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WWE Diva Cameron was arrested for a DUI in Hillsborough County on Aug. 24th. She blew a .20 on the breathalyzer test, more than double the .08 limit. Furthermore, she lied about her employer and supposedly tried to bribe the cop to keep things quiet. I mean, the comedy writes itself there.
SHOW OFF
Two men in Iowa were arrested for stealing the TNA Title and its replica. Seems like Iowa’s the place to steal things in wrestling nowadays.
UFC 151 was a Great PPV.
I’m sure somebody called Cameron’s momma... and the bondsman. 5
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King Mo will begin his pro wrestling training this month before debuting in TNA in October. How soon before Mo forgets which sport he’s doing and steps in the octagon only to pull out a chair on his opponent?
SHOW OFF
Seems like Dolph Ziggler isn’t just a Show Off inside the ring. Comedian Amy Schumer dated the Money in the Bank winner for a while and spoke about the athletic sex the two would have. I wonder if she sold orgasms as well as he sells the Brogue Kick.
Jon Jones asked Dana White to tell Chael Sonnen to stop calling him out. White sent both men to the corner and told them they’re in Time Out.
Chael Sonnen just asked “Why did the chicken cross the road?” And then he responded “Because he got a DUI.”
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Daris Brown | @HTRMrWikipedia
It’s time to celebrate the best...and the worst of the month from the worlds of professional wrestling and MMA.
CHAMPS
CHUMPS
Rise in Women’s MMA
Bones Knows Cancellations
After once portraying himself as perfect, Jones has been getting an array of backlash for turning down a fight with Chael Sonnen, UFC cancels 151 as a result of Jones declining to take the fight.
Ronda Rousey is gold for Women’s MMA. When some people don’t believe it belongs she keeps giving people more and more reasons to tune in. Beauty meets skill. A win for ladies everywhere.
Just Kickin’ It
SMH WWE So the WWE decides to fire Abra-
In their fourth, and hopefully final bout, Andre Arlovski David Beckham’d Tim Silva face. He was supposed to wait for the ref ’s okay. But afterwards he manned up and said he didn’t care, unlike Anderson Silva who in the past blamed a language barrier for the illegal blow.
ham Washington for a dated Kobe Bryant joke, that was similarly done more closely to the action. But Cameron gets a DUI AND tries to bribe the cops, and gets 15 days! Abe does nothing illegal and is fired? Priorities...in check.
Rescue Wrestler’s Rescue
Cesaro Wins
Added proof of the minster of the new regime, another star that wasn’t born from Vinnie Mac’s brain gets a shot to succeed. Antonio Cesaro defeated Santino, a collective thank gawd, for the US title. Now he can prove if he’s worth all the hype.
Dawn Marie and crew are still proclaiming their innocence. Vinny the Guido came on HTR a few years ago blasting them. Now he’s joined them? Can you say crooked?
RIP MCD
Back to the Kitchen
The MMA community lost one of its biggest fans, figuratively and literally, with the passing of Michael Clarke Duncan. MCD could often be spotted in the crowd of UFC events, helping to give the sport’s celebrity swag, helping with the sports popularity.
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After boring TNA fans to the point of harassment, Claire Lynch ended everyone’s misery by quitting TNA. There were no complaints, maybe even a few thank you letters. Now she’s taking her horrible acting to the Food Network or wherever talent goes to die.
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Caribbean Playboy | @Shane184
Who is She?
Evie Evie
How often does a wrestler go from never holding a championship to holding two in a week’s span? Her Twitter bio reads as “Hyper-happy-kicky-geeky wrestler chick.,” and if you’ve been privy to her in the ring then you know this is true. Evie began training in 2007 at the age of 18, making her debut in mid-2008. In the five years since she has become one of New Zealand’s most popular wrestlers. Diva Dirt listed her as one of their Five to Watch in 2011 and she’s only improved her stock since then. Back then she hadn’t won any championships but that has since changed with her winning two titles within the span of a week this month. In May of this year Impact Pro Wrestling announced they would hold a tournament to crown its first Women’s Champion. On Aug. 18th, the finals took place with Evie defeating her rival Britenay and her friend, and tag partner, Megan-Kate in a triple-threat McKay taking on Evie in the finals to crown the company’s PWWA Interim Champion. (Madison Eagles, holder of the PWWA Championship, is out nursing a knee injury.) Evie would go on to pin the two-time champion McKay to become a double champion in seven short days.
Evie’s Accolades:
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• 1x PWWA Interim Champion (current) • 1x IPWNZ Women’s Champion (current)
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The Rehab and Return of the Barrage - Louie Babcock (@medic_louie)
Wade Barrett suffered a dislocation to his left elbow on February 20th at Raw. It is now September and the only glimpse we see of him is in the form of vignettes. This can only mean one thing, that the time of his return is drawing closer.
repair the damage.
THE INJURY THAT SIDELINED THE FUTURE WORLD CHAMP The night before his injury, Barrett competed in a very physical match in the SmackDown Elimination Chamber. When Barrett came out on Raw the following night it was clear he was banged up due to his left arm being taped from elbow to shoulder.
When a dislocation of this joint occurs, stress is placed on the ligaments. If the dislocation is bad enough, ligaments will be torn. Normally, a dislocated joint will not need surgery unless bones have been broken or ligaments need to be repaired.
Barrett was injured while trying to catch Ziggler who was thrown to the outside of the ring by Big Show. The impact caused Barrett to suffer a dislocation of the elbow. His injury was classified as a simple elbow dislocation, and he would be out of action for six to eight weeks. At the time there was a slim chance that Barrett would be able to compete at WrestleMania. That all changed when it was determined that he would need surgery to 13
UNDERSTANDING THE ELBOW JOINT The elbow joint is made up of three bones. They are the humerus, ulna and radius. The bones attach to each other through a series of ligaments.
The fact that Barrett needed surgery to repair his elbow means that ligament damage has occurred. There was never any indication of bone breaks. They would have found that out instantly from x-ray, and news of that would have surfaced shortly after his diagnosis. During the surgery, doctors will go into the elbow, find the damaged ligaments and repair them. Barrett will have been put into a special brace that hinges just like the elbow does.
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With athletes, rehab is tailored to put the athlete through exercises that mimic the way they use that joint in their sport. In pro wrestling, a wrestler does not need the full range of motion in the elbow to get back in the ring. When Barrett gets about 80 percent of his range of motion back, the physical therapist will likely move on to strength training. The reason for this is that during strength training, the ligaments can continue to be stretched out. The reason for this is that during strength training, the ligaments can be continued to be stretched out. The strength training will be the critical aspect of the rehab. This not only will bring his muscle mass back up to the where it was before the injury, but it will show that he will be able to lift and support heavy weights, which is critical to performing moves as a pro wrestler. When ligaments have been repaired surgically, they are tighter. Range of motion in the elbow will be far less than it was prior to injury. Barrett wouldn’t be able to begin rehab until the repaired ligaments have formed a permanent attachment to the bones. This could take up to six weeks to happen. REHAB AFTER SURGERY Once the rehab begins, the physical therapist will first focus on getting back as much range of motion as possible. This will be a hard and painful process. The elbow will have to be worked in a way that forces the ligaments to get stretched out. The rehab for range of motion could take as long as six weeks, barring any setbacks. It is quite possible that full range of motion will never be achieved.
