NWA Star AJ Cazanao of US Tag Team Champions "The Country Gentleman" PWE Report Interview

Host Sean Lennon talked to NWA Pro Wrestler AJ Cazana on PWE. He’s on half of the NWA United States Tag Team Champions with his brother KC Cazana as The Country Gentlemen.  they will be coming to Highland Park NWA Chicago at Studio One to face "Da Soul Touchas" Marshe Rockett and Acid Jazz this Friday. AJ talked aabout Pro Wrestling and how has it changed his life for the better,  how working Television is different than Independent shows, His Father's Promotion JCP a NWA SouthEast Territory out of Tenessee and how much he has learned from being in NWA, his upcoming match with "Da Soul Touchas" and what started between him and his brother with them last October, His father Joe Cazana influence on his career, the loudest reaction he's had to either his entrance or moves,  Who else does he look up to in Pro Wrestling and why, stories of coming up in the business with "Thrillbilly" Silas Young, Kenzie and Kylie Paige, Does he have any advice for someone starting in Pro wrestling, plus more!

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:02):
Now Sean light here.

Speaker 2 (00:03):
Right now, we are talking to NWA Pro wrestler aj
Gazana on p w A.

Speaker 1 (00:09):
Make sure to check him out.

Speaker 2 (00:10):
He's one half of NWA United States Tag Team Champions
with his brother Casey Guzana as the Country Gentlemen, also
with their father Joe Guzanna, and make sure to come
to Highland Park, NWA Chicago at SREEO one. Make sure
to take out to be there as they face the
Soul Touchers Marsha Rocket and asked the Jazz this Friday night,

(00:32):
they're taking on Chicago's top tag team there in NW Chicago,
and we appreciate you being on. How you doing, aj Man?

Speaker 3 (00:39):
I'm doing good. I'm just enjoyed my day here, got
a nice workout, enjoyed the sun. It was about sixty five.

Speaker 4 (00:44):
And sunny here in Tennessee, so we're locking that warmer weather.

Speaker 1 (00:49):
Okay, that's good.

Speaker 2 (00:50):
It was Fortunately wasn't that high by where I'm at
in Chicago as you'll find out Friday.

Speaker 3 (00:56):
Oh yeah, no, I'm prepared for the cold. Yeah. Andrews
sleep ready to go.

Speaker 1 (01:02):
Definitely.

Speaker 2 (01:03):
Uh you're talking about professional invest at this point, I was,
you know, change your life for the better and growing
up in this business with your father, I was jokers
out of product promotions and how and and your brother
as well. How How was it were you like.

Speaker 3 (01:18):
Growing up in professional wrestling? I mean it was it was.
It was fun. It was I got him down and
I was just talking to somebody about this. I came in.

Speaker 4 (01:26):
I guess I was born a little uh, a little
after dad's dad's heyday.

Speaker 3 (01:32):
You know, he kind of slowed down once.

Speaker 4 (01:33):
I was born, once mom mom got knocked up and
got pregnant and stuff, and uh, he transitioned more into
this kind of the local stuff going here and there
between the you know, the Southeastern states, and you know,
it was it was good. It molded, it didn't really
mold me. Then it has has started to take effect now,
you know, right, because it's it's it's my life, Like

(01:55):
this is what I do for a living, this is
what I do for for fun.

Speaker 3 (01:59):
This is basically my entire life.

Speaker 4 (02:01):
This's lifting, you know, coaching football and wrestling and stuff,
and so it's definitely helping still a little more disciplined
in me, because you have to be disciplined on on
the road, uh, with doing your stretching doing you dieing
and exercise and stuff, and uh really focusing in on
getting my body right and get my head right and
making sure that we're taking care of.

Speaker 3 (02:22):
I mean, I saw that, man. You know. It's it's
it's a normal life to live a normal normal every day.

Speaker 4 (02:26):
I bar attend occasionally for fun and you know, we
just we have.

Speaker 1 (02:32):
A good time, all right. That's great, man.

Speaker 2 (02:35):
I'm glad that uh professional rest has really uh been
paid off for you.

Speaker 3 (02:40):
Oh yeah.

Speaker 4 (02:40):
And then uh yeah, and then you know my dad,
My dad's been around for about forty something years.

Speaker 3 (02:45):
Isn't it.

Speaker 4 (02:45):
And uh he's uh he's as spry, as young as
he ever thought he was. And he you know, he's
not no spring chicken, but he uh he likes to
act like one every once in a while. So yes,
uh he gets he gets his taste, and it's still
every once in a while.

Speaker 3 (02:59):
And then you know, my kid brother just got into
it a couple of years ago.

Speaker 4 (03:03):
He's just he's approaching two years in the business since
he started training, and obviously he's doing very well for himself.
You know a lot of things that I'll take a
lot of credit for that because he's stuck he's been
stuck with me for literally most of his career.

Speaker 3 (03:18):
He was six months in when he.

Speaker 4 (03:19):
Got a wrestling match with the nw A and he's
been with me ever since. So between him being with
me and Dad, you know, I think that's uh, it's
been a huge thing for him because we've able to
help him come along and push him in the right direction.

Speaker 3 (03:33):
Of course, we've got people in the n w of
the locker room.

Speaker 4 (03:34):
They're looking, uh, looking for us to succeed because they
know as the young guys go, the the locker room goes,
they're trying to cultivate their own talents. So JCP guys,
me and Casey ore n w A guys through and three.
We didn't come from w WU. He come to t
and A, didn't come from anywhere else. We were we
were found. Casey's literally been an NWA guy almost since

(03:57):
the beginning, because he was setting up the ring before
he started training. Then he decided to start training and
he got a little got a little little wet behind
the ears, and then he got a shot and he's
been with.

Speaker 3 (04:08):
Us ever since. He is a n w A guy
from the beginning.

Speaker 4 (04:12):
Territory and then and then and then proper show, you know,
and it's man, it's a I think that speaks wonders
for the JCP brand itself.

Speaker 3 (04:20):
Jokezana Promotions.

Speaker 4 (04:21):
You know, the top territory in the NBA, No Shape,
Chicago or nothing.

Speaker 3 (04:26):
But we uh, we're We're we're doing just fun. And
j CP is still growing.

Speaker 4 (04:31):
You know. We've still got me k C stylists at
and Plunkett come in every once in a while.

Speaker 3 (04:37):
Kylie Page is our women's World Champion. We got young guys,
and by young guys, I mean just just guys that
need a chance.

Speaker 4 (04:43):
Guys like Jay Newman Shute, our freaking tag titles over
the season on UH in the UK, on the Blockbusters,
Kobe John's and UH and Jordan's Sparks and and we're
we're rocking and rolling brother and it's it's getting better
every day.

Speaker 3 (04:59):
We've got we're growing.

Speaker 4 (05:00):
We kind of dialed back a little bit to reassess
this territory sucks. It's our first full year is the territory,
I believe, or maybe second year working on a second year.
But we we kind of changed up the way we
want to do business. And we've got a hell of
a roster and We're continuing to add to that roster.
We're continuing to define the pieces of fit and our

(05:23):
jobs to find talent that deserve to be where Casey
and I have gotten, deserve to be where Solace have gotten.

Speaker 3 (05:29):
And I think we've got a good, good little list of.

Speaker 4 (05:31):
Talent that that could step into the NBA right now
and make it make it known that we are.

Speaker 3 (05:38):
The top territory and that we're we're.

Speaker 4 (05:40):
Professional wrestlers as they're meant to be, and we're not
these these sports entertainers.

Speaker 3 (05:45):
We're barrel chested men.

Speaker 4 (05:46):
Most of us even are barrel chested, right, So Tyler
Excu's probably about one hundred and seventy and eighty five
pounds right now, but he shredded out of his mind,
his chest.

Speaker 3 (05:57):
He's he's the guy shoot turns hot baby, you know, right.

