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4 More Entrants Into 2008 Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup
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Aug. 19th, 2008 @ 02:01 am
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In November, 2002 independent wrestling phenomenon Jeff Peterson lost his long battle with cancer. May 16-17, 2003 saw the beginning of the Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup, a sixteen competitor tournament in honor of the fallen star. Each year since the event has grown to international levels. Previous winners of this prestigious tournament are “Reckless Youth” Tom Carter, Justice, Chris Sabin, Milano Collection AT and Chris Hero. If you have never seen it in person or purchased a DVD of the event we highly recommend this year is the year you become a part of the Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup.
World Wrestling Network presents:
The 2008 Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup
Friday, September 26, 2008
The New Lakes in Regency Park Civic Center
8330 Civic Drive - Port Richey, FL 34668
Doors Open 7:00 PM - Bell Time 8:00 PM
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Brooksville National Guard Armory
16386 Springhill Drive - Brooksville, FL 34604
Doors Open 7:00 PM - Bell Time 8:00 PM
Two Night VIP Package (Limited Availability) - $50
Includes: Ringside Admission, Two Night VIP Meet & Greet & A Limited Addition 2008 JPC Poster
Two Night General Admission
Adults $25 and Kids 13 and under $15
Single Night Ringside $20
Single Night General Admission:
Adults $15 and Kids 13 and under $10
To purchase tickets or to make donations go to: http://www.jpc2008.com
We are proud to announce the next four participants for this year’s tournament:
Erick Stevens (Ring of Honor/Full Impact Pro)
Tommy Taylor (Former WWE Developmental)
Rhett Titus (Ring of Honor)
Jon Davis (Believe)
And they join already announced:
Gran Akuma (Chikara Pro)
Jigsaw (Ring of Honor/Full Impact Pro)
Chris Jones (Pro Wrestling Fusion)
Chris Gray (Former WWE Developmental)
This years Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup will be a fundraiser with ALL proceeds going to little boy named Devin Deschaine. Devin is a 2 yr old Port Richey boy with stage 4 Neuroblastoma. His form of Cancer is one of the most rare, & aggressive pediatric cancers. Only about 600 kids in the USA will be diagnosed with Neuroblastoma each year. About 70% of them will NOT survive. Devin is very close to our hearts & there is no other option for him but to SURVIVE. He's a born fighter. He was a little fighter long before he was diagnosed. Neuroblastoma shouldn't be any different. He just needs a little help with this fight.
The Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup in conjunction with the Tammie Hamaoui Foundation, Pro Wrestling Riot, World Wrestling Network & Floridawrestlingfans.com will be running this year’s tournament as fundraiser for Devin & his mom. She is single & needs help getting the bills paid during his treatment. Not to mention that he has a few procedures coming up that his insurance won't cover. This family needs our help!
Due to his cancer being so rare the media is following him closely. Devin has been on Bay News 9. He is also expected to be on the Today show in the near future. For more information on Devin please go to any of the following links:
http://www.tampabay.com/news/humaninterest/article501869.ece
http://www.tampabay.com/news/humaninterest/article638651.ece
http://hope4devin.org |
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Alan Wojcik Reviews Two WSU DVD Releases
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Aug. 14th, 2008 @ 02:19 pm
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Seems everywhere in wrestling the women are taking over and that’s a good thing. From the WWE Diva’s and the TNA Knockouts to Shimmer and Slammin Ladies Custom shoots, women are working hard to show the viewers they are not just eye candy. I wish to add the northeast based Women Superstars Uncensored to the list of women’s promotions that kick ass for the fans to enjoy.
WSU is an off shoot of the men’s promotion Wrestling Superstars Unleashed which had some issues in 2007. Since its creation they’ve had the biggest names in wrestling grace their ring. Missy Hyatt, Tammy Sytch, Ivory, Traci Brooks, Luna Vachon, Christy Hemme and the ladies listed in this review that are looking to be come international stars in their own right. The promotion has a DVD deal with www.doiwrestling.com and they sell their items through their site www.wsuwrestling.com where you can buy these two recently released DVD’s. Both were filmed on 6/21 in Boonton, New Jersey and feature commentary from Sean Hanson plus special guests Alicia, George Frankenstein and Ms. Hyatt.
The Show Must Go On:
Mercedes Martinez vs. Kacee Carlisle
Angelina Love vs. Portia Perez
Missy Hyatt’s Manor with special guest Becky Bayless
The Beatdown Betties (Rick Cataldo & Roxxie Cotton) vs The Soul Sisters (Jana & Latasha) & Missy Sampson/Alere Little Feather
Awesome Kong vs. Cindy Rogers
Kylie Price vs. Lea Morrison
Becky Bayless (w/Angelina Love) vs. Dawn Marie (w/ Missy Hyatt)
WSU Women’s champion Angel Orsini vs. “Pryme Tyme” Amy Lee
Army of One:
Missy Sampson & Alere Little Feather vs. Kacee Carlisle & Kylie Pierce
Cindy Rogers vs. Lea Morrison
The Beatdown Betties (Rick Cataldo & Roxxie Cotton) vs The Soul Sisters (Jana & Latasha)
“Pryme Tyme” Amy Lee vs. Awesome Kong
Dawn Marie & Portia Perez vs. Becky Bayless & Angelina Love
WSU Women’s champion Angel Orsini vs. Mercedes Martinez
In addition on this DVD you will see Angel Orsini vs. Nikki Roxx from the 5/31/08 JAPW show.
Both DVD’s were filmed via digital video and their camera crew takes you right in the ring. Hanson is excellent and funny as a commentator and his audio should show up on your DVD player or you need to switch the audio input. I would pay Amy Lee a dollar to see her cut a promo without using more curse words than Shane Douglas ever did in his entire career. It took me a minute to figure out the concept given to the Beatdown Betties and when I did I found them to be fun and entertaining. The best match from both DVD’s was Orsini vs. Martinez from Army of One. Awesome Kong is impressive as ever and her match with Lee is excellent. There are some ladies on here I would like to see wrestle again even in the TNA or WWE ring. I look forward to seeing the next WSU DVD releases in my mailbox. Go to www.wsuwrestling.com for DVD and event information.
WSU will be holding two shows in August. Friday the 22nd they will be at the Shark River Hill Firehouse Hall, 200 Brighton Avenue in Neptune, NJ. The 23rd sees them perform at the Knights of Columbus Hall, 94 Bridge St in Bellevue, NJ. Some of the matches on these DVD’s led to matches on those two cards. Remember to support independent wrestling because the current stars in WWE and TNA didn’t just come out of a factory assembled for superstardom. |
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2008 Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup Dates Plus 4 Competitors Announced!!
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Aug. 12th, 2008 @ 10:34 pm
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In November, 2002 independent wrestling phenomenon Jeff Peterson lost his long battle with cancer. May 16-17, 2003 saw the beginning of the Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup, a sixteen competitor tournament in honor of the fallen star. Each year since the event has grown to international levels. Previous winners of this prestigious tournament are “Reckless Youth” Tom Carter, Justice, Chris Sabin, Milano Collection AT and Chris Hero. If you have never seen it in person or purchased a DVD of the event we highly recommend this year is the year you become a part of the Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup.
World Wrestling Network presents:
The 2008 Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup
Friday, September 26, 2008
The New Lakes in Regency Park Civic Center
8330 Civic Drive - Port Richey, FL 34668
Doors Open 7:00 PM - Bell Time 8:00 PM
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Brooksville National Guard Armory
16386 Springhill Drive - Brooksville, FL 34604
Doors Open 7:00 PM - Bell Time 8:00 PM
Two Night VIP Package (Limited Availability) - $50
Includes: Ringside Admission, Two Night VIP Meet & Greet & A Limited Addition 2008 JPC Poster
Two Night General Admission
Adults $25 and Kids 13 and under $15
Single Night Ringside $20
Single Night General Admission:
Adults $15 and Kids 13 and under $10
To purchase tickets or to make donations go to: http://jpc2008.com
We are proud to announce the first four participants for this year’s tournament:
Gran Akuma (Chikara Pro)
Jigsaw (Ring of Honor)
Chris Jones (Pro Wrestling Fusion)
Chris Gray (Former WWE Developmental)
This years Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup will be a fundraiser with ALL proceeds going to little boy named Devin Deschaine. Devin is a 2 yr old Port Richey boy with stage 4 Neuroblastoma. His form of Cancer is one of the most rare, & aggressive pediatric cancers. Only about 600 kids in the USA will be diagnosed with Neuroblastoma each year. About 70% of them will NOT survive. Devin is very close to our hearts & there is no other option for him but to SURVIVE. He's a born fighter. He was a little fighter long before he was diagnosed. Neuroblastoma shouldn't be any different. He just needs a little help with this fight.
The Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup in conjunction with the Tammie Hamaoui Foundation, Pro Wrestling Riot, World Wrestling Network & Floridawrestlingfans.com will be running this year’s tournament as fundraiser for Devin & his mom. She is single & needs help getting the bills paid during his treatment. Not to mention that he has a few procedures coming up that his insurance won't cover.This family needs our help!
Due to his cancer being so rare the media is following him closely. Devin has been on Bay News 9. He is also expected to be on the Today show in the near future.For more information on Devin please go to any of the following links:
http://www.tampabay.com/news/humaninterest/article501869.ece
http://www.tampabay.com/news/humaninterest/article638651.ece
http://hope4devin.org |
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Alan Wojcik Interview: "The British Lions" Chris Gray & Tommy Taylor
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Aug. 11th, 2008 @ 10:58 pm
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Alan J. Wojcik: Both of you gentleman are from England. Who were your favorites growing up and was wrestling the only profession you aspired to take up?
Chris Gray: Growing up in England where football is the biggest sport in the country naturally I was a fan & I also played for local teams, my school & even had tryouts with Leeds United F.C. (my hometeam) & Manchester United. It was around the age of 14 funnily enough when I started training to wrestle that football quickly became a distant memory. I was always a lifelong fan of both wrestling & football but wrestling is were my heart is.
Tommy Taylor: The guy who really caught my eye in this business when I was younger was Shawn Michaels. My first match I witnessed was the famous, and amazing Ironman Match at Wrestlemania 12. As soon as I saw how much effort Shawn and Bret put into making an entertaining match for over an hour I knew this was the greatest business in the World! Later on when I educated myself with British Wrestling I saw a superb wrestler in The Dynamite Kid. He kept me on the edge of my seat every time I watched him. I knew pretty much straight away after seeing these fantastic wrestlers I wanted to follow their footsteps in the squared circle.
Alan J. Wojcik: The two of you met at Sir Jeff Kayes Wrestling school. Talk about the formation of your friendship and what the school was like compared to other training camps you might have read about?
Chris Gray: Well the first thing you expect is a wrestling ring right? WRONG! The "school" was actually a hardcore style gym with two floors pretty run down & we wrestled on the second floor of the gym on nothing but mats. Learning to bump & wrestle on mats really takes it out of you but I’m happy it was that way because it toughens you up & your better prepared for a lifetime of falls & bumps! Our friendship was just a natural progression of the both of us sharing the same dream & desire to chase it, its been nearly 6 years we've known each other now & I consider him my brother were that close literally since we met everything in our personal & professional lives we have shared & experienced together
Tommy Taylor: We both started training in May 2002 at Jeff Kaye’s school. Back when it was Jeff and another British Legend, Drew McDonald teaching. And as far back as I can remember I don’t think we became that good of friends straight away. There was a lot of students to start with, some good, some very bad! It wasn’t until the shit filtered out and Sir Jeff saw talent in the both of us, that was when we started working together and started travelling on the road together and very quickly became good friends. We always stuck with it and just dedicated ourselves to learn more, and we still do. That’s what brings us together. Even with the recent shit times, we both know we’re not going to stop working like we do and doing good business for the business.. As for the school, I honestly believe it was the best out there for us. The source of my education is directly from Sir Jeff Kaye. He taught us the very best of catch as catch can and British style wrestling. If I would have gone to some brainless twat for guidance I don’t think I’d be doing this interview now.
Alan J. Wojcik: Both of you began touring Europe at a young age. Were there any veterans on the tours who helped you out or were you left alone?
Chris Gray: We were helped by a lot of guys in many ways, being so young neither of us had drivers licenses, in England you have to be 17 to take your test, so a lot of the wrestlers would help us with car rides, our work in the ring & many things of that nature I could make a list but it would be pretty long so I would just like to thank everyone & anyone who helped me along the way I am eternally grateful thank you.
Tommy Taylor: Well the first company I toured with had Jake Roberts headlining. That was an amazing experience. He is a real genius. Later on I got to team with Bryan Danielson, I remember talking to him for a good hour after the show in a crappy little Burger King, He didn’t like that I was eating French fries, I try stay away from them now.. Along the way I have travelled with European Legends such as Drew McDonald, Frankie Sloan, Ian Wilson and Ian McGregor, all of which gave me tons of knowledge for the business.
Alan J. Wojcik: Most fans might not realize matches in Europe are different than America. Could you give them some rules that maybe foreign to them and how long did it take you to adapt to American wrestling?
Chris Gray: In England these days the rules are the same as the American ones, its more of a case of psychology & also wrestling is more appreciated back home they appreciate a hold for hold contest less of a kicking & punching fight mentality. In the good old days though the rules were very different they had rounds & if an opponent was on the ground you could not pick him up they would have to the count of 10 to be back on both feet, there were also public warnings if you broke the rules you received a warning & 3 of those & you would be DQ'd!
Tommy Taylor: We have 3 minute rounds, with a minute rest in between, we get public warnings for “foul play”, 3 public warnings and automatic disqualification. Your opponent must be to his feet before contact is made (otherwise one public warning)… It’s an old school tradition to have matches this way but they are still popular with the right crowd. It didn’t take me too long to adapt, I still use my wrestling style but only change for the type of audience.
Alan J. Wojcik: Both of you signed WWE developmental deals in 2007. Take the readers through the tryout process and what a developmental deal means in simple terms?
Chris Gray: We had both been attending WWE events from the age of 15 basically you wrestle in the ring pre-show with the boys & agents watching! At the age of 15 in front of your idols & potential employers its an extremely nerve racking situation. But every time we went back they saw improvements & then they would give us dark matches & the next time we would job on TV & so on. Then in April the dream came true we both got contracts for the WWE. A development deal is pretty much like baseball you have the minor leagues & the major leagues, development is the minor leagues & its were you prove your good enough for TV.
Tommy Taylor: The first tryout we went to was back in 2003. I was 16! I remember feeling totally overwhelmed and extremely nervous. This was in Manchester, England. Chris and I had a 10 minute chain wrestling match in front of Dave Finlay and some of the boys. At the time we felt it went really well. Looking back (I own the footage) it was pretty terrible. We got some great feedback. Ironically HHH watched us work and told us that if we keep learning and get bigger the company would hire us in maybe 4 years. That was a huge incentive! And they did haha! We went to several tryouts thereafter and they saw progress in both of us every time. Enough so that they used us for dark matches and then TV spots. I got to work with Carlito on Heat at the age of 18. In April of last year (2007) John Laurinaitis offered us both contracts. He gave us the “development deal” and we had no clue what to expect, just that WWE would be watching our progress and when the time is right send us to TV.
Alan J. Wojcik: Florida Championship Wrestling came to be from the ashes of Deep South Wrestling. What were your initial impressions of America and Florida?
Chris Gray: Right away I felt at home I knew this was the place to be, it really did feel like the land of opportunity. Florida is a beautiful state I love the weather the beaches although I do miss English food ALOT!!!
Tommy Taylor: My first impression of America was amazing, we flew in over New York and could see Manhattan in the distance. I got a warm feeling in my body and couldn’t help but smile. I always knew I would live here, it was in my plan, I remember being very young telling my family I’m going to move to USA to become a wrestler, and now it was reality. Even better was the fact I was going to live in Florida. It’s a super state, I love everything about it, there’s always something to do, always a cool spot to drink at, a terrific place to eat. I’m more than happy here.
Alan J. Wojcik: Your FCW training schedule had you working out every weekday. Take the readers through a typical day at the FCW facility as opposed to the Tuesday night shows at Bourbon Street of New Port Richey.
Chris Gray: The day started at 9:45 with everyone in the rings, we would start with stretching we would follow that with a bump routine the whole process would normally be around thirty minutes. Then day to day it varied with either worked on singles/tag matches, fitness drills to blow you up, individual & group promos etc it wasn’t easy but I loved going to work everyday & that being my job!
Tommy Taylor: We started with stretches led by the now famous Ezekiel of Smackdown! We followed that with bumps, rolls and sequences to just get your wind tuned up. Every day was different, one day we’d have drills going for hours, the next we would perfect our promos. It was just a fun routine, I loved lacing my boots every single day and stepping into a ring. We even trained hard before the show days. Some Tuesdays before the Bourbon Street event we would train until 4pm have to drive home to get a shower then straight away drive to the venue for 6pm. And try fit meals in between.
Alan J. Wojcik: During a few trips to FCW I came to see the talent being mentored by legends Gerry Brisco and Dean Malenko. Was there a particular daytime visitor that sticks out in your mind that left a lasting impression?
Chris Gray: I enjoyed each & every visit it was an honor to have them help us out. From everyone who showed up to help all of the students were able to take something with them to help them either with wrestling or to help them a better person. Personally I enjoyed, Dean Malenko, Ricky Steamboat & of course Dave Taylor!
Tommy Taylor: For sure, Dave Taylor he had a sort of seminar for the students on “leg working”. For a good 2 hours everyone surrounded the ring and watched Mr Taylor go through moves and holds with ease. It was funny watching some of the guys get in the ring after and try to emulate him. He made the school laugh the whole time too. Another was Dean Malenko, he is a true hero of mine and I was blessed to have 5 minutes of his time. I had a tag match and just wanted him to remember my selling. I was on the receiving end of Sinn Bowdee for the most part which made the match flow like clockwork. I wanted to get every aspect of facials, vocals and body movement for Mr Malenko to watch. After the match I asked if there was anything I could have done to improve my selling and he said “No, maybe tassels on your boots”… Not sure what that meant?
Alan J. Wojcik: At one point Steve Taylor became Tommy Taylor, then "the Rascal" and Chris became "Thee Superstar." Was this done by Steve Keirn and Tom Pritchard or did you do it to break from the crowd? Chris did you enjoy being a heel?
Chris Gray: "Thee Superstar" was my idea although now Brian Kendrick seems to be trying it out lol! The office told me to cut my hair and try out some new ring gear and I was all for that I had a pretty generic look. So I thought with the changes I will try to reinvent myself with a new gimmick to go with the new look. I ran the idea by Dr. Tom who liked it & I was good to go. It perhaps wasn’t the best environment to try & get over with a new gimmick as the booking for the show was experimental they were trying to get to know everybody as performers so they were mix & matching & seeing what would work so I feel I didn’t get the time needed to get it over, they had 60 other guys to work with too so the timing wasn’t the best in retrospect I also feel that the gimmick wasn’t really me even though it was my idea I didn’t fit it. As for being a heel I enjoyed it but again I look back & think that being one of the smaller guys in FCW I would have been a better babyface I worked as a babyface in England a lot & fighting from underneath comes naturally to me, but being a heel I enjoy being in control of the match that’s fun too.
Tommy Taylor: The Rascal never came out right, I had great ideas, I still do. It first came out during a promo session. I had no pre scripted thing to say when the camera was rolling so just had fun. I said the phrase “naughty naughty” and it got over with the boys. Especially Mike Mondo who said it to me every morning! I spoke to Wes Adams, Smackdown ref who has an unlimited amount of knowledge for the business. And he loved the idea of making it into a full blown gimmick. The next step was Dr Tom, he didn’t quite get it, he gave me a chance to show it to him against Sheamus in Fort Myers and we had a great match. The people got behind the rascal and wanted him to defeat the monstrous Irish Man. Dr Tom loved it, he got behind it 100%, or so I thought. The next time I was booked I was a heel and then a baby face again. It was confusing as to what the “higher ups” had in mind for you.
Alan J. Wojcik: During your FCW tenure you formed the British Lions and FCW gave you British legend Dave Taylor as a manager/advisor.
Chris Gray: I would like to have run with that as The British Lions but I guess they had other ideas, I felt that we could have made something out of the 3 of us & maybe even a run on TV. We had both met Dave previously & both of us respect & admire him because he is a British Legend. Were all from Yorkshire & we share the same sense of humour we can relate to each other being from the same place. Hopefully sometime in the near future we can be reunited on as a British team & who knows maybe we can make it to TV as the British Lions together.
Tommy Taylor: The three of us are very similar, same sense of humour and from the same part of England, it just fit like a glove. We’re two hungry kids who want to beat people up and Who better to guide us than Dave Taylor. We respect his whole legacy. We even trained with his daughter at Sir Jeff Kaye’s back in England. They gave us a shot at New Port Richey and again it went well, mainly the crowd reaction to us. This was mere weeks before we all got released so I don’t know what to make of it. But It’s all still good for us, we have regular contact with Mr Taylor and know that there is a huge opportunity for us elsewhere. The British Lions is the direction we both (Chris and I) want to succeed in. We truly believe WWE missed out on an exciting and young tag team that their TV could benefit from. What’s their loss is someone else’s gain though!
Alan J. Wojcik: What went through your minds when WWE shut down Ohio Wrestling and FCW became home to about 70 men and women all trying to get brought up to the main rosters?
Chris Gray: I wasn’t phased at all although neither of us are the biggest wrestlers, I am extremely confident in my abilities as a wrestler and I looked forward to working with more wrestlers.
Tommy Taylor: The only thing that went through my mind is to work twice as hard. I knew their was a chopping block from the start and now it had gotten bigger. The only thing is sometimes hard work isn’t all you need… When they all got down to FCW I made some good friend and got to work with some amazing workers.
Alan J. Wojcik: Both of you had matches against everyone on the FCW roster at the live events on at the training facility. Besides working each other did you have someone that made you say, "I want to do a long-term program with that guy?"
Chris Gray: There was a lot of guys: TJ Wilson, Ted Dibiase Jr, Harry Smith, Afa Jr, Nic Nemeth these and a few others are the guys I enjoyed watching and wrestling with because it was a learning experience & bettered myself by working with them.
Tommy Taylor: Too many to mention. Off the top of my head I would say Colt Cabana, we worked once and it just felt easy, I know through other circumstances (no-rascal) we could have had some classic matches. Greg Jackson was great to work with, he brought the best out of you. I had my final FCW match with him for 45 minutes, blood was shed and my jaw nearly popped out, it was awesome! Mr Yamamoto is a guy to learn with, I enjoy working with no calling and being in the ring with him made us both just WORK in there. I got to work with all these guys and could have worked memorable angles with them, Johnny Curtis, Nic Nemeth, Mike Mondo, Ted Dibiase Jr, Heath Miller, Kofi Kingston, but the one guy I never had the opportunity to work with was TJ Wilson. In 10 months I never had a full match with him. I regret that. But from everyone I worked I took away something to learn from no doubt.
Alan J. Wojcik: April was good and bad for you guys from attending WrestleMania weekend to the end of the month when WWE let you go from your deals. Talk about the weekend if you like and then the day Keirn/Pritchard let you go and what was the reason given to you?
Chris Gray: It was an honour to be at Wrestlemania, the Hall of Fame was amazing too. It was the office that made the phone call not Dr Tom or Steve Keirn, it was awful we were both in the car together driving to the gym & Steve answered the phone & this look of shock came over his face & I just though oh shit! The reason they gave was a lack of progress which I disagree with completely. I have my own suspicions on what the real reason was but I’m not willing to get into that for obvious reasons lol!
Tommy Taylor: Yeah Wrestlemania is still unbelievable for me, I don’t believe that I was there to help the show and enjoy the spectacle, it was a great experience. Hall of Fame too, I got to see most of my heroes and pay respect to them in a gracious way. I’m grateful for the company to give us that weekend.
The releasing came from the office, we both got a call on the way to the gym and my stomach dropped. I was lost for the next few days. I mean I was in a foreign country away from my family and wasn’t sure what was happening. I soon picked myself up though and started making new goals for my life.
Alan J. Wojcik: Now that you gotten over the FCW letdown your myspace calendar's have you working for several Florida based promotions in the coming days. Are you ready to take the next step forward in creating careers outside WWE?
Chris Gray: Absolutely being released only made my desire that much stronger, I’m hungrier than ever I can't wait to wrestle again. For the future I would like to work all over the world: Japan, Mexico & more of Europe. Here in the U.S. were looking to work anywhere & everywhere were looking into getting opportunities for companies like Ring Of Honour I’m a big fan of that product & the wrestling it produces & also TNA.The British Lions are back & ready to ROAR! http://www.myspace.com/chrisfrancisgray is my page if you are interested in chatting me up.
Tommy Taylor: WWE “development” was an amazing opportunity for me, I thank everyone involved with the company and want to show them that I’m still going to be a hard working professional wrestler regardless. The World is mine to see now, I want to get a bag full of experience from everywhere I can, Japan, Mexico, Back to Europe, Across USA anywhere and everywhere. It’s all there for me. I’m currently scheduled to work for FXE, UCW, FIP, GEAR, FPWA and PWF in the coming weeks. If anyone wants to come show support contact me on myspace.com/jiggatp |
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Alan Wojcik Review Of Before They Were Stars: CM Punk
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Aug. 2nd, 2008 @ 12:10 am
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Before he became the Money in the Bank winner at WrestleMania 24 and then won the WWE Raw World Heavyweight championship, CM Punk was like many of America's wrestlers: he busted his ass across the country in several independent promotions. They included IPW Hardcore, MLW, IWC, IWA-Mid South, MAW, PWG, JAPW, ROH, TNA Wrestling, the 2003 Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup and the J-Cup where Punk cracked his skull open in a match with Reckless Youth. Thanks to Big Vision Entertainment, World Wrestling Network and Ring Of Honor DVD, wrestling fans can see Punk before the WWE on their new release in the Before They Were Stars series. You can open up a Pepsi while you watch several full length matches from the Straight Edge superstar's tenure in Full Impact Pro of Florida. The DVD includes:
Punk vs. "the Shooter" Vordell Walker
Punk vs. Justin Credible
Punk vs. "Rainman" Kory Chavis
Punk vs. "Notorious 187" Homicide (FIP Championship Tourney Final)
Punk vs. Dan Maff
Punk vs. "Notorious 187" Homicide (Falls Count Anywhere, like the strip club next door)
Punk vs. James (Noble) Gibson
Punk vs. Roderick Strong (ROH Bonus match)
Punk vs. "American Dragon" Bryan Danielson (ROH Bonus match)
In addition to those matches, you get a 40 minute long IWA-Mid South retrospective including his feuds with Chris Hero, Colt Cabana, Delirous, Eddie Guererro and Rey Misterio, a music video from Five Victims, Four Graves who provide the soundtrack plus some bonus interviews.
I am not going to break each match down because that would take up your time from checking them out yourself. I really enjoyed this DVD but my major gripe is: since they got footage from IWA-MS couldn't they have tossed in the 92 minute 2 of 3 falls vs. Hero or the 55 minute long tables/ladders bout with Hero from the promotion's past. Or Punk's matches from the 2003 Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup weekend. Or the Second City Saints vs. the Propechy feud fron ROH. Enough negative thoughts from me, stay straight edge, enjoy this DVD if you enjoy pure wrestling and some comedy mixed in.
It can be bought from www.bvdvd.com or www.rohwrestling.com |
| » Alan Wojcik Reviews YouShoot: Jamie Dundee |
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He's a cocky, brash, beer drinking and pot smoking second generation star who doesn't have a censor button on his mouth. Jamie Dundee is the prefect candidate for the next installment in Kayfabe Commentaries YouShoot DVD series. If you have never seen a You Shoot its simple: all the questions asked come from emails & videos sent into the KC website and are delivered by host/producer Sean Oliver.
Let me be honest I have never been a fan of Dundee's work. This DVD was more entertaining for the fun of watching Oliver squirm in his chair waiting for Dundee to pounce on him. One minute Dundee is praising the person who sent a question, the next he is threatening to drive to their house and beat them down. Oliver tries to follow a format in the questioning following Dundee from growing up in the Memphis/Nashville territory to working for USWA in the PG-13 tag team to the WWE with the Nation of Domination. Also in the mix are odd jobs, depravity in life & a topic on fellow wrestlers past and present. While Dundee does oblige in the questioning he seems more focused on getting messed up on beer. He veers off into working in the circus with his dad, who in the business screwed him over, who is the hottest diva and does tell some great stories. But I will wait for the next KC DVD to give a positive review. I will give one if you are a fan of Dundee's other shoot interviews because is unique.
According to their website, www.kayfabecommentaries.com the two next releases are a Guest Booker DVD with Greg Gagne and a My Side of the Story release with Magnum TA and Nikita Koloff.
Jul. 31st, 2008 @ 11:59 pm
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| » Alan Wojcik Reviews PWG Sells Out! |
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In 2003 a small promotion in California made its debut with a show called Untitled (The Debut Show). They soon followed with interesting names for their events like the Tango & Cash Invitational, Free Admission (Just Kidding), All Nude Revue, Enchantment Under the Sea and their own multi-night tournament the Battle For Los Angeles. They made their reputation with excellent online promotion, their die-hard fans that traded the DVD’s and their wrestlers who broadened their resumes by working outside of California. The promotion is Pro Wrestling Guerrilla founded by Southern California based wrestlers Disco Machine, Joey Ryan, Excalibur, Scott Lost, Super Dragon and Top Gun Talwar.
The first time I heard of PWG was through current TNA Wrestling star Frankie “the Future” Kazarian who was part of their debut event and the lovely So Cal Val who managed Lost & Ryan at one time. Both recommended I check them out. Good thing I did because in 2005, Ryan and the Human Tornado came to Florida for the annual Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup making hundreds of new fans on the weekend. Now everyone that hasn’t bought a PWG DVD online or at a show can get their first national release the appropriately named PWG SELLS OUT: THE BEST OF PRO WRESTLIGN GUERRILLA VOLUME 1.
If you watched the short lived MTV series Wrestling Society X some of these names in the match listings will sound familiar. If they don’t then you need to stop reading this review and watch the NINE hours of matches spread over three discs….go ahead I will wait. Seriously I will wait. Sorry that is just an example of the tongue in cheek humor PWG provides to their fans with their excellent in-ring product. The DVD features two audio tracks with one getting the crowd noise and the other the original DVD commentary. Here is the listings…see you at the end of it:
Disc One
1. "American Dragon" Bryan Danielson vs. Samoa Joe, The Musical - April 17, 2004
2. Pro Wrestling Guerrilla World Championship Steel Cage Match "Scrap Iron" Adam Pearce vs. "The Future" Frankie Kazarian, The Reason For The Season - July 10, 2004
3. CM Punk vs. Super Dragon, The Reason For The Season - July 10, 2004
4. "The Fallen Angel" Christopher Daniels vs. Jack Evans, Free Admission (Just Kidding!) - November 13, 2004
5. Samoa Joe vs. Super Dragon, All Nude Revue - February 12, 2005
6. AJ Styles vs Samoa Joe, All Star Weekend Night 1 - April 1, 2005
7. AJ Styles vs. James Gibson, Guitarmageddon - June 11, 2005
Disc 2
8. Pro Wrestling Guerrilla World Tag Team Title Match - Titles vs. Masks
Arrogance ("Photogenic" Chris Bosh & Scott Lost) vs. Aerial Xpress (Quicksilver & Scorpio Sky) 2nd Anniversary Weekend Night 1 - July 9, 2005
9. El Generico, Jack Evans, Frankie Kazarian, & Super Dragon vs. Scott Lost, Ricky Reyes, Davey Richards, & Joey Ryan, 2005 Battle of Los Angeles Night 2 - September 4, 2005
10. Guerrilla Warfare Match, Super Dragon vs. "Mr. Wrestling" Kevin Steen Astonishing X-Mas - December 18, 2005
11. Pro Wrestling Guerrilla World Tag Team Title Match
Super Dragon & Davey Richards vs. Jack Evans & Roderick Strong, Hollywood Globetrotters - March 4, 2006
12. Pro Wrestling Guerrilla World Championship Steel Cage Match
Joey Ryan vs. B-Boy Threemendous - July 16, 2006
13. CIMA vs. El Generico, 2006 Battle of Los Angeles Night 3 - September 3, 2006
14. El Generico vs. "The Man That Gravity Forgot" PAC, All Star Weekend 4 Night 2 - November 18, 2006
Disc 3
15. Pro Wrestling Guerrilla World Championship Title Guerrilla Warfare Match
Joey Ryan vs. Human Tornado, Based on a True Story - January 13, 2007
16. PAC vs. Kevin Steen, Holy Diver Down - February 24, 2007
17. Kaz Hayashi vs. PAC, All Star Weekend 5 Night 2 - April 8, 2007
18. CIMA vs. Bryan Danielson, DDT4 Night 1 - May 19, 2007
19. Pro Wrestling Guerrilla World Tag Team Title Match
Jay & Mark Briscoe vs. PAC & Roderick Strong DDT4 Night 2 - May 20, 2007
20. Pro Wrestling Guerrilla World Tag Team Title Match
PAC & Roderick Strong vs. El Generico & Kevin Steen Giant Size Annual #4 - July 29, 2007
21. Pro Wrestling Guerrilla World Championship Title Match
El Generico vs. Bryan Danielson Giant Size Annual #4 - July 29, 2007
Nine hours is a lot of wrestling and each match on here is excellent. Disc 3’s Ryan vs Tornado and Disc 2’s BOLA matches are worth the price they are charging which is $14.95. The commentary tracks are funny but sometimes are too over the top. This is a must buy for your collection if you can’t watch Monday or Friday night wrestling without a bottle of No Doz pills. Log onto www.bvdvd.com or www.prowrestlingguerrilla.com to buy the DVD or other PWG events.
Jul. 18th, 2008 @ 10:10 am
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| » Alan Wojcik Reviews Glamour, Glitz & Divas DVD |
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Are you a fan of Shimmer, the WWE Diva’s, the TNA Knockouts or the ChickFight tournaments? Well women’s wrestling fans that loved Lipstick & Dynamite now have a new documentary to add to their collection. Big Vision Entertainment has teamed again with RF video to distribute GLAMOUR, GLITZ & DIVAS, THE UNTOLD STORY OF AMERICAN WOMEN’S WRESTLING.
RF Video is predominately a shoot interview company in addition to selling wrestling items. If you had the chance to view the LIFE IN THE FAST LANE DVD will get the format, which is compiling the best of the best shoot interview segments. This DVD is packed with legends of the ring mixing in the current stars. RF uses interviews with the following ladies: Fabulous Moolah, Mae Young, Tammy (Sunny) Sytch, “Sensational” Sherri Martel (who the DVD is dedicated to), Luna Vachon, Missy Hyatt, Baby Doll, Joanie “Chyna Doll” Laurer, Talia Madison (TNA’s Velvet Sky of the Beautiful People), Francine, Kimona, Jasmin St. Claire, Jackie Gayda, Ryan Shamrock, Gorgeous George and April Hunter.
The DVD is broken down into the following chapters: I Was Born a Fan, Is that All You Got?, On the Road with April & Talia, Love Stories, Learning With Luna, Catfight!, Misconceptions, Money, Madness and Advice. In addition to the documentary there are the following matches: Sara Del Ray vs. Nikki Roxx, Cheerleader Melissa vs. Mercedes Martinez, April Hunter vs. Talia, Sumie Sakai vs. Daizee Haze, Kylie Pierce vs. Angela (w/ Ms. Martel as referee) and Luna Vachon vs. Alicia which were all entertaining.
Let’s be honest you couldn’t do this or any history of women’s wrestling DVD without Moolah or Mae since they were there when wrestling in the 1940-50's had the ladies as a special attraction bout. I also feel you can’t do anything on modern wrestling (1980's-present) without Sytch who changed the way WWE marketed and even came up with concept of the WWE Diva’s plus Martel, Vachon and Laurer who were there changing the in-ring style. Hyatt is normally regarded as the “first lady of wrestling” but only appears once or twice like St. Claire who used to run the NE based 3PW. George has little need to be on here except for her talking about working for WCW same goes for Shamrock who today’s fan might not even know.
The segment with Hunter and Madison was interesting to see the backstage preparation the ladies undertake each evening before going to do battle. The best segments are the most honest ones like Sytch talking about a relationship with a former WWE World champion while she was still with her late boyfriend Chris Candido, Laurer talking about when she found out HHH was seeing Stephanie McMahon behind her back, plus the entire catfight segment which lets the ladies shoot on a gamut of people.
You can order this DVD through www.bvdvd.com or www.rfvideo.com where you can find other releases I will be reviewing in the coming weeks. http://alanwojcik.com is where you can read past interviews and find links to your favorite wrestlers site.
Jun. 30th, 2008 @ 11:16 am
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| » Alan Wojcik Reviews New KayfabeCommentaries Releases |
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Since coming onto the wrestling DVD market KayfabeCommentaries.com has brought together some of wrestling greatest minds, colorful personalities and Gabe Sapolsky for different styles of shoot interviews that take you where fantasy and reality come together. In the process they have created two unique series that keep getting better with each release.
The first series is called Guest Booker where Sean Oliver matches a great matchmaker, wrestling mind or Gabe Sapolsky with a fantasy booking scenario, sitting them in front of a dry erase board with a roster to do what they will. In this scenario we have seen Kevin Sullivan, JJ Dillon and Raven rebuild WWF of 1984, ECW of 1996 and now we get the brilliant “Playboy” Gary Hart (who passed away days after making the DVD) who is asked to save the Dallas Territory/World Class from the promotions demise that began in 1986. A little background is provided by Oliver so the fans understand the terrain of the promotion. During that time WCCW lost major talent to Bill Watts’ UWF, their booker Ken Mantell to another promotion, Kerry Von Erich to the infamous motorcycle accident that June and owner Fritz Von Erich walked away from the National Wrestling Alliance cutting his ties to the Crockett’s.
Oliver allows Hart to book WCCW as if none of that ever happened. The exercise has Hart book from the early summer until the annual Star Wars card Thanksgiving night. If you have seen either history of World Class DVD’s you already know Hart was a walking wrestling encyclopedia and booking genius. Oliver lets him shine as Hart saves the territory by using the link to the NWA World Heavyweight and Tag Team championships to make his talent look great. Along the way you get a history of the Texas wrestling scene and what could have been. I strongly recommend getting this to broaden your mind and learn what true genius in wrestling looked like.
The other new genre of DVD KC.com has created is called YouShoot which is a new spin on the traditional shoot interview. Instead of a faceless interviewer asking the questions, Oliver sits the subject down in front of a laptop, reading questions fans and wrestling webwriters have sent into the website. Past subjects include the always controversial Honky Tonk Man and Missy Hyatt and are they are joined by the hardcore original The Sandman.
Thanks to a unlimited amount of his favorite beer “Hak” holds nothing back on his time in ECW, WCW, the WWE version of ECW, TNA, drug use in the business, rats, divas and other sexual situations, Tod Gordon, Paul Heyman and other things you need to see instead of read about. Sandman and Oliver sit for 2 hours and 20 minutes keeping the viewer entertained as the wrestling fans make things fun, serious and sometimes downright stupid. Sandman comes across as all three as well as very intelligent on certain topics. Grab this one if you were a fan of ECW or the man who carries a beer, cigarette and Singapore cane everywhere he goes.
According to the website address listed above they have two new items in preparation: YouShoot with Jamie Dundee and Guest Booker with Greg Gagne.
Jun. 18th, 2008 @ 09:37 am
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| » Alan Wojcik Reviews Beer, Blood & Cornmeal |
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Chango Loco, Macho Sasquatcho, the Poontangler, Count Dante of the Black Dragon Fighting Society. Never heard of them? Ok how about James Hetfield, Fred Durst, Vampiro or Billy Joe Armstrong? I hope so because they are nationally known names who watched the first names listed wrestle for the California based Incredibly Strange Wrestling during the mid-1990's until early in this decade. Writer Bob Calhoun used to be part of ISW as the aforementioned Count Dante. He recently published a book on his time with ISW called Beer, Blood and Cornmeal (ECW Press, 366pp, $19.95 US) which is quite possibly the funniest book on wrestling not written by a current WWE superstar.
Calhoun takes the reader back in time to his days as a musician and holder of many part-time jobs in San Francisco when the music wasn’t coming out of Seattle or a teen pop music star factory. Thanks to his costume maker Calhoun attends an ISW event and the rest becomes a journey few would ever take around the world of music or wrestling. He learns that in a world then run by WWF, WCW and ECW his new friends in ISW are as close to backyard as you can get without going there. Seems ISW was a punk rock show that happened to have wrestling matches in between sets. The outfit was run by Audra Morse and some other names that aren’t important in this review. Calhoun’s book follows him from just being a manager to becoming a competitor, ring announcer, commentator and eventually booking the events with Morse. Unlike the current WWE, ISW had some stranger then believable characters like 69 Degrees, a boy band inspired by the Church of Scientology or a chicken suited wrestler called El Pollo Diablo.
Calhoun mixes in some dark comedy in describing how the locker room rivalries, broken relationships and egos threatened to destroy ISW even as they toured America as part of the 2001 Vans Warped Tour which should have gotten them on the national level. He paints Morse as the typical tyrant promoter who ran punk shows in the next door night club along with ISW. From clubs closing due to the dotcom boom of the 90's buying them out to wrestlers getting injured or just flat out leaving the promotion, Calhoun’s writing makes you care about ISW and the people that were part of it. Buy it and enjoy it, it will make you appreciate the art of professional wrestling.
The book is available in stores or through www.ecwpress.com
May. 20th, 2008 @ 10:59 am
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| » Alan Wojcik Reviews Guest Booker/Raven DVD |
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Sunday May 19, 1996 Madison Square Garden in New York City, 2pm house show. Hunter Hearst Hemsley defeats Razor Ramon AKA Scott Hall while WWF champion “Heartbreak Kid” Shawn Michaels defeats former champion Diesel AKA Kevin Nash. What happened next will forever be known as the “curtain call” as the four real life friends held an unauthorized farewell. Hall and Nash have decided to leave for further their careers a bit down the road. A few weeks later both men arrive and are introduced to the rabid fans of the world famous ECW Arena in Philadelphia.
No this didn’t really happen but the crew over at www.KayfabeCommentaries.com asks the question what if Hall and Nash didn’t go to the former World Championship Wrestling and be part of booker Eric Bischoff’s monster New World Order gimmick that led WCW to overtake WWF in the ratings. Producer Sean Oliver isn’t doing the hypothetical arrival on his own. He enlists the man who was ECW World champion in 1996 and a brilliant mind in the business, Raven to be the booker of their arrival. The end result is a 90 minute DVD in their Guest Booker series subtitled Raven Booking Hall & Nash in ECW.
Oliver sits Raven down with a copy of the 1996 ECW roster, a wipe board, some markers and plenty of paper. Raven is told to book Hall and Nash’s arrival in June until the first ECW PPV Barely Legal in April of 1997. That is where the fun begins as Raven races through the entire program rewriting wrestling history. I have to be honest despite growing up in New York and living there until 1996 I was never an ECW fan and had to use several resources to get the lay of the land in the promotion during this time frame. The DVD requires you to suspend reality that Hall and Nash left WWF to get respect they didn’t get as Raven suggests in the feature, instead of the number one reason anyone went to WCW in 1996...Ted Turner’s humongous checkbook.
I will not give away Raven’s booking moves but he makes some interesting choices. Some people will object to the way he introduces the two men to the ECW faithful in the Arena but that is the point of the DVD to give Raven’s version of the booking not Paul Heyman or anyone else. The funniest part is when he basically kicks Oliver out of the seat in front of the dry erase board and takes over. Raven uses every single minute of time allotted to him and then enjoys a meal on camera as the credits roll. Raven should be booking somewhere in the US and being used to better the business.
The item is available through www.KayfabeCommentaries.com for $20. Also through their site you can other great DVD’s with Missy Hyatt, Honky Tonk Man, Tito Santana, Greg Valentine and more in the Guest Booker series with JJ Dillon, Gabe Sapolsky and Kevin Sullivan.
May. 6th, 2008 @ 07:16 am
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| » Alan Wojcik Interview with ROH Announcer Lenny Leonard |
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Chances are if you have purchased a Ring of Honor or Full Impact Pro DVD you know who Lenny Leonard is. If not he is one of the premiere play by play people in wrestling and thanks to a national PPV deal ROH signed this past year he should be a household name in no time. Alan Wojcik conducted this online interview with Lenny about a variety of topics including their mutual favorite sports team the NY Yankees.
Alan Wojcik: Let’s start out simple. What was the first live wrestling event you ever attended and what about the sport made you to want to keep attending?
Lenny Leonard: Wow… that was a long time ago… It was Madison Square Garden, December of 1979. I was 8 years old, and it was a loaded show…Backlund and Duncum for the WWF title, Harley Race vs Dusty for the NWA title, a bunch of Japanese guys like Inoki, Choshu, Seiji Sakaguchi and Tatsumi Fujinami were there, Hogan vs DiBiase…It was a big deal, as they actually waived the 11pm curfew at the Garden for that show.. I guess like a lot of people I was hooked by the larger than life athletes, the drama, the blood, the battle of good versus evil... It’s something that sticks with a lot of people and I was one of them.
Alan Wojcik: We first met at the old Florida Wrestleplex in 2002 when IPW Hardcore Wrestling ran there. How long had you been following IPW and what eventually led you to stop being a fan to become part of the promotion when it morphed with NWA Florida in 2003-04?
Lenny Leonard: I had been watching for about a year. I had only been to 1 or 2 indy shows in my life before going to IPW. I had been to a few Joel Goodhart TWA shows in Philly, that in some ways were the precursors to the old ECW. I heard a lot about the shows in St Pete, and decided to go check them out one night. In fact that was back in ‘01and Scoot Andrews was wrestling Chris Daniels, AJ Styles was wrestling Mike Sullivan and there were guys like Rod Steele, Billy 5’s, and Buck Quartermaine there. It was one of the best shows from a fan’s standpoint I had ever been to. I had an absolute blast and was hooked on their stuff right away. I became friends with a few of the boys, and then Ron Niemi, who at first kept me at a bit of a distance, because he wasn’t sure of what to make of me. He liked me and after a while began to trust me as more than one of the smarks...not that I use that term in a derisive manner… I was proud to be “smart” back as long ago as I was, but I was respectful of Ron, respectful of the business, and Ron appreciated how much love I had for wrestling, because few people eat breathe and sleep this business the way he does. Out of that friendship, an opportunity to fill in on the fly at a show for Ron happened a few years later. His ring announcer was late, I was in the crowd as usual, and he asked if I could fill in , so I did a few matches, as I have always had a pretty good voice, and after a few fill in spots like that I started full time.
Alan Wojcik: You went from ring announcing to being a play by play person. Was that an easy transition for you and how much of it was ok let’s see if I can pull this off? Did having people like Ron Niemi, Aaron Royal and Rod Steel calling matches with you help at all?
Lenny Leonard: Actually I wanted to do the play by play more than the ring announcing almost from the get go… I used to tease Ron and Aaron about how bad the announcing was on their TV back then, and I think Ron just got sick of me breaking his balls about it, so had me fill in on some DVD’s after they stopped running TV shows due to the cost involved. First show I did was Rage in the Cage 2003, and after 1 match I felt really comfortable, even though I had never done it before. Last match on that show was the 30 man battle royale in the cage with weapons, and Aaron was in the match as was Ron, and Rod, so I had to go it alone, and went the whole 23 or 24 minutes non stop by myself, the first night I had ever done play by play, and I still count it as one of the better matches I have ever done. Certainly though, having a guy like Ron with his style and personality for me to play straight man opposite made it so easy for me to move into the position. NWA Florida was a really good learning opportunity for me, and I will always be grateful to Ron for giving me that opportunity.
Alan Wojcik: Since 2004 you have been the DVD voice of the Jeff Peterson Memorial Cup (cruiserweight tournament in memory of the great wrestler). In your words what did Jeff mean to Florida wrestling that this coming summer will be the 6th annual event?
Lenny Leonard: The first time I met Jeff, and was at the Plex with my son Dylan, and had never seen nor heard of Jeff before. He was already sick at that point. He sat in the crowd, and talked to my son for an hour before going out and refereeing later that night, and I thought he was one of the most sweet, caring, likeable people I have ever met in my life, and the world, not just wrestling, is a much poorer place for not having him around anymore.
Alan Wojcik: This past year saw you call the JPC with former WCW announcer Scott Hudson. What was that experience like and if you could chose; past or present, a color commentator to call a match or show with who would it be?
Lenny Leonard: Scott was so good to work with. I guess I owe you some thanks for that…LOL.. He was such a pro, is so smooth in his delivery, and open to do whatever it was I wanted to do. I was worried, having not met him before that I was going to get big timed by him. He was in the show. Worked WCW in their hey day, made a ton of money, called high profile matches on national TV. He very easily could have come in and been a jerk who wanted to hog the mic, and do things his way, it he was such a treat to deal with from the moment he got to the building. He was affable, completely deferred to me as he knew I had done these shows for 3 years, and wanted me to be “the guy”, and just wanted fill in the gaps when I felt like I was ready to stop talking. I thought we worked very well together, and he was on both nights, and considering he hadn’t called an entire show since he filled in that time on RAW during the buyout of WCW he did a great job. He showed it was important to him to do a good job for Jeff’s friends and fans, because he showed up and was completely prepared, studied up on the guys in the tournament beforehand, and delivered. I can’t say enough good things about Scott. He should be on TV somewhere…no offense to Mike Adamle…LOL. Anyone who says they wouldn’t want to work with either Gordon Solie or Jim Ross is crazy, but since we are all 3 play by play guys at heart, if I had to pick a color guy to work with, I would have to go with David Crockett, just so I could see if I could keep my composure as I heard him scream, “RICKY MORTON…LOOK AT HIM…..”…no seriously, if I ever had the chance to call one match with any color commentator ever, it would probably have to be Jim Cornette or Paul Heyman, because no one could get across what the booker wants the audience to know about a match or a guy like Cornette or Heyman can, plus they both talk so much I wouldn’t have to do a whole lot but stay out of their way…
Alan Wojcik: Around the time frame when NWA Florida folded you began working for Full Impact Pro doing their ring announcing before working the mic on their DVD’s which are now sold nationally in stores. How did this come about and was it the association they have with Ring of Honor that got the attention of Gabe Sapolsky and led you to working for ROH?
Lenny Leonard: Yeah, I had known Sal somewhat but not really well through Ron. No secret those guys didn’t always get along back then…lol... of course they do now, but that’s the nature of wrestling I guess...and when Sal decided to change direction for FIP, and bring Gabe in as booker and do more of an ROH meets Memphis type promotion, he asked me to ring announce for him. I was happy to do it, as NWA Florida was finished at that point and I wasn’t ready to retire just yet. Mark Nulty at that point was doing the play by play for both ROH and FIP then, and I think both Sal and Gabe were ready to make a change. Sal made it first, and after a few months convinced Gabe to give me a chance with ROH. Gabe had me do a few tryout matches as a fill in guy on a few DVD’s during the summer of 2005 and after a couple of shows decided to go with myself and Dave Prazak on both ROH and FIP, and except for about 6 months in 2006 when I was out due to complete reconstruction on both of my knees, we have done every show together since then.
Alan Wojcik: You have called shows with plenty of people like we discussed, but FIP/ROH DVD’s pair you with the mind behind Shimmer Women Athletes Dave Prazak. Having heard you call several DVD’s with him what do you think makes the two of you so good at the commentating business?
Lenny Leonard: Actually I agree with the fans on the ROH board who think we suck personally… No really, I think we both approach a match with the same mindset in that we are both play by play guys at heart, but can do color as well when we need it. ROH is a much more athletic type of a show, it is pro wrestling as a sport, an athletic competition between wrestlers where wins and losses are important, and so I don’t think we need the cliché sports entertainment “heel color commentator” persona for one of us. I think 2 announcers describing what goes on in the ring and touching on the important storyline points and trying to get across some things that may be subtle points in the story the wrestlers are trying to tell in their match is enough. We don’t need one guy being a loud mouthed jerk just because… When you watch a telecast from one of the 4 major sports, you don’t see announcers arguing and acting like a fool, its 2 people trying to get the story across to the viewers. One announcer doesn’t have to act like a jerk just because it’s pro wrestling. I know it bothers some fans because we don’t have that clearly defined role where one of us is the play by play guy, and one of us is the color guy, and for some people it’s not an issue. I don’t see it as an issue personally. We both are adept at switching back and forth between both roles, and in a sport that is as fast paced as wrestling, I don’t think that one guy should ignore calling the action, because its not “his job”. If someone does something while I am talking and trying to make a point during a match, I would think it’d be worse for me to ignore the moves being executed so I could keep calling Larry Sweeney’s character a scumbag or something like that.
Alan Wojcik: You have gotten to call some memorable ROH matches like the arrival of then former WWE star Matt Hardy plus then ROH regulars Nigel McGuiness, Austin Aries, Colt Cabana, Jay Lethal, CM Punk, Samoa Joe, Florida stars Roderick Strong and Erick Stevens, Homicide and American Dragon. Do you have a particular one that stands out above the rest?
Lenny Leonard: Wow, I have been lucky to be a small part of some amazing matches, I don’t think I could pick just one, but I a few of my favorites have been Danielson vs. Nigel at Driven, Nigel vs. Aries at Rising Above, Danielson vs. Lance Storm at Better than Our Best, Danielson vs. Roddy at Supercard of Honor is up there too since at about 57 minutes long, it’s the longest match I have ever called. Long story short, there are too many to have one that stands out, but any time you can call a World Title Change it’s a big deal, and I have been lucky enough to call a few of them.
Alan Wojcik: During your time with ROH six different men have been world champion. This may be hard for you to do but of CM Punk, James Gibson (Jamie Noble to WWE fans), American Dragon, Homicide, Takeshi Morishima and current champion Nigel McGuiness; who do you feel was the best champion in the ring and as an ambassador of the ROH product?
Lenny Leonard: I think each and every one of those guys was an ambassador of the ROH product in their own way, and all of them left a legacy in ROH they can be proud of during their careers here, and some are still crafting that legacy as we speak today.
They all embodied what ROH is about. Competition, athleticism, love of the sport of wrestling, and having the freedom to perform their craft to their best of their abilities in front of the smartest, toughest, but most appreciative fans anywhere, in a company that allows the cream to truly rise to the top. That being said, for sheer consistency of great matches night in and night out, against a wide variety of opponents, over a long period of time, no one is better at being the World Champion than Bryan Danielson, though Nigel McGuiness is certainly a credible, worthy champion to have representing your company
Alan Wojcik: ROH currently features four faction/groups of wrestlers: Sweet & Sour Inc, No Remorse Corps, Age of the Fall and the Vulture Squad. Which do you feel is the dominant group in ROH and how do they stack against former groups like the Prophecy and the Second City Saints?
Lenny Leonard: Though Larry Sweeney is throwing around promises of lots of cash and trips up the river to Vince, and has a great group of athletes, it’s tough to pick against the NRC. They have the FIP World Champ, they just lost the ROH World Tag titles, they are 3 guys who can fight as well as anyone in Romero, Richards and Strong, I’d have to say it’s them.
Alan Wojcik: Let’s talk shop for a moment. How much prep work do you do before calling a show or do you like to just be in the moment?
Lenny Leonard: I try to prep when I know I am doing matches involving talent I have yet to see, so I can get a feel for what someone does. I will see what I can find on the internet and YouTube if possible, but as far as watching the matches before we call them, the only ones I usually get to see before I call them are the PPV shows because I am there live for those in the building. Everything else, when I call it, it is my first viewing, so it is “live” to me.
Alan Wojcik: Which do you prefer calling matches live in the venue or doing it post production style and why?
Lenny Leonard: Post production is great, because it covers a lot of sins, not just commentary wise, but camera angles, and being able to have the right shot when you are calling a particular part of a match. When guys like JR and King are announcing RAW, they have a director getting them the shot they want and are calling off a monitor not watching the ring, so basically the match is edited for them while they are announcing. In post production, we get the same concept in that the best shots are being used and we are seeing those “live shots” on our monitors as we call the action. Believe it or not though, most of our retakes, and there aren’t many, at this point we are pretty good at getting stuff in one take without any do-overs, but most of our retakes are when Gabe, who has so much on his mind at once, forgets to give us a specific point he really wanted us to hit in a match, and stops us early on so he can give it to us. If it’s in the middle or the end of a match though, he gives us notes much like guys get fed stuff through their headsets. I do love the feeling of calling it live without a net though. Part of the real sports broadcasting feel to me is that sometimes mistakes happen, guys flub lines and have to recover on the fly being able to do that and not make it too noticeable is a true art.
Alan Wojcik: 2007 saw ROH enter the world of PPV. Do you think things have gone right and wrong for ROH since that endeavor began?
Lenny Leonard: I think most of it has gone right. I am not privy to actual buy rate numbers, but all reports I hear from ROH is that the numbers are what they expected. Nothing more, nothing less. It’s no secret this was never a deal to make ROH into a major player to compete with anyone else. It was a low risk, moderate reward deal that gave the company another avenue at exposing the product to a larger audience. The fans that like ROH will like the PPV’s and those that don’t, won’t, but I have watched 3 of the PPV’s with people who are either not wrestling fans at all, or were casual WWE fans during the boom years, and to a person, all of them came away from those shows impressed with the product, excited about what they saw, and willing to watch it again. Now whether those translate into DVD sales and future PPV buys, is another story. I don’t think the answer to that question is in yet.
Every show has been universally praised by the critics who reviewed them and the fans who read the newsletters, and websites. I think each show has been a bit different, some heavier on the wrestling end than others, but I don’t think anyone who bought one can say they, at between 10 and 15 dollars for a show, didn’t get their money’s worth.
Alan Wojcik: This past year saw WWE shut down Deep South Wrestling and bring their talent here to resurrect Florida Championship Wrestling (run by Steve Keirn, Tom Pritchard & Dusty Rhodes). Many say with the help of wrestler/promoter Ralph Mosca they are trying to muscle out FIP and other promotions. Having been a wrestling fan for years what do you think of the product (if you have seen it) and the notion they are trying to steal buildings from established promotions?
Lenny Leonard: I have never been to one of their shows. I know Ralph Mosca from the Florida Indy scene, and we always get along well. I have met Steve Keirn twice in my life, and would be willing to bet a million bucks he couldn’t pick me out of a lineup if I was the only person standing in that lineup, same for Dusty Rhodes. I have never met Tom Pritchard before. Not being in the promoting end of the business, I have no idea what Steve and or Ralph are doing to get FCW up and running. All I know is what I hear and read on the internet. If those things are true, I would say it’s a shitty way to do business if you are a company starting up with a huge head start over most Florida promotions, considering a big chunk of your operation is being bankrolled by a billion dollar corporation. That being said, Florida is plenty big enough for everyone to run and be successful….if they are willing to work hard, and promote their product. Fortunately for FIP, Sal has always done right by every building he runs. The people he deals with love FIP, appreciate the product we put on, and the fans look forward to seeing us every time we come back. If someone is trying to play dirty with FIP, it would most likely be a futile effort, because Sal takes care of his buildings, and they appreciate it.
Alan Wojcik: Do you see a day when ROH can compete on a national level with WWE and TNA or are they already at that level right here and now?
Lenny Leonard: I would put ROH’s in ring product up with any company in the world right now without hesitation, but I know that isn’t what you’re getting at. No one is going to “compete” with Vince. He is a billion dollars ahead in the race for financial supremacy. You don’t make up that kind of ground. I think TNA and ROH both have opportunities to be successful at what they do in their own way. TNA has hours of weekly first run TV on a national network and draws a solid and consistent number of viewers every week. Their challenge is to convert those viewers of free TV to paying customers of PPV shows and house shows. Any other goal is putting the cart ahead of the horse in my opinion, and I would think, not knowing anyone in the hierarchy of that company personally, they would probably agree. ROH has an opportunity to be the best ROH it can be, whatever that is, and nothing more than that. Fortunately the people in charge are smart enough to not make deals that will jeopardize the company in any way. So if a TV deal comes along that makes sense, they will consider it, and if one comes along that doesn’t, they won’t. If an opportunity to go to a new market, new country, new building, whatever…comes along, and it makes sense, they will consider it, and if it doesn’t, they won’t. No one wants to make deals for the sake of making a deal. Bad decisions do not just kill small companies, they kill big ones too. The lessons of ECW and WCW are not far removed from anyone’s minds.
Alan Wojcik: Time for you to give some opinions. I am going to give you names of wrestlers who got their start here in Florida over the past few years. Let’s start with Antonio Banks the current WWE Superstar known as MVP.
Lenny Leonard: Man has he improved so much. I could not be happier for the guy. He worked as hard as anyone I knew when he wrestled down here, always wanted to get better and worked tirelessly until he did. Plus he pursued his dream relentlessly. The door was opened just a crack for him due to his persistence, and he kicked that door in by working hard and never giving up. Many people should take a lesson from him.
Alan Wojcik: Current ROH/FIP star Roderick Strong.
Lenny Leonard: He had star written all over him when I first met him when he was a skinny teenager back in IPW. Always has entertaining matches, hits as hard as anyone no matter how big they are. If his promos ever approach his ring work he’d be among the best wrestlers in the world.
Alan Wojcik: Another current ROH/FIP star Erick Stevens.
Lenny Leonard: He used to sit in the seat next to me at the Plex watching IPW as a fan. He was fat, smart and lazy, now he’s in shape, determined, and incredibly gifted. Tons of upside, just scratching the surface of how good he can be.
Alan Wojcik: He used to be Agent Steele but he has become “the Marquee” Bruce Santee.
Lenny Leonard: Man I love this guy. Needs to not get down on himself as often as he does. Has all the tools to make it though.
Alan Wojcik: Quite possibly the three best teams in years: The Shane Twins, the Black Market (Machete & Murphy) and the Heartbreak Express (Sean & Phil Davis).
Lenny Leonard: 3 very good and very different teams. Shane Twins, amazing talents, physical freaks, incredibly gifted athletes. WWE made a big mistake with them. If you can’t figure out what to do with 300 lb identical twins, release the writers, not the wrestlers. Black Market, 2 tough tough dudes, can wrestle, brawl, work any style you want, and both guys love this business so much. 2 of the good guys in my book. HBX, as entertaining a team as you will find anywhere. Willing to do anything to have a memorable match. They can work; Sean can talk for them both, a real throwback type of a team. If they were 20 years older they’d be rich men.
Alan Wojcik: I wasn’t going to let you get away from an interview without asking about a common interest we have, love for the NY Yankees. What do you think of their current season and would you gauze up Hank Steinbrenner for all of us?
Lenny Leonard: I think like any team, it all comes down to pitching. Hughes, Mussina and Kennedy need to be better, because if they aren’t they now do not have the chips in which to make a deal for a front line guy, as the 2 pieces they wouldn’t trade for Santana will have been proven to be busts, and they wouldn’t be able to get a bucket of Gatorade for them afterwards. That being said, real Yankees fans don’t get worried in April. Come see me in August and we’ll talk. But Hank needs to shut his yap and let Cashman and Girardi do their jobs. He ran Torre out of town for Girardi, and he’s taken 1 month to 2nd guess his hand picked successor…He’s a big fat blowhard like his old man, but at least George earned the right to run his yapper. It was his freaking money on the line. Fat trust fund baby playing with his billion dollar toy… makes me sick…
Thanks to Lenny for taking time out of his busy schedule for this interview. For more information on Ring of Honor log onto www.rohwrestling.com and Full Impact Pro’s site is www.fullimpactpro.com
Apr. 25th, 2008 @ 01:41 pm
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| » Alan Wojcik Reviews New Kevin Sullivan DVD |
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"We took the golden goose and we chopped it's head off." That was the best quote of many given during the nearly two hours of KayfabeCommentaries.com's release KEVIN SULLIVAN AND THE END OF WCW. The man known to Championship Wrestling from Florida fans knew as the Games or Task Master was a fixture in the former World Championship Wrestling going back to the days when it was run by the Carolina-based Crockett/NWA promotion. He was there when Ted Turner and his conglomerate bought the promotion in the early 90's. He was there through the embarrssing reign of Jim Herd and the rise to power of Eric Bischoff thanks to the New World Order gimmick and the arrival of cruiserweights. More importantly he was there when things began to turn the other way in the 88 straight week butt whooping WCW gave the former World Wrestling Federation in the TV ratings. This DVD will take you through the events mentioned above; naming the power players like Bill Busch, Brad Seigel, Harvey Schiller and other WCW executives, plus the weeks lying ahead when Bischoff was forced to step aside when former WWF TV writers Vince Russo and Ed Ferrera arrived in what was then considered a mega coup.
Sullivan was in a unique situation as he was given the booking duties after WCW/AOL-Time Warner decided six weeks was enough to show Russo/Ferrera weren't the answer to getting viewers back to the PPV buying window, TNT & TBS. He was in the best possible spot with the roster including Goldberg, Sting, Hulk Hogan, Kevin Nash, Scott Hall plus the NwO, The Giant (Big Show), Booker T, Ric Flair, Scott Steiner, Lex Luger, Sid Vicious, Terry Funk, Jeff Jarrett and the amazing cruiserweights to be mentioned in a moment at his disposal to get WCW back on top. So how the hell did it go wrong and WCW fell apart?? After the great background segment thanks to interviewer Sean Oliver, Sullivan goes through a week by week breakdown of PPV's, Nitro and Thunder events covering the time frame Jan 16 (when the late Chris Benoit won the championship but subsquentially left with Dean Malenko, Eddie Guerrero and Perry Saturn to WWF) through March 2000 when Sullivan is pushed out thanks to scheming of Russo/Bischoff, the political backstabbbing, wrestlers going behind his back to management, wrestlers shooting on each other on live television and other squabbles you have to hear to believe. Want to know what its like to be told how to run a wrestling promotion by people who couldn't tell you what a wristlock is, Sullivan does and he goes in-depth on booking meetings when things got real tense. I have read "the Death of WCW" and seen a shoot interview with Russo/Ferrera and this DVD interview is equal if not better thanks to Sullivan's candor and the research of interviewer.
This excellent DVD is for sale on www.KayfabeCommentaries.com along with other releases. I will be back in the coming weeks with reviews of Shimmer, GLOW and WWE DVD's.
Apr. 9th, 2008 @ 11:04 am
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| » FCW Tuesday: Non Sanctioned Revenge Match!! |
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Florida Championship Wrestling
Bourbon Street Night Club
4331 US Hwy 19
New Port Richey Florida
belltime 8:30 pm
7 dollar cover with $1 drafts
www.fcwwrestling.com
*NON SANCTIONED REVENGE MATCH*
8. Afa VS. Ted DiBiase Jr.
*MAIN EVENT*
*FLORIDA CHAMPIONSHIP*
7. Rycklon (Challenger) VS. Jake Hager (Champion)
*SEMI FINAL*
*FLORIDA TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP REMATCH*
6. “Handsome” Heath Miller & “Sterling” Steve Lewington w/ WWE Superstar, Dave Taylor (Challengers) VS. “The Puerto Rican Nightmares” Eric Perez & Eddie Colon w/ Miss Angela (Champions)
5. *HANDSOME HEATH’S HAPPY HOUR* GUEST: Steve Lewington
*WINNERS WILL BE # 1 CONTENDER FOR THE FLORIDA TAG TITLES!*
4. “The Natural” Nic Nemeth & “The Campus Legend” Brad Allen VS. “The Thoroughbreds” Johnny Curtis & Kevin Kiley
3. *DIVA ACTION! The Bella Twins, Nattie, Victoria, Daisy*
2. “South City Thriller” Hade Vansen & Big Rob VS. “The Stampede Kid” TJ Wilson & Gabe Tuft
1. Sheamus VS. Mighty Mikey
*CARD SUBJECT TO CHANGE*
FCW is the official developmental territory of World Wrestling Entertainment
Feb. 25th, 2008 @ 09:37 am
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| » Alan Wojcik Reviews XPW Season 2 TV DVD |
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In its prime Xtreme Pro Wrestling (XPW) ran in California and the home of the other extreme promotion ECW; Philadelphia, PA and had a TV show. It had a roster of legendary wrestlers like Terry Funk, Sabu, Shane Douglas, Rey Mysterio Sr., Tracy Smothers and Chris Candido mixed with some new stars like Supreme, the Messiah, Kid Kaos and some lovely ladies named Lizzy Borden, Jessica Darlin and Krysti Mist. But like ECW, XPW is a memory thanks to the legal troubles of its owner Rob “Black” Zicari and his wife Borden AKA Janet Romano, who also ran Extreme Associates an adult film company which Borden was a performer. The duo was indicted in federal court on ten counts including distributing obscene materials via the USPS and internet (the case is still pending.)
Big Vision Entertainment and XEG (the company Zicari sold the library to) released season 1 of the XPW TV product and recently added XPW Wrestling Television: the Complete Second Season. Like the other XPW releases it is hosted by Kris Kloss and Larry Rivera. Many people felt I ripped Kloss in my WSX DVD review but I was really not happy with his co-host MTV stuck him with. Kloss actually shines in this release and Rivera is very entertaining, keeping the fans in the match and reminding them of old school wrestlers. There are some great matches on this release including a young “Fallen Angel” Christopher Daniels vs. Donovan Morgan, Terry Funk vs. Sabu, Chris Candido vs. Shane Douglas and Supreme vs. Messiah in a Death Match.
That is the good news; the bad news is listed on the packing of the DVD: “Since season 2 did not contain many actual wrestling matches, we have included over an hour of never before released matches.” The entire set feels like Total Nonstop Rob Black (as opposed to Total Nonstop Angle currently featured on Spike TV.) The season is dominated with his obsession with getting rid of then XPW champion Sabu and keeping Borden happy as “White Trash “Johnny Webb keeps stealing cars and other items. I guess it would have helped if I had seen season one of the TV to understand why Black was playing a Playstation game system with no TV or walking around in a bathrobe, or talking to then WCW president Eric Bischoff or talking to a magic eight ball for all the major decision in his life. The wrestling matches that are featured make it worth buying even if you weren’t a fan of XPW.
This DVD set is available in stores nationwide and also through www.bvdvd.com. There is an XPW info site for you to check out the history of the group www.thexpw.com
Feb. 20th, 2008 @ 04:44 pm
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| » FCW News & Notes On Upcoming Events |
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Florida Championship Wrestling
Tuesday February 5th
Bourbon Street Night Club
4331 US 19N in New Port Richey
8:30pm Bell with $7 admission
www.fcwwrestling.com
*MAIN EVENT*
6 MAN, 4 CORNER ELIMINATION! A COIN TOSS WILL DETERMINE WHO BEGINS THE MATCH. 2 START, THE REMAINING MEN STAND IN THE CORNERS AND CAN BE TAGGED IN. ONCE A MAN SUBMITS OR IS PINNED, HE MUST RETURN TO THE DRESSING ROOM!
These are the six superstars involved: 7 FOOT TITAN, Jake Hagar, “Carnival Freak” Sinn Bowdee, “South City Thriller” Hade Vansen, FCW Southern Heavyweight champion Ted DiBiase Jr. and “Bad Seed” Shawn Osborne
***Round One of a Two Week Tournament, winner to face WWE Tag Team Champions John Morrison & the Miz at the 2/15 Florida State Event!!***
**The “Puerto Rican Nightmare” Eric Perez & Eddie Colon vs. Robert Anthony & Johnny Curtis
**“Handsome” Heath Miller & Steve Lewington vs. Bryan Kelly & Rycklon
“Thee Superstar” Chris Gray vs. TJ Wilson
Big Rob vs. Mighty Mikey
*DIVA GRUDGE MATCH!*
Nattie Neidhart vs. Victoria
Afa vs. G-Rilla
“The Natural” Nic Nemeth & “The Campus Legend” Brad Allen vs. Brandon Groom & Tommy Taylor
PLUS HANDOSME HEATH’S HAPPY HOUR” WILL FEATURE A BIG ANNOUNCEMENT!
Remember each Tuesday night you can see FCW live at Bourbon Street Night Club.
Coming to the 2008 Florida State Fair, well you better on Friday February 15th to see FCW live at 6 & 8PM in the Entertainment Hall. Be there early because before and after the events you can meet the wrestlers for photos and autographs. WWE Hall of Fame member “American Dream” Dusty Rhodes plus WWE tag team champions John Morrison & The Miz are going to be in attendance, more names will be announced later.
FCW will return to the Jewish Community Center on Saturday February 23rd with an 8pm belltime.
Be looking for information on our TV tapings to begin on Thursday February 28th in Tampa.
Feb. 4th, 2008 @ 11:13 am
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| » FCW News: Val Venis at Bourbon St Tomorrow!! |
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Tuesday January 29th
Bourbon Street Night Club
4331 US Hwy 19 New Port Richey Florida
$7 cover with $1 drafts
8:30pm belltime
Matches signed:
FCW southern Heavyweight champion Heath Miller w/Ted DiBiase Jr. vs. WWE Superstar Val Venis
Diva Tag Match
Victoria Crawford and Nattie Neidhart vs. The Bella Twins
More matches to be added
Florida Championship Wrestling will be part of the 2008 Florida State Fair on Friday February 15th. We will be holding two shows at 6 & pm. There will be autograph signings throughout the day and WWE Superstars in attendance. Just announced WWE Hall of Fame member and FCW Legend “American Dream” Dusty Rhodes and the WWE Tag Team champions John Morrison & The Miz!!!
FCW returns to the Jewish Community Center on Saturday February 23rd at 8pm.
Be looking for information on our TV tapings to begin on Thursday February 28th in Tampa.
www.fcwwrestling.com is your home for all information on the official developmental territory of World Wrestling Entertainment.
Jan. 28th, 2008 @ 09:54 am
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| » Florida Championship Wrestling 1/26/08: Hello Ladies! |
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(1) Robert Anthony defeated “Campus Legend” Brad Allen.
(2) Billy Kidman & Matt O’Neal defeated “The Natural” Nic Nemeth & Big Rob.
(3) In his FCW debut multi-generational superstar Eddie Colon defeated “Bad Seed” Shawn Osborne.
(4) “New” FCW Southern Heavyweight champion “Handsome” Heath Miller (w/FCW Champion Ted DiBiase Jr.) defeated Steve Lewington.
(5) In a no DQ Leather Strap Match, “Stampede Kid” TJ Wilson defeated Afa Jr.
(6) “Puerto Rican Nightmare” Eric Perez won the FCW Royal Rumble and he will receive a shot at the FCW Southern Heavyweight championship at the February 15th event. Perez eliminated G-Rilla with help from Eddie Colon.
On Saturday January 26th Florida Championship Wrestling returned to the Jewish Community Center. The JCC is located at 9841 Scenic Drive in Port Richey.
(1) Robert Anthony defeated “Campus Legend” Brad Allen.
This was a revenge match stemming from a tag match where Allen left Anthony in the ring to be beat down by Jake Hager & Hade Vansen. Anthony came out ready to fight while Allen looked like he just rolled in from the Gasparilla parade. Anthony hit a huricurana that sent Allen to the ring apron and a head scissor that brought him back in the ring. Allen got Anthony in an armlock but Anthony countered out and Allen bailed to the floor to rethink things. He came back in with a Hot Shot but Anthony fought back, that was until a triple jump moonsault in the corner was stopped when Allen shoved Anthony to the floor. As the referee went to count Anthony out, Allen took a turnbuckle pad off and the referee saw it. Allen used this time to slide out to his beer helmet and get a drink, which he spit into Anthony’s face. The action finally came back to the ring where Allen focused his attack on Anthony’s lower back. Anthony fought back but Allen sent him head over heels with a clothesline. Anthony fought out of a back stretch submission but Allan hit him with a Saito suplex before going up top. That flight didn’t go too well as Allen’s legdrop hit canvas instead of Anthony. Anthony got on the attack with his impact bodyshots trying to take down the “Campus Legend.” Allen cut off Anthony’s ten punches in the corner with a strategically placed kick to the groin. Allen went for the win but Anthony got his prized beer helmet. The referee took it away but not before Anthony got a swig and spit it into Allen’s eyes. With Allen blinded, Anthony scored the pinfall win.
(2) Billy Kidman & Matt O’Neal defeated “The Natural” Nic Nemeth & Big Rob.
O’Neal and Big Rob have been in a verbal and physical war over the last few weeks with Kidman coaching O’Neal on the art of wrestling and Nemeth basically doing all the ring work for his team. In the opening moments it was Nemeth and his big mouth running things against Kidman, who let Nemeth talk all he wanted to. But in the wrestling department it was Kidman who had full control of things, sending Nemeth into the ample arms of Big Rob and actually heading to the locker room. But instead of a countout loss, Nemeth tried to sneak back in and attack Kidman but it didn’t work as the fans alerted Kidman. Nemeth wanted to make peace with Kidman but he got clotheslined for his effort. Kidman followed with a flying head scissor. This led Nemeth to tag in Big Rob to face off with Kidman and Big Rob used his power to toss Kidman around. Big Rob offered a test of strength and Kidman obliged with a kick to the ribs but his corner whip was blocked. So was his cross bodyblock which Rob turned into a bodyslam. Nemeth tagged back in and was hiptossed to the mat and O’Neal came in for his team, taking over on Nemeth’s left wrist. Kidman came back in but when he went to the ropes for a move, Big Rob dropped the top rope and Kidman went to the floor below. When Kidman did come back to the ring, Nemeth and Big Rob worked him over for several minutes. But nothing they did put Kidman away and after Nemeth missed a punch Kidman leveled him with a dropkick. Both men crawled to their corners but it was O’Neal who was tagged in first and went to work. But Big Rob came in with a cheap shot from behind, only to be taken out with a football tackle. O’Neal hit Nemeth with one as well and the win came courtesy of a Kidman missile dropkick.
(3) In his FCW debut multi-generational superstar Eddie Colon defeated “Bad Seed” Shawn Osborne.
If Colon was nervous he didn’t show it as he went right after Osborne. Always the cocky one, Osborne took some liberties in his attack, sliding in a cheap shot slap on a corner break. Colon fired one right back and took Osborne down with a drop toe hold followed by hip tosses, working over the left arm. Osborne fought back but Colon kept him on the mat attacking the left arm and shoulder. Colon left the arm attack and hit Osborne with two dropkicks and a clothesline that sent Osborne to the floor. Colon didn’t want to wait for Osborne, so he hit a tope to the floor. Osborne came back in the ring but bailed to the floor and the foot race was on and won by Osborne who dropped an elbow on Colon’s back when he tried to come back in. Osborne tossed the rules out the door and went after Colon with a chinlock, using the ropes for leverage. The referee finally caught it and made Osborne break, so he opted for a sleeper in the middle of the ring. But Colon used some leverage and sent Osborne face first into the buckles. Colon got a second wind and attacked Osborne but got too close and Osborne used leverage to drive Colon into the buckles. Osborne went up top for a back superplex but Colon countered it and hit Osborne with a springboard bodyblock to get the upset victory.
The time came one again for “Handsome” Heath Miller’s Happy Hour. He was accompanied to the ring by FCW Southern Heavyweight champion Ted DiBiase Jr. The special guest this evening was WWE Superstar Val Venis, who came out with the Bella Twins. DiBiase and Miller were in awe of Venis who told the fans he was recovered from elbow surgery and he stopped by FCW to see the future superstars in action. Miller said he was just like Venis, having ladies dripping all over him. Miller even said he was just as good a wrestler as Venis. Bu Venis didn’t like it when Miller said he had gold around his waist and the Big Valboski didn’t. Miller and DiBiase tried to calm down Venis by talking about his acting career. The Twins gave Venis some pointers about what to reply with and apparently it had to with Miller’s alleged bedroom prowess. But before they could talk they were interrupted by Nattie Neidhart and Victoria Crawford who claimed the Bella Twins were tramps and slept their way to the top. The Bella’s responded with violence and a fight ensued with the referees being called out to break it up. During the fracas Miller appeared to suffer a low blow. That didn’t stop Steve Lewington from coming out for his title shot.
(4) “New” FCW Southern Heavyweight champion “Handsome” Heath Miller (w/FCW Champion Ted DiBiase Jr.) defeated Steve Lewington.
This rematch came as a result of Lewington’s victory over Miller at the 1/19/08 event, despite DiBiase’s interference. Miller immediately slid to the floor to try and get the pain worked out of his leg. Lewington paced in the ring as DiBiase flung insults at him. Miller finally entered the ring and took his sweet time in locking up with Lewington, stalling for what seemed like an hour. When they did lock up Miller tried to stop the obvious power advantage from taking over. It did and Lewington went to work on Miller’s arm but Miller bailed to the floor again to confer with DiBiase. Miller came back in and squared off with Lewington but was scooped up and slammed to the mat. But when Lewington went for an elbow, DiBiase tripped him up. It didn’t work well as Lewington saw Miller coming and tossed him to the floor. Miller came back in once more but Lewington hit a back heel trip and locked in what looked like the Million Dollar Dream. Miller refused to submit, so Lewington scooped him up for a modified rib breaker. Miller fought off a roll up pin and sent Lewington to the ropes where DiBiase was waiting with a right hand punch to the face. As Miller argued with the referee, DiBiase hit Lewington in the back with his crutches. Lewington made his way back into the ring but Miller took him down to the mat in a chinlock. Lewington escaped but DiBiase was waiting with a choke as Miller got in the referee’s way. Miller kept the attack on the neck going with a knee drop for two. Miller went to end the match with a camel clutch but Lewington powered to his feet and drove Miller into a corner. It was all Lewington needed to get back on the attack, sending Miller running for his life. Lewington hit Miller with three dropkicks and a second rope elbow to the ribs getting two. Miller fought back with a top rope move but Lewington caught him and he hit a power move but the pin was too close to the ropes, allowing DiBiase the chance to drape Miller’s foot on the ropes. Lewington left Miller in the ring and chased DiBiase to the exit signs. But when he re-entered the ring his sunset flip was countered and Miller won with both hands holding the ropes for leverage.
But after the match ended, Val Venis took the house mic. He said the good news was Miller and DiBiase had the FCW Southern Heavyweight championship. The bad news was FCW Commissioner Steve Keirn granted Venis a shot at the championship this Tuesday night at Bourbon Street Night Club.
(5) In a no DQ Leather Strap Match, “Stampede Kid” TJ Wilson defeated Afa Jr.
The winner had to drag his opponent around and touch all four top turnbuckle pads. But when the match was supposed to begin, Afa was nowhere to be found. As Wilson looked towards the entryway, Afa came from underneath the ring and attacked Wilson. He took the leather strap away from the referee, wrapped it around Wilson’s neck and bealed him out of the corner. Next Afa draped Wilson near the ropes and tried to hang him with it. Afa came back in the ring and whipped the prone Wilson with the strap and took him down with a clothesline. Finally Afa put the strap around his wrist and locked it around Wilson as well to begin the match with Wilson worn down from the assault. Afa went right to the corners to try and get victory but Wilson stopped him before he could get two touched. Wilson fought back, reversing a corner whip and it nearly snapped Afa’s shoulder. Wilson had enough and began to whip Afa’s back several times with a spectators’ belt. But Afa raked Wilson’s eyes and sent him to the mat but Wilson cut off the buckle touching with a Thesz press. Wilson used his taped up fist to punch Afa in the head, trying to draw blood. With Afa dazed, Wilson got three buckles touched but the fourth one was stopped when Afa hit a Samoan Drop. Afa got three buckles touched as he dragged Wilson around but his fourth touch was cut off by the strap hitting him in the groin thanks to Wilson. Wilson went after the four buckles as Afa fought for balance and stopped the fourth touch with a spinebuster. Afa got to his feet first and wrapped the strap around Wilson’s neck, dragging him to three corner touches but Afa didn’t realize Wilson was also touching buckles. Wilson fought out of a Samoan Drop and touched the fourth buckle ending the match. But it didn’t end the violence as Afa attacked Wilson with the strap and then went to use the ring bell but several FCW superstars hit the ring, sending Afa to seek higher ground.
(6) “Puerto Rican Nightmare” Eric Perez won the FCW Royal Rumble and he will receive a shot at the FCW Southern Heavyweight championship at the February 15th event. Perez eliminated G-Rilla with help from Eddie Colon.
The order of entry was: (1) “Puerto Rican Nightmare” Eric Perez (2) “Carnival Freak” Sinn Bowdee (eliminated by Kevin Kiley) (3) Bryan Kelly (eliminated by Johnny Curtis) (4) Rycklon (eliminated by Titan) (5) Tommy Taylor (eliminated by Rycklon) (6) “Rough House” Ralph Mosca (eliminated by G-Rilla) (7) Johnny Curtis (eliminated by Rycklon) (8) Chris Gray (eliminated by Bryan Kelly) (9) Mighty Mikey (eliminated by Titan) (10) 7 Ft Giant Titan (eliminated by G-Rilla) (11) “Mastodon of Mayhem” G-Rilla (eliminated by Perez) (12) Sheamus (eliminated by Jake Hager) (13) Sledgehammer (eliminated by Mosca) (14) “South City Thriller” Hade Vansen (eliminated by Sheamus) (15) Kevin Kiley (eliminated by Jake Hager) (16) Jake Hager (eliminated by Rycklon) (17) Brandon Groom (eliminated by Hade Vansen) (18) Mr. Yamamoto (eliminated by Titan) (19) David Mercury (eliminated by Jake Hager).
See you Tuesday night at Bourbon Street Night Club, 4331 US 19N in New Port Richey, bell time 8:30pm. Already signed WWE Superstar Val Venis against “Handsome” Heather Miller for the FCW Southern Heavyweight championship.
Coming to the 2008 Florida State Fair, well you better on Friday February 15th to see FCW live at 6 & 8PM in the Entertainment .Hall. Be there early because before and after the events you can meet the wrestlers for photos and autographs. WWE Hall of Fame member “American Dream” Dusty Rhodes plus WWE tag team champions John Morrison & The Miz are going to be in attendance, more names will be announced later.
FCW will return to the Jewish Community Center on Saturday February 23rd with an 8pm belltime.
Be looking for information on our TV tapings to begin on Thursday February 28th in Tampa.
For more information on the FCW Superstars log onto www.fcwwrestling.com
Jan. 27th, 2008 @ 12:07 am
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| » FCW 1/26 Notes: Val Venis Says Hello FCW, Plus Royal Rumble!! |
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Saturday January 26th
8pm Belltime
9841 Scenic Drive
Port Richey, Florida
Tickets are 10 at door and 7 in advance
Tickets can be purchased at the Center 9-3pm Mon-Thurs
*MAIN EVENT*
* ROYAL RUMBLE RULES*
*2 MEN START AND EVERY MINUTE A NEW MAN ENTERS THE RING. THE LAST MAN STANDING WILL RECEIVE A SHOT AT THE FLORIDA HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION
Entrants:
Sinn Bowdee, Johnny Curtis, Bryan Kelly, Eric Perez, Rycklon, G’Rilla, Giant Titan, Jake Hagar, Kevin Kiley, Mighty Mikey, Hade Vansen, Tommy Taylor, Chris Gray, Brandon Groom, Mr. Yamamoto David Olivieri and “Roughhouse” Ralph Mosca.
*STRAP MATCH! NO DQ! *
*BOTH WRESTLERS CONNECTED AT THE WRIST BY A 8 FOOT LEATHER STRAP!*
Afa VS. “The Stamped Kid” TJ Wilson
*SOUTHERN HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP AT STAKE*
Steve Lewington (Challenger) VS. “Handsome” Heath Miller (Champion) Accompanied by Ted DiBiase, Jr.
*WWE SUPERSTAR VAL VENIS WILL BE THE GUEST ON HEATH MILLER’S “HANDSOME HEATH’S HAPPY HOUR”!*
*SPECIAL DEBUT MATCH*
“Bad Seed” Shawn Osborne VS. Eddie Colon
*TAG TEAM WAR!*
“The Natural” Nic Nemeth & Big Rob VS. Billy Kidman & Matt O’Neal
*SPECIAL CHALLENGE MATCH!*
“The Campus Legend” Brad Allen VS. Robert Anthony
*CARD SUBJECT TO CHANGE*
FCW is the only WWE Developmental in Florida
Check out fcwwrestling.com
Jan. 21st, 2008 @ 09:48 am
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| » Florida Championship Wrestling 1/15/08 Results: DiBiase Injured!!! |
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(1) Sheamus defeated “Puerto Rican Nightmare” Eric Perez.
(2) Johnny Curtis defeated “South City Thriller” Hade Vansen.
(3) Rycklon & Steve Lewington defeated “Bad Seed” Shawn Osborne & “Carnival Freak from Myrtle Creek” Sinn Bowdee.
(4) The 7 Foot Giant Titan (w/Mosca) defeated Kevin Kiley.
(5) In a demanded rematch from Saturday, Mighty Mikey & Matt O’Neal defeated “The Natural” Nic Nemeth & Big Rob.
(6) Afa Jr. fought Bryan Kelly to a no contest after “Stampede Kid” TJ Wilson interfered.
(7) “Handsome” Heath Miller (representing FCW Heavyweight champion Ted DiBiase Jr.) defeated Billy Kidman.
On Tuesday night January 15, 2008 Florida Championship Wrestling returned to Bourbon Street Night Club, 4331 US 19N in New Port Richey after a successful show with the David Williams Celebrity Tribute to the Troops.
(1) Sheamus defeated “Puerto Rican Nightmare” Eric Perez.
In his FCW debut Saturday Perez lost to Steve Lewington via DQ so he was ready to prove he belonged in FCW. Early on it was a battle to see who was the stronger man of the duo and after several moves; it was Perez who sent Sheamus to the apron to regroup. When he re-entered Perez went to work on Sheamus’ left arm and shoulder until Sheamus took over when he hit a Hot Shot followed by a Northern Lariat. Sheamus kept on the neck region with some legal and illegal moves that got him several two counts. Perez fought out of a rear chinlock only to have Sheamus hit a spinning neckbreaker for two. Sheamus took Perez back down into a body scissor with the chinlock hoping for the submission, instead Perez got to his feet again and this time he got on the attack with chest chops and a series of power moves for two. Sheamus thought backdrop but Perez broke that up with a DDT for two. Sheamus fired back with an STO for two and that sent the Irishman in finishing mode and that meant he went for the battle axe but the referee stopped it and Perez went for a roll up but Sheamus co | |
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