, allowing Reign to recuperate, then hit his finisher on the unsuspecting Modest to get the three count -- weak booking yet
again. The match Modest had in his head was probably a **** match.
The booking of the finish takes off 1/2*, and Reign's poor selling combined with Modest's unwillingness or inability to adapt bring it down to **1/2.




**

LWF lineup for tonight
Posted by AL LAGATTOLLA on 6/9/2001, 2:58 pm

Broox vs. Shimmer
Curse vs. Tyler Cross
Grudge vs. Machine, LWF world title match
Grin vs. Bill Patrick, LWF I-C match
Havok vs. Botch
Ice Bew vs. Bill Munoz
Eryn vs. Redpac, intergender match
Airborne will appear
7 p.m., Lincoln Center, Highland, Ind.
Tickets cost $10
For information, lwfwrestling.com



**

MCW news and notes - fourth tag team announced
Posted by AL LAGATTOLLA on 6/11/2001, 2:25 pm

Jayson Reign and Christopher Daniels have been announced as the fourth team in the July 14 Midwest Championship Wrestling tag team tournament - which also is known as T-3. The tournament is set for the University of Illinois at Chicago physical education building.
MCW owner Brian Zenner said he is happy to have Daniels for the tournament.

"He's going to Japan three days after the show," Zenner said. "He's wanted to work for us at the last couple of shows, but he's been booked."

Half the field of the 8-team tournament now has been announced - Low Ki/Airborne, FBI and Chad Collyer/Scoot Andrews are the other teams.

Of the rest of the teams, Zenner said "some will be local guys, some will be from outside."

Among prominent local names remaining are MCW world champion Vic Capri and former tag champion Jay Jensen, who is working with APW in California. Zenner said there will be one or two singles matches as well as the tournament.

Zenner said the entire field will be announced by June 22. He said the next team will be announced Tuesday.

Zenner said MCW is gaining much publicity from the show - from websites and radio shows. But he doesn't see it as "make or break."

"It's our signature show," Zenner said. "With the talent we're bringing in and the notoriety we're getting, I see us emerging as a national product. But if something goes wrong, I don't see us back at Square 1. These guys have busted their ass to bring the notoriety and the talent level where it needs to be."

Zenner says MCW has begun a joint venture with RF Video.

"They've been after us from the start," Zenner said. "They want copies of tapes and they'll want to run cross promotions and set up booths at our venues."

Zenner said RF has multiple copies of MCW shows.

Zenner said several MCW wrestlers will sign autographs at RF Video in Gurnee on July 13. Low Ki and Airborne are confirmed for the signing and Daniels is possible.

...

Other future MCW shows are planned for Aug. 4 at St. Rita High School in Chicago, Sept. 29 at the College of Lake County in Grayslake and Oct. 20 at Joliet Junior College.

**

[CW .org .info .net]

Lineup for UWA show in Highland, Ind.
Posted by AL LAGATTOLLA on 6/16/2001, 2:06 am

For more information, visit uwaprowrestling.com
Tank Vs. Twist

Morgana Vs. Alanna Storm

Atlas & Hellhound Diablo Vs. Thug Nation

Bad Boy Rod Vs. Hollywood Dre

Death Row Vs. Wikked & The Wild One Cade Lee

IUWA Tag Team Title Match
T.L. Money & Brandon Bishop Vs. Karnival Kliq With P.L. Myers

Flag Match
Ryu Shinzaki & Killer Kalsa Singh Vs. Special Forces

TLC Match
D-Lite & Milo Cash Vs. Chi-Town T & Metalhead Steve Stone

[CW .org .info .net]

IUWA results from Saturday night
Posted by AL LAGATTOLLA on 7/2/2001, 4:38 am

IUWA results, courtesy of Steve Cain...
At the opening, Atlas brought out a bound Morgana and screamed at herfor what he said was bad managing on her part, The Hounds From Hell came out and beat Atlas down, which led to Steve Cain and Scott "Squeeky" Stern coming down andgetting into another fight. As Cain ran down the aisle to get Stern, referee Wayne Joz told them to stop, He was sick of all the problems and they were going to settle it tonight.

Ryu Shinzaki beat Dade...
Shinzaki was accompanied by UWA TV champ Charles Crowley

Zulu Nation beat Wildly Twisted

Alanna Storm beat Morganna
Morganna went for a backbreaker, but lost her balance and Storm turned it into a forward roll slam and pin. Afterward, Saphyre attacked STorm.

Sgt. Gordon Rage of Special Forces beat D-Lite for the IUWA Lightweight title

Brandon Bishop beat Ice Bew for the Indiana State title.

Scott "Squeeky" Stern beat Steve Cain in a referee's battle.

Chi-Town T, Choo Choo and Caribbean Kid beat Tank, Malakin and Charles Crowley

Hounds of Hell beat Death Row and Youth Gone Wild to win the IUWA tag titles

TL Money beat Atlasa

Milo Cash beat Bad Boy Rob for the IUWA Midwest title.

Afterward, TL Money came out with DC Lightning and demanded a title match, which Lightning agreed they should have. Cash took the mic and talked about how in their old days in the other promotion (Windy City), he carried Money and now he would break him. There was also a dispute over officials with Cash wanting his buddy Stern and Money demanding Steve Cain, it was decided that all three referees would be used with majority rules applying.

Saphyre, the only female in the battle royale, won the event.

The next show is scheduled for Aug. 11 at the Hammond Civic Center.

[CW .org .info .net]

Results of WCPW in Marion, Ind.
Posted by AL LAGATTOLLA on 7/4/2001, 6:05 pm

Acid Jaz scored a victory over Willie "Da Bomb" Richardson in the main event Tuesday night at Windy City Pro Wrestling's show at the Grant County Fair in Marion, Ind.
It was outdoors, it had rained and it was a small, tough crowd, but WCPW's performers managed to get over in a ring mounted on mud and surrounded by hay.

The fans knew who they hated more than who they liked, but women's champion Angel and battle royale champ Mike Masters managed to get cheers, mostly at the expense of Dipshit, who still managed to get "Dipshit sucks" chants.

The Warlocks, holding the most belts in WCPW, made the most appearances and got the most heat.

The results:
Robby Dawber successfully defended his lightweight belt over Valyk

Angel successfully defended her women's belt over Mercedes, who came out with Dipshit

The Warlocks - Eryk and Julian - successfully defended their tag titles over 2000CC, with help from Valyk

Baltazar successfully defended his middleweight title over Mike Anthony, wth help from the Warlocks

Dipshit beat Masters, using his foot on the ropes for leverage.

Acid Jazz beat Willie Richardson

Masters won the battle royale

NOTES:

WCPW league champion Terry Allen made the trip, but did not wrestle.

There was no sign of the Furies or Drusala/Annie Baxtop, and no telling of what, if any, future the Furies would have in WCPW.

Richardson's match with Acid Jazz is an example of how a big man can put over a much smaller man. Acid Jazz was scheduled to face Dawber for the lightweight title, but managed to show off his quicker game. Richardson managed to look good, even though beaten by a much smaller man, and he managed to turn the fans against him.

WCPW has scheduled a show July 10 in Columbus, Ind.


**

LWF card for Saturday in Midlothian
Posted by AL LAGATTOLLA on 7/11/2001, 2:33 am

Mike Broox and Ryan Boz will team to face Maverick and Grudge in the main event of the Lunatic Wrestling Federation's show planned for Saturday night in Midlothian.
Grudge is the LWF's world champ and Maverick is the Intercontinental champ and also the No. 1 contender for the world title. Maverick and Boz have been feuding for months, as have Grudge and Broox.

Other matches include

Havok vs. Bil Patrick
Stryc-9 and Botch vs. Grin and Freak
Machine vs. Shimmer
Tyler Cross vs. Mimic
It will be the first 1-on-1 match between Cross and Mimic.

For information, visit lwfwrestling.com
This event took place at the Midlothian Park District in Midlothian, Illinois.
“Physical Fascination” Brandon Bishop beat Ice Bew- A lot of this match was centered
around Bew working BishopÂ’s back; both guys also worked the crowd rather well. For
those of you who donÂ’t know this was BishopÂ’s first appearance in the LWF.

Liberty Jones beat “Floyd Turbo”- Liberty Jones was played by Another Jones, and Floyd
Turbo was really Redpac. Towards the end of the match Redpac was unmasked.

Havok beat “Bodacious” Bil Patrick with “Blitz” Jon Stone- For this match Patrick
brought the middle rope fist smash, it was very reminiscent of Jerry Lawler or Tommy
Rich.

Bill Munoz beat Curse with Kalita- Supreme was originally slated but didnÂ’t show, so
Munoz stepped in for him. Security got involved in this match.

Stryc-9 came out and told everyone that he wanted to have some lucky lady feel him. He
then blindfolded himself, Jessica the ring girl stepped into the ring and slapped him.
Stryc-9 then grabbed her but Johnny Mac of all people made the save.

INTERMISSION

Machine beat Shimmer- At times the crowd ate Machine and his gimmick up. Machine
came out Maskless, in fact he had the mask on a stick of some sort. After the match
security mased Machine.

Botch/Stryc-9 beat Grin/Freak- Grin came out on a low rider bicycle. During the match
guest commentator Mark Osleber was hinting that heÂ’d join up with Botch and Stryc-9,
but also said the about Havok and Tyler Cross. Other fun things that Osleber said were: “Stryc-9 is a way of life,” he dubbed Stryc-9 and Botch the “Stick it in Express,” and started to tell stories from when he was touring but unfortunately cut himself off.

Mimic beat Tyler Cross- Mimic won after he did a second rope D.V.D., but not without
the assistance of Mark Osleber. After the match Mimic, Stryc-9, Botch, and Osleber beat down Cross. Havok and Shimmer made the save.

In the Main Event Ryan Boz/Mike Broox with “Crappy” Melissa beat Maverick/Grudge-
The crowd for this match was HOT, I never expected Maverick or Grudge to get the
response they did during introductions. During this contest we saw: an abdominal stretch along with a chain of leverage, Ryan Boz went through a table, Brandon Bishop came out and turned heel; he hit Grudge with a chair and put Broox on top of the champ. After the match Grudge and Maverick argued over what happened.