Speaker 4 (06:02):
But we Yeah, JCP is going great. We've got we've
got all our episodes on YouTube. We're airing on weekly.
We've got some stuff uned up because we just got
minx Eyes on YouTube, so we're able to put us
and more.

Speaker 3 (06:12):
We're putting out more content.

Speaker 4 (06:14):
We're really facing that focusing on the Facebook Instagrams.

Speaker 3 (06:17):
We don't do the twitters.

Speaker 4 (06:19):
Dad tries to do the Twitter and threads, and we
all hate social media, but we understand this the world
we live in today.

Speaker 3 (06:26):
But yeah, man, it's just it's it's it's growing, and
it's growing, right.

Speaker 4 (06:29):
And we've got Silas Mason in the creative office right
now with us. That he's He's Silas Mason may be
one of the most creative individuals I've ever met my
entire life, really across all platforms from from art, music, wrestling.
He's got a brain that works really funny. I don't
understand how it works. I don't under I don't ask

(06:50):
questions because mine don't work like that. But this man
will come up.

Speaker 3 (06:53):
Helly pitched to me today five seasons, five seasons of
a TV show that he came up with. I'm like,
how the hell do you? What went?

Speaker 4 (07:01):
And then and then he'll remember that until the day
that he's pitched professional wrestling companies and ideas, he's pitched
angles for the next ten years. He's pitched this, and
that he's he's got a creative mind.

Speaker 3 (07:12):
That uh.

Speaker 4 (07:13):
The day that he steps out of out of a
pair of wrestling boots and he decides to step into
the office he's uh, he should have a job just
about anywhere. Honestly, well, he should just have a job
just about anywhere wrestling. But he's gonna get a job somewhere.
And creative he's too. He's got that level of creativity
that that I'm not seen anywhere.

Speaker 1 (07:35):
Oh wow, that's fantastic.

Speaker 2 (07:37):
And for people that don't know how the television is
different than independent shows. For you, how much had you
learned from being part of n w A.

Speaker 1 (07:45):
Okay?

Speaker 2 (07:46):
You know the camera and the hard camera's there. You
know you have deack entrance here. How much have you
learned on the on the fly?

Speaker 4 (07:52):
Why train for TV? Okay, Doctor Tom Richard, kpw A.
Glenn Jacobs, you know they doc trains people for TV.
We have a camera set up and we run drills specifically,
I remember running drills where he's he's given us and
she usually just like blow up drills or whatever.

Speaker 3 (08:12):
Towards the end, he'll be like, all right, we need you.

Speaker 4 (08:14):
At the beginning, he'll tell you we need to we
need to finish over there facing that camera, and then
he'll change it.

Speaker 3 (08:19):
Up midway through, right before you're about to go into
the finish, and.

Speaker 2 (08:21):
He'll be like, oh, we gotta get around this way
camera move, and so we've been training to be on
camera since day one.

Speaker 4 (08:30):
Now understanding that and being able to position yourself took
some time. I mean it's it's five years and I
think I'm just now getting to the point to where,
like I can find a camera in any given moment
and understand the staging and everything of if you've got
these guys gonna ring, there's a match between us as
the slide balls and cars and Drake on Power where
you can see us lined up.

Speaker 3 (08:50):
Man, that's that's that's not just not just by accident.

Speaker 4 (08:53):
Like you know, we're all professionals and we understand that
to get everybody on the shot, we can't be lined
up like this.

Speaker 3 (08:58):
You gotta get to do it that a way.

Speaker 4 (09:01):
But man, it's NWA makes it easy versus any other
promotion I've been at. Probably you know, nowadays everybody's got
production or everybody tries to do production, and you'll at
least get a hard caam.

Speaker 3 (09:15):
So as long as you know where the hardcam is,
you can work that hardcam. For me, it's it's it's.

Speaker 4 (09:20):
More we'll work the hardcam and independent shows. But but
if there's people in the crowd. I'm trying to entertain them,
trying to entertain them and the people at home, but
if they're not reacting in the crowd, then it makes
me feel like crap. Yeah. So with that, I mean
independent shows are a little different because you can kind
of be a little more free. You don't have to
be so anal about where you're going with the camera.

(09:44):
But at NW A man, we've got hardcam. You've got
two roaming cameras. We typically do a jib cam one
of the floating ones, and then they usually hear there
they have an extra four camera, so you got four
or five cameras.

Speaker 3 (10:04):
If you can't find a shot.

Speaker 4 (10:06):
At the NWA of your face on camera, you're doing
something wrong, right, So it's uh, they make it really
easy to get this ugly mug on TV. So it's it's, uh,
it's significantly easier to work TV at TV with that
cameras versus you know, an independent show that's got one

(10:27):
hard camera and uh, you know, you're doing stuff all
over the place and you're trying to entertain the crowd
trying to do this, but at the same time, you
know they want it for their cameras, so it's it's
probably easier because of the amount of cameras.

Speaker 2 (10:43):
Yes, that's that's really intricate. I mean just how their
setup is. And you feel like you actually are able
to duplicate that with GJCP.

Speaker 4 (10:54):
W uh yeah, with Jason T. We can. We can
we duplicate that for you all. We've got one hard camera,
one Roman cameraight now. Of course, you know we partner
with Accolade Productions is our production guy. He's a local
feller here. He does all our post production. He comes
in and films our pre taste, vignette's anything we want.

(11:14):
With technology being the way it is now, the phone
I'm one has got a better camera than ninety percent
of the cameras out there. So we've uh, we do
use promos of talent films promos. We'll use promos and
plug those into shows that they've got ideas and they
want to and then he can go in and tweet
the you know, the definition to make it look like
we want to look. But you know, JCP is very unique.

(11:37):
We don't we don't put a TV show out. We're
not a TV show. We put we put episodes of
what we want out of what what we do out
because back when NWA went from YouTube to the CW app,
there was a huge backlash. People didn't like it because
the CW app wasn't available overseas, and we've got fans

(12:00):
other countries that watch religiously, and you know, there's you know,
gett a VPN. Everybody should have a VPN. The government
shouldn't know what you're looking at online. But I understand
people not wanting to pay for that, people not wanting.

Speaker 3 (12:12):
To get it. So I found a free one.

Speaker 4 (12:13):
I use it to this day, but it's it was
it was really for for that we were putting out
full shows. So we filled the show and then we
put out a two hour long YouTube video for people
to watch. And then I told that is like that happens, Like, well,
let's just put in a weekly episode and we'll break it.

Speaker 3 (12:31):
We'll break down a two hour show in before thirty
minute episodes.

Speaker 4 (12:34):
Plugging a couple of vignettes here and there, some pre tapes,
make it look real old school WCWNWA and.

Speaker 3 (12:40):
And and just give people what they want.

Speaker 4 (12:43):
To give people an alternative if they can't watch the
real deal right now until we get something figured out.
You know, we got over on x now, so that's
a little more a little more acceptable across the world.
But even then, like we built up a good little
following just because NWA power is long or available in
other countries, right, But no, we are We're a crowd first,

(13:05):
promotion crowd first. We've got people that paid money to
be there and they deserve to get interacted with him.
Being in East Tennessee, man, this is a Memphis style area.
And and nobody and not going to say it doesn't
have its place, but you got like the Northeast style
of wrestling sometimes doesn't work down here, but Memphis typically does.

(13:27):
And I understand Memphis style wrestling is that very big
in in TV world, but it's got its place. And
so we take in that old school Memphis style in
that old school NWA style, and we've kind of sprinkled
down a little new age Northeast and and I think
I think we've got.

Speaker 3 (13:45):
A really good culmination, a really good.

Speaker 4 (13:47):
Combo of those two things. And that's something that makes
us unique. Like we tell people every time we have
a show, like, hey, understand.