I have no idea why Barrett has not come back sooner. I can only speculate that he had setbacks in his recovery. I really hope it was not due to WWE waiting until they had a story for him, because Barrett is far too talented of a wrestler to sit on the shelf when he is ready to go. What does the rest of 2012 hold for Barrett? Personally, I think he will be the WHC by the time the ball drops in Times Square. If he is not, then I think it would be a safe bet to assume the Mayans were right. Louie Babcock has over five years experience in emergency medicine and is studying medicine at the University of Minnesota. He is also a writer for WrestleEnigma.com. For more of his work, click on the medical mayhem tab on the site. Follow him on Twitter@Medic_Louie
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hen the topic of great factions is brought up most often than not DX, nWo, and the Four Horsemen are the groups that come to mind. But those who followed WCW in the early 90s should remember another ensemble of talent that were undervalued and never got the credit they deserved. Led by Paul E. Dangerously, better known now as Paul Heyman, the Dangerous Alliance began to reek havoc on WCW as they collected every piece of gold the company had with the exception of the World title. Behind every good man is a good woman. Madusa would Look at the members of this terrorizing stable be that “good” woman for the and you’ll find a Hall of Fame worthy crew that crew, as she would become was unrivaled at the time. The front man of the more than just a pretty face. group was “Ravishing” Rick Rude, one of the best A distraction that could take bumpers and greatest talkers of his time. He would action, Madusa was the final go on to win US gold. piece to the puzzle. The Dangerous Alliance did not manage to stay together long, but had they there’s no question they would be regarded as one of the strongest groups in history. They were just one world title away from total dominance. And while Beside him, the duo of Arn Anderson and Larry they had many different members, there Zbyszko were as tough and as deadly as they come, has always been one key component, Paul recall their out-of-ring attack on Barry Windham. Heyman. They broke his arm in a car door and sent a message to the rest of the tag team division. Heyman originally started the faction in AWA where he guided The Original The other wing man was some guy who could only Midnight Express to the AWA World be described as “Stunning.” Today’s fans know him Tag Team Championship. From there simply as Austin. Fans then knew him as one of the he succeeded in WCW. And after that he TCC www.TheColorCommentator.com 15 greatest Television champions in the company’s revived the Dangerous Alliance in ECW history. where he managed Taz and Sabu to ECW
Until then, could we see Heyman resurrect the Dangerous Alliance in the WWE? The faces of WWE sure hope not.
World Tag Team gold. Everywhere he goes he has assembled his ruthless Alliance…with the exception of the WWE. Well, until now.
Directed by Heyman and led by Punk, the Dangerous Alliance could be everything that the Nexus could never be. It was filled with midcarders, and some less than that, where the new alliance would be limited to the best of the best. They go on to recruit the “Showoff” Dolph Ziggler, because he’s one of the few guys that can hang with Punk. His Money in the Bank contract will be a guarantee that the title will stay in the Alliance…not that Punk would ever lose in the first place. And since Heyman likes Vickie’s ability to get what she wants, she will be arm piece to the faction.
On the Sept. 3rd edition of Raw, CM Punk attacked John Cena after he disclosed he was The final piece of the puzzle comes with the tag leaving to take a personal day. team division. There doesn’t appear to be much of After giving Cena a Snake Eyes one now, but that’s because the WWE is missing on the hood of a conveniently a dominant team to revitalize the division. Enter parked car the driver’s side Heyman who has creating tag champs in every window rolled down to reveal promotion he stops at. In a twist of things it will be the owner of the vehicle as the return of Ted DiBiase and Cody Rhodes. Rhodes Heyman. Punk has said on had some success by himself, but has fallen down numerous occasions that he is a “Paul a notch since losing his IC title. DiBisase will help Heyman guy;” now it is apparent that the him return to his winning ways as the team had an relationship is moving to the next level. incredible chemistry that should not be ignored. In all of Heyman’s time the one piece of All they need now is the guidance of Paul Heyman the group that was missing was a world and they can reach the potential (especially the champ. It’s apparent that he has now filled underachieving DiBiase) that so many fans feel that void. With Brock Lesnar on limited they have. scheduling it’s doubtful that we’ll see him anytime soon. If he does resurface he will And together the group will be known as the certainly do so alongside his mouthpiece TCCDangerous Alliance. They will speak their mind, 16 @HitTheRopes on Twitter Paul Heyman. drop pipe bombs and elbow drops whenever and wherever they please.
Throwback DVD Review: PWG’s Steen Wolf Shane H. | @Shane184
I remember when Steen Wolf actually went down last year and just from the reaction on Twitter I knew this was a show I had to see for myself. Still, it took me a while before I finally got around to purchasing it (WrestleMania weekend) and it then sat on my bookshelf for a few more months before I finally said the hell with it, screw the world, it’s time to immerse myself in the SoCal goodness that is PWG.
B, Chris Kadillak, and Candice LeRae We get a super-fun opening contest with these six. Avalon and LeRae aren’t new to PWG but the other four men are making their debuts. Peter Avalon is a riot. Candice LeReaux has a Ninja Turtles-inspired outfit. If not for Kevin Steen, joining Excalibur on commentary, I wouldn’t have noticed. Suicide dive into a tornado DDT by Candice leads to everyone showing their death-defying athleticism. Ray Rosas and Avalon hit a sick combo on B. This Chris Kadillak guy is impressive too. Ball-plex from Candice LeRae to each of her opponents. Swanton Bomb from B and frogsplash from Kadillak ends things.
This is an amazing show. AH-MAZE-ZING! If you haven’t watched it, and you’re a fan of pro wrestling (notice I didn’t specify by promotion there) then you need to add this to your collection. Every match wasn’t a homerun but some of PWG’s doubles are better than some things you may see elsewhere. And the PWG crowd is another reason why the shows rock. Props to TJ Perkins vs. Rocky Romero those in attendance. This is one of those doubles I was talking about. Match I’ll never do the show justice with a full-out recap with filled with technical wrestling, quickness, and high-implay-by-play breakdown so I won’t even try. pact moves. The referee won’t disqualify TJ Perkins after Perkins hits a crossbody on both the ref and Romero. Peter Avalon, Freddy Bravo, and Ray Rosas vs. Famous Ref says it wasn’t on purpose, plus it was after Romero 17
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had Irish whipped the ref moments before. Reverse pendulum by TJP on Romero after the ref chops Romero to the mat. This is a much slower pace match than what occurred previously. Not sure what happened during the pin after Perkins hit Rocky with a jawbreaker across the knee type move but everyone in the crowd seemed confused as Romero didn’t kick out. The match continues and SPLAT! Goes TJP after missing a 450 splash. He’d still get the submission victory after locking in the Sharpshooter later.
management buddy, Harold. Ryan is the guy who continues to show up during all of TNA’s Gut Check episodes. Late in the match Zokre hits a nasty blockbuster on Ryan unto Star’s knees. This was a solid outing where Ryan and Sky won after a Ryan superkick and Sky TKO contested under Lucha Rules. I didn’t love it but it was pretty good stuff.
Johnny Goodtime and Johnny Yuma vs. Brian CageTaylor and Ryan Taylor If only the WWE or TNA put on tag matches that were this crazy good in today’s product. Match got crazy with a good amount of time spent on the outside with bodies crashing into chairs.The Taylor Boys pulled off a launch pad Kentucky Destroyer, wow. Yuma was able to break up the pin. Goodtime would recover and roll up CageTaylor to give the win to the RockNES Monsters. Willie Mack vs. Davey Richards If you’ve never seen Mack before you’d see him and not think he could do the things he can do in and out of a wrestling ring. The bottom rope would get knocked loose during this one. Richards targets the hand and shoulder of Mack. After about a dozen head butts atop the top turnbuckle Richards hits a superplex. Then both men go crazy. What’s pain? Willie gets right up after the superplex. Exploder suplex from Davey. Willie pops up and hits his Exploder. Davey gets up and hits his Exploder. Too many kicks to the head and Mack eventually stays down.
These two have a history together across different promotions and the announcer brings that up. They try to go for the PWG Championship hanging from the ceiling after the bell sounds despite it not being a title match. We’d get more comedy here courtesy of Taylor. He’s hilarious as he’s talented. Ricochet does some amazing stuff in the ring. The crowd was more pro-Taylor dePost-match, Richards gets on the microphone and puts spite neither guy being a good guy. Ricochet gets the over Mack and the PWG organization. Personal feelings win with a 630. aside, Richards is good for putting over guys on the microphone. I do like that. Matt and Nick Jackson © vs. Adam Cole and Kyle O’Reilly - PWG Tag Team Championships Match Joey Ryan and Scorpio Sky vs. Los Luchas (Phoenix Star and Zokre) And now we’re getting to the main courses. That RockNES Monsters/Taylor Boys contest was good, this For those not in the know, Sky was also Mason Andrews tag match was great. You know the superkicks were hot in TNA and most recently seen in WWE as Kane’s anger and heavy in this one and I lost count how many @HitTheRopes on Twitter
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connected. I’m actually typing this and wanting to go back to watch this (and the final match) again. It (they) were that good. Cole and O’Reilly (Future Shock) gave the Bucks a hell of a fight and looked close to winning on a few occasions. It just wasn’t their night in terms of hardware but the PWG crowd loved Cole and O’Reilly after what they were a part of in that match. Go watch the match. Kevin Steen © vs. El Generico - Ladder Match for PWG Championship Brutal. B-R-U-T-A-L. That is what this match was. The Steen/Generico rivalry from ROH is still one of my favorite rivalries of recent years and that carried over here and these two tried to kill each other to get that championship. The amount of bumps that took place on a ladder. Sheesh. The crowd ate everything up as these two just went at it. Just when Steen thought he had things won and was heading up the ladder the Young Bucks run down and attack him with a chair (Steen and them had been feuding). The crowd began a “F*** the Young Bucks!” chant. The match would continue with the Bucks gone. Steen was still able to move around and
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tried to prevent Generico from getting up the ladder. Generico would sunset flip powerbomb him into two propped ladders. Generico then gets up the ladder to get the belt...and the entire air vent cover. If you think that was it you’d be wrong. The Bucks returned to dish out some more punishment, not just to Steen this time. The Bucks challenged Steen to a Guerrilla Warfare match but laughed because they said he didn’t have a partner. The lights go out, the crowd goes wild, and Super Dragon hits the ring and starts hitting the Bucks. Steen shakes the hand of Dragon and informs the brothers that he has a partner. Generico (remember him?) recovers and gets back in the ring to stand tall with his title. Steen tells him that he knew they would tear the roof off the place. That’s funny because of the whole air vent thing. Steen leaves the ring and Generico celebrates some more. The crowd is still cheering. You can purchase Steen Wolf and other PWG DVDs at Highspots.com
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Love at First Sight? Love to write or design? It’s time you joined The Color Commentator family. Send a sample of your work to hittheropesradio@gmail.com today to get your work included in the next issue of The Color Commentator. @HitTheRopes on Twitter
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What is your favorite wrestling video game (and for which console) of all time? Adam Testa: No Mercy 64 Jayson Shepherd: No Mercy for the Nintendo 64 @HD388: WWE No Mercy N64
@SpinninToeHold: I also say No Mercy on N64 and WWE Smackdown: Here Comes The Pain on PS2. Terrell C Wartenbe: Anyone that says anything OTHER than No Mercy on the N64 is a Philistine.
@WWEsAngel_Nef: Pfft we all know WWF No Mercy wins hands down. I think it was on the Nintendo 64? o_O I cant remember. We had the game though. TCC 21
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@Shane184: I’m torn between WrestleMania 2000 and No Mercy for the N64. Just because me and the crew spent more hours playing against each other, WM2000
@Money2183: Monday Night RAW, Sega Genesis
@HustleLOP: Royal Rumble - SNES @WrestleKingRay: “MicroLeague Wrestling” for Commodore 64 released 1987 @Rashantitty: wcw vs. Nwo revenge N64
@felipecarnage: smackdown 2 psx
jam.
@HTRMrWikipedia: smackdown hctp for ps 2. jumping off the helicopter was the @HitTheRopes on Twitter
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@Heel_4_Life73: Smackdown: Here Comes the Pain (PS2)
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here are many wrestlers who are talented in the ring. Many who can elicit the oohs and aahs of those in attendance. Deep in the heart of Texas, however, is a man who is truly gifted at the craft of professional wrestling. ACH continues to wow fans and wrestlers alike with his out of this world ability in the squared circle. It’s no wonder he’s been called the Live Action Video Game. You may never attain the same level of “swagger” as he but you can at least learn a little more about the man whose name may soon be on the lips of all wrestling fans.
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You’ve mentioned in an interview in the past that you weren’t the best behaved student back in school. Just how bad was ACH back in high school?
Anarchy Championship Wrestling, arguably one of the most well-rounded promotions around, is where you’re probably known mostly for. ACW has no problem featuring men and women who can put it [Laughs] I wasn’t the best nor the worst. I just had an act down in the ring. What do you think makes ACW of getting caught up in random situations. I was a class stand out from the rest? clown indeed! I would sometimes stand up in front of the class and try to do comedy acts, but it never really The freedom the wrestlers have. I’ve had fans tell me worked out for me. I spent a lot of time in the hallway that it reminds them of a new-age ECW. Darin can see during English class for disrupting the teacher. During things in other wrestlers that most promoters can’t see. lunch a group of friends and I would play jokes on the In Texas, ACW to me is like a band of misfits. Darin freshmen that would come over from the 9th grade cen- gives you a paintbrush [and] says, “Have fun.” ter. I got pulled in the office once ‘cause they seen us on camera joking around with the other kids. Back in July ACW had their 100th show. What was the atmosphere at From Innocence to Insanity 6? What exactly was it about wrestling that got you wanting to get into it? Was the family cool with the It was pretty insane. No pun intended. decision? You ended up losing the ACW Heavyweight strap at I loved the athleticism, the action, the emotion it pulled the same show to Jaykus Plisken. The next show you out of me while I was watching it. My father wasn’t had a chance to regain the title but thanks to interaround a lot during my younger life, so I looked at the ference from Shawn Vexx that didn’t happen. (You wrestlers as heroes. My mother was the only person got a revenge win over Vexx in a tag match later on.) that wasn’t cool with the decision. I think she was just You nearly had the title for a year. How have you being a mom and didn’t want to see her baby boy hurt. been coping since becoming the Beltless Champion? She’s actually come around now and her first show was Sunday, Oct. 23, 2011. A day I will hold close to me It’s tough, but you have to be able to pick yourself back forever! up and try again! Honestly, I still feel like the champ even without the belt. My state treats me like a champ and I love them for that! I see Jerry Reyes’s name show up a few times as trainer for guys down in Texas. What was the training like? I recall your match with AR Fox at Beyond Wrestling’s Tournament of Tomorrow. It was amazing. Jerry, taught me how to be humble and respectful. When First off, that was only possible through fans donatI first started I was a little cocky prick. He would bring ing to get you to the show to assist Beyond in not in guys from Mexico and they would work me harder, breaking bank. What have others in the business stretch me, make me do more than the other students. It said to you about that Fox match? sounds harsh…Yes! But it taught me respect! I remember working out with Lawrence Cunningham AND HE It’s bananas! Guys come up to me and that’s the first KICKED MY ASS!!! [laughs] thing they bring up. You have kicked some serious ass so far in a young career. What is the ultimate goal for ACH? Retire off wrestling. @HitTheRopes on Twitter
How does it make you feel to know that the fans loved you so much that they were willing to do that?
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Warms my heart! In my eyes I’m just Big Vic’s Baby What was your opinion of the company? Boy. I wish I could meet each and every fan that put in I love it! I try to carry myself like a hero and I feel like on the campaign and thank them! CHIKARA supports that! I felt like I was standing inYou’d debut at CZW’s Best of the Best Tournament side of a comic book. I think CHIKARA is special and and lose in a triple-threat match to AR Fox. Is there I love how they aim at a younger audiences. I respect Quack’s vision and his outlook on the world of wresa friendly rivalry happening between you two? tling. Oh Yeah! Fox is like the Cell to my Goku. He’s just so damn good and it fuels me to be better whenever I’m in Backstage of that CHIKARA show, Tim Donst, the AIW Champion, challenged you to a match for the ring with him. his title at AIW’s Sept. 23rd match. You guys have never faced each other before. Is there any strategy Over the summer we learned that Beyond bought you plan on utilizing against Donst that you can give Women Superstars Uncensored (WSU). How famil- away to readers? iar are you with the WSU product? I plan leaving AIW Champion or die trying… Unfortunately, I am not. You make your ROH debut on Sept. 15th at their Death You were unsuccessful at winning CHIKARA’s Before Dishonor X iPPV show. As of now it’s unknown Young Lions Cup but you continued to show every- who you are facing. If you could pick one person from one who watched how talented you are. The YLC the current roster to face, who would it be? was your first foray into the world of CHIKARA. 25
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I would loved to face T.J Perkins. How many different meanings have you used the acronym ACH to stand for? Haha. You ready for this…? 1) All Chocolate Honey 2) Absolutely Carlton’s Half 3) A Colored Hero 4) Asshole Causing Havoc 5) Attitude Charisma Heart 6) Athleticism Charm Humor I can’t think of anymore right now. But those are the ones that come off the top of my head first. How many nicknames do you have? Too many! #YoungSimba #VideoGameComeToLife #LastDragon #LastHero and other types of ill shit! Is there anyone out there who can match your “Glow” aka Athletic Swagger? No! I hope that doesn’t come off arrogant. But “Swagger” is the way you carry yourself. I like to think that I bring something different to table. Favorite video game and CD of all time? Video Game: “Dead to Rights” CD: MTV Unplugged: Jay-Z (Live) I heard you dreamed about playing in the NFL, MLB, and NBA. What position would you have wanted to play in each? I wanted to play Running Back for the Dallas Cowboys. I’m a huge Michael Jordan fan. So I wanted to play Shooting Guard for the Chicago Bulls. And in the majors I wanted to play Shortstop for the Cleveland Indians ‘cause I played for the little league team. Is there anything that ACH isn’t good at? Yup…Talking to chicks! You can follow ACH on Twitter at @ACLeroy. Over on Facebook, www.facebook.com/ACH1love. @HitTheRopes on Twitter
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[Ed. Note: The following was originally published team as one of only four girls. on Aug. 17th, 2012 and is re-published here with permission of the author. The original post and “I was born into the business. My father wrestled others can be found on wrestleenigma.com] professionally from 1984-1986. I still can ou can call San Francisco, CA what you want: Fog City, The Paris of the West, The City that Knows How, or Baghdad by the Bay, but to a lot of people in that area, it will always be “The City by the Bay.” There are many names that are associated with the city, like baseball legend “Joltin” Joe DiMaggio, rapper Tupac Shakur, and martial arts legend Bruce Lee. But in the city that’s known for fog, there’s a beautiful woman who makes it brighter. And she resides in that area. In the ring, she’s either the tough woman in a cheerleader outfit, Cheerleader Melissa; the mysterious Raisha Saeed; or the tough girl with an attitude, Alissa Flash. But outside of the ring, she’s Melissa Anderson, who is just as beautiful as her personas.
remember sitting next to my mother watching Dad wrestle,” Melissa said about her early years. “Since then, we have always kept in contact with our friends and family in the business. Growing up, I was very athletic. I competed in sports such as amateur wrestling and martial arts. Being around the business so much, I too became interested in becoming a professional wrestler. Dad supported me in whatever I wanted to do.” Melissa also worked hard in the classroom as well. “My senior year of high school was a lot of fun and my teachers were very supportive,” Melissa said in one of her past interviews. “I was trying to get a wrestling career going and keep up with my school work. If I had to travel to a booking and miss school teachers would e-mail me work and I could e-mail assignments in. They were great to me.”
While only 15, she had already become involved in Melissa’s father Doug Anderson and her “uncle” the wrestling business, traveling to San Bernardino Billy were a tag team in the 1970s and early 80s. frequently to train in and work for the wrestling Growing up she became a fan of her father’s school of Billy Anderson, her father’s former tag work and also showed her own flair for sports, TCCteam partner, as well as involving herself in28the @HitTheRopes on Twitter particularly soccer, as well as joining Palmdale running of things and before long she made her High School’s athletics and amateur wrestling debut front of stage. Despite touring so young,
Anderson still studied and gained her high school diploma largely through the help of e-mailing teachers; she also credits the internet for helping her become famous while only wrestling in front of small crowds.Trained by not only Billy Anderson, but also by TNA wrestler Christopher Daniels, Japanese joshi legend Mariko Yoshida, and “American Dragon” Bryan Danielson (Now known to WWE audiences as Daniel Bryan). She made her debut in 1999 on her 17th birthday; her opponent at the time, Lexie Fyfe to be exact. As her career got on track she faced off against the toughest names in the world; many of those names include MsChif, Wesna, Saraya Knight, Awesome Kong, Nicole Matthews, even Madison Eagles faced off against “The Future Legend.” The nickname was based of the Future Legend Award the Cauliflower Alley Club hands out annually. She won it in 2004. In 2008 she made her Total Nonstop Action Wrestling debut as the mysterious Raisha Saeed, manager and speaker for the dominant Awesome Kong. “That was an idea that was already created in one of the (TNA) writers’ minds,” Melissa said. “They were looking for the right person to fill the role, but the funny thing was that I was actually approached by WWE before the Muhammad Hassan era with almost the exact same Raisha Saeed character. Back then, there were two other people involved so it was supposed to be a tag team with a manager and a female. It was looking really good, but then at the last second they decided to go in a different direction with the Arab-American route instead of the straight Arab route. And when they went in that direction, it cut the possibility of having the female role to that, although I did get to dress up in that character and do a couple of test runs with it. “…Fast forward a couple of years later and TNA came up with that character by themselves. People want to believe that a monster character like Awesome Kong doesn’t have a voice so someone else should speak for her but also be mysterious. Word got back to their creative team that I had done something similar to that character and TCC it 29 just happened to fit.”
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was however nullified on July 12, after RCW Commissioner Jeromy Sage announced that the contract for the title match stipulated that the length was supposed to be 15 minutes, but the match was 15 and a half minutes long. A rematch was scheduled on August 7 with no time limits or disqualifications, The feisty Californian won the match and the championship. On May 5, Alissa teamed with Darci Drake to defeat San Antonio’s Most Wanted in a Fans’ Lumberjack Strap Match match to win the RCW Tag Team Championship. They would hold the title for four months, before being defeated by the Gulf Coast Connection (AJ Summers, Ben Galvan and Rudy Russo) on September 3. As a result of being pinned in the title match Alissa had to leave RCW for 90 days. On February 4, 2012, “The Female Terminator” became River City Wrestling’s first female Triple Crown Champion when she defeated Rick David for the RCW International Championship. Melissa’s Wonder Woman-like abilities work out well, as she can lift those who are at the 245 lb A year later, Alissa Flash took on the scene, but limit, and her speed and agility are amazingly fast. her stay in TNA was not good and left in 2010. “It’s Melissa can explode as well; fistfights, cat-fights, pretty much an extension of Cheerleader Melissa,” or any street fights, there’s no way a girl who’s 5’8” she explained. “I don’t think there’s that much and 142 lbs. can be that tough. Some say she’s the difference between the two characters. However, real-life “Wonder Woman.” Others say she the if you remember, I had a match with Daizee Haze modern-day Xena. But she’s the toughest of the on Impact as Cheerleader Melissa and I think tough, and no question about it, she’s very tough, TNA creative were a little confused by that. When and very beautiful. you hear about Cheerleader Melissa, perhaps you expect to see like a super happy Dallas Cowboys A lot of people have a lot to say about Melissa. looking cheerleader and instead you get this strong looking brunette coming out and going crazy on “I think she’s beautiful and an amazing performer, people. I just don’t think that translated well with not many are as good as her. She’s just no match for TNA. They liked my style and my aggressiveness, Perfection,” said Shanna, a fellow female wrestler but they were just like, ‘That cheerleader thing from Portugal. doesn’t work with your wrestling style.’ So that’s how they eventually came up with the Alissa Flash Fellow CAC member and legendary announcer Jim Ross had this to say about Melissa, “She’s character for me.” worked hard to make herself better. Wish she’d On November 29, 2009 Melissa appeared as Alissa get a break.” Flash for the Texas based promotion River City Wrestling (RCW). At Declaration of Champions When I asked about LuFisto, one of Melissa’s classic opponents…and sometimes tag partners, on July 3, 2010; she wrestled RCW Champion TCC 30 @HitTheRopes on Twitter Joey Spector in the main event to become the first whether or not she has the highest respect for her, she states, “I always had. She’s an amazing female champion of the company. The result
competitor.” “A pioneer for the Wrestling industry. I came across her from watching a match she had on HEAT against Victoria and have been a fan ever since,” says Jezabeth, a young wrestler out of Great Britain.
them, but the best was the very different styles I learned. In the beginning, Billy Anderson guided me and Christopher Daniels trained me on the fundamentals. During my time training in Japan, Mariko Yoshida trained me on Japanese style with lots of submissions and technical wrestling. When I returned to the US, I trained with Daniel Bryan and Robert Thompson who were both all-around amazing trainers.
Fellow SHIMMER star Davina Rose, who wrestled with Melissa before, says she’s “very respected in the world of women’s wrestling.” What do you remember about your earliest appearances in SHIMMER? When I was talking about a match that featured Melissa and Hailey Hatred, the most decorated The main thing I remember from the early days in female wrestler today, I hoped that one day they’ll Shimmer was the excitement in the air with having face off again, and she replied; “me too; she’s a so many talented females in one location. It truly great opponent.” was something very special that was the beginning of a great era for female pro wrestling and I am “Melissa’s technique is so good, and she has proud to say that I have been on every Shimmer power and stamina. She is a smart wrestler. I love DVD since the start. Melissa!” Mariko Yoshida, one of her trainers and opponents during her career, said in a Dirty Dirty You won the SHIMMER Championship in Sheets interview. October of 2011. Can you explain to our readers how difficult it must have been for As we celebrate her 30th birthday, as well as 13 years you to be at the top? in the wrestling business, this interview of Melissa is 100% honest. She’ll talk about her time training, I wouldn’t say it was difficult, as it is a passion The early days of SHIMMER, her time in TNA, her for me to keep going no matter what, under any incredible stops at RCW, thoughts of appearing at circumstances. If you love what you do, it will never WSU (Women Superstars Uncensored), her take seem like work and all the bruises and struggle was on John Cena, and what the future holds for her. worth it for me. You were trained not just by Billy In TNA you played two unique characters; Anderson, but by Christopher Daniels, Raisha Saeed and Alissa Flash. Can you Bryan Danielson (known as Daniel Bryan describe what those characters were about? in WWE), and Mariko Yoshida while you were in Japan. What was it like training Raisha Saeed was a very mysterious character under these guys? that acted as the voice for Awesome Kong in TNA. TCC www.TheColorCommentator.com 31 Everyone had their own view or opinion about It was a great experience working with all of Raisha which was the beauty of the character.
Alissa Flash was a tough and strong woman… honestly, she’s Cheerleader Melissa without the pom-poms…
have a huge respect for his immense work with the Make-A-Wish Foundation. I think he might have the biggest heart in the business.
You are a fan favorite in River City Wrestling in San Antonio, TX under the Alissa Flash character. What was it like to be wrestling in the city that has legends like WWE Hall of Famer “The Heartbreak Kid” Shawn Michaels; as well as Spurs legends like “The Iceman” George Gervin, “The Admiral” David Robinson, and Tim Duncan?
What does the future hold for “The Future Legend?”
I really LOVE San Antonio and San Antonio has been very good to me. Not only is it an honor to wrestle in a city with great wrestling history, but the fans are very kind and amazing! San Antonio fans make the trips worth it every time.
I just want to say how grateful I am to every one of my fans of the support I have received throughout the past years of my career. It’s the fans that truly keep me motivated and make every bump/bruise worth my love for Professional Wrestling. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
You lost the SHIMMER Championship to Saraya Knight this past March, in a situation based on an incident that happened 5 years ago. What was your memory about that incident and do you have any plans to win it again? Plans to win it again? Of course I do! I always have a plan up my sleeve and one day that gold will be back around the Cheerleader’s waist!
We never know what the future holds…but I’ll tell you one thing…the future looks good!! In closing, would you like to leave a last message for your fans?
Thank you to Melissa for her time and cooperation, as well as the kind folks at ClickWrestle for helping me out. To learn more about Melissa, check out her Facebook fan page as well as follow her on Twitter @FutureLegendCF. All of her classic matches can be found on clickwrestle.com. You can follow me @matthewhollie and Wrestle Enigma @WrestleEnigma
As you know, Beyond Wrestling has purchased Women’s Superstars Uncensored (WSU) this past June. I asked on Twitter if they were willing to book you in one of their shows in the near future, and they said they were willing to do so. Do you wish to appear in a WSU event to expand your fan-base in the East coast? For sure, I look forward to working with WSU in the future. There is some incredible talent on the East Coast and I would love to go out there sometime and tear it up with the girls. What is your take on John Cena, a former student of Christopher Daniels? John Cena is a great and very nice person. Everyone TCC @HitTheRopes on Twitter knew that he had the “it” factor back when we worked in UPW together. Most importantly, I
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For Disgruntled Fans, Lawler vs. Punk is About Much More Than Two Men
Ray Bogusz | @WrestleKingRay
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n Nov. 29th, 2010, Jerry Lawler faced The Miz under TLC rules for the WWE Championship. Over the course of the next fifteen or so minutes, Lawler and Miz worked together to tell a story unlike one we’d seen in some time and managed to make one of my ten favorite matches in the history of Raw. Why wouldn’t it have been on my Top Ten Raw Matches of All-Time List? Not only was the work incredibly good, but the booking was fantastic too. When Lawler made his initial grasp at the belt, I honestly thought he was going to get it; while you might now say that you didn’t, the general reactions both on social media during the match and in recaps and comments afterward say there’s a good chance that’s not true.
prompting the crowd to roar in a way Raw hadn’t managed to do in years—and hasn’t managed subsequently either. Afterward, it was announced that there would be a rematch at the next pay-per-view. It just didn’t feel the same, and I opined then that WWE had blown their chance to do something really cool—and genuinely unexpected. Instead of ruining the experience we got that Monday, they should have just let it die and given Miz something else to do as a still newly minted WWE champion. But, a cool and completely irreplicable moment that could have gone so well—to the point of being magical—was instead going to be thrown at us again in a few weeks, in a match we all knew the outcome of before the first ad even faded from our screens.
I have the same feelings now about that match that I did back then. At the time, I thought WWE should have done a title change right there on Raw—for a plethora of reasons. Miz had been creatively mired since winning the Money in the Bank briefcase and had yet to prove he could be a viable top dog and draw dollars and ratings—not just top tier crowd heat (though he would later do so). The title could have easily changed hands again at the shortly forthcoming Tables, Ladders, and Chairs pay-per-view event. There are two more important reasons I felt (and feel) that way. First, I thought it would have been a really great way to pay a little homage to a guy who is incredibly important to the story of professional wrestling in America without really doing anybody any harm. There didn’t really seem to be any new blood to step in at the top level for the company, and the mid-level was equally mired in the Doldrums. It would have been a great nod to not only Lawler and his distinguished career, but also to the entire history of the sport and its “never say never” spirit. The other reason I felt that way then and feel that way now? That crowd was white hot for Lawler in a way we wouldn’t see again until CM Punk starred in Chicago at Money in the Bank 2011, and haven’t seen anywhere in wrestling since. Near the end of the match, Lawler made a solo ascent up the ladder and nearly got the title, @HitTheRopes on Twitter
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While they definitely blew a golden opportunity there, WWE did get some good out of it. The heat Miz got from aligning with Michael Cole and feuding with Jerry Lawler—and screwing him out of a title in the process— was beyond intense and helped shape Miz into the company’s most hated heel. Miz and Lawler eventually went their separate ways, and soon life was back to normal in WWE.
the top to the bottom.
So why boo Lawler? The fact of the matter is that sometimes, wrestling fans are pretty darn perceptive. They realize that the choice presented wasn’t necessarily between CM Punk and Jerry Lawler. The choice was between continuing to see the old lions do their perpetual send-off, or allowing the company—and the story—to continue to grow and evolve while it gives us new charSlightly over twenty months later, WWE would return acters, new angles, and new events. Fans weren’t booing to the Lawler-well in an effort to turn around a theorized Lawler, but they were booing what Lawler now repreCM Punk heel turn that was (is) blowing up in their fac- sented to them. es in rather spectacular fashion. This time, using Lawler as a way to cement someone as a super-heel completely Even more so, fans boo Lawler now because in wrestling backfired. The “How” is simple enough: WWE com- youth movements, there comes a point where you no pletely ignored the fact (not theory) that their company longer want to hear about the greats of the past. Instead, isn’t immune from the outside world anymore, and that you’d like to see them give their blessing and pass the people wanted to cheer for CM Punk. They didn’t want torch; allow the new blood to rise and make their own to boo him the way they’d wanted to boo Miz just under mark, the way the greats of our past were once allowed two years prior. Embracing the idea of a legend scoring to do by the greats of their past; names like Crusher, the feel-good win over a fresh face on the main-event Sammartino, and Baba; Rogers, Brown, and Londos. scene wasn’t going to be nearly the same easy sell in this case. That leads us to the why. We as a wrestling public have moved away from the lionizing of legends in the hope we can create new ones. Perhaps that’s not a bad thing.
The Future?
This isn’t to say that we should forget our past and somehow move on as if it never existed. However, if one dwells in the past long enough, they can forget to live in their own present. As wrestling fans, we’ve often been too guilty of doing the former, and even more guilty of not demanding that our legends of yore step aside and allow new stars to let us do the latter. The reality of this situation is that there is a time and a place to honor legends of the past—the place is called the Hall of Fame and the time is its yearly induction ceremony. While I can write this all I want, and you can parrot it elsewhere as much as you want, at the end of the day the people we really want to say those words, are the very legends I’m talking about.
Call it the now-finally-quantifiable end result of “The Ric Flair Comeback Effect,” or call it something else, but wrestling fans don’t need to latch on to legends of years gone by if they still want to have a rooting interest in WWE anymore. In addition to CM Punk and The Miz, newer, younger faces on the roster to get excited about include Dolph Ziggler, Daniel Bryan-Bryan Danielson, Antonio Cesaro, Cody Rhodes, Sheamus, Wade Bar- If only we could hear that from Lawler... rett, Yoshi Tatsu (if he ever gets a push together), and Damien Sandow (one of the more glorious new characters in years). For the first time in a long time, there is a collection young, fresh faces on the roster that have their careers in order and fit into spots on the card from 35
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And Now For Some Quick Hits: • I suppose the best way to start the quick hits would be to mention the guy who inadvertently caused me to bring this kind of stuff back into my writing repertoire. Last month, I promised JTG via Twitter that I’d give him a special shout-out in the September column if he managed to survive the annual round of late Summer Roster Cuts. He did. I should admit right now that I’m not a big JTG fan. I don’t like his schtick; his ring-work and mic-work are average at best, and without a tertiary title in play such as the European or Hardcore title, he just doesn’t scream belt holder to me. However, for a guy who seems to have as much trouble convincing WWE creative that he should get a push as he does convincing me, it’s impressive that he’s worked consistently in WWE for four years now. Maybe he’ll get a tag partner again and start to prove me wrong, but for now his longevity in a company that tends to cut people it doesn’t push is his biggest accomplishment. It’s ac- • I watch other sports too. Right now it’s baseball seatually a highly impressive one and frankly he should son, and as a White Sox fan, I’m greatly enjoying be lauded for it. that Paul Konerko is having another world class season. A few more of these and there will be legitimate • Shane may have his “Playboy Woman of the Week,” Hall of Fame talk. I’ll keep my fingers crossed. but I’d argue women used to be a lot more attractive. To start seeing why I’m right about this, check out • Three years ago, Big Show won the tag team titles. At the 1960’s sitcom classic “Get Smart.” Today she’s the time, I remarked it was a shame he hadn’t won approaching 80, but I’d argue that back in the day, an Intercontinental title at some point earlier in his Barbara Feldon was as attractive as any woman now. career, as doing so would mean he’d have completed Prove me wrong, boys. WWE’s Grand Slam Championship. I didn’t see him • I do, on occasion, mark out for wrestlers. One of these is Grizzly Redwood. I’m such a Grizzly Geek that I actually follow him on Twitter and would die and go to Heaven if he gets a serious push in a serious promotion. Chop ‘em down!
winning it now, but lo and behold, he won it a few months back. The Undertaker is now in Big Show’s previous spot, needing the Intercontinental belt to complete the Grand Slam. In addition to proving that Big Show has actually had a far more productive career than people like to give him credit for, it also shows that measuring careers by belts alone is a really ignorant way to go about that sort of thing.
• As of filing this column, it has been almost three weeks since I asked Wrestlers Rescue to answer some basic questions about its operation. Until they • If you think my columns are depressing now, wait do, there is no reason to trust them with anything. and see if NHL hockey doesn’t start on time. They’ll start to put Trotsky to shame. • At some point, we need to start calling out Shawn Michaels for toeing the line between “WWE Leg- Ray Bogusz can be reached via his Twitter (@wrestlekend” and “Guy pulling a Flair all over his retire- ingray) or c/o The Color Commentator. ment.” @HitTheRopes on Twitter
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MMA RA
Heavyweight Division:
Middleweight Division:
1. Junior Dos Santos 2. Cain Velasquez 3. Alistair Overeem 4. Shane Carwin 5. Frank Mir 6. Fabricio Werdum 7. Roy Nelson 8. Daniel Cormier 9. Josh Barnett 10. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
1. Anderson Silva 2. Chael Sonnen 3. Michael Bisping 4. Chris Weidman 5. Brian Stann 6. Mark Munoz 7. Tim Boetsch 8. Yushin Okami 9. Hector Lombard 10. Luke Rockhold
Give Jon (Jones) a challenge that he doesn’t get from most guys, and that’s something that I present.”
Light Heavyweight Division:
Welterweight Division:
1. Jon Jones 2. Rashad Evans 3. Dan Henderson 4. Mauricio Rua 5. Lyoto Machida 6. Alexander Gustafsson 7. Phil Davis 8. Quinton Jackson 9. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira 10. Ryan Bader
1. Georges St-Pierre 2. Carlos Condit 3. Nick Diaz 4. Josh Koscheck 5. Johny Hendricks 6. Jon Fitch 7. Martin Kampmann 8. Jake Ellenberger 9. Jake Shields 10. Rory MacDonald
Returns to Action at UFC 154, 11 Months After Announcing his ACL Injury.
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Featherweight Division:
Lightweight Division:
1. Benson Henderson 2. Frankie Edgar 3. Gray Maynard 4. Nate Diaz 5. Jim Miller 6. Gilbert Melendez 7. Michael Chandler 8. Clay Guida 9. Anthony Pettis 10. Donald Cerrone
Will Receive an Immediate Title Fight with Jose Aldo After Dropping to 155.
1. Jose Aldo 2. Pat Curran 3. Chad Mendes 4. Hatsu Hioki 5. Dustin Porier 6. Marlon Sandro 7. Dennis Siver 8. Diego Nunes 9. Charles Oliveira 10. Patricio Freire
Bantamweight Division:
Flyweight Division:
1. Dominick Cruz 2. Renan Barao 3. Urijah Faber 4. Michael McDonald 5. Brian Bowles 6. Scott Jorgensen 7. Eduardo Dantas 8. Miguel Torres 9. Brad Pickett 10. Zach Makovsky
1. Demetrius Johnson 2. Joseph Benavidez 3. Ian McCall 4. John Dodson 5. Jussier Da Silva 6. Yashuhiro Urushitani 7. Mamoru Yamaguchi 8. Darrell Montague 9. Shinichi Kojima 10. Timothy Elliott
Released from the UFC, He will Resume His Career on September 6 for World Series of Fighting
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Daris Brown | @HTRMrWikipedia The UFC has done an amazing job with building up stars. From legends like Chuck Liddell, Tito Ortiz and Randy couture, to ground breaking stars like The Ultimate fighter’s Forrest Griffin and Josh Koscheck. But like all good things, there has to be an end. the stars that help revolutionized the sport are now moving on towards retirement. Some are already enjoying office jobs and other careers after fighting. But that’s okay as the UFC is already grooming their replacements. There are several young talents that are already making waves in the UFC...and they’re all under 25 years old.
Dustin Poirier
Michael McDonald Age: 21
Age: 23
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Rising out of Oakdale MMA, Michael McDonald has made an immediate impact in the Bantamweight division. He’s already revenged his only loss, to Cole Escovedo, and is rolling on a 8-fight win streak. His latest win is by far his biggest as he KO’d former WEC champ Miguel Torres. With Knockout of the Night and Fight of the Night honors ion his resume, Mayday brings excitement with every “W.” 41
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With 78% of his fights being finishes, Dustin Poirier is one of the most exciting fighters in the Featherweight division. In his UFC debut he stepped up to face Josh Grispi, who was originally scheduled to face champion Jose Aldo for the title. Poirier got the win and won 3 straight fights. He’s coming off his first loss in his UFC career, so now it will be see how reacts to adversity at an elite level. It’s what champions are made of.
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Rory MacDonald Age: 23
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Out of all the fighters under 25, Rory MacDonald may have the most potential. The Welterweight has already been named by Georges St. Pierre as the heir to the 170 lb. division throne. If his greatness wasn’t validated by the current champion, it was recognized by all when BJ Penn chose MacDonald to be his first fight after a shortlived retirement. The bout would undoubtably be the most high profile bout of his career, although it had to be postponed due to a cut he suffered in practice. We’ll just have to delay the record books for a few months as the two will headline the most stacked UFC on Fox card to date.
Max Holloway Age: 20
Stefan Struve 6-1
Age: 24
Just 20 years of age, Max Holloway is quickly rising as symbolized by the giant angel wings that rest on his back. His only loss came when he was filling in on short notice to fight fellow rising star Dustin Poirier. A top 10 featherweight, Holloway is currently riding a 2-fight win streak, including the impressive dismantling of previous undefeated Ultimate Fighter star Justin Lawrence. @HitTheRopes on Twitter
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Standing 6’11” Stefan Struve impresses fans just by walking into the cage. While some feel Struve has been pushed too hard too fast, but what better way to test where he is skill wise. While he’s had a few bumps along the road, his losses only come to top contenders, including former UFC champion Cain Velasquez, it’s only a matter of time before his experiences catch up with his raw talent. And with 3 Submissions of the Night and one KO of the Night, Struve’s skill will soon surpass his size. 42
Nikolai Gionti | @nikolai_gionti ixed Martial Arts is becoming a young man’s game. In the past couple years it seems as if there have been more young fighters lighting up their divisions. It started with Jon Jones, but we’re seeing it in every weight class now.
of Combat promotion before entering the UFC. In his first fight in the UFC, Weidman stepped in on two weeks notice to defeat Alessio Sakara via unanimous decision. Since that fight the hype train hasn’t been quiet for “The All American.”
Michael McDonald, Renan Barao, Edson Barboza, Rory MacDonald and Chris Weidman are all young upand-coming fighters making waves in their respective weight classes, but the one with possibly the brightest future is Weidman.
That fight hasn’t been announced, however, so us, along with Chris Weidman, are waiting for an announcement.
He’s won nine fights in a row, five have taken place in A lot of this can be attributed to the growth of the UFC the UFC and, after defeating Mark Munoz by a vicious and MMA as a whole. More children are starting off elbow in July, Weidman looks to be the man to chaltraining MMA rather than boxing, jiu-jitsu or wrestling. lenge Anderson Silva for the belt.
Weidman has earned his shot at Anderson Silva. He defeated the man who was believed to be the No. 1 contender in Mark Munoz and has defeated every opponent that has come in his way handily.
Weidman was a collegiate wrestler at Hofstra Univeristy before he finding his way to the Serra-Longo Fight Team through a college friend. The only thing holding back a Silva-Weidman title fight is Silva’s management. He started his career 4-0 in the New Jersey-based Ring 43
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At this point in his career Anderson Silva is looking for fights that will get him paid. Chael Sonnen did it, Michael Bisping would do it, Georges St. Pierre would definitely do it, but Chris Weidman? That’s not a household name yet and definitely not one that would get fans sitting by their TVs to order this PPV.
one UFC fight before fighting for the title. The UFC may be worried about one of their most promising fighters if they give him a title shot too soon. It could derail his whole career as it did with Dan Hardy, but I don’t think that’s likely.
Weidman has all the skills to beat Silva and some would Weidman is mature beyond his years. He has all the argue is a tougher fight than Chael Sonnen was. skills to become the middleweight champion and it’s tough to find any weakness in the middleweight conChris Weidman has outstanding wrestling. As previ- tender’s game. ously stated, he wrestled at Hofstra University before starting training for mixed martial arts. The future is bright for Weidman and I believe only a matter of time until he is the middleweight champion. It Silva’s biggest weakness is his wrestling game. In the would be nice to see Weidman challenge Silva next for first fight with Sonnen, Silva was taken down every the belt, but Weidman still isn’t a huge draw. If Weidround and wasn’t able to get up and in the second fight man can win one more fight he will get the opportunity he was taken down immediately in the first round be- to face Silva and he may be the man that can defeat the fore being mounted by Sonnen. long-reigning champion. Weidman would be able to take Silva down, but let’s not forget one area that Weidman is worlds better than Sonnen in – submissions. He has absolutely outstanding guillotines and constantly works to get in positions to use them. In the fight with Munoz, Weidman used the front headlock to try to set up either a guillotine or D’Arce choke, but was also able to use the front headlock position to throw knees when he couldn’t get the chokes. The biggest advantage Silva has over most opponents may be negated also. At 6’2” Silva is one of the tallest middleweights in the UFC, he also has a 77” reach, but Chris Weidman is identical in height and, in fact, has a longer reach. Weidman would have the ability to negate Silva’s knees in the Thai Plum where he is most dangerous and in effect cancel out one part of the middleweight champions game. A Silva-Weidman fight hasn’t been announced yet, but neither has any other Silva fight. Many would argue that Weidman still needs one or two more fights before earning a title shot, however, Anderson Silva only had @HitTheRopes on Twitter
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With Jon Jones chasing history as one of the greatest Light Heavyweight in history, it brings up the discussion of who exactly he is chasing. We know the first qualification of being the best of the best is having won a light heavyweight title. But it’s not just winning the belt; most fight fans can agree that if you don’t defend the title once you are not a true champion. So, for those who were one and done, they’d find it hard to be amongst the top of the list. So as great as Rampage Jackson and Rashad Evans are, they won’t get a long look in the Greatest of All Time (G.O.A.T.) conversation. Our first look at the Light Heavyweight G.O.A.T. has to start with the first ever UFC Light Heavyweight champion, Frank Shamrock. He’s got the third-longest reign in UFC history with 704 days as champion. The downside to the trail blazer is told by the simple fact that he left the UFC due to lack of competition. He does have a win over Tito Ortiz during his reign, but good luck Googling opponents Igor Zinoviev and John Lober. He’s the first UFC, and also first WEC, champion at 205 so he’s in the discussion. But he does not get the nod.
Also on the list has to be the man Shamrock defeated in his final defense, Tito Ortiz. Once Frank left, Tito became the face of the UFC as the Bad Boy was the headliner of several PPVs that led the UFC from the dark era of being named human cockfighting to the worldwide phenomenon that it is today. Ortiz held on to the title for nearly three and a half years. He was dominant, charismatic, and helped put butts in seats. The biggest knock on Ortiz during his reign was that he did not take on all comers, most notably refusing to fight former sparring partner and friend Chuck Liddell. As great as Tito was, you can’t be considered the best if you do not beat the best. He had the chance to prove his worth and he declined. For this he gets taken down a notch. Now this leaves us with the man who must be named the Light Heavyweight G.O.A.T., Chuck Liddell. Liddell was not only a great fighter, but he was a crossover success as evident when featured with the first ever in MMA 45
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history for ESPN the Magazine. Unlike Tito, Chuck never backed down. For two years he terrorized the Light Heavyweight division. In that time he defeated Randy Couture, the man that upended Liddell for the title Ortiz vacated two years earlier. Also proof of his never back down attitude, he granted Ortiz the title shot that was never awarded to him. “The Iceman” took his frustration out on the former champ and literally beat him to tears. Liddell was the champ during one of the most competitive periods in the UFC’s history. His legendary bouts with Couture and Ortiz ushered the UFC into a new era in MMA. For that, he’s the greatest. Which leads us back to Jon Jones. He has done things that none of the aforementioned champions had the opportunity to do. In just one year into his championship reign “Bones” Jones has already defeated THREE former UFC champions. That’s more than any other Light Heavyweight champion.
With a win over Belfort later this month, Jones will be one title win away from Ortiz’s five record defenses. He’s currently the only UFC champion with every single one of his title defenses coming against a former UFC champion. He’s also helped transcend the sport to the mainstream as he became the first fighter with a major Nike contract. Others have worn the swoosh, but no other man will get their own shoe line and be featured the way Jones is said to be in the works for. This will eventually help put a stamp of legitimacy for other sponsors who will follow Nike’s lead to sponsor other MMA fighters. With that said, if you want to already give him the title of Light Heavyweight G.O.A.T., I won’t fight you. While he may be polarizing. You can’t deny his talent. @HitTheRopes on Twitter
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Jon Jones
1987 Baby Jones Born
def. André Gusmão in UFC debut UFC 87
1977 Baby Belfort Born
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def. by Matt Hammil via DQ 12/2009
Youngest UFC Tourney Champ UFC 12 2/1997
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def. Shogun via TKO for UFC Title 3/2011
def. Wanderlei Silva UFC Brazil 10/1998
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This bout comes together after Jon Jones turned down the now infamous title bout against Chael Sonnen after Dana Henderson went down with injury. UFC 151 was cancelled and Vitor Belfort gets a shot in the aftermath. def. Rampage Jackson via Submission UFC 135 9/2011
def. Randy Couture for UFC Title UFC 46 1/2004
Jones vs Belfort
def. Rashad Evans via Decision UFC 145 4/2012
def. by Anderson Silva UFC 126 2/2011 September 22, 2012
Vitor Belfort @HitTheRopes on Twitter
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We’ve got the CEO of Revgear, Mr. Paul Reavlin. How Ha, nice. Now for those who’ve seen the gear on Faare you doing Paul? bricio Werdum and Cris Cyborg, can you give us a quick history on how you came into the business that Good guys, thanks for having me on your show. is MMA? While RJ was going in on women’s MMA, what’s your Sure. RevGear was started about 16 years ago and I thoughts on it? started the company with the idea that I really just need some equipment for some guys that I was training with Well actually, believe it or not, I don’t enjoy watching when we were training Krav Maga. We were punching women’s MMA. It doesn’t seem, at this point (3/2010), and kicking, and we thought we were pushing and kickthat a lot of the girls don’t have the skills to defend ing pretty hard, but I’m sure we probably weren’t kickthemselves. And often I’ll be sitting home watching the ing any harder than anybody else. But the stuff we were fights, just watching women get beat up. And I think I’m using wasn’t really holding up to what we wanted and I all for it... I think it’s important that women learn and was a practicing accountant with a martial arts hobby, grow, and learn how to defend themselves. But some- so I figure this isn’t rocket science, I should be able to times, it seems the majority of the times, you’re watch- do this. And that was 16 years ago, we launched this oding the fight and women are taking a beating because yssey and now RevGear’s a real company and we work they don’t know how to defend themselves. I’m all for it with a lot of these fighters. But I found early on that if they’re using more RevGear and learn how to protect people who were doing MMA at the time, the equipthemselves. It’s gonna be a great thing. ment was resonating with them because it was designed
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Building a Brand from the Ground Up with Paul Reavlin
Ed. Note: this article originally aired 3/2010 by our HTRMMA crew. It is being published for the first time anywhere.
for heavy hitting and can take a lot of punishment. At the beginning, I only had four products a couple punching bags, a pair of gloves and some shin guards. The shin guards are still used today by guys like Pedro Rizzo and Marco Ruas. These are guys who wanna really blast. They wanted gear that would hold up and they can train
pretty hard without hurting each other. So they still ask me when they go to Brazil, they want to stuff a suitcase full of gear and take it down there. But basically the equipment was designed for a lot of heavy hitting. So it has its roots in MMA, since the day that MMA was born really. Now one of our frequent guests, Mark Pavlich, went on a rant about sponsorship partnerships. Now you came in around the same time as TapOut, do you feel that there is a conflict of interest with the relationship between TapOut and the UFC? That’s a good question. A lot of brands have come and gone within the UFC. And RevGear is a gear brand. We’re known professional gear for professional fighters. That’s what we do and we’re making the stuff that guys are training with. It’s more of a necessity than it is a chosen item that you might wear like a shirt or a hat or a hoodie. Clearly there are some equipment brands, but
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the majority of the brands in the UFC, in my opinion are apparel brands. While we have some apparel that’s not what we set out to do. When I started RevGear early on, I’d go to local MMA events and I’d have a table. And I’d be trying to sell my four items and Charles (TapOut) was right next to me and he had three or four t-shirt designs. And there was a time when MMA got pushed underground and Charles stuck with it, to his credit. And I ended up marketing more to mainstream karate schools and whatnot. And so when MMA exploded, and Ultimate Fighter was on TV, the TapOut brand exploded with it. So I believe getting on TV was very helpful for them. And it was no conflict for us, it’s just a goal for us to get back in there. Because we had some fighters in there a long time ago, and now just as recent we’ve gotten back in. So we’re happy to be back in the UFC and happy TV. But to this day martial arts schools around the country know who we are since marketed to them instead of more of a consumer level.
MMA... but people who work for me can go places, and mention they work for RevGear and people know who we are, and they get excited and want work with the brand in some compacity. Even if something as simple as a UPS guy, when they go to drop something off, and they see what we do they get excited to see what we do. It’s kind of a cool novelty for people to see what we do. They see the fighter posters autographed on our wall... and autographed gloves and things that we have that showcase our history. I think it’s become so mainstream that it’s really amazing. When I started the company 16 years ago, I’d drive around in my Mustang, my convertible Mustang in the summer, going door-to-door to martial arts schools. And it was hot. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still hard today, but there’s much more opportunity and the market is so much bigger. When John McCain was stomping the trying to get MMA band in every state, you can imagine that environment was so much different than we have today.
Being here from the start of MMA, what’s the differ- Okay, when was the moment you knew this was going ence now from when you started 16 years ago? to be a success? Did you immediately leave the full time job to throw everything in the Mustang, or was Believe it or not we’re not the most well known brand in there a moment?
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[laughs] Well, RevGear was a 15-year overnight success. I happened quit my job cold turkey. And I happened to go sell door-todoor, because I thought that was the best way to do it. I could have worked full time, and sold my product overnight. So I probably did it the hard way. There’s a running joke that, wow, we’re a real company now. We’ve been a real company for a while now but I always joke once we’re selling a certain amount of product. Or once we show up on TV I feel like we’re a real company. And those milestones have really been happening over the last 3 - 4 years, but it’s taken a long time and a lot of hard work. It just doesn’t happen overnight. How do you just leave? Tell the family that I’ve got to just going to go do this? Well the good news was 16 years ago I wasn’t married and didn’t have a family. And that enabled me to work day and night. I had no life at the time, and the only thing I thought about was RevGear. I had 50 or 60 punching bags in my bedroom and I would stare at the phone and try and will it ring. Sort of like a Jedi Mind Trick and that wasn’t working. So I had to really get out there and pound the pavement. I know that it’s possible that I could’ve done it with a wife and family, but the stakes would have been much higher. And it’s a story that I don’t tell much, but I went to my grandmother and told her that I needed help paying the rent for the 12 months while I get this business off the ground. And my grandmother didn’t understand what it was that I want to do. She didn’t understand the industry. She didn’t understand anything about what I was doing. And she wasn’t happy that I was giving up a job as an accountant. But she agreed and she promised let’s give it a year and see what it looked like. And after 2 months, 3 months, 4 months, 5 months, 6...after every month she was like, “okay it’s been a year so let’s give it up and go back to being an accountant.” That was pretty funny but it got to the point that I was like okay, I’m really gonna go and do this on my own. If it meant eating canned food and doing whatever have to do, I was going to do @HitTheRopes on Twitter
it. But luckily there was a point where I can get by and it was okay. But I’ll never forget those experiences, because that’s sometimes what it takes. Exactly. Well what’s next for RevGear? You have to continue to innovate. We still work hard to do that. I still have some products on my desk that are new and are innovative that will help the guys who are getting into the cage to improve their training. Minimize injuries and keep training at a high level. We have new shorts that are really high tech, and have some really cool features. And you will probably see us on a lot more fighters in the UFC. We’re looking to expand our distribution to Canada, the UK and Europe. Your going to see us more places if you haven’t notice us already. Man, it’s been a pleasure. Is there a way where folks can get more about you and RevGear? Of course. We’re on Facebook, Twitter, our blog that you can subscribe to catch about the fighters we’re supporting and our new gear. Check out all those vehicles and we’ll be at the UFC expos, so come check us out there. Thanks a lot Paul. It’s been a pleasure and we look forward to meeting you face-to-face. You can get more info on Paul Reavlin and RevGear at www.RevGear.com or twitter.com/revgear
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