**Side Notes** There were two skits on the Lunatron one involving Mimic, Stryc-9, and
Mark Osleber. The next was with Curse, Kalita, and a security guard. It was great to see
my illegitimate father Mark Osleber back(Life on the road, buddy), he was as funny as ever. Kingpin did guest commentary during the main event and had me cracking up. I would also like to mention how inconsistent the crow was, it was very unpredictable at times.


Warm Carlos and Dirty Sanchez - formerly known as Los Peligrosos Latinos in the Lunatic Wrestling Federation, and now known as Warm and Dirty, and still managed by Mr. Puerta - will make their Pro Championship Wrestling debut July 29 at PCW's tag team turmoil match at Wolff's Flea Market in Melrose Park.
They talked with Chicagowrestling.com on Sunday at the PCW training facility, about their future in PCW, their past in LWF (they left on good terms), and how they don't think they are through putting wrestlers through doors.

The interview will appear before the July 29 show.

**

WCPW results from Columbus, Ind.
Posted by AL LAGATTOLLA on 7/11/2001, 1:48 pm

Steve Boz beat Terry Allen, but gave back Allen's Windy City Pro Wrestling league title Tuesday in a county fair show in Columbus, Ind.
The show was notable for pitting WCPW's two top titleholders in a match against each other, for the return of Allen from a foot injury, and for the return of two who had been gone from WCPW - the Polish Crippler and Crystal.

Boz, WCPW's heavyweight champion, beat Allen, the league champion, with interference from Dipshit. Boz - playing the ultimate babyface - refused to take the title by that means and returned it to Allen.

"Steve said he didn't want to win the title that way," Allen said.

Allen said his foot "feels better now than before I wrestled," and said the match went about 15 minutes.

"We didn't do a whole lot of crazy stuff," he said. "But we did go outside (the ring) and we had some fun."

Also - former heavyweight champion Polish Crippler lost to Vito Fontaine in a bare knuckles match.

And former women's champion Crystal lost to current women's champion Angel.

Robby Dawber beat Mike Masters to retain his lightweight title

The Warlocks beat 2000CC to retain the tag titles

Psycho beat 9-mil

Mike Masters retained his battle royale title, winning the royale

WCPW returns to the Chicago area on July 21 at Slag Valley Studio for hot summer nights. Among highlights will be a bikini contest. For more information, visit windycityprowrestling.com.

Windy City Pro Wrestling will return to Chicago for the first time since the Battle of the Belts weekend on July 21 at Slag Valley Studios in Chicago.The show starts at 7 p.m.
Three matches have been announced:
"All That" Steve Boz will defend his heavyweight title against Willie "Da Bomb" Richardson

"Tenacious" Terry Allen will defend his league title against Valyk

The Warlocks - Eryk and Julian - will defend their tag belts against Sports Entertainment - Dipshit and Vic Ferrari

Also, Mike Masters, Robby Dawber and 9-mil are expected to appear.

Former WCPW stars Polish Crippler and Crystal made their returns last week at a show in Indiana, and Allen said another WCPW star may return Saturday. He would not elaborate.

"I imagine Polish Crippler will have something to do with the show," Allen said.

For information, visit www.windycityprowrestling.com.



**

T-3 at UIC... first round results
Posted by AL LAGATTOLLA on 7/14/2001, 9:01 pm

Chicagowrestling.com is live at intermission of the Midwest Championship Wrestling T-3 tag team tournament.
The final four is set. The first round results:

Christopher Daniels and Jayson Reign beat Scoot Andrews and Chad Collyer. Reign got the pin after he and Daniels executed double leaps off the top rope.

Danny Doring and Chris Chetti beat Magnificent Mike and Mick. Chetti scored the pin after Doring hit Mick with the chair. Doring and Chetti were much more serious than they have been in past MCW appearances.

The FBI beat Vic Capri and Julio Dinero, who was subbing for the injured Reckless Youth. Capri at first volunteered to take the night off, but MCW owner Brian Zenner introduced Dinero as his last-second partner. Guido got the pin on Capri, who blamed Dinero, leading to a MCW world title match, with Capri, the MCW world champion, defending against Dinero.

Airborne and Low-Ki beat Jay Jensen and Vinny Massaro. Airborne and Low Ki won with a double submission move, Airborne on Massaro and Low Ki on Jensen. The match marked Jensen's return to Chicago wrestling after a month in California's APW, which is Massaro's home.

NOTES: Johnny Kiss was a no-show as ring announcer, and Lou Tufano has handled that task, admirably. ... Zenner announced the T-3 winner will defend the titles Aug. 4 against Christian York and Joey Matthews at St. Rita High School. ... Today is Reign's birthday, and there are a few signs wishing him a happy birthday, as well as a balloon bouquet. ... Among other signs in the crowd are some of support for Doring and Airborne, as well as our favorite sign - one showing support for chicagowrestling.com.

The second round matches appear to be Daniels/Reign vs. Doring/Chetti and FBI vs. Airborne/Low Ki

Capri defends his MCW world title against Julio Dinero

Mitch Blake of the Furies will battle Michael Synn.

Airborne and Low-Ki are the new Midwest Championship Wrestling tag-team champions, beating Jayson Reign and Christopher Daniels in the final of Saturday night's T-3, MCW's first tag team tournament
The second half of the show:

Daniels and Reign beat Danny Doring and Chris Chetti. Chetti inadvertently hit Doring with a chair and Daniels finished him.

Airborne and Low-Ki beat the FBI, with another inadvertant chair shot costing FBI the match.

Michael Synn beat Mitch Blake by DQ when the other half of the Furies, Jeffro King, interfered on behalf of his partner, Blake. Former Windy City star Brett Sanders then showed up to save Synn, appearing to make a tag team.

Vic Capri successfully defended his MCW world title, beating Julio Dinero by DQ after a Dinero chairshot. Capri earlier got away with a chairshot.

Airborne and Low Ki beat Daniels and Reign, with Low Ki scoring the finish with a submission move on Daniels.

The match was the most anticipated of the night, especially since Low Ki and Daniels never had met before. When they were tagged in, the crowd popped just for the staredown.

During the match, Reign hit his finisher on Airborne, but Low Ki broke it up. Low Ki also scored with his corkscrew leap off the top rope to the outside, after an Airborne moonsault and a Reign dive over the top rope.

Also, Low-Ki managed to break up one Daniels' subimission move of Airborne by locking up Daniels in a submission move of his own - while Daniels still had his move on Airborne.

After the match. MCW owner Brian Zenner presented Airborne and Low-Ki with their new belts, and Low Ki's music hit. Daniels fastened Airborne's belt on his waist, they hugged and Daniels grabbed the mic and said tonight he and Reign were second best, and the better team won. Low-Ki then said Daniels and Reign could have a title shot at any time.

Aiborne and Low-Ki will defend against York and Matthews on Aug. 4 at St. Rita High School.

Of note... the crowd sang "Happy Birthday" to Reign before his semifinal match. ... Airborne debuted his new white trunks for the final. ... Many Pro Championship Wrestling stars were there, including PL Myers and Jimmy Blaze. Airborne was trained by PCW, and some were there in support of him.

More details and analysis to come.

There were numerous injuries at Midwest Championship Wrestling's T-3 tournament ... Chris Chetti bled from a cut on his head. Jayson Reign's back or ribs appeared to be hurt. Airborne's wrist may have been sprained. Also, Scoot Andrews came into the tournament with a broken hand, and Reckless Youth missed the tournament entirely with an injury.
Reign celebrated a birthday, and got a cake and a chorus of "Happy Birthday." He seemed genuinely happy fans knew it was his birthday.

Former Windy City Pro Wrestling women's champion Drusala/Annie Baxtop was a spectator. She said she is still an active part of WCPW, and seemed puzzled there could be any question.

The crowd at the T-3 appeared to be between 200-250. We'll have a more specific number later.

Some people did have to pay for parking at UIC. I didn't. I parked on the street and I was fine. But I do know some said they had to pay.

About the show:

Almost every surprise was pleasant. MCW owner Brian Zenner didn't name himself as Vic Capri's tag partner or anything and Julio Dinero meshed well with Capri, then put on a spirited match against Capri later in the card.

The crowd was craving the last match, especially to watch Low-Ki square off against Daniels. When that moment happened, the crowd reacted with wild applause. Most seemed to recognize the importance of two highly respected wrestlers facing off for the first time.

Reign got the chance to work with Daniels, whom Reign credits as his primary inspiration. Reign unveiled a few new moves, and it was interesting to see him and Daniels' finishers, which are similar. Also, Daniels probably was responsible for bringing in the most fans and probably selling the most merchandise.

Michael Synn came out in Jay Jensen's old Straight Up Villains wrestling tights Jensen wore when he and Maverick were ruling the Lunatic Wrestling Federation's tag team ranks. Synn mentioned his old tights ripped, but then later in the night, when Brett Sanders made the save for Synn, he wore a shirt that matches the pants.

Vinny Massaro seemed to have trouble keeping up in his match, pitting him and Jensen against Airborne and Low Ki. Massaro's offense was solid, but he had to scramble to keep pace with his opponents, which probably isn't that surprising, considering not many have that kind of aerial ability or quickness. Low-Ki's conditioning is beyond impressive.

The T-3 did have a few missteps, but most were minor. First, fans were complaining they didn't get enough of Low-Ki and Airborne until the final, but the main event more than made up for that. Also, the Furies looked out of place in their position on the card, but it was the most logical place for them, between the semfinals and finals of the tournament. Also, there was a run of matches ending in inadvertent chairshots, and a few more clean finishes would have made the show even better. But the whole night played to MCW's strength. The primary criticism of MCW has been its uneven booking, but in a tournament format, the wrestlers must tell the stories, match by match. MCW wrestlers excel at that.

Apryl did not accompany Airborne to ringside, but she was not a no-show.

Danny Doring and Chris Chetti have been criticized by fans for working mostly comedy matches during their time in MCW, but on Saturday, they showed the form that brought them fame in ECW. They were intense and crisp, and Chetti even bled for Chicago. Doring said he was eager to face local talent, and he got his chance against Magnificent Mike and Mick.

Capri was on top of his game, which made him very good, and Julio Dinero showed much more than he did in his last MCW appearance. The pace of the night was much more intense than usual and there was an aura missing from past shows.


"The showdown finally happened. East met west. I reached another goal with one of the best." – Low-Ki on meeting Christopher Daniels for the first time at MCW's T-3 tag team tournament.
The first meeting of two of the top independent wrestling stars highlighted Midwest Championship Wrestling's first tag team tournament - the T-3 - at the University of Illinois-Chicago.

Airborne and Low-Ki beat Jayson Reign and Christopher Daniels in the finals, marking the first meeting of Low-Ki and Daniels. Airborne and Reign began the match, and when each tagged out simultaneously, Low-Ki and Daniels took a moment to size each other up and the crowd reacted.

"It was actually a monumental moment," Reign said. "It was good. That was the first time on an indy show where, standing on the ring apron, I could feel the electricity. Fans were running up the railing. That first exchange was excellent."

"Around here, you just don't see two national stars who haven't faced each other," MCW owner Brian Zenner said. "You're not going to see that in any other federation locally. You can't do better than that."

...

Zenner said he was disappointed with the size of the crowd, which was 291.

Zenner blamed location. It was the first time MCW ran at UIC, and it also was the third venue announced for the T-3. Originally, Zenner slated the event for the Hammond Civic Center, and then shifted it to Marist High School before settling on UIC.

"I think that's our fault," Zenner said. "We're used to running down south, and we tried to move the venue and we thought people would drive based on the talent level."

...

There were many injuries at the show, but Zenner said most were minor. Airborne (back, wrist), Reign (kidney), and Chris Chetti (cut on his head) were the most notable.

"People are a little sore, after they worked their asses off," Zenner said. "You put people in two or three matches, and that's a lot. They gave me their heart and soul. You've got to expect to be a little sore."

Reign said he was responsible for opening a cut on Chetti's head.

"He had the bandage on and all my intentions were to just grab the bandage, but it came flying off," Reign said. "I didn't expect to open him up, but the gash was so deep."

Reign said his kidneys were hurt in the main event when he and Low-Ki were going at it with their kicks.

"We both tried to incorporate the kicking," Reign said. "He's better at it, and I didn't try to go that route (at first), but it was working for me. I did his move (three kicks on a kneeling opponent). He called that, and that showed a lot of confidence, for him to have me pull off one of his moves."

Low-Ki eventually turned the tables on Reign.

"Daniels and I had the double crab on Airborne, and Low-Ki went to kick me. He went straight for the kidneys," Reign said. "I'm still sore today. I was a little out of breath."

Airborne was hurt in his team's first match, a victory over Vinny Massaro and Jay Jensen.

"I was coming out in the opening spot," Airborne said. "I was supposed to do something, but I changed midmatch, so it's my fault. I cued that off and I thought I got it out to Massaro, but I don't think he picked up the cue. Maybe I didn't get it out there easily enough. I take the blame for it. So I went for the other move and I think it caught him off-guard. I ended up falling like an accordion. Then later, I went for a moonsault outside, but my wrist ended up hitting the ground before the rest of my body."

....

Reign said he was privileged to team with Daniels.

"He's still the biggest name on the indy scene," Reign said. "He's better than he's ever been. Don't let the fact he's been released (from WCW) two times fool you. This is a guy, everywhere he goes, he gets put over. He's a good draw. ... I 'd like to think (Chicago) has a special place in his heart. This is his home. He started here. He does sell a lot more (merchandise) in Chicago. Every Chicago wrestling fan knows Christopher Daniels started here."

...

Reign also relished his third match against Low-Ki.

"He's very gifted at what he does, obviously," Reign said. "He's very intense at everything he does, but not to the point of being a madman."

Reign said many focus on Low-Ki's size (Low-Ki is 5-foot-6, about 170 pounds), but Reign doesn't think Low-Ki should bulk up.

"I've never seen anybody with such body control," Reign said. "He's light on his feet. He's like a cat. ... As far as muscularity, he shouldn't get any bigger. If he got up to 200 pounds, that's an extra 30 pounds. I like Low-Ki excactly where he is at."

Reign also is impressed such a small man can play the role of intimidator.

"Here's a guy whose smaller than me and weighs less and he can pull off the role he pulls off," Reign said. "The crowd really reacts to him."

...

Former Windy City Pro Wrestling star Brett Sanders made his debut Saturday for MCW, and another former WCPW star - Kevin Quinn - will work for MCW on Aug. 4.

Sanders and Quinn both once held the WCPW middleweight title. Sanders had been working in Puerto Rico.

"Brett Sanders will be a part of our stable," Zenner said. "He wanted to get back to Chicago, and I know he didn't want to work for Windy City."

Zenner said Sanders likely will feud with the Furies, the former WCPW tag team champions. Zenner said the Furies will work full time for MCW.

Zenner also said Low-Ki is booked for MCW shows the remainder of the year.

"I think that means a lot to us," Zenner said.

...

Another notable Windy City performer - Drusala, who went by Annie Baxtop at her most recent WCPW show - was at the event, and Zenner said he would like her to work for MCW. She is still considered employed by WCPW.

"I am very interested in starting a women's division," Zenner said. "The door has been opened, but that is up to her. It's her decision."

Another female wrestler - Heaven Leigh - is hoping to make her MCW debut shortly, and MCW could begin training of Airborne's valet, Apryl, who also has suggested she would like to work as a wrestler.

Apryl did not accompany Airborne to the ring Saturday, which did not seem odd, since Zenner suggested he wanted very few distractions from the tournament event.

But Zenner said he never spoke to her directly.

"I considered her a no-show," he said. "We did decide that maybe we wouldn't use valets, and she wasn't going to be involved in any plotlines. But I have not heard from her."

...

Ring announcer Johnny Kiss was not at the event, and Zenner used Lou Tufano in his place.

Zenner said Kiss would be welcome at future MCW events.

...

Some criticized the event for having too many matches end with inadvertent chairshots by wrestlers on their partners, even if some did not play a direct role in the finish.

Reign did acknowledge it, and said there was not enough communication. He said wrestlers didn't see each others' matches and were not aware there were so many chairshots used. He said a monitor in the back could have eliminated the problem.

...

Chetti and Danny Doring worked as a team, and won accolades after heavy criticism for their recent MCW appearances, which mostly were comedy roles.

Zenner said Chetti and Doring had read much of the criticism.

"It's not like they don't know what people are saying," Zenner said. "I think they showed what they can do, and people are responding to that in a positive way. People get caught up into the whole thing and think these are just big-time stars who are taking advantage of MCW."

Zenner said he was OK with the comedy matches.

"It's not that they don't take wrestling seriously," Zenner said. "They just wanted to do something different. They wanted to do more of a comedic style. I had no problem."

Said Reign: "I thought Chetti and Doring showed themselves for what they reall are. Everybody's always giving them sh*t."

...

There still is no word on when MCW's TV show will begin airing on WJYS Channel 34/62.

"It's going to be pushed back," Zenner said. "How far, I don't know. I know we're temporarily delayed. I know the fans want it on and I want it on, but I'm not going to rush it."

Reign suggested a TV title may debut soon, if the show begins airing.

...

Zenner is excited about the potential of Airborne after his T-3 victory. Airborne is now a two-time MCW tag champ, having won the titles earlier, paired with Jay Jensen.

"He's been getting a strong push as part of the tag team champions," Zenner said. "Now he's teamed with a guy like Low-Ki, and that's a big push. his name will be recognized with some of the other people who are well known. I think it's a huge push for him."

Reign said Airborne "did OK."

"It may have been a little too much for him," Reign said. "Brian put a lot on his lap."




**

MCW to introduce TV title on Aug. 4
Posted by AL LAGATTOLLA on 7/18/2001, 2:27 am

Midwest Championship Wrestling will unveil its new TV title, and new tag champs Airborne and Low-Ki will defend their titles Aug. 4 at St. Rita High School in Chicago.
The matches:
Airborne and Low-Ki will defend their tag titles against former ECW stars Joey Matthews and Christian York

Vic Capri will defend his MCW world title against Acid

Former ECW star Simon Diamond will face APW's Michael Modest

Former ECW star Chris Chetti will face Magnificent Mike

Kevin Quinn will make his MCW debut

MCW also will conduct a lottery to determine the contenders for its new TV belt.

For more information, visit midwestchampionshipwrestling.com

**

Lineup for LWF show in Highland, Ind.
Posted by AL LAGATTOLLA on 7/20/2001, 11:20 am

The Lunatic Wrestling Federation has scheduled a show for Saturday at the Lincoln Center in Highland, Ind. - Indiana Invasion 2
Matches so far:

Maverick vs. Machine

Tyler Cross vs. Mike Broox

Mimic vs. Havok

Magnificent Mike vs. Bil Patrick

Botch vs. Shimmer

For more information, visit lwfwrestling.com.

The Lunatic Wrestling Federation had a cancellation Saturday in Highland, Ind.
The official word is a power failure of some sort at the Lincoln Center. Some were saying the draw was low, and that appeared to be true, but there was a problem with power in at least one portion of the building.

"We'll have to call it--"LWF: Act of God," LWF leader Billy Whack said."We are all so reliant on technology...And electricity, that we are stopped DEAD in our tracks when we are suddenly without...Shazam!!"

LWF has another show scheduled for July 28, this time closer to home. Visit lwfwrestling.com for details.


**

7/21/2001, 1:23 pm

Windy City Pro Wrestling League champion Terry Allen will defend his title against Valyk on Saturday night as WCPW returns to the Chicago area for the first time since the Battle of the Belts weekend at "Hot Summer Nights."
Also, Julian and Eryk - the Warlocks - are scheduled to defend against Dipshit and Vic Ferrari - Sports Entertainment.

Heavyweight champ Steve Boz will defend against Willie "The Bomb" Richardson.

There also will be a bikini contest.

Also, Psycho, Polish Crippler, Crystal, Robby Dawber, Mike Masters, Frankie Valient, 9-mil and Baltazar are expected to appear.

Tickets cost $15. For information, visit www.windycityprowrestling.com

WCPW's next show is Aug. 16 at a fair in Fairbury.

7/23/2001, 2:14 pm

Robby Dawber pinned 9-Mil to retain the WCPW lightweight title.
Mike Anthony beats Baltazar by DQ, but Baltazar keeps his middleweight belt

Frankie Valiant pins Mike Masters

Rudo Cortez beats Psycho with interference from Ripper Manson

Steve Boz beat Willie Da Bomb Richardson and kept his heavyweight title. It was a best 2-of-3 falls match, and Richardson won the first pin and Boz the next two.