Speaker 3 (13:55):
We do put this out on YouTube.

Speaker 4 (13:57):
We do put out big reels, vignettes, everything you know,
to get content and whatnot, and that is the world
we live in. But we're here to entertain the people
in the States, whether it's a you know, or one
hundred and fifty or whether it's nine hundred and fifty,
like we usually get a cold field like, it's we're
here to entertain these folks. And I would rather entertain

(14:19):
the people in the crowd than the people at home
most of the time. Sure, and I get it sometimes
there's millions of people or hundreds of thousands of people.

Speaker 3 (14:26):
Watching at home.

Speaker 4 (14:27):
But if I'm doing my job and entertaining these folks
in the crowd while not being being a I'm trying
to think.

Speaker 3 (14:35):
Of the nice way to put this.

Speaker 4 (14:38):
Yeah, it's it's it's I think Aaron Stevens, I can
quote him saying, you know, it's Memphis style of wrestling
with Northeast TV phield. Okay, so we got that NWA
style of wrestling with that WWE WWW style of feel
for TV. And that's I think that's the best that
you can do because you give enough enough action where

(14:58):
people are locked in at home, they're flipping through channels,
they see something cool, They're like, okay, cool, I'm watching this,
but you're still entertaining the masses that paid money to
be there.

Speaker 3 (15:07):
To see you, you know what I mean?

Speaker 1 (15:10):
For sure?

Speaker 3 (15:11):
That's your long answer.

Speaker 2 (15:12):
Oh yeah, Hey, I think I think you uh really
have a formula to what you're doing as well.

Speaker 4 (15:18):
It's it's something we've we've we've worked with Aaron on
and we'll continue to work with Aaron On And it's
something that we taken because it's.

Speaker 3 (15:27):
He said, if you could learn to wrestle, uh in
the Memphis territory, the NBA style of wrestling that that
you know, this area staw of wrestling.

Speaker 4 (15:35):
Even the mid Atlantic, if you can learn to wrestle
like that and learn to work TV like up north
in the Northeast, you know New York again that's you
know McMahon's or whatever.

Speaker 3 (15:44):
But uh, there's a that's the perfect balance. And that's
his opinion.

Speaker 4 (15:50):
But I follow that opinion because that's what makes sense
to me and it's what's worked for me definitely.

Speaker 3 (15:56):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (15:57):
Now just up coming back for the solotype, can you
talk about how this got started between you and them?
You know, last October and w A Chicago, you had
a match of I think Eddie Grayson, Jack baller and
and uh these guys came after after the match ended.
March Jay Rocket of course, you know he has a
big prominent role of nw A and uh his partner.

Speaker 3 (16:20):
I haven't seen Marsada in NBA in years.

Speaker 1 (16:23):
Okay, I from what I heard, I ain't seen him.

Speaker 3 (16:27):
I ain't seen him in the locker room in years.

Speaker 1 (16:29):
Oh yeah, okay.

Speaker 3 (16:31):
My last time I saw him was October at Chicago.

Speaker 1 (16:34):
Okay.

Speaker 3 (16:35):
So I don't know how it started, whether they jumped
us or we jumped them.

Speaker 4 (16:40):
You know, we were defending our titles, like good territory
boys we are, and and uh, we were defending the
United States tag team titles, being the top team you know,
outside of Ox and Murdoch whatever World champions, being their
top tag team. You know, we we got to represent,
and I think we represented in Chicago well.

Speaker 3 (16:58):
And I don't know if that Marsha and his partner
took too kindly to that.

Speaker 4 (17:02):
You know, I know people up north don't really care
for my people down here in the South and the
way we handle business and the way we do things.
And I don't I can't remember who jumped who first,
but if I'm not mistaking, it was them they they
came out.

Speaker 3 (17:18):
I guess to make a stay for the kids or something,
or trying to fight, I don't know.

Speaker 4 (17:26):
And then we retaliated because guess what, you want some,
We'll give you some, but it's gonna be on our time,
because again we are the current Ranning defending NWA United
States Tag Team Champions.

Speaker 1 (17:40):
Definitely very excited for this matchup.

Speaker 3 (17:43):
I'm glad you are. I'm ready to slap Marchae sideways.

Speaker 2 (17:47):
So talk about when you first met Marchae and what
was your impression of him.

Speaker 4 (17:53):
Most athletic, A big man I've ever seen in my
entire life. Maybe that's not true because I didn't play
Division one football, and I know some guys to play
in the NFL seen some freak athletes.

Speaker 3 (18:01):
Marchha's got. Marsha's unreal athletic.

Speaker 4 (18:07):
When I first met him, he was he was with
Austin Idol and we didn't care too much.

Speaker 3 (18:12):
Frostinles a little clique. Austin broke my dad's nose, saw
wins who you know.

Speaker 4 (18:16):
Austin brought my cousin Anthony back in the fold in
Miami and Fort Lauderdale. Fort Lauderdale one of those two
and you know, Austin's kind of been a thorn in
our side. But you know, once Marshal left, we were cool.
And once he left, uh, once he left Austin Idols
little click, we were cool. Really hard guy not to like. Really,

(18:39):
I mean, he's a he You look at him, you
want to smile. He's got a great sense of humor.
He is he is, Uh, he's pretty intelligent. It's a
fun guy to be around. He just you know, I
think he got mixed up a little bit with Idol
and and then he got out of that. Since then,
like I said, man, I ain't seen him around until
we come up to the n Wa ch Chaiagu.

Speaker 3 (18:59):
And I don't think he likes the fact that me and.

Speaker 4 (19:00):
My brother where we're at and he's stuck in Chicago, right,
you know. And I can get it jealous. He's not
pretty even on a beautiful man like that. So I
liked Marche. I thought we were friends. And then apparently
I was wrong. And I ain't wrong about much when.

Speaker 3 (19:20):
I was wrong that time.

Speaker 1 (19:22):
Yes, and he thoughts on asked the Jazz, is I'm.

Speaker 3 (19:25):
Doing very well? I' know I made him up there.

Speaker 4 (19:27):
I made him once or twice but I got I
got no real I got no best feelings. I just
feel bad that he's gonna have to get his head smack.
And you know that that Ford Studio one's concrete and
we we we have to dropping people on their heads.

Speaker 3 (19:42):
And I feel bad.

Speaker 4 (19:47):
You know, I don't want to hurt the guy, but
he's he's tied his his wagon to the racehorse, that
his Marchhae rocket. And if that's supposed to be when
NWA Chicago represents, and you know, we're well to go
put it to them and give them a chance to
prove that they deserve to be on n WA Power
and in the Crockett Cup and all that stuff. So look,
I'm just I'm just here. I'm a businessman. I'm a

(20:09):
I'm a territory guy. I'm an n w A guy.

Speaker 3 (20:12):
I'm an Rrish man. I do what Billy asked me
to do. I know where Billy asked me to go.
I'm his guy. He won't tell you that because I'm
a bad guy. And apparently I do bad things, is
what people tell me. I ain't never done a bad
thing in my life. I'm a country.

Speaker 4 (20:27):
But you know, apparently he uh, I like to imagine
that we're his guys. You know where the We're the
measuring stick, you know, the slim balls, you know the balls.
I've always got a job because of us.

Speaker 3 (20:41):
Right, we're the measuring stick. So why not put Marshane
in this part?

Speaker 1 (20:45):
Is it jazz jazz?

Speaker 3 (20:48):
Why not put those two in the ring with us
and see if those two kids.

Speaker 4 (20:50):
Can have you know, I know they're they're they're young
in his business, that's the joke.

Speaker 3 (20:54):
That's not really a funny show. So maybe they can
make it.

Speaker 4 (20:57):
In wrestling one day, you know, But no, there therefore hovorable.

Speaker 3 (21:00):
Tag team man, no doubt.

Speaker 4 (21:01):
And I know they're they're probably the biggest tag team
in the Chicago area as far as the fans.

Speaker 3 (21:07):
Man.

Speaker 4 (21:09):
For whatever reason, when we came out to fight them,
they boot us. The fans did, and I don't I
don't know why. Apparently they really like those guys. So
I'm excited for this match.

Speaker 3 (21:20):
I think.

Speaker 4 (21:20):
I think it's gonna be real, real easy, and they hell,
it might even be a little fun. Okay, I do know,
you know Corgan's there, so how much fun we can have?

Speaker 3 (21:36):
I gotta work, you know what I mean?

Speaker 4 (21:37):
Like I got through to my boss that we're obviously
the number one contenders for the world Tag team titles,
whether anybody an NBA Power NWA offices want to.

Speaker 3 (21:45):
Admit it or not.

Speaker 4 (21:46):
And I've got to approve that we're who we are
and we can do what we say we can do.
And if if I got to break a leg, break
a couple of thumbs, then you know we'll we'll do it.

Speaker 1 (21:56):
Yes, I don't want.

Speaker 4 (21:57):
To, but but I gotta, I gotta. I got World
Gold up my playlist later. You know, I'm trying to
get that thing wrapped around my waist. I'm trying to
take this United States Tag Team kitle all over the
country and people want to doubt us and tell us,
you know, oh well, you guys are just there because
of who your daddy is. Is like sin, I'll smack
these people upside the head and make them wish they
never met me.

Speaker 1 (22:17):
For sure. I mean, you guys listed an open challenge
for April were Vegas.

Speaker 3 (22:22):
Yeah, we're going to go in Vegas Mania week. We're
out in Vegas Mayia Week.

Speaker 4 (22:25):
We're free to go the whole week, and neither one
of us.

Speaker 3 (22:28):
You know, this is our full time.

Speaker 4 (22:29):
Job, so we're open we're out of Colorado Wrestling Connection.

Speaker 3 (22:34):
We got one match right now scheduled for it. I'm
working on a few more.

Speaker 4 (22:38):
May be able to dip over, hopefully to the newest
territory in WA, New Mexico.

Speaker 3 (22:45):
I think they got to show April nineteenth.

Speaker 4 (22:47):
He hadn't confirmed that with me yet, but that's that week,
and I'm like, hey man, it's a it's a real nice, easy,
easy way for us to get home if we fire
ourselves out to Vegas and NWA will.

Speaker 3 (22:56):
Get us from Vegas, from New Mexico to Mexico to home.

Speaker 4 (22:59):
All right, but you know which we're trying to get
out there? Uh, dude, I've wrestled. I'd fight ten times
a day out in Vegas if they'd let me. I'll
wrestle anybody. I wanted to go out there. I wanted
to put these tiles online because I know every independent
wrestler in the world who means something's going to be
in Las Vegas, Nevada. Yes, from Romania, and we're I

(23:21):
want to I just want to prove we're the.

Speaker 3 (23:23):
Best tag team in the United States, not just the Southeast.

Speaker 4 (23:26):
Off the end of day, we want to wrestle everybody
I want. I want the effies of the world. I
want the cruels of the world. I want I don't
know who you got the Midnight Heat. If somebody could
get me the Midnight Heat from out west in Vegas,
we tear the.

Speaker 3 (23:40):
Freaking house down. Oh yeah, if somebody wants to book
the freaking hardiest to fight us, we'll fight them.

Speaker 1 (23:46):
What about that.

Speaker 3 (23:47):
Would be right? If you want to book anybody from
from TNA. You know, Heath and Rhino have been running
their mouths asking for it. I'll give it to them,
like uh, we're we're.

Speaker 4 (23:58):
Offering star studded matt and and they're not gonna be
Dave Meltzer seven star ratings.

Speaker 3 (24:05):
Because they're gonna be ass kickings. They're gonna be fights.

Speaker 4 (24:07):
They're gonna be down home Donnie Brooks by the book
the way we like to do it.

Speaker 3 (24:12):
And uh hell, if Tony Connells to send a couple
of his life he's out there, we'll take care of
them too.

Speaker 2 (24:18):
Okay, only because I see mocks the all out poster
in the background.

Speaker 1 (24:22):
Oh yeah, I know, I was supposed to replace that
with Mike Banner.

Speaker 3 (24:27):
I'll fight John Moxley one on one.

Speaker 1 (24:29):
Oh yeah, there we go.

Speaker 4 (24:30):
I watched him get tapped out by by middle aged
plumbers and and Brazilian jiu jitsu.

Speaker 3 (24:36):
You know, the easiest defence for jiu jitsu, you just
stand up.

Speaker 2 (24:39):
It's that simple, right, right. Yeah, it'll be interesting week,
of course for you guys to be in Las Vegas,
and WrestleMania is always huge.

Speaker 1 (24:49):
So oh yeah, oh.

Speaker 3 (24:51):
Yeah, I'm excited.

Speaker 4 (24:52):
Uh I've told I was talking to somebody earlier about it,
and you know, I don't If we've got one booking,
we'll go out there for a couple of days. We'll
enjoy scenery, see some stuff, drink some drinks, gamble a
little bit, play some back of rat, a little little
black jack, try to you know, try to try to
double next month's rent.

Speaker 1 (25:11):
You know, I'd love to see you guys fight F
t R.

Speaker 3 (25:16):
That's one of my dream matches. But Tony Kahn's got
them on lockdown.

Speaker 4 (25:21):
And he's scared to let them go any I think
that's just plain and simple how it is the Kingdom.
Matt Taven and Mike Bennett. I'd love to fight them
anytime anywhere. Those those those two matches, uh, Heath and
Rhino are on that short list. Man, like we just
we deserve an opportunity to prove ourselves. And I think

(25:43):
people are afraid to give us that opportunity because they know.

Speaker 3 (25:46):
What we'll do. They don't They don't want us to
outshine there, guys, And I get it, get it.

Speaker 4 (25:53):
Understand who wants Who wants to see two country bumpkins
from East Tennessee outshine these top class athletes?

Speaker 3 (26:00):
Nobody? So no, man, I'll do that.

Speaker 4 (26:04):
FTRS is if they, if they at the freaking Dax
whatever answer me back?

Speaker 3 (26:11):
He never answers me. He ducks me. Matt Tavin will
get back with me every once in a while, but
he ain't got apparently he ain't got nothing free.

Speaker 4 (26:21):
No, we're we're you know, we're working on the Rhino
match and Heath and we're trying to get some good
stuff out there for people.

Speaker 1 (26:29):
So yeah, dogs are going off. Oh no way, Yeah,
I can't wait to see what happens. Is that?

Speaker 2 (26:37):
And talk about nw A three one two When you
were part of this landmark event. Billy Corgan is from
Highland Park and that was after that unfortunate massacred that
took place.

Speaker 1 (26:49):
How important was that for you to show up and
be a part of that show.

Speaker 4 (26:53):
It was really freaking cool, man, Honestly, that was the Yeah,
it's been a while.

Speaker 3 (26:58):
We did the.

Speaker 4 (27:00):
Show for Connor, you know, a little small show, a
little fundraiser there the night before, and that was fun.
I enjoyed that. And then we turned around I did
three one two and.

Speaker 3 (27:13):
It was uh, it was it was cool. It was
uh trying to remember what we had.

Speaker 1 (27:20):
I think you took on as the savages. Well I
believe so, Knda.

Speaker 3 (27:28):
We had no we had Billy Tipton and.

Speaker 5 (27:31):
Uh and Garrison Creed I think, and then Jack Zane
God Rest his soul and Blake Troup yeah at the time.

Speaker 4 (27:42):
And they came out and jumped us, and then the
fixtures came out, and then Knox and Murdoch came out
and it was just a big Donny Brook and and
I think that's the show. Mike Knox jumped off the
rope onto all of us outside and broke a light.

Speaker 1 (27:57):
Oh wow.

Speaker 3 (27:59):
Uh no, man, And it was real cool.

Speaker 4 (28:02):
Anytime you get to step foot in any NWA wrestling
ring is a blessing, is a is a very it's
a real experience, and it's surreal experience. Because I'm getting
to do what I love, and I'm getting to do
it at the highest level, and I'm getting to do
it for a company that my dad wrestled for, that
my great grandfather owned the Southeastern Territory in for twenty years,

(28:23):
and that my great grandfather wrestled for.

Speaker 3 (28:25):
So you know, it's it's been really freaking cool, man.

Speaker 1 (28:29):
For sure.

Speaker 2 (28:30):
And you know, it's just a very intimate atmosphere. There's
no guardrails there on top of.

Speaker 3 (28:36):
You man, they don't mess around either. Those Chicago folks
are a little wild thing. Yeah, they'll let you know,
and that's good. I like that. So you know, it's
it's it's I like, the answer to the atmosphere is
I'd eurther be in a smaller venue, packed tight like that.

Speaker 4 (28:54):
Versus the giant, like Dothan's great, but Dothan's so big
where we go to the six Center versus you know,
and we can.

Speaker 3 (29:01):
Fit significantly more people in there. But those those smaller venues.

Speaker 4 (29:08):
Man, we put a thousand people at Colefield High School
and it was I mean it was packed right, pleasures
were full. We had two hundred four seats or more out,
no guard rails because We don't do that.

Speaker 3 (29:21):
Our people know, we know they know, but they know
better than the step in the ring with us.

Speaker 4 (29:27):
Now we've got security and we've had a few problems,
but there's bel we have police that shows like that.
You know, we ain't just dunk Fellers. But yeah, man,
it's it's I love intimate atmospheres like that. I'm trying
to think ours that we do at JCP right now.
It's a small elementary school gym. It's where I went
to elementary schools, where my brother went to elementary school.
Our cousins, the principal there, we give, we give back

(29:50):
to the kids there. We get back to the Boys
and Girls club there. We usually give them free tickets
and it's just something for the community to go out
and forget their problems for a Friday night every couple
of months. And and being in that smaller venue. If we
put three hundred people in there, man, it's standing room only, right,
I think we could get four to five hundred, But

(30:11):
we get close to the fire marshal getting called because
it would literally be shoulder to shoulder. It'd be nowhere
to stand, there'd be nowhere to sit, there'd be nowhere
to spit.

Speaker 3 (30:20):
If you had to, and it's it's but I.

Speaker 4 (30:23):
Love I love that man and those we have. I
think we're we're drawing anywhere between one hundred and fifty
two hundred people.

Speaker 3 (30:28):
And and in that venue, it feels like five thousand.

Speaker 4 (30:33):
Wow, Because those especially those fans, they're nuts, they're loud,
they're crazy, they like to have fun, they like to cheer,
they like to boo, and they just like good old
professional wrestlers. And they'll they'll let you know if they
like it, they'll let you know if they hate you.
And they're engaged from start to finish, and it's it's
I think that intimate setting helps create that.

Speaker 3 (30:52):
You know, they know, they know where we're on a stage.

Speaker 4 (30:55):
Right we're in the professional wrestling ring, which is about
three or four feet off the ground, just small stage,
and that gives you that that elevation and they know, Okay,
well this is a big deal.

Speaker 3 (31:05):
We're close to the action. It could spill over into
our laps. I've untied shoes at these shows.

Speaker 4 (31:11):
When I get thrown out of the ring. You know,
you reach out, you accidentally grab somebody's shoe loop and
you just pull it.

Speaker 3 (31:18):
So it's it's I love it. Intimate places, man, it's fun,
a lot of fun.

Speaker 1 (31:23):
Definitely, Yeah, me too as well.

Speaker 2 (31:25):
And Highland Park is one of those those those great
venues that you that we see now and now and
again now and time again. Now when you talk about
the loust reaction you've had either your entrances or your
move what what would it be?

Speaker 4 (31:38):
Well, our interest in Philadelphia was pretty unwelcoming.

Speaker 3 (31:45):
The entrance and does and also pretty unwelcoming. Uh man,
we uh we you.

Speaker 4 (31:53):
Know, we we won the belts in Philly. Crowd didn't
like that too much, but the hell out of us.
And it's more and more reactions for the matches than
it is moves, man, you know, it's it's a moment's
over moves for us, right And we're not fancy. We
don't do a lot of fancy moves. We don't do

(32:14):
the high spots. We're we'll got one or two in
our sleeves, but don't need them, m hm. And And
with that we'll wrestle for the next twenty five thirty years,
right and and we'll get.

Speaker 3 (32:29):
The same reactions then that we do now. And uh,
you know, it's it's it's.

Speaker 4 (32:35):
It is what it is, there's a match that'll be
coming up on NWA Power. That is the loudest reaction
I've ever gotten in my entire life. Probably really, it's
been pretty close anything that I can at least in
modern history, like recent history. We uh yeah, it was
a tag team match, and and the reactions beering were
for the moves and those were big pops and then uh.

(32:57):
I just remember laying laying on the ground at the
of the match and I'm not gonna give you any
more animal fellers. I remember laying sitting there thinking to myself,
we just proved we're main event talent.

Speaker 3 (33:10):
That reaction is.

Speaker 4 (33:11):
The biggest reaction anybody on the NBA has gotten in
the past year.

Speaker 3 (33:17):
Wow, it was. It was out of this word.

Speaker 4 (33:19):
In that course, I'll probably get heat in the locker
room for that whatever. Who knows, no, man, it was
it was. There's been big reactions, but that was our
biggest reaction by bar. It was just the next time
we're on power. So the downside is man like, when
you're you can hear the crowd when you're out there,
and you can feel it, but but in the moment

(33:39):
you kind of go, I.

Speaker 3 (33:41):
Go, I get lost.

Speaker 4 (33:42):
They get lost in them in the moment of I
can feel the energy and I can tell where we're going,
I can tell where they're about to.

Speaker 3 (33:48):
Go, and it's it's but you still kind of like.

Speaker 4 (33:54):
It's just it's deafening, almost like you can't hear it,
so locked.

Speaker 3 (34:00):
Into everything around you.

Speaker 4 (34:01):
And then wrestling it's it's a it's a five line
to won't but no, it's it's it's wild.

Speaker 3 (34:09):
We get some reactions, yeah, for sure.

Speaker 1 (34:13):
And you've wrestled internationally as well, right.

Speaker 4 (34:15):
Oh yeah, shoot, yeah, talk about some big interactions. Uh,
their reactions pro wrestling Holland over in Amsterdam.

Speaker 3 (34:25):
They don't carry too much for Americans over there. I'll
just tell you much.

Speaker 4 (34:28):
It's especially the big southern ones who drink a lot
of beer and like to talk a lot of smack.

Speaker 3 (34:36):
Yeah, no, that was for wrestling Holland gives me.

Speaker 4 (34:39):
It's one that's probably my favorite place to wrestle outside
of the NWA.

Speaker 1 (34:43):
Really.

Speaker 4 (34:44):
Oh yeah, man, it was nuts a couple of places
over the UK that I wrestled con yeah, conn, I
was a contract wrestling. I can't remember if it. I
think it was contract off the top of my head.
They're all running together right now because it's been a
few months. Intimate venue usually usually uh like sound stages,

(35:04):
like concert venues, small concert venues, but they packed those
places out, man, and they've got the seating set up
just right, and you've got the production, the lights, this
and that. There's alcohol usually involved, and they just they're
they're the international fans are wild wild But yeah, man,

(35:27):
going international was a huge experience. I learned a lot
and uh especially but no pro wrestling, Holland That's that's
what I've told the guy I told Pengase like the
promoter was like, this is my home away from home, man, Like,
this is this is the promotion that if if somebody
were to call, if you were to call me and say, hey,
come over, I'd.

Speaker 3 (35:43):
Be here tomorrow.

Speaker 4 (35:45):
You know, my financially permitted and the passports and everything
come you know, right. So yeah, the Boom Chicago show
that we just did, Brother, it was me and Los
Dinos Dermanos, I believe, out.

Speaker 3 (36:00):
Of Mexico, uh.

Speaker 4 (36:04):
Wrestling against a few guys from from the Deutsche Land
over there from the Netherlands, Lorenzo.

Speaker 3 (36:09):
Lima, Brandon Brameiro.

Speaker 4 (36:12):
In lf lfgesus name LFG loved the Eastern American but
the other two are Dutch and they're just.

Speaker 3 (36:18):
Big fans of those three. And dude, I could have
mid match, I could a pre match promo and I
could have mid match promo and I'm never I don't
know if I've ever gotten more heat. Oh wow, for
more interactions.

Speaker 4 (36:33):
I know I've gotten more heat, but more interaction and
reaction out of what I was saying. And it's it's brother,
it's wild over there. It's a whole different freaking ball game.

Speaker 1 (36:43):
For sure.

Speaker 2 (36:44):
You feel like n w A has the opportunity to
should ranch out more and travel internationally and put on
an events international. I know they've had like a couple
of different spots with the Vampire Tour or whatever Billy
Corgan and Smashing Pumpkins are doing, but I.

Speaker 4 (36:59):
Think that was a huge success and those Stiles was
on that tour, the Southern Sticks are on that to
that's when they started.

Speaker 3 (37:05):
Me and Casey worked together, me and Anthony, my whole partner.

Speaker 4 (37:07):
We didn't get to go on those tours, but the
two weeks in Australia I think went really well and
I think it's something Billy would do again.

Speaker 3 (37:15):
The downside is that he was giving free wrestling.

Speaker 4 (37:19):
To those fans of his concerts. That's fine, that's great.
That builds our brand because they got great reactions and
great we've got a lot of fans in Australia now
because of it.

Speaker 3 (37:31):
But if we were to go do a two week
tour over there and.

Speaker 4 (37:34):
Sell tickets to venues, I think I think we do
just fine, especially like if they did that thing kind
of tour with the with the idea of doing it
for professional wrestling and not just like as a.

Speaker 3 (37:50):
Tag along abilities that was kind I think.

Speaker 4 (37:51):
That was a that was a test for a billy
to see how his fans reacted to wrestling.

Speaker 3 (37:56):
And it worked obviously because we did a US tour.

Speaker 4 (37:59):
We did four dates and in the South over here,
dothan Or, we went Huntsville, Fort Lauderdale, No Hospital, West Palm,
Tampa and then Charlotte, I believe, and and it went
over great then too.

Speaker 3 (38:16):
So I know there's a need friend and want for
nw A overseas. Uh.

Speaker 4 (38:21):
You know, we partnered with Triple A, I think in
uh New in Mexico. I think we've done some stuff
with CMLLL and you know, we just like I said,
we just branched out to Texas and New Mexico, so
we're closed right there at the border. Uh. I think
there's I think there's a want for n w A
to go international again. I know people love the n
w A brand and they love the n w A roster,

(38:42):
and they love the talent. They love what we present,
what we can do, especially in the UK.

Speaker 3 (38:49):
Europe. Europe's a little more obscure.

Speaker 4 (38:51):
They don't really they don't really over it as much
as UH as much.

Speaker 3 (38:56):
But we're going to go. We got guys that go
over all the time. I just went to Italy.

Speaker 4 (38:59):
I was in Italy and the Netherlands and in the UK,
and I think I did a good job of being
a liaison for the National Wrestling Alliance and it was
a They were very receptive and I think we've grown
over there in those countries.

Speaker 3 (39:15):
Just because talent is going there. Soorry. Do I see
international tour coming.

Speaker 4 (39:21):
Probably not in the foreseeable future, in the near future,
but it would be. It wouldn't be on the realm
of possibilities for Billy Cordy to up and say, hey,
we're taking twenty dudes and girls and going to going
to Brazil and doing a two week tour, going to
the Puerto Rico, maybe not Puerto Rico, maybe Puerto Rico.

Speaker 3 (39:39):
Who knows Mexico and doing and.

Speaker 4 (39:42):
Doing and doing three day stints in these places, doing
a meet and greep one day, doing a small house
show or whatever, and.

Speaker 3 (39:49):
Then doing a big show in a stadium.

Speaker 4 (39:51):
So Billy's Billy is the mastermind of figuring that stuff out. Now.

Speaker 3 (39:55):
That's that's why I defer to him. Yeah, yeah, that's
not my job. That's his job. And he does a
good one.

Speaker 1 (40:01):
Hey, Congruts, because I think I did raise.

Speaker 2 (40:03):
I had multiple sellouts as of late for their for
their live events were.

Speaker 3 (40:10):
Yeah, dude, it's a uh dose.

Speaker 4 (40:12):
And I know we could pack a lot more in there,
but I mean we're putting that's the biggest crowds we're pulling.

Speaker 3 (40:17):
I go back to the territories last year, we had
a thousand, and we.

Speaker 4 (40:20):
Probably could have gotten another few hundred in there, but
I think we capted it that they filled up.

Speaker 3 (40:25):
We only did one side.

Speaker 4 (40:26):
We had the old school one side bleachers, but they
were huge and it was it was packed.

Speaker 3 (40:31):
Four seats were all sold.

Speaker 4 (40:34):
I know, Tampa, we packed Tampa for saw Wind two
when it had to move from Sarasota because the hurricane
Melvin or Michael or something right the Urban Marvin, one
of those.

Speaker 3 (40:44):
One of those bad hurricanes.

Speaker 4 (40:47):
When that hurricane passed through there, we moved it to
the Tampa studio and it was freaking packed out, and
I think they saw that we could do that there,
and we could put a couple of hundred two or
three hundred in there, and especially over a couple of
days to a couple and we're packing those out. We
go back to Huntsville, they're not huntsfull Dothan packed those

(41:11):
hell Studio one celled out like the n w A.

Speaker 3 (41:14):
We're doing.

Speaker 4 (41:15):
Yeah, everything we're doing is on the right track and
trajectory is going upwards. So it's only a matter of time,
you know. Forney, Texas, we go to the o C
out there, we sell that out and it's just it's
a matter of of continuing to keep that ball rolling
and succeed. And I think Brian heidele Uh does a
pretty good job of promoting what we need to promote,

(41:35):
doing what he needs to do, you know, and and
especially on those tours and stuff. I know, the Northeast
tour just happened, and I think every night was a
sell out up there.

Speaker 3 (41:43):
Pretty enclosed for sure. So it's it's yeah, we're very fortunate,
very blessed.

Speaker 2 (41:50):
Yes, and then you have more attention because we saw
this today now and said, w B, I tell you.

Speaker 1 (41:57):
Is coming out?

Speaker 3 (41:58):
Man, how cool is that out?

Speaker 1 (42:00):
Yeah?

Speaker 3 (42:00):
How cool is that?

Speaker 1 (42:01):
Yeah?

Speaker 4 (42:02):
Hell yeah, we were told that and I was like, well,
that's that's.

Speaker 3 (42:07):
Really it's really really good for us.

Speaker 4 (42:11):
I think it's a really good experience for Natalia. I
think she talked about on Busted Open. I shared it earlier,
listened to it, and she was really excited about that.

Speaker 3 (42:19):
It's basically just to come in because of the history
of the n w A.

Speaker 4 (42:23):
Yeah, and I want to say Stu's Stu Hart had
a territory maybe at one point up and came to Calvary,
or at least that we would. They would send people
up there occasionally, so there's you know, they got history
in the n w A as well.

Speaker 6 (42:37):
And uh, having her in is not only I don't
think it's it's massive for us, but I.

Speaker 3 (42:47):
Think it's I was tell us about again this earlier.
I think it's huge for professional wrestling WWE being willing to.

Speaker 4 (42:57):
Uh one when I saw that partner with TNA and
the t k O stuff.

Speaker 3 (43:01):
Hell, when I saw Mickey James.

Speaker 4 (43:03):
Go in as the TNA Women's Champion to rule Rumble
before any official partnership, and then and then the official
partnership was announced.

Speaker 3 (43:13):
They're seeing crossovers.

Speaker 4 (43:15):
And then when we found this out today, it was like,
that opens up the door for us to wrestle some
of their guys and girls, for them guy other guys
and girls to come to us, right, But.

Speaker 3 (43:28):
It's just it's it's it's it's I think.

Speaker 4 (43:31):
It shows Triple H's vision not only for the WWE,
but for professional wrestling as a whole.

Speaker 3 (43:39):
Like I understand that, you know, he runs a.

Speaker 4 (43:42):
Multi billion dollar company and he understands that, but I.

Speaker 3 (43:45):
Think he knows.

Speaker 4 (43:48):
I think he believes the same way I believe that
that your your your shows like team, like the shows
like TNA, the shows like nw A like there's a
lot of talent being called and of course you know,
the WW is the WW. They are the freaking head
on the hydra of the that runs the thing. They're

(44:08):
they're the top of the professional wrestling world and just
being being able to be mentioned in the same breath
now as them, right, because like everybody usually pretends that
the w B doesn't exist. Like for a while, we
were kind of like, Okay, we don't mention them on TV.
You know, we didn't mention ECW when we were in Philly.

(44:28):
We don't mention like we never meant it. We don't
mention the AW. We don't mention any of those guys
usually on TV or any of our promotions or whatever.
So like being able to be mentioned in the same
breath as the WWE is very invigorating for me because
that means that something we're doing at the NWA, the
National Wrestling Alliance, is doing something right right, and we're

(44:49):
on the press with us. I think it's the right
word of of just exponential growth for our company just
on this one and now, and there's no telling what
other announcements they're going to be made or what else
they have planned because Billy is the very secretive is

(45:10):
not the right word, but he holds his cards close
to his chest.

Speaker 3 (45:12):
M and and we all kind of do that, right.

Speaker 4 (45:15):
We don't tell people things until we know for sure
that they're happening, or until we got them lined up
ready to go. There's no telling what what Billy's got
stacked up right now for five or six shows. You know,
we don't really We get our schedule and whatnot a
few months in the dance and they give us our
information and we get everything squared away, and it's usually
real easy.

Speaker 3 (45:35):
But I bet he's got shows booked in the back
of his head for the next five years, right And.

Speaker 4 (45:43):
There's no telling, especially with this part, like it was
done present.

Speaker 3 (45:47):
I didn't think it would happen. I didn't even know.

Speaker 4 (45:49):
I didn't know what the freaking deal was, what they were,
what they were giving us, they you know, what they
were going to tell us, what we were.

Speaker 3 (45:55):
About to find out. I saw Joe Gally's doing.

Speaker 4 (45:57):
But to open you know, we all we all checked
our emails, We checked our voicemails, text messages and people
going on. We're all asking each other, Hey, what do
you think is happening? But man like, yeah, it's it's
It's huge for professional wrestling in the whole because that
shows that the top guys, yes in the world, like
the top promotion in the world recognizes what we're.

Speaker 1 (46:19):
Doing for sure.

Speaker 4 (46:21):
Obviously that means we're doing something right, Yes, and he's
he wants to partner with us in some form of fashion.

Speaker 1 (46:29):
Yes, yes, for sure. Yeah.

Speaker 2 (46:31):
Everything's good, right, everything's good. Everything's podcast old man checking
out me. Yeah, yeah, man, I appreciate you. You know
everything you're telling me. I wanted to ask about what
athletic background did you have prior to pro wrestling.

Speaker 4 (46:49):
Well, I played college football for a year, but I
played about fourteen or fifteen years of football before that,
a little amateur wrestler.

Speaker 3 (46:59):
I didn't I didn't wrestle in high school or nothing,
but I coached after.

Speaker 4 (47:03):
So I left college in twenty eleven with a little injury,
and I was like, maybe maybe I hang the cleats
up and just go live my life a little bit
and see what happens. You know. A few years go by,
and I'm like, I missed football a lot. I can't
go back and play, but maybe I can go coach.
And I got into coaching and stuff. Got roped into
coaching wrestling as the basically I was. I was about

(47:23):
three fifteen at the time, and I was getting in
shape and working out and and my old defensive line
coach asked me, Chris Hawkins.

Speaker 3 (47:32):
He asked me. He said, hey, he said, would you
ever consider coaching wrestling? I'm like, sure, why not? It
sounds like fun. You're gonna pay me more cool?

Speaker 4 (47:44):
And basically I was the throwing dummy for our heavyweights,
and it was just a big body to go in.

Speaker 3 (47:49):
There and wrestle with our heavy So I had to learn.

Speaker 4 (47:51):
As a twenty five twenty four year old man how
to like shoot wrestling amateur matt wrestling stuff, and so
I learned a lot of that. I did that for
about seven years coach football, and then finally decided, you know,
maybe we give this professional wrestling thing to try. After
the bug bit me and I, you know, I had.
My family is super supportive. My aunt Edna actually offered

(48:16):
and paid.

Speaker 3 (48:16):
For my training. She told me. She said. The only
she said, I'll never asked you to repay it. Uh.

Speaker 4 (48:22):
The only thing I asked is that when you either
when you wrestle for a world title or you may
event WrestleMania, or you're wrestling at WrestleMania, think of me
and get me a ticket. And I'm like, Mike, ed No,
you're the first freaking one. You're fright and center. You
and Mama and uh so, uh, you know, I heard
the world. If it wasn't for her, I wouldn't be here.

(48:43):
If it wasn't for my cousin or son, I wouldn't
be here. Of course, it wasn't for my dad and
my mom supporting me and the stupid stuff I decided
to do.

Speaker 3 (48:50):
We wouldn't be here. So it's it's it's a lot
of dominoes.

Speaker 4 (48:53):
A lot of things had to fall in the right
places to get to where we're at today.

Speaker 3 (48:58):
But man, it's uh.

Speaker 4 (48:59):
I athletic background and then being around I've been around
professional wrestling my entire life, so it was.

Speaker 3 (49:05):
Just always back in the back of my mind.

Speaker 4 (49:07):
But I never really cared for it, and I never
really wanted to do it until it bit me that
I was like, I got involved in in my dad's
retirement show and the first one, and.

Speaker 3 (49:20):
Wait, I just I got those goosebumps.

Speaker 4 (49:22):
Like I remember the feeling of going I literally game
to got a hip toss, but I remember going in,
the feeling and the goosebumps, the adrenaline, heart rates up,
adrenaline up, my hair is standing up on my arms
and my chest, and I'm like, this is the closest
thing I have and have ever felt to running through
the power tea at the University of Tennessee. And I

(49:43):
did that for one hundred thousand people and the same
and the reactions we get from fans, it is the
closest thing I've ever gotten to that and that's a
high that is unmatched by any anything else I've ever
done in my entire life. Sure, so it's it's it's yeah,
it's it's all just kind of I culminated together. It's
the perfect storm of nonsense and and background and whatnot.

Speaker 3 (50:06):
So yeah, it was just just dude.

Speaker 4 (50:08):
Just athletics, man, Just athletics and coaching and.

Speaker 3 (50:11):
And being being a delinquent and not being good at school.

Speaker 1 (50:16):
Definitely.

Speaker 2 (50:16):
And I want to ask, if someone wants to become
a pro wrestler, what advice you have for them?

Speaker 3 (50:22):
Get trained?

Speaker 4 (50:24):
Okay, get trained, Prepare for the long, hard road, because
it's not nothing about this is easy. I trained at
Jacobs Richard Wrestling Academy with Tom Pritchard and Glynn Jacobs.

Speaker 3 (50:35):
I owe my career probably to doctor Tom.

Speaker 4 (50:37):
If it wasn't for training with him, I wouldn't be
where I am this fast. I think I'm a good
example of it. I think Kylie Page is a good
example of it. Kensey Page is a good example of it.
He sees a good example of it. My brother, we
got Tyler Franks now Hunter Drink. All of us are
with the NWA. All of us trained at jp w A.

(50:59):
I'm trying to think who else was with us at NWA.
That was JPW A train. Silas was too, but saw
us had a little career before going to JPWA and
training with dog. But doctor Thompson would have kind of
got his head screwed on straight. So you gotta find you.
You gotta find you a good trainer, somebody that's credible. Uh.
And of course JPWA is the way they trained. We

(51:20):
did twelve weeks, four days in the ring, one one
promo class today or a week and we're from the
ring four hours a night to ten.

Speaker 3 (51:31):
In a sweat box. It was It was nutcut in time. Brother.

Speaker 4 (51:35):
It was one of those things that like, if you
want us, we're in the right place because you have
to bust your ass to do this and it sucks.

Speaker 3 (51:42):
It's not easy.

Speaker 4 (51:42):
It hurts everything hurts, Hitting the ropes hurt, bumping, hurts,
riding in a car, hurts. But like I think doctor
Tom's way of training, and now Kensey Page and my
brother Casey have kind of adapted that and adopted it
up at School Morton, Like I don't.

Speaker 3 (52:03):
I've never been one to understand schools that will train you.

Speaker 4 (52:06):
For a year or two and tell you you're not
ready to wrestle if you're not ready to. Granted, none
of us are ready to wrestle when we come out
of twelve weeks of training, but we.

Speaker 3 (52:15):
Do the basics fundedment. We do the basics, the foundations.

Speaker 4 (52:18):
And fundamentals of professional wrestling, stuff that never goes out
of style, stuff that keeps you safe and can help
you wrestle anybody. And I think, I think that's I
came out twelve weeks of training at least with the
basic knowledge to wrestle a match and not hurt somebody

(52:38):
or myself, and that's the biggest thing. And finding a
finding a good school with a program like that is huge.

Speaker 3 (52:47):
Again, I would send everybody to jpw A. It's right
outside of Knoxville, it's affordable.

Speaker 4 (52:51):
He hasn't gone up on prices that much in five
or six years. With the price of inflation on everything else,
it's it's relatively the same. They've got living opportunities around
and again, Tom Pritchard is the greatest professional wrestling trainer
in the world bar none.

Speaker 3 (53:06):
Go look at who he's trained and tell me I'm wrong.
So he he is. Uh, that's it. Get trained.

Speaker 4 (53:15):
Once you're trained, prepare to embrace the fuck because this
is the long, lonely road and you'll find people that'll
be rooting for you in the beginning, and as soon
as you catch up or pass them, they will stab
you in the back or try to on their way
to stepping back over you.

Speaker 3 (53:32):
And you know, I've experienced it.

Speaker 4 (53:34):
Everybody's experienced it at some point.

Speaker 3 (53:37):
Alright, again, good coach, good school. Prepare for this to suck.

Speaker 4 (53:42):
For the first couple of years, we were driving me
whole my first tax team partner were driving eight hours
round trip for twenty bucks apiece. We were driving ten
hours round trip for forty bucks apiece. Sometimes we're driving
farther so it's.

Speaker 3 (53:56):
Like it's but it's it's the hustle.

Speaker 4 (54:00):
Hop in a car and go somewhere I call in
to work, Hop in a car and go somewhere for free, unbooked,
just to meet people. Right, did that for the NWA.
And guess where we're at now we're having this conversation.
It's it's a culminational thing.

Speaker 3 (54:18):
School and your trainer or a trainer that you can
call at anytime. If I call doctor.

Speaker 4 (54:22):
Tom right now, you wouldn't answer because it's too late
and he's probably in bed.

Speaker 3 (54:26):
But if I stood him a text, he'll text me tomorrow.

Speaker 4 (54:31):
So get somebody that supports you, that believes in you.
Give them a reason to believe in you, because if
you go in, you're a GIBBRONI they're not. I've seen
doctor Tom tut people off and that deserve to be
cut off and be like all right, I'm not talking
like yeah, so school coach, embrace the freaking stuck. And
if you're lucky enough to find you three or four

(54:53):
good friends in this business that are willing to help
elevate you as long as you return the favor and
they're there, like that's good. I've got a couple of those.
Silas Mason's one of them. You know, Silas, we talked
about it.

Speaker 3 (55:08):
Uh.

Speaker 4 (55:08):
He broke allegedly broke his femur a few years ago,
and there was no idea if he would ever step
foot in the wrestler again. I refuse to let that
happen because Silace Mathan and Devin Dixon of the Mason
Dixon Line are my favorite tag team prior to being
in professional wrestling, and and to watch this, this tag
team that I love dearly go from what what they were,

(55:30):
how COVID kind of screwed them out, and to where
they're at now or where they were when Silas broke
his femur, like it was, I felt, I didn't feel bad.
I don't want, I didn't want, I don't want to
say bad, but like helping each other elevate along the way,
getting back in the ring, him getting back in shape

(55:50):
on his own, us, getting getting to.

Speaker 3 (55:52):
The NBA, getting him there. Now he's in world title contention, and.

Speaker 4 (55:55):
If he's not, it's stupid, but you know, it's it's
hard to it's hard to argue against that guy. And
but yeah, you find you three or four good friends
and you just roll with it, and and you you
help each other along the way. You keep each other
accountable in the gym and on the road, make sure
you're not doing stupid stuff to go to jail, and

(56:17):
and just and and you know, like we rag on
each other, Me and my brother rag on each other.
But but I'm my big my brother's biggest fan, and
I've told him that, and I believe that that he's
he's got the world in front of him. Same thing
with Silas, same thing with anybody else that's.

Speaker 3 (56:32):
In our little click.

Speaker 4 (56:34):
But like we'll rag on each other, but I'll be
the first one there to to congratulate.

Speaker 3 (56:38):
Them when they win the world, Yes for sure.

Speaker 4 (56:41):
And and they'll and they'll I know that that they'll
pay that back and and at least elevate me to
where I can get as long as I'm willing to
elevate them like that. So it's it's a lot of
give and take. And that's and that's the big thing.
That's the probably the top four things. You can wrestling
and decent cars we can travel.

Speaker 3 (57:02):
Yeah, that's that should be a given for sure. Be
afraid to step out of your comfort zone.

Speaker 2 (57:07):
Kids, But Ajy, I appreciate you again being on the
PW Report. Everybody must check it out. It's this Friday,
nw A Chicago. If you're in the Chicago area, this
is your chance to check out the country. Gentlemen, they're
coming to Highland Park. It's Studio one. They face the
Soul Touchers. Yes, Lash rock As It's Friday, nw A

(57:33):
United States TAC Team Championships. And we appreciate you AYJ
being on p W. Glad to finally have you on.
Before I let you go, can you do a quick
shout out for PWE Pro Wrestling and FORTU?

Speaker 3 (57:45):
What kind of shout out you you'll man to say?

Speaker 1 (57:47):
Hey, yeah, if you could just set your name or.

Speaker 3 (57:53):
Watching p W.

Speaker 2 (57:55):
Yeah, I'm gonna stop this recording start a new one.

Speaker 1 (57:58):
Okay, got right, and uh let's be all