Should Have Been Huge: Sweet And Sour Larry Sweeney

I am not going to sit here and lie to you and tell you that I knew about Larry Sweeney and followed him from day one until he passed away.  Until he died I had no idea who he was, didn't even know his name, didn't know he existed until Chris Hero tweeted that Sweeney had passed away. Intrigued, I went to Youtube and searched for something, anything that would tell me something about this guy beyond Wikipedia. It was like finding out that there is something awesome was out there and everyone knew about it except for you, and you found out about it only after it had went away forever. Watching his promos and matches made me want to see newer and better stuff which led to the sad realization that that would never happen because in a struggle with bi-polar disorder Sweeney committed suicide.

How Not To Ever Make It In Wrestling

Last weekend Davey Richards, Kyle O'Reilly, Tony Kozina, and another member of Richards' training team got into dispute with a promoter over pay. At the end of the dispute Richards and his team ran out with their advanced pay and did not perform with the exception of Kozina, who "wrestled" a 16 year old kid by the name of Ryan Kidd. As the story goes, Kidd cut some promos on Kozina that Kozina found to be disrespectful so Kozina decided to choke Kidd out in the middle of the ring. Now, I am not in the business of wrestling, I am merely a fan and have been for the better part of 25 years. However, there are some things that I know about wrestling and how new guys, who are deemed to be disrespectful to veterans are "taught lessons" about respect, of the sport and the people who have been in the sport before them. What happened here wasn't teaching a lesson, but rather Kozina taking advantage of someone just because he could.

Interview: Stevie Jonak

When did you decide you wanted to get involved in wrestling?

I started watching wrestling at 10 years old and when I was 14 my cousin gave me the idea to become a manager, and I realized that that sounded like something I could not only do but something I could give my life to. I fell in love with that idea after that and it became the only thing I wanted to do.

Who were your favorites growing up? Favorite Manager? 

My favorite are Ric Flair, the Four Horsemen, and the Hart family. My favorite manager is Jimmy Hart.

Have you gotten to meet many big names since you started? And if so, what was your impression of them?

Since starting I have met and work Kevin Sullivan on a regular basis and he is a very sweet and intelligent man who I have a ton of respect for. I have also met Gangrel once and he was very sweet and great to talk to.

Managers are making a comeback of sorts in WWE, do you see them becoming as prominent as they were in the 80's & 90's? 

I'm not sure they will be as big as they used to be but its good to see them making a come back.

Who are you currently managing?

I am currently managing Homeland Security which consists of Triple D and the Native Assassin. They are the AIWF NW tag team champions.

You have Spina Bifida, and you are credited as being the first ever legitimately wheelchair bound manager. How do people react when they first see you come out to the ring? 

The fans seem to enjoy seeing me and have been very supportive so far in my career.

Take us through a normal day for you. What kind of struggles come with having Spina Bifida?

I spend a lot of time at home on my computer and watching TV I also work shows every weekend and spend time with friends and family. My biggest issues seem to be transportation because I do not drive right now so I take the bus a lot so getting around is hard. My other big issue is public facilities being wheelchair friendly. Able bodied people think the ADA solved all our problems but that's just not the case sometimes.

Do you ever get physically involved at ringside?

I have just now started to get physically involved and I love doing it. I feel like I'm officially a member of the roster.

You were featured in an issue of Pro Wrestling Illustrated, how did that come about?

I was given Frank Krewda's contact information by a co-worker and I emailed him giving him my story.

Any funny/strange stories from your time in the business?

Well last weekend was the second time that I've taken a bump while in the business. My youngest sister said seeing me get beat up would be funny and I had my Dad and step mom in town so I decided to give my sister her wish and let her see me get beat up. So one of the guys that my team was going against decided to throw me out of the chair in front of my family. Well my other sister Dani was not in on the act and when I flew out of the chair it freaked her out and she almost threatened to beat someone up. That was pretty funny.

Wrestling as a whole is down right now. What do you think needs to change to help it grow to where it was in the late 90's?

Good question well back in the 90's in was very unpredictable and there were no rules maybe (even though I like that they are safer now a days) it needs to stop being so predictable and safe. think outside the box just as they did in the 90's.

Any upcoming shows you would like to plug?

The AIWF Northwest is putting together their first Internet Pay Per View, getting together with EQ Pro Wrestling, SCW, and BCW from Portland Oregon and putting on a show at the B & I in Tacoma Washington. 5 dollars to watch the show online if you can not make the show and all the money goes to charity. EQPW also does three shows a month at the B & I Saturday's at 2 pm.

Interview: Ricky Ruckus

There are more independent wrestlers in this country than we can possibly count. Each of them give of their bodies night in and night out, inside small venues to entertain the fans, and to improve enough to hopefully one day get noticed and take that next step towards fulfilling their dreams. 

Today we interview Number one contender for the HPW Heavyweight Title, and all around scary dude, Ricky Ruckus

Interview: Jake Jeckyll

There are more independent wrestlers in this country than we can possibly count. Each of them give of their bodies night in and night out, inside small venues to entertain the fans, and to improve enough to hopefully one day get noticed and take that next step towards fulfilling their dreams. 

Our interview series continues with Indy wrestling's resident carnival freak, Jake Jeckyll.

When did you decide you wanted to be a Pro Wrestler? 

I started pro wrestling at an early age.. At 11yrs old all I wanted to do was be a pro wrestler... though life never really worked out the way ya want it to.. even though many years later here i am...

Interview: Sign Guy

There are more independent wrestlers in this country than we can possibly count. Each of them give of their bodies night in and night out, inside small venues to entertain the fans, and to improve enough to hopefully one day get noticed and take that next step towards fulfilling their dreams. 

Our interview series continues with Indy grappler, Referee, and You Tube star Sign Guy. 

When did you decide you wanted to be a Pro Wrestler?

I've followed professional wrestling since 1986. It never really occured to me that I'd be an active participant untill Jerry Wilson of Hoosier Pro Wrestling put me in his ring as such. 

Interview: Stompin' Steve

There are more independent wrestlers in this country than we can possibly count. Each of 

them give of their bodies night in and night out, 

inside small venues to entertain the fans, and to improve enough to hopefully one day get 

noticed and take that next step towards fulfilling their dreams. 

Our interview series continues with current HPW Heavyweight Champion, Stompin' Steve.

1. When did you decide you wanted to be a Pro Wrestler?
I had thought about it many years ago when I was much younger. Danny Davis (Now of OVW) seemed impressed with my height (6'7" in boots) and size back when I met him at a show several years back. I had a lot of things come up in my life and a lot of issues to deal with. But 3 years ago I decided it was time to go for it, I was getting myself in better shape and thought it was "Now or never".

Just Watch: Joey Ryan Has a Camera and a Youtube Account

Vol. 1

Interview: Tommaso Ciampa

The Sicilian Psychopath. Also known as Tommaso Ciampa, is a up and coming, nay, an established indy wrestling superstar for Ring of Honor wrestling. I first noticed him when Ring of Honor was still on HDNet and his brutal move-set and distinct look, think Stone Cold Steve Austin mixed with Woody Harrelson in Natural Born Killers, instantly made me think that he was destined for greatness in the wrestling business. And that was before I even heard him cut a promo. You see, he is part of the stable "The Embassy", where Prince Nana and Barrister R.D. Evans do most of the talking. It wasn't until earlier this year that Tommaso began to release promos on Youtube that it became clear that not only could Ciampa wrestle, but he was also getting comfortable cutting promos. He is becoming next level great. Here's an example of one of his latest promo.

Ciampa, being the cool cat that he is, accepted an interview request on Twitter. The biggest interview for the site yet. I am extremely happy to bring you an interview with someone who I really do think will be one of the biggest stars in the history of the business. Enjoy.

Get To Know An FCW Superstar: Antonio Cesaro

Hailing from Lucerne, Switzerland,  Antonio Cesaro is one the most seasoned talents to arrive in FCW from the independent circuits. Cesaro, under his actual name of Claudio Castagnoli, started his wrestling training in Switzerland before moving to England where he got an invite to perform in IWA Mid-South with his partner in the tag team Swiss Money Holding, Ares. Receiving training from Chris Hero and Mike Quackenbush, Cesaro returned to Europe eventually winning a permanent resident card from the US green card lottery.

Just Watch: Chuck Taylor's Gentlemen's Club

Note To Wrestlers: You're Not MMA Fighters

As I have said many times here, I am fairly new to the independent wrestling scene. I am not going to lie to you and say I have been watching guys like Davey Richards, Low Ki, Eddie Edwards, or any other independent wrestler who's style is based off of Japanese "strong" style for a long time. However, since I have started this blog I have tried my best to pay attention to as much wrestling as possible, and one thing seems to garner the most attention and admiration on the independent scene is guys who work as stiff as possible, like the gentlemen mentioned above, use legitimate MMA style maneuvers and seemingly have little to no regard for the guys they are working with in the ring.

I totally understand that wrestling is, even when guys are using the utmost precaution in the ring, brutal and unforgiving.  However, I also understand that the guys in the ring are following a script and usually go to great lengths to make their violence look as painful as possible while inflicting as little pain on each other as possible. This isn't the 60s, 70s, and 80s where the legitimacy of pro wrestling was in doubt, but still believed to be real. The cat is out of the bag, the genie is out of the bottle. There is no going back.

Q&A with NWA Hollywood's Christian Cole

Going from the East Coast to the West, I had the opportunity to interview NWA Hollywood's very own Christian(Xtian) Cole and decided to find out a little about how life as a manager is in the world of wrestling. I have always been a huge fan of a good manager, whether they want us to hate or love them a good manager needs to do one thing and that is to get us care about the guy they're managing. Managers are like seasoning on a steak. Sure, an unseasoned steak will fill you up, but with the right seasoning you're gonna remember that steak. Mmmmmm steak..Anyhow, I hope you enjoy the interview, I know I did.

PTC: Give us a little back story on who you are, where you have been, who trained you, and how long you have been doing this.
CC: Christian Cole, trained by David Heath (Gangrel) and JR Fatu. Started training in Jan of 2009.

Q&A With Indy Tag Team The T.E.C.H Squad(Updated pictures and video)

Big moment for the site as we have scored or first interview with actual wrestlers. The T.E.C.H(Two Equally Charming Heterosexuals) Squad are a pair of independent wrestlers from Florida who I happen to follow on Twitter so I decided to interview them and they agreed. I hope you enjoy.

Names
Trevor "TC" Read
Mike Monroe

Hailing from
Fort Lauderdale, FL

Height and Weight
TC - 6"2 190lbs
Mike - 6"1 220lbs

Please Let ECW R.I.P

I am a late to the show(as usual) ECW fan. The only wrestling I got to watch when ECW started was WCW and WWE because I wasn't in a region that carried ECW.  I remember watching commercials for a ECW pay per view at my friend Fletcher's house, who got ECW because his family had the money to get one of those gigantic satellite dishes where you could watch Chinese game shows and games of cricket on a regular basis if that is what you wanted to do..Fletch's house was also always stocked with food too..it was awesome. But, I digress.

As I watched the commercial I saw guys hitting each other with garbage can lids, powerbombing each other through tables lit on fire,hitting each other with Kendo sticks, barb wire, thumb tacks, and cookie pans. I was confused, interested, and skeptical about this crazy style of wrestling. I had NO idea that this organization would turn out to be the farm system that fueled the Monday Night Wars between WWE and WCW with not only talent, but ideas as well. However, after I left Fletch's house I forgot all about ECW, because as I said, I wasn't in a region that carried ECW, and because me and Fletch weren't that tight. Regardless of his stocked pantry.

Sara Del Rey, Diva Division Savior

We have all done it. We're watching Raw or Smackdown and when there is a diva's match we get up and go to the bathroom, or change the channel to something for five minutes, or blankly stare at the television until the segment is over, and quickly forget whatever we saw because, quite frankly, the diva's division is a joke. Fans who believe the diva division can be a source or actual entertainment beyond ,"Wow,she is hot!", thought they were in for a treat when Kharma showed up on WWE programming to scare the wits out of the diva division. They probably were until, not more than two months later, Kharma first killed any hope we had in her character development as a diva slayer, and then probably killed any chance the diva's division would get any serious consideration when she announced she was pregnant, sidelining her for at least a year.

Make 'Em Famous(er): Truth Martini

When the announcement came down that Ring of Honor(after being dropped by HDNet) was going to be available in my area after Sinclair Broadcasting bought (probably) the biggest independent wrestling promotion in the United States I was, of course, psyched. More wrestling is always welcome on my television(even TNA/Impact Wrestling) and I have heard a so much about ROH from the internet about how ROH is home to the best WRESTLING in the states bar none. As soon as I saw the first show I knew everything I had heard about it having the best wrestling was absolutely true. Despite having some problems, that I wont get into here, ROH , from  a pure wrestling standpoint is head and shoulders above everyone else in the States. However, as I have continued to watch ROH there has been one person in particular who has caught my eye, and my ears, more than anyone else. That one person is Life Intervention Expert Truth Martini.