Sports Entertainment beat the Warlocks, but did not win the tag titles because the match was restarted after Masters pointed out Dipshit used the camera.
Dipshit and Vic Ferrari battled Julian and Eryk. After the restart, Dipshit gives Julian a big boot and legdrop but Julian catches the legdrop in mid air and turns it into a sharpshooter and Dipshit taps out.

Dipshit's comment: "That sucks."

Terry Allen beat Valyk to remain the league champion.

[CW .org .info .net]

The Chicago Scene
Posted by AL LAGATTOLLA on 7/25/2001, 4:06 am

Windy City Pro Wrestling's Dipshit had some nice things to say about the likes of Lunatic Wrestling Federation big man Billy Whack on his recent Top 10 most influential people in Chicago Wrestling. Whack came in at #3 (I came in at #2, though, so, there) and WCPW's Dipshit does have ideas that seem a little too radical for WCPW.
In the Q&A with Whack last week, Whack said he appreciated the sentiment and seemed interested in meeting Dipshit. That would be interesting indeed. That mutual admiration could lead Dipshit to the LWF, which certainly would not sit well with WCPW boss Sam DeCero.

...

Pro Championship Wrestling returns to action Sunday, to see if it can duplicate its huge draw at its rebirth last month at the Melrose Park Civic Center.

This time, the show won't have the star power of a Sandman or Bill Alfonso, and will be at Wolff's Flea Market, again in Melrose Park, on Mannheim Road. Find their complete card at pcwchicago.com.

They also will crown new tag champs, and a new heavyweight champ. Chicagowrestling.com may have a recent past of being critical of the PCW, but Ben Jordan is expected to be there, and I am confident Ben will be fair. If he likes it, he'll say so. If not ... he won't be shy about that, either.

...

The LWF's recent cancellation in Highland, Ind., brought much speculation, with some rejecting the LWF's explanation that a power failure of sorts at the site was what called the show off.

The draw wasn't huge at all, but it probably was a combination of reasons. If it would have been a bigger crowd, maybe LWF works through the problems (there did appear to be a problem), if there isn't a power problem, then maybe LWF just goes ahead with the show, no matter what the crowd.

Whatever, those who showed got tickets to LWF's next show, which is Saturday at Oasis 160 in Chicago Heights.

...

Midwest Championship Wrestling owner Brian Zenner says Low-Ki is booked for every MCW show for the remainder of the year, and Zenner added American Dragon - who lost to Low-Ki in the finals of this year's Super 8 tournament - for future shows as well, beginning Aug. 25.

Former Windy City star Kevin Quinn is expected at MCW on Aug. 4, and the Furies returned at MCW's T-3, and Brett Sanders made his debut. And Donovan Morgan and Mike Modest of California's All-Pro Wrestling are expected to return to MCW. Morgan is a former MCW world champion.

Also on the Aug. 4 show... Vic Capri will defend his MCW world title against Acid in a rematch of a highly anticpated showdown that suffered through the breaking of a ring rope a few months back. The possibilities are tremendous in that match.

Also, Airborne and Low-Ki will defend their newly won tag belts against Joey Matthews and Christian York, among the matches announced at midwestchampionshipwrestling.com.

...

Maniak Enterprise Wrestling has approached Chicagowrestling.com about a contest to give away tickets to its Aug. 18 debut show, and that is highly likely. Details will be coming soon.

...

PCW will be co-promoting an event with Powerhouse Championship Wrestling at the comic book convention Aug. 17-19 at the Rosemont Convention Center. Other feds sending workers will be Gateway Championship Wrestling out of St. Louis.

PCW's Sonny Rogers says it will be the fed's third year participating in the event. More details will be released soon.

...

Gary Michael Capetta will be in Chicago on Aug. 1 at a Barnes and Noble Store on State and Elm in Chicago as part of his book tour to promote "Bodyslams."

Capetta is a former ring announcer for WCW, WWF and AWA, and we talked about the format for the events, as well as some stories from his book. More to come on this subject, too.

...

A couple of interviews have been completed, and some are in the scheduling process.

Among those coming soon, the LWF's Eryn talks about her recent wrestling debut. It is too bad she can't wrestle guys in Illinois, because LWF doesn't have many female wrestlers, but Eryn has been impressive in limited action.

Trevor Blanchard talks about his place in Chicago wrestling, his past and his reputation, and why he thinks many are jealous of his connections.

**

7/26/2001, 12:49 am

Card for the Pro Championship Wrestling show Sunday in Melrose Park, 1 p.m. at Wolff's Flea Market.
Bill Alfonso WILL appear.

Three-way match for PCW heavyweight championship:
Jimmy Blaze (with Bill Alfonso) vs. Rick Knight (with Alannah) vs. John Burke (with Mia Martinez)

Tag team turmoil:
Animal House vs. Death Row vs. XXX-Plicit Content vs. Ladies Night Out vs. Warm and Dirty vs. Sonny Rogers and Mr. Wrestling V

Battle Royale to crown a new PCW Midwest champion.

Flyboy TK vs. Rex Bartlett for the cruiserweight championship.

Damian vs. Steve Stone in a #1 contenders match for cruiserweight title.

For information, visit pcwchicago.com

Pro Championship Wrestling results from Sunday at Wolff's Flea Market in Melrose Park.
NOTE: Ben Jordan was supposed to be there, but he didn't make it. I'll just call it "technical problems" until Ben addresses the subject on his own. Of course, we did have one of our guys there...

Sacrifice is the new PCW world champion, taking the place of John Burke, who was injured early on in the show by Jimmy Blaze.

So the three-way for the world title became Sacrifice vs. Rick Knight vs. Blaze, with Sacrifice pulling off what had to be considered an upset, since he wasn't involved in the match at the beginning.

Dave Storm and Wally Wilde won the tag-team turmoil match to become the new PCW tag champs. The match lasted about an hour, and was the opener. I know the last team eliminated was Death Row.

I don't have much information on the women's match, but I will have that soon.

Steve Stone beat Damien to become the #1 contender to the cruiserweight title

Flyboy TK beat Rex Bartlett to retain the PCW cruiserweight title

"Delicious" Danny Scott won a battle royale to become the PCW Midwest champion

Then Sacrifice won the world title, pinning Blaze.

Their next show is Aug. 25 in Highwood.
visit pcwchicago.com for details.
Pro Championship Wrestling's PL Myers is at least as many parts promoter as he is wrestling manager.
So Myers is thrilled PCW's huge draw for its rebirth show last month in Melrose Park was not followed by a flop. Myers says at least 300 were at Sunday's show at Wolff's Flea Market, which Myers says was capacity.

"People expect you to fail," Myers said. "They want to call you a 1-hit wonder."

Myers said the venue was packed.

"Anyone can dispute our numbers, but we had to bring in more chairs," Myers said. "And we set up 300. The average attendance at shows in Chicago has been 100-200 people. We're not saying we're better than any company, but we're the best at what we do. We worry about ourselves."

There were some well-received twists in the show. Sacrifice was a surprise participant in the world title match, replacing John Burke who was injured early in the card. Sacrifice went on to take Burke's place and beat Jimmy Blaze and Rick Knight in a three-way match to be crowned the new PCW world champion.

"No one thought Sacrifice was even on the show," Myers said.

Myers manages cruiserweight champion Flyboy TK, who successfully defended against Rex Bartlett, with the help of a guy who emerged from the crowd.

"It's an insurance policy," Myers said. "This huge stud comes out of the crowd and destroys three powerbombs."

His name? Not available.

Former ECW manager Bill Alfonso again was at the show, managing Blaze. Myers said Alfonso is a PCW regular.

"The fans love Bill Alfonso," Myers said. "People are coming from Wisconsin to see Bill Alfonso. He is part of our company. He is not just hired talent to draw people. Bill Alfonso is on our roster. He has an official spot. He knows the promotional locomotive that is PL Myers and he knows the efforts of Jimmy Blaze and Sonny Rogers."

Myers said Francine is coming to PCW's next show, set for Aug. 25 in Highwood. Myers said PCW will continue to run one show a month.

"We're not proven enough to run twice a month," Myers said. "And each show is an event. We're out there with fliers. And we're talking to the fans. We're promoting the company and running it like a business. When that happens, you succeed. We're not outsmarting anybody, we're just doing it right. We make every guy backstage feel like he's part of this company. We can't rest on what we drew the last two shows. We have less than 30 days to sell out the next building."

...

Myers said PCW's first show "outdrew anybody and everybody in Chicago," but then said Windy City Pro Wrestling's Battle of the Belts is the notable exception.

"That's their WrestleMania," Myers said. "We all grew up watching Windy City on SportsChannel, and they really built it up. Sam DeCero has had that company 13 years. We just had our rebirth, two shows."

Myers calls PCW "the Bad News Bears of wrestling. We like that. The wrestlers may not have million-dollar bodies, but with hard work and dedication, they do their thing."


**

7/28/2001, 3:43 am

Bar Room Brawl set for 7 p.m. Saturday at Oasis One Sixty in Chicago Heights
Grudge defends his LWF world title against Brandon Bishop

Maverick defends his Intercontinental title against Machine

Havok vs. Acid

Stry-9 vs. Tyler Cross

Ryan Boz vs. Freak

Magnificent Mike vs. Bil Patrick

Grin vs. Mike Broox

Jones Clones defend their tag titles against Pledge Jones/Redpac (Redpac is the Hot Potato champ, which could be a factor in any match he's in)

For more information, visit lwfwrestling.com


7/30/2001, 2:51 am

Results from the Lunatic Wrestling Federation at Oasis 160.
Grin beat Mike Broox

Freak beat Ryan Boz

Tyler Cross beat Stryc-9

Pledge Jones and Redpac beat Mini Jones and Bill Munoz to win the LWF world tag titles

Havok beat Acid

Maverick beat Machine to retain the Intercontinental title

Grudge beat Brandon Bishop

Their next show is Aug. 11 in Midlothian.

Visit lwfwrestling.com for details.

**


MCW lineup for Saturday night
Posted by AL LAGATTOLLA on 7/31/2001, 3:06 am

7 p.m. at St. Rita High School, Chicago
Low-Ki/Airborne will defend their newly won tag titles against Christian York/Joey Matthews

Vic Capri will defend his MCW world title against Acid

Simon Diamond vs. Michael Modest

Brett Sanders vs. Jeffro King

Michael Synn vs. Vinny Massaro

Chad Collyer vs. Jay Jensen

Kevin Quinn vs. Magnificent Mike

TV title match
Jayson Reign vs. Donovan Morgan vs. Chris Chetti

**

July title matches
Posted by AL LAGATTOLLA on 8/1/2001, 2:49 am

A listing of title matches in July
•• new champion
• champ retains
WCPW
League
• Terry Allen retained his league title, when heavyweight champ Steve Boz returned it after finding out he had defeated Allen with interference from Dipshit, 7/10
• Terry Allen beat Valyk, retaining his title, 7/21

Heavyweight
• Steve Boz beat Terry Allen, but refused to take Allen's league title after finding out he had defeated Allen with interference from Dipshit, 7/10
• Steve Boz beat Willie Richardson in a best 2 of 3 falls match, 7/21

Bare knuckles
• Vito Fontaine successfully defended against Polish Crippler, 7/10

Middleweight
• Baltazar successfully defended against Mike Anthony, 7/3
• Baltazar retains his title, though he loses by DQ to Mike Anthony, 7/21

Lightweight
• Robby Dawber successfully defended against Valyk, 7/3
• Robby Dawber successfully defended against Mike Masters, 7/10
• Robby Dawber successfully defended against 9-mil, 7/21

Tag
• Warlocks successfully defended against 2000CC, 7/3
• Warlocks successfully defended against 2000CC, 7/10
• Warlocks retain the titles over Dipshit/Vic Ferrari. SE won, but the match was restarted because of interference from Dipshit, 7/21

LWF
World
• Grudge successfully defended against Brandon Bishop, 7/28

Tag
••Pledge Jones and Redpac beat Mini Jones and Bill Munoz to win the belts, 7/28

Intercontinental
• Maverick successfully defended against Machine, 7.28

MCW

tag team
••Airborne/Low-Ki beat Christopher Daniels/Jayson Reign for vacant MCW tag titles, 7/14

World
• Vic Capri successfully defends against Julio Dinero, 7/14


PCW

World
•• Sacrifice beat Jimmy Blaze and Rick Knight for the vacant PCW world title, 7/29

Midwest
•• Delicious Danny Scott wins a battle royale to win the vacant PCW Midwest title, 7/29

Tag
•• Dave Storm and Wally Wild win a tag-team turmoil match to win the vacant tag titles, 7/29

Cruiserweight
• Flyboy TK defends against Rex Bartlett, 7/29

**

8/4/2001, 1:21 am

Acid gets a shot at Vic Capri's Midwest Championship Wrestling world title in a match with special stipulations to be announced Saturday night at St. Rita HS.

Other matches on the card:

Simon Diamond vs. Michael Modest

Low-Ki and Airborne to defend their MCW tag belts against Christian York and Joey Matthews

The debut of the MCW TV title, going to the winner of Jayson Reign vs. Chris Chetti vs. Donovan Morgan

Vinny Massaro vs. Michael Synn

Kevin Quinn vs. Magnificent Mike

Jay Jensen vs. Chad Collyer

Jeffro King vs. Brett Sanders

For information, visit midwestchampionshipwrestling.com


Acid is the new Midwest Championship Wrestling world champion, beating Vic Capri in a table match, with Capri also making a surprise "retirement" stipulation Saturday at St. Rita High School in Chicago.
Acid, the green-haired high flyer, now has been a world champ in two federations in less than one year. He won the Lunatic Wrestling Federation world belt in December in a ladder match, during which he suffered an injury that ultimately led to him giving up the title and missing the first few months of this year. Acid was hurt in December executing a springboard 450 on top of a ladder draped over his opponents - Supreme and Magnificent Mike.

On Saturday night, Capri took the crazy bump, getting pushed off a balcony on top of two tables, with one table stacked atop the other. The winner was the wrestler who put his opponent through two tables first, so Acid managed to do it all at once, after Capri put him through a table earlier in the match.

Capri said before the match the loser would retire, which Acid appeared to know, but MCW owner Brian Zenner did not.

"He didn't (know)," Capri said. "That was something I wanted to keep hush-hush. I didn't want anybody to know about it."

Capri said he was ready to walk away, claiming injuries are making it difficult to live his life. He said his neck in particular was giving him trouble and he recently suffered his eighth concussion.

"There was a very good possibility it was going to be the last match," Capri said. "The problems were that bad. But I changed my mind. It's kind of sick to say this, but I had a lot of fun out there. I never said I was the brightest person in the world."

Zenner found out about Capri's retirement stipulation when the crowd did. He said he understood.

"He's kind of beat up," Zenner said. "He's been around the wrestling arena for quite a long period of time. Yes, he's retired. Is there a possibility of him coming back? That's up to him. I appreciate what he does. That's his call."

Capri put Acid through a table first, taking him out with a plancha that broke one of the officials' tables at ringside. Once the wrestlers recovered, they took their brawl out of the ring. Acid set up two tables - one on top of the other - and he and Capri began to brawl up the bleachers and into the balcony area.

St. Rita's balcony was in an area that also housed its weigh room, which is visible from the gym. Capri hit Acid with a few weights, but Acid got the upper hand and started pushing Capri toward the edge of the balcony. Capri lost his balance and fell onto the tables, breaking them both and giving Acid the victory.

"I just thought it would be a cool way to end the match," Capri said. "I don't know if you remember when Curt Henning and The Wall did it. I thought it was cool, especially with a two of three falls match, you get two of them right away. It gives the match a little more depth. It makes it a little neater."

And a little more dangerous. Acid said he wouldn't have tried it.

"I wouldn't have taken that bump," Acid said. "F*ck that. He's crazy."

"I couldn't watch him fall," Acid added. "I kicked him and I turned away. That guy is, without a doubt, the coolest guy to wrestle. The guy is tough as hell and he'll do whatever you want and he'll take whatever you want. What he did tonight showed a lot of heart."

Capri said he had his reservations about the bump, and so did Zenner.

"I was very concerned," Zenner said. "But they assured me they had it under control, and I had to trust them. Safety is a concern. It's not worth it for a guy to go to the hospital for a cheap pop. I wanted to make sure everything is under control."

Capri had doubts even going through the spot before the show.

"The first tiem I looked down I thought, I shouldn't have done that, I shouldn't have looked down," Capri said. "But I was trying to convince myself that it wasn't that bad once the tables were going to be stacked, because I was looking all the way down to the floor. It wasn't that bad. I tore my legs up a little bit."

Capri said he "was worried I'd either overshoot it, or I'd end up too close to the wall and bounce off them into the way. But it came off pretty good, I thought."

Acid said he couldn't speculate what his MCW title reign will mean for his LWF career. He was scheduled to be at LWF's show next weekend in Midlothian, but he said "with me winning tonight, I don't know. I have to see what they want to do."

He said winning the title makes it mandatory for MCW to become his top priority.

"When you win the top title in a company, you're obligated to that company as long as you're the champion," Acid said. "There's no contract, but you're obligated. But it's not that I treat it like an obligation. I like working here, and I like the guys I get to work. It's fun and I get along with the guys. Why wouldn't I want to work here?"

Zenner said he is pleased to have Acid as his world champ, and he figures it enhances Acid's career.

"It's more important for Acid," Zenner said. "He's competing with the best. We fly guys in from all over the country. They're the best at what they do, and you take a guy like Acid and put him in the elite with what we're doing. It's tremendous for him more than anything else."


Acid is the new Midwest Championship Wrestling world champion, beating Vic Capri in a tables/retirment match, and Chris Chetti is the first MCW TV champion at an eventful show at St. Rita High School in Chicago.
The crowd probably was between 150-250, but we'll get an official count for those who care about such things.

The show opened with Low-Ki and an injured Airborne entering to a standing ovation with their newly won tag belts from MCW's recent T-3. Airborne, whose midsection was taped, said he couldn't wrestle, and asked Jayson Reign to sub for him with Low-Ki against Christian York and Joey Matthews.

Reign came out and Low-Ki said if he'd team, Reign and Christopher Daniels, who teamed in the T-3 and lost to Airborne and Low-Ki in the finals, could get a shot soon. Reign agreed.

Match 1 Vinny Massaro beats Michael Synn
Massaro won and got a good pop from the fans.

Match 2: Chad Collyer beats "Real Deal" Jay Jensen
Collyer wins a technical grappling contest.

Match 3: Jeffro King beats "Bad Boy" Brett Sanders
King won with help from a bat, which for some reason was handed to him by one of the ring boys. There was much hardcore, with Sanders rolling down the steps of one side of the balcony. After the match, King beat down Sanders before Synn came out and made the save. With King outside the ring, Synn then made a dive over the top rope to nail King. Sanders and Synn are now officially a team.

Match 4: Reign and :Low-Ki beat Christian York and Joey Matthews
York and Matthews demanded Low-Ki hand over the titles before the match, Low-Ki did, but then he and Reign attacked. Airborne wore his belt to ringside and stayed in Reign and Low-Ki's corner. At one point, Matthews tried to use a title belt as a weapon, but Airborne grabbed it and they struggled over it until Jensen came from the back and pulled Aiborne away and threw him into the railing. Reign then won with a Reign Drop.

Match 5: Kevin Quinn beat Magnificent Mike
The Double M tried for his finisher, got caught and ended up losing to Quinn's frog splash.

Match 6: Chris Chetti beat Donovan Morgan to become the first MCW TV champion
Morgan ran into a chair set up in one of the corners and was rolled up by Chetti. This was more tha pre-T-3 Chetti, with much more comedy than the serious streak Chetti showed at the T-3.

Match 7: Simon Diamond beat Michael Modest
Diamond stalled at the beginning before Modest cut a heel promo.

Match 8: Acid beat Vic Capri to become the new MCW world champion
This was a tables/retirement match and both of those subjects were covered extensively in previous posts.

NOTES:
Several Lunatic Wrestling Federation wrestlers were at the show, including Mimic, Havok and Ryan Boz.

Jonathan Hood and Lawrence Holmes were there to do their TV commentary, and Chicagowrestling.com's Ben Jordan did backstage interviews.

Airborne and Jensen look to be headed to a showdown on MCW's Aug. 25 show.

**

8/7/2001, 2:33 am

Windy City Pro Wrestling has planned a November show the fed intends to be a second major show, along the lines of Battle of the Belts.
WCPW league champion Terry Allen said the show will be Nov. 3 or Nov. 10 at Morton College.

"It's going to be our second Battle of the Belts," Allen said, though the event does not yet have a name. "The name is being worked on. A lot of ideas are being thrown around."

"I think we all feel it's the direction Windy City needs to move in," Allen added. "Everybody in Windy City thinks we're the best, and we need more than one signature show a year."

Allen said the show "won't have the same scale of marketing" as Battle of the Belts, but he said it will be treated as a major event.

"I imagine there will be some sort of creativeness going on," Allen said. "Maybe some things people have complained about before and haven't been able to see."

Allen said it was too early to be specific about what those things may be.

...

WCPW runs twice this month, both at county fair-type events. Aug. 16 will be in Fairbury, not far from Chicago, and Aug. 20 will be at downstate Greenup. Allen said Greg "The Hammer" Valentine will be at the Aug. 16 show.

Allen said he would welcome a match with Valentine, who had a run as WCPW league champion in 1999. Allen did not face Valentine at that time.

"It always used to be (Steve) Boz or Willie (Richardson)," Allen said. "Boz was a league champion and Willie was the heavyweight champion. I could have a chance to work with him. It would be a strange work. He's a different guy. I'd like to work him, but I'll wait and see how that unfolds."

Allen said the Fairbury show also will feature a Midget title match, which will be the first in a long time for WCPW. Allen definitely will defend his league title as well.

Allen said WCPW returns to Chicago on Sept. 1 at Slag Valley Studios.

Also, Allen said a Sept. 15 show at Taft High School and a show at Bourbon Street will help lead into the November Event.

"A lot of people see Windy City in a stagnant stage, which always happens after Belts," Allen said. "That includes workers. We go into our summer season and even the workers miss working in Chicago. That will be changing by September. The Taft show will be huge. The Bourbon Street show will be huge."

...

[CW .org .info .net]

Terry Allen was the last independent worker to face Rob Van Dam before Van Dam headed to the WWF/WCW/ECW.

Allen said he enjoys watching RVD's almost instant success on Monday Nights.

"I think it's a riot," Allen said. "I talk to him about once a week, and he's having a good time."

The day of Van Dam's WWF debut, Allen had sent RVD an email asking about the possibility of Van Dam working for the November WCPW show.

"He sent an email back the next day and said, I don't know if you saw it, but I'm going to be a little busy," Allen said. "I knew he signed when he worked for us, but they weren't doing anything with him yet. I think it's great for New York, what they're doing for him and that whole angle."

Allen said he cannot be jealous when he thinks of Van Dam's success.

"When I get my chance, I get my chance," he said. "I've been more than fortunate so far with the way things have gone, just where I'm at right now. Too many people look at things the wrong way. Why am I not in the rankings? Why am I not on the show? I've always been thankful for having the opportunities I have had."

...

Allen and Boz have met a few times this year, with one show putting Allen's league title against Boz's heavyweight title, but Boz refused to take Allen's title because of interference from Dipshit in the match.

Boz's popularity has some WCPW fans suggesting he, not Allen, is the company's #1 man, despite Allen's status as league champion.

"I would imagine there will be another clash between me and Boz," Allen said. "I don't know really how there cannot be."

They met last weekend in Appleton on neutral ground, with Allen winning.

"Just going up to Appleton, Steve was saying he's the #1 guy in Windy City," Allen said. "I said, no, you hold the #2 belt. We like to rib each other about it. Both of us think each of us is better than the other."

"I know who a lot of the fans side with, too," Allen added, suspecting Boz may have support of the fans in their battles. "Does it bother me? No. I know what I can do."

Allen said he can understand why Boz is so popular.

"Generally, Steve keeps himself in very peak physical condition," Allen said. "He always looks the part of a professional wrestler. Always. I think that plays a big part in it. Since I've had my son, there are times I've worked very hard, and times I want to just spend some time with my kid."

Allen and Boz both are fan favorites in WCPW, bringing the question of who plays the heel.

"Sometimes people don't know what side I'm coming out on, as a babyface or heel," Allen said. "Especially with the Brotherhood."

He figures Boz is the most popular WCPW wrestler, but Allen said he has a solid number of fans, too.

"I don't know how it would really be," he said. "The amount of people who cheered for me against RVD was stupid. It was a lot."

[CW .org .info .net]

8/11/2001, 1:52 pm

Dipshit very nearly ended up at the Lunatic Wrestling Federation, and he figured life at Windy City Pro Wrestling was over.
Instead, he has accepted a suspension and a punishment from WCPW boss Sam DeCero, apologized to Pro Championship Wrestling's Sonny Rogers and vows to give up his long feud with Rogers.

His trouble started with a post on the chicagowrestling.com message board.

"I had no business bringing Sam DeCero into a fight that involved me and Sonny Rogers," Dipshit said. "I have apologized to Sonny Rogers. I said Sonny had sent letters to Sam regarding personal issues and the death of relatives, and I had my facts wrong, plain and simple. I thought it was Sonny Rogers, but in fact, it was another employee whose name I won't mention."

Dipshit said DeCero was mad, enough so that Dipshit "considered myself fired from Windy City."

So he considered his options. LWF was among them.

"I had several online chats with Billy Whack and he expressed an interest with me working with LWF and made a very intriguing offer," Dipshit said. "The food he laid out on the table was almost tempting enough for me to take a bite. I do believe what we discussed would have created a buzz on the Chicago scene."

He said Whack addressed his concerns.

"I said my days of working for free were over, but he gave me an answer I was very satisfied with," Dipshit said. "I asked if there are any ecstasy rings. Is there infighting? He was very straightforward, a lot like Sam DeCero. He was very honest about the direction he wants to take his company. I respect any man who has a dream and does what he can to accomplish it."

Dipshit said he could help any federation.

"I think anyone put in the ring could benefit from my microphone skills," he said. "And I'm no slouch in the ring. In my most recent match with the Warlocks, I was doing front somersaults over the ropes, onto the floor. I can work, and get ovr on the microphone, and so few people can do that. Is there more that can be done with Dipshit? I certainly think so."

LWF's reputation for creativity appeals to Dipshit. He had a problem with the way the stacked ring Badder Ladder royale came off.

"I say I respect Sam, I don't agree with every single decision he makes," Dipshit said. "Creatively, do I think Windy City can break some new ground? Yes. Do I think there are some things done half-assed recently? Yes."

"I think the Badder Ladder is a great concept, but because of safety and trepidation for what could happen to his workers, I don't think Sam gave the match the ability to have it come off as well as it could have," he said. "Badder Ladder II is in the works, and if it's done a second time, it'll be something people will be talking about for a long time."

Dipshit even suggested working with his enemies.

":As much as people want to say on the Internet that Dipshit has burned all his bridges," he said. "A bridge is never burned, so long as there is a pot of money on the other side. Dipshit vs. Jayson Reign would sell. Put it on an LWF show, and that was discussed. It's going to draw. Dipshit vs. Sonny Rogers, everybody knows the back story. Would I be safe in a PCW locker room? Probably not, but that's where negotiations take place. If it's good for my character and good for my wallet, I'd be a professional whore."

"Everybody in this business is a whore," he added.

He did say he's through feuding with Rogers.

"In my eyes, it's over," he said. "It's done with and it's finally time to move on. The last apology dropped the lawsuit and this one is going to have to drop the feud."

"If Sonny wants to meet on the street and snap a quick photo of a Sonny/Dipshit handshake, I'd be up for it," Dipshit added. "The time for the bullsh*t is done."

Dipshit said his apology to Rogers was not forced.

"It was not Sam jumping on me that led to me contacting Sonny Rogers," he said. "When I'm wrong, I'll say I'm wrong. I have attacked Sonny for two years with fact. I don't need to make up anything to get my point across. When I did find out I had my facts wrong, I called him up to apologize."

He said while DeCero is angry, Dipshit is not banned from posting on message boards.

"Sam lets me use common sense and good judgement," Dipshit said. "Are there things I've said that have lacked common sense and good judgement? Yes. I do need to exercise self control."

He said DeCero even would allow Dipshit to test the waters in LWF and come back if it didn't work out, but Dipshit will take his WCPW punishment and wait. He said DeCero didn't have to hire him two years ago and has been loyal to him.

"I will return the loyalty they gave to me, and see where it stands in a year," Dipshit said. "I have not closed the door on working with the LWF in the future. I have been given the option of going to LWF and if if didn't work out, I'd be welcomed back. That is a very rare thing under what I believe company policy to be."

[CW .org .info .net]

8/21/2001, 2:12 pm

Drusala returned with a new name and look and Willie "Da Bomb" Richardson regained the heavyweight title as Windy City Pro Wrestling wrapped up its summer fair season with shows Thursday in Fairbury and Monday in Greenup.
WCPW sources said as many as 300 were at Monday's show and 400-500 at Thursday's show.

"Sometimes you get to the point where the fair shows aren't really exciting, but the last two shows were really good," WCPW lightweight champion Robby Dawber said. "It was Monday, and you'd think they'd be home watching Monday Night Raw, but we had packed stands. Thursday's crowd was awesome, and they could have been watching Smackdown. The shows actually drew better than the fair shows we ran on different days of the week."

Drusala - who has not wrestled for WCPW since the Battle of the Belts weekend - lost to WCPW women's champ Angel on Thursday, then accompanied Julian on Monday, using the name Phoenix. She used the Drusala name on Thursday. At the show after Battle of the Belts, she went by Annie Baxtop and accompanied the Furies.

"She wrestled on Thursday and she had the T-shirt and short shorts, real cute," Dawber said. "Monday, she was at ringside with the Warlocks and she had a two-piece dress going, with blonde hair."

Boz and Richardson continued their feud, with Richardson winning back the heavyweight title he lost to Boz at Battle of the Belts.

"I had the better of him and I charged at him in the corner," Boz said. "He threw up a knee, pulled my legs out and had both feet on the second rope when he pinned me. The ref didn't see it, but 500 people in the crowd saw it."

Monday's results:

Dawber successfully defended his lightweight title, beating Pokerface

Psycho beat Dipshit

Diamondback Dingo beat Irish Luchador in a match between wresters from St. Louis-based Gateway Championship Wrestling

Psycho beat Vic Ferrari, Psycho's second win of the night

Frankie Valient beat Julian, who was accompanied by Phoenix/Drusala

Naughty by Nature beat the Mexicans

Steve Boz beat Willie Richardson by DQ, but Richardson keeps the heavyweight title

Phoenix/Drusala wins a battle royale, but Mike Masters wasn't there, so it wasn't a title match.

Thursday's results

Ivan Manson beat Kevin Kostner, in Kostner's debut

Dawber successfully defended his lightweight title against Mike Masters

Warlocks successfully defended their tag titles against the Mexicans

Baltazar successfully defended his middleweight belt against Vic Ferrari

Angel successfully defended her women's title against Drusala

Richardson beat Boz to become the new heavyweight champion

Terry Allen successfully defended his league title against Eryk and Julian

Masters successfully defended his battle royale title

...

Boz is expected to continue his feud with Richardson, which temporarily stops the debate of whether Boz or Allen truly rules WCPW.

When both Boz and Allen had top titles, a debate ensued.

"Terry is like a brother to me," Boz said. "It seems we're neck and neck. I wouldn't say I'm better than him and he wouldn't say he's better than me."

...

A title of the magnitude of the heavyweight belt doesn't often change hands so far away from Chicago. It has happened in WCPW's past numerous times, though.

"It is pretty rare," Dawber said. "Not that it hasn't happened before, but it's an ongoing champter in the Boz-Willie storyline. It might be different than the shows we had at Madonna, or the one coming up at Taft, but you're still getting the Windy City experience, especially when the crowds are as big as they've been the last two shows. You're going to get a top-quality Boz-Willie match downstate, just like at Taft High School. Some fans like to drive to check out fair shows. Surprises like that can happen, and then they get to see it."

Boz vs. Richardson will happen again, perhaps Sept. 1 at Slag Valley Studios, or Sept. 15 at Taft. Boz enjoys their feud.

"Willie's a big guy, but he can go," Boz said. "We've gone 20 minutes. He's very agile for a guy who's almost 300 pounds. He can jump off the top rope like it's nothing. He's probably the most underrated worker in the Midwest."

Said Dawber: "I would expect that feud to peak real soon, if not at the September show, then at the November show. They put on great matches. They really respect each other and you can tell. They enjoy working each other and each time it's a fresh matchup. They get more and more mileage out of it."

...

Dawber said Thursday's show "reminds you of why you got into the business."

WCPW's fair shows can be a challenge for wrestlers for a few reasons, but Dawber said the size of the last two crowds and the reaction of Thursday's crowd was exciting.

"You always expect these long drives in the middle of summer," Dawber said. "You get home at 5 in the morning, although last week's was only 2 1/2 hours. It wasn't so bad. ... We've had a few shows where the crowds have been sparse, but the last two crowds have been really good, and the matches at the last two shows were above average as well. I think it gives the guys momentum for shows in the fall."

"Next month and a lot of the shows after that are closer to Chicago," Dawber added. "We're going to be turning up the volume."

The November show at Morton College is expected to be a second major show on the WCPW calendar, with Battle of the Belts as the long established major show.

"Battle of the Belts is sort of like Wrestlemania," Dawber said. "This might be considered our Summerslam, where a lot of feuds begin and end. Hopefully, we'll get a big crowd and make it extra special. Those who attend will get a great night of wrestling."

"You have these two big shows in the span of one year and we can use them as a guide for storylines to go up and down and continue," Dawber added. "We can base things around a certain event, rather than the typical indy federation, where a guy is the champion, then it goes to someone else. They're not really concerned with the flow of storylines peaking."



**

8/8/2001, 3:39 pm

The Lunatic Wrestling Federation has announced six matches for "Back with a Vengeance" planned for Saturday night at Midlothian:
Grudge defends his LWF world title against LWF intercontinental champ Maverick

Magnificent Mike vs. Ryan Boz

Team Firepro (Botch, Mimic, Stryc-9... with Mad Mark) vs. Shimmer, Havok and Tyler Cross

Bil Patrick faces a special challenge

Grin vs. Curse in a #1 Intercontinental challenge match

Mike Broox issues an open challenge


8/11/2001, 5:17 am

Jessica had three minutes to prepare for her debut as the Lunatic Wrestling Federation's ring girl.
She has had much more time to prepare for her going-away party Saturday at the LWF's Back with a Vengeance at Midlothian. After 3 years involved in the LWF, she is moving to Las Vegas to attend UNLV. She plans to go out in a Cher moment.

"I'll have many different changes of clothes at the show," she said. "People will be like, who does she think she is, Cher? So yes, I'm going to be Cher. I'm going to do anything I want."

She has become one of the most beloved LWF characters, and it all started on a whim of Billy Whack.

"Right before a show started he says, 'Hey Jess, want to go out and help,' " she said. "He said when wrestlers are coming out, take their coats and bring them back. I said sure, just don't announce me. I mean, I looked horrible. I just got off work and I just had black pants and a big sweater. Makeup is running down my face."

"So what does he do? He announces me."

She wasn't sure she would do it again, until Whack pointed out there were signs at the next show.

"He said you've got to be the ring girl again," Jessica said. "I said why are you being so persistent? He said the fans had signs."

Jessica has been much more than just the girl who helps at ringside. With her flashy outfits and personality, she can bring a dead crowd to life. She never intended to make the LWF such a big part of her life, but it eventually became the dominant force.

Whack said the LWF will miss her greatly.

"Jessica was always taking care of me at every turn of the show," Whack said. "It was more than her just running to get water or something. It was always just good to know she was sitting there."

"It felt really empty with her not at our last show," Whack added. "And I know it's going to feel empty for shows to come. You can always replace T&A, which we will, but now we have a long-time employee (who knows the job in and out) leaving. It sucks. Jessica has a heart of gold, and that's my take on Jessica. She never gave me any grief (in a wrestling sense, that is!) and I think her leaving would affect us more than any interchangeable, on-the-fence superstar."

Jessica said Whack "is going to be the #1 guy I miss the most. He gave me a great opportunity. I've been by his side for three years."

She and Whack are so close "everybody thought me and him were together or getting married until the Melissa storyline came out."

"Then it was, you guys have to be related," she said. "Maybe cousins, brother-sister. .. But no, we're just really good, close friends."

She said LWF almost has been a family, with LWF stars even meddling in her dating life. She said she hasn't even tried in the last year or so, and is looking forward to "dating in peace."

"I brought one guy around and they scared him completely out the door," she said. "Two guys were walking around, acting like they were gay. One girl was bouncing around like a monkey, and another girl was just being weird. One guy was just drilling him, where are you gonna take her? Me and him ended up going out, but I never saw him again."

She said Melissa "is the worst" when it comes to scrutinizing potential dates. "She's my best friend," Jessica said. "If Melissa doesn't like him, it's hell. It's just not going to work. She's not harsh, she'll talk to them for a little bit, scope them out. (She thinks) every boy is hiding something. She protects me really well."

Jessica considers herself more than LWF's ring girl.

"I notice everything," she said. "If the lighting is in a fan's eyes, I'll try to fix it. And I'm passing messages to (Whack). Mostly, I observe the fans and the wrestlers. I look at the crowd and I see how they're reacting. If it's a dead crowd, I'll sort of walk over and sit down next to them and start chatting with them. They're like oh, my God. I just want to see what they're thinking, how they're reacting. If they don't like something, maybe we can fix that."

She said she prefers to call herself the ring girl/PR girl. She said Whack makes everybody involved feel like a vital part of the show.

"That's his big thing," she said. "He wants everyone involved. Even BJ or me. In the beginning, I'd always wear a coat. Then on the message board, people would be posting, why do you always wear a coat? or please take off your coat. One show, Venom was in the ring and said, 'Jessica why don't you show us why we always keep you around?' I took off the coat and the fans reacted."

"It's like that with BJ, too," she said. "When BJ is in the ring, the fans are constantly cheering for him to wipe the bottom rope, and they get mad when he doesn't."

She said LWF keeps that enthusiasm behind the scenes, too. She said wrestlers created an entire storyline that never makes it to the shows, but they like playing around.

"I'd be Vanessa, part of a group of snobs," she said. "Bil Patrick is Trevor, Havok is Donovan and Mike Broox is Tracy. ... We called ourselves the Upperclassmen. The guys all have shirts tied around their necks. Trevor - Bil Patrick - would put my bikini top over his shirt. Havok was just crazy. We'd all speak in English accents and we were heels. We'd constantly be made fun of, especially Mike Broox, because his name is Tracy and his big line was 'It's a man's name.' ... We'd have our own tournaments, just joking around. Everyone would have their own weird entrance. It was like LWF on crack."

She has watched LWF stars get married. "I saw Buster propose to his wife. I miss him so much." She said there have been three LWF weddings this year.

She said she'll miss everyting. Broox's creative autographs. Johnny Mac and Double M's gift-giving skills "My birthday present from them was a huge blown-up picture of themselves. Johnny Mac signs it, 'Johnny Mac, avoid the clap,' I mean, what's that? Double M's just said, 'Magnificent Forever.' "

"Another guy I love is Grin," Jessica added. "He has to be the funniest person to hang out with, especially with Ringmaster there, too. We were at a wedding and I had the pleasure to sit at a table with Ringmaster and Grin, and I couldn't even eat my dinner, I was laughing so hard. They're quite a pair. They go everywhere together."

She found it hard to give it up all that, but she said she must move on and the guys have told her not to let LWF hold her back.

"They're like, LWF will always be here," she said. "LWF is like a family. It's like leaving home and going away from your family for the first time."

Jessica says leaving won't be easy. She said she will give a farewell speach at the show.

"I do have something written out that I do want to say," she said. "But more than likely, I'm just gonna wing it. I'll go with what I'm feeling. I'll just have it with me, to make sure I say everything I want to say. I'm going to be very emotional. Don't be surprised to see tears."

She says she'll be back, "maybe a few surprise visits," she said. Until then, she mostly wants to "say thank you to all my fans. I send my love and thank you for all the support. Thanks all around and I'll miss you all - wholeheartedly - but I'm not dying. I'm not moving away forever. So don't forget about me."



8/12/2001, 4:33 am

Vic Capri made his Lunatic Wrestling Federation debut, putting LWF ring girl Jessica through a table as her going-away present from the suddenly evil Billy Whack at LWF's Back with a Vengeance Saturday night at Midlothian.
Capri's debut and Whack's heel turn were two of the promised surprises with the return of Charkoal ending the show. Also, Ben and I made an appearance, with Ben reading a proclamation declaring the Mimic as King of Wrestling. I got to present the crown to Mimic. FYI, it's Ben's second go-round on indy shows, as he's also done backstage interviews at MCW shows.

Also, Grudge remains the LWF world champion, beating Maverick with the Aftermath off a ladder. Mini Jones is the new LWF Hardcore champion, beating Mike Broox in a match to christen the belt. And Grin is the #1 contender to Maverick's Intercontinental belt.

"We promised a lot," Mimic said. "And I think we delivered on it."

The results:

• Machine beat Bil Patrick by countout. Blitz came out with Patrick and pulled him off a table as Machine was climbing the ropes, and Blitz and Patrick ran to the back, giving Machine the easy win.

• Mini Jones beat Mike Broox in a hardcore match to be crowned the LWF's first Hardcore champion. The match came about after a backstage skit on the Lunatron, with Jones looking through the phone book for a family reunion, and Broox needling him. A highlight was Jones spraying water on Broox's head and then placing a "Water on Pavement" sign on Broox's forehead, shouting "Who wants to see wicked sh*t?" and then launching three chairshots onto the sign, bending it over Broox's head. Jones later brought out a chair wrapped in barbed wire, but Jones eventually was thrown into the chair. Also, Broox brought out a bag of thumbtacks and scattered them across the ring, but he eventually was knocked onto the tacks by Jones. Jones also executed a moonsault outside of the ring, onto Broox. The ending had Jones laid across a table outside of the ring, with Broox ready to leap onto Jones, but Jones moved at the last second, Broox went through on his own and jones pinned him. Jones also played up the Insane Clown Posse thing and catered to a group of ICP fans, who chanted "Juggalo" throughout the match.

"I was going out there, thinking I'm going to give the fans what they want," Jones said. "They want to see blood and violence, so you might as well."

Jones said he is looking forward to defending the title, even if he hasn't yet been presented with a belt.

He said he doesn't know how he will follow the match up. "That's where I sit back and think how do I top it and keep on topping it," Jones said. "Without dying."

• Grin beat Curse to become the #1 contender to Maverick's Intercontinental title. Jessica came out in a top hat and ringmaster-like outfit. Of course, Ringmaster accompanied Grin, wearing a nifty Spiderman shirt. Grin got the victory with the help of a masked security guy who hit Curse with a chair as Curse was coming off the top rope.

• The next skit showed the arrival of Capri on the Lunatron and watched him unload his gear from his car.

• Team Firepro (Mimic, Botch and Stryc-9, with Mad Mark) beat Tyler Cross, Shimmer and Havok in an elimination tag match that is a match of the month candidate. The match was filled with flawless, inventive spots and very few rest holds. Mimic, Cross and Havok especially stood out, with Mimic turning in an MVP performance. At one point, Shimmer was powerbombed through a table, while Cross was laid across it. Mimic at one point had Havok in a rocking move, but was rocking him into a chair held by Botch.

"We wanted it to be big," Mimic said. "We took a lot of risks. Well, the faces took the risks and we took the bumps."

The order of elimination:
Botch pinned Shimmer
Cross pinned Botch
Mimic pinned Cross
Havok pinned Stryc-9 with a bridge
Mimic pinned Havok after Havok was hit by a cane shot from Stryc-9.

Mad Mark was a factor throughout and kept the crowd in the match whenever the action slowed, which it rarely did. A fun note: Mad Mark wore a Winnie the Pooh hat.

After intermission, the coronation of Mimic begins, and Mimic calls in Ben and me. He has Ben read a proclamation, and I get to crown him. Mimic wears a lavish robe and basks in his glory until Cross comes out and complains about "King" Mimic's handful of tights that eliminated Cross from the tag match. Cross breaks up the party, but gets manhandled by Team Firepro and Mimic kicks Cross' arm, twisting it, and putting Cross out of action for a while.

• Ryan Boz beat Magnificent Mike in a throwback match that was falls count anywhere. Double M said he was getting tired of all the rules in the LWF and wanted to go back to the days of craziness. Boz granted his wish and they fought throughout the building, through the crowd, through tables and all kinds of chairs, including Double M's personalized "Fillet of Sole" chair. Boz got the pin after a piledriver on top of a chair.

A backstage skit followed on the Lunatron, with Grudge and Maverick talking about the importance of the LWF world title.

Then Whack came out and introduced the farewell segment for Jessica, the ring girl who is leaving, moving to Las Vegas. Highlights of Jessica's LWF career were shown on the Lunatron. Then Whack announced he had a gift for her and out walked Capri. The gift? Capri threw Jessica through a table, and Whack began his tirade against the "old" LWF, calling Jessica a b-tch and saying Capri is the beginning of the "new" LWF.

This is the heel turn of Whack, and in case fans couldn't grasp it, he said he was tired of the "stupid" LWF fans who "don't do a thing for me." Then he complained about message boards and websites (surely, not ours).

"This is the end of the LWF you know," Whack told the crowd. "This is the start of the new LWF, the Ice Pick Vic Capri. ... Tonight, we are making history at Back with a Vengeance."

Then Capri grabbed the mic and said he put Jessica through the table because "I decided to send her out of the business the way she came in, on her back." Capri said he was seeking the "trifecta." Capri has been Windy City Pro Wrestling league champion and Midwest Championship Wrestling world champion. No wrestler has won the LWF, WCPW and MCW's top belts, so Capri is aiming to be the first.

Whack then told the crowd "What have you done for me? Nothing. Here's a man who's going to do something for me." Whack may have set a new record for profanity during his tirade.

• Grudge beat Maverick to retain the LWF's world title. The match went through the crowd and each wrestler took out a ladder. They dueled with their ladders and both eventually made it into the ring. Grudge finished Maverick with the Aftermath off the ladder.



NOTES, QUOTES AND OBSERVATIONS from the Lunatic Wrestling Federation's Back with a Vengeance
• Capri lost a retirement match at MCW against Acid last weekend, but obviously is not retired. He says he's serious about taking time away from the ring, and he didn't work a match, but said he was happy with his LWF debut.

Capri was trained at Windy City, which at the time was the source of much criticism toward the LWF for its backyard roots. Capri said he was not one of the WCPW guys making those claims.

"No, not at all," Capri said. "I was one of the people from Windy City who never made comments about the LWF. They were another company, it didn't matter whether you called them hardcore or backyard."

Capri pointed out he has had his share of hardcore matches, including last week's table match, in which he fell off a balcony onto two tables stacked below.

"I've done ladder matches, gone through tables," he said. "If guys want to call them garbage matches, fine, but we all do them."

Many wrestlers from MCW and LWF work for the other company, and Capri knows there is friction between Whack and MCW owner Brian Zenner.

"I know there's bad blood between these two companies," Capri said. "I'll have to see how things work out. I've talked to both of them and explained the situation. They're aware. I guess if they both have a problem with it, I'd have to stay retired."

Capri made it clear he is pursuing the LWF world title.

"Of course," he said. "Like I said out there, I'm looking for the hat trick. The top three promotions in Chicago are Windy City, MCW and LWF, and I guess this is the last stop."

• Another wrestler who has worked for both MCW and LWF is Grudge, who has worked as Steven Anthony in MCW. He says he figures he is done with MCW, particularly because he didn't like being called by a different name in each fed.

"I know Brian Zenner wants to do his own thing," Grudge said. "But I've got to do my own thing, too. I'm trying to get my name out there, and it's impossible to do two different gimmicks in the same town, in the same building. You can't do that."

• Grudge and Maverick were proud of their match. The crowd took a while to get warmed up about it, but it did follow a rousing heel turn by Whack and it was a match between two popular fan favorites and the crowd was torn.

By the ending, with the ladders out and the battle turned up in intensity, the crowd was into it. And Grudge and Maverick both remained the good guys.

"We went into it as friends and we wanted to come out as friends," Grudge said. "That's what happened. We're still buddies."

"We put everything into this match," Grudge added. "It's for the belt. The belt means everything to me and I'll do everything I can to keep it around my waist."

• Charkoal, a former LWF world champion, appeared after the title match and seemed to have his sights set on the world belt. Charkoal doesn't talk (the attempt to interview him after the show was funny. Just silence for like three minutes), but Grudge was aware of the significance.

"When he was around, I was just a fan and I looked up to him," Grudge said of Charkoal. "Now that he's back, I've got the title. If he's after it, he can come and get it. I'll be waiting for him. I don't know what he's after. All I can say is if he wants my belt, come look for it."

Mimic said Charkoal "is a guy who doesn't need to talk. He hasn't talked in his whole career."

Mimic said he was a little surprised the crowd remembered Charkoal, who had been out of LWF for 2 1/2 years.

"But they knew who he was and he got a rise out of them," Mimic said. "I think they're looking forward to maybe him and Grudge squaring off."

Charkoal's appearance was for less than 2 minutes.

"His work for the night was walking out the door and turning around," Mimic said. "Other guys have to do 450s to get a pop. He just has to walk through a curtain."

• After Whack's tirade, he did not do commentary for the last match, and Double M joined Johnny Mac. Double M suggested Grudge's victory over Maverick makes Grudge one of the top LWF champions of all time.

Grudge wasn't ready to embrace that concept.

"I'm not giving up my belt," he said. "As far as the best champion ever? Whatever they say. All I know is it's not my time to step down."

• Mimic reveled in his coronation as King of Wrestling, but he said he's not going to wear his crown all the time. Maybe the cape.

Mimic also said he was interested to see "what Billy Whack has in store, and it will be interesting to see what Supreme has to say about it. People may not know it, but Supreme also owns the LWF. You've got to wonder what Billy Whack has in mind, and will Supreme be part of it, or will the guys who have been here for a while get stuck in a rut."

• Among wrestlers at the show: PCW's Wally Wilde and Jimmy Blaze and Steel Domain's Brad Bradley.

• In another skit, Ringmaster was upset Wayne Newton never showed, but Mad Mark said he posed as Newton's agent "Baltazar."

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