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Thursday, June 23, 2011

SHWA: Midyear Mayhem 2011 *Results*

- Dan Steel def. Felix Young, Jimmy Jamal Jenkins and Elliot Forbes in 8:26 to earn the final spot in the Midyear Rumble
- Jake Paragon def. Kyote via submission in 10:55
- "Mad" Mike Massive def."Mr. Attitude" Aston Crude in a Blood Feud Match in 9:55
- TMDK (Shane Haste & Mikey Nicholls) def. The Muscle Miltia (Pain & the Wraith) in 9:51
- Dan Steel won the Midyear Rumble in 21:44 to earn a shot at the SHWA Championship at any time
- Crazy Train def. Dan Steel & SHWA Champion, Jarrad Slate in 24:53 to become the new champion

NHPW : Reload *Results*

- Matthew Pace def. Ario
- The Illusionist def. David Nero
- Apocalypse (Kabel & Heritor) def. Spaceboy Dacey & Pretty Boy Troy
- Kabel def. Spaceboy Dacey
- Warship def. DJ Fusion
- Percy T def. Samoan Warrior
- Kellie Skater def. IndyGurlz Australian Champion, Bombshell Bo to become the new champion
Credit: www.nhpw.com.au

Sunday, June 19, 2011

New Horizons in the US: Percy T and Kabel interview

April 2011 saw several of the NHPW roster head to the US to wrestle and train. The WA contingent of Percy T and Kabel got to compete in one the the Indy Wrestling world's biggest tournament's CHIKARA's King of Trios. Tez spoke to the pair recently to get their thoughts on the tour and more!

Thanks to: Percy T

WPW: You are the first two WA based wrestlers to work for CHIKARA. How does that feel and what was the experience like?
PERCY: Was amazing to work with such a great company in what I think is like the Holy land of Indy wrestling the old ECW Arena.


KABEL: Considering some of the talent in WA, being able to say that we were the first in CHIKARA is pretty cool. But more than that, just being invited to be part King of Trios was huge for us. To say that we wrestled at the old ECW arena on the same card as guys like El Genericho, Sean Waltman, Amazing Red, Manami Toyota, Dick Togo, Great Sasuke and Jinsei Shinzaki is awesome.

WPW: Apart from working shows, you did some training with various feds in the area. Which promotions and who were some of the names you trained with?

PERCY: Chikara - Mike Quackenbush, Green Ant and Madison Eagles. WXW C-4 - Supreme Lee Great and Samu.


KABEL: I was lucky enough to train with WXW in Allentown with Samu and also a guy called Jon Trosky who was a bit of a handful but just knew so much was just an incredible teacher. Also I Got the opportunity to train at CZW in Philly and of course CHIKARA with Mike Quakenbush who I’m pretty sure has more information about wrestling in his head than anyone I’ve ever met. Training in each of those places was great as they’re all such different styles of wrestling and I learned so much it was a bit mind boggling.

WPW: What was your favorite match while on the tour?

PERCY: Both the Kings of Trios match for many reasons and my match with Homicide.


KABEL: Trios match against F.I.S.T.. The whole experience from when we walked down that ramp until we walk back up again is something I’m never going to forget and will always be a career highlight for me. F.I.S.T. were excellent to work with. I Also had a match in New Jersey for NHPW-America with Damian Dragon that evolved into a tag against the Incredibles. That was a pretty good match. I really enjoyed that one.

WPW: How did the crowds take to your characters?

PERCY: Wasn't really the usual Percy T gimmick, was more Generic Australian to be honest.


KABEL: I'm lucky with Kabel because people seem to always dig the character. The size, the mask the big moves. As far as the character goes the only thing I heard that was slightly negative was somebody called me a mix between Kane, Abyss and a S&M serial rapist. It was pretty funny, but I’m not a big fan of being likened to a rapist.

WPW: Being your first experience in America, what were some of things you got up to outside the ring?

PERCY: What happens on tour stays on tour haha (Thank God!)


KABEL: Hookers and Blow. Every day… Not really, we just did a bit of the tourist thing in Philly. Trying all the different fast food was cool, I enjoyed that. NBA game. Strip clubs. Lying to Americans about Australia. The usual.

Photo: Karene Ferguson

WPW: Are there any plans of making another tour in the near future?

PERCY: Yes definitely, I will be back next year.


KABEL: Absolutely. We have a lot of invitations from a lot of feds I’ve mentioned earlier to work over there whenever we can manage to get back.

WPW: Have you had any interest from Eastern States promotions in regards to bookings since the tour?

PERCY: Yes, I've had a couple of emails but I have a pretty good working releationship with a couple of eastern state feds any way.


KABEL: Yes. Ive been contacted by and have been talking to a few Promotions from almost every state and I’m lining up quite a few dates later in the year.

WPW: Supanova is coming up very soon. Do you enjoy working these shows in front of a very different audience?

PERCY: Supernova is one of my favorite shows of the year SO much fun and I get to work more of a comedy style which I love
.

KABEL: Supernova is great fun. The crowds aren’t usually wrestling fans so they don’t really react the way you’re used to. But seeing as they’re mostly comic book fans and sci/fi–fantasy types they generally react well to the Kabel character.

WPW: NHPW recently held an open day at the Slaughterhouse training facility for people interested in getting into the business. How did that go?

PERCY: From all reports it went well.


KABEL: It went really well. Better than we expected. We had people come in who were interested in just about every aspect of the show. Not just people who wanted to learn to wrestle but people who wanted to get involved with production, promotions and investors.

WPW: What do you have planned for the rest of 2011?

PERCY: Would like to pick up a few more local bookings and just wrestle as much as I can so I cannot lose what I learned in the states and just share my craft.

KABEL: I’m Just trying to get as much work as possible around the place. And of course keeping NHPW moving along and getting stronger and more respected in Australia.

WPW: Thank you guys.
PERCY: Thank you Tez for taking the time out to interview us.

Friday, June 17, 2011

The Mean Scene #14

Photo: Tez Himself

One half of the voices of Explosive Pro Wrestling, and the two time WPW Commentator of the Year, Mean Dean Olsen brings WPW all the latest on the EPW scene.

The Mean Scene is back and this month I’m not going to do my usual run down of the previous show, I want to take a look at the situation surrounding two of the championships in Explosive Pro Wrestling. The EPW championship and EPW Tag Team titles have had a lot competition as of late and things don’t look like they will slow down anytime soon, if anything the title pictures in EPW are appearing to be competitive as they have been in a long time.

Now it’s no secret, as I have written here before, I am a huge fan of tag team wrestling and in particular EPW’s tag team division. I have written previously of how tight the competition in the tag division has been, but it seems in 2011 it has gotten even better, with the possiblity of some spectacular matchups in the near future.

Photo: Nerelle Hasluck

At Evolution 2011, AZ Vegara and JT finally recognised there dreams of winning the EPW Tag Team Championships. Both men have tagged together in the past and have been a good solid tag team, but now with more experience and determination have managed to get there first taste of EPW gold. After dethroning Team Allstar, AZ and JT are looking at having the hard task of holding onto those belts. With Amber having Brett Corvus wrapped around her finger it seams the champs do have an advantage, but as we saw with the tag team battle royal at Midday Mayhem 2, there are a lot of teams that have eyes on the gold too.

TMDK, Team Allstar, Banks and Foxx, Vice and Wimbledon, The Entourage and the Blackest Hour are all going to be watching closely in August at Hell or Highwater to see who will be victorious in the tag team championship match. AZ and JT may have more than they bargained for when they have to put there titles on the line against the newly reformed team of Chase Griffin and Dan Moore. The new number one contenders make for an interesting competition for the champions since they have been seperated as a duo for quite some time now and still are definitely not on the same page with Dan Moore dubbing himself "The Future" and sky rocketing his own ego to mammoth heights. On the other hand Chase Griffin has had success in singles competition being a champion in the hardcore division and having one of the most exciting feuds of the last year against Tyler Jacobs. While we have not heard the reasons behind this new reunion, one thing we do know is that they pose a major threat to AZ and JT’s title reign. Griffin and Moore are former tag team champions and were one of the most dominant tag teams in EPW when they were a team, I’m sure no one who witnessed the feud they had with Blitz Team will ever forget it.

Photo: Nerelle Hasluck

Hell or Highwater will be an interesting one to watch as the question will be asked leading up to it as to if Chase and Dan can still function as a team and put their past problems behind them to once again be the dominant force they were before. You must also ask if AZ and JT can keep bending the rules and use there cunning tactics to out smart the challengers. I may have pointed out how they current tag champs use all the dirty tricks in the book to win and have got there valet Amber to work her powers of persuasion with Brett Corvus, but that is not to sell them short AZ and JT are fantastic wrestlers in there own right.

It was only at Midday Mayhem 1 that we saw AZ come so very close to defeating EPW champion Davis Storm in a thrilling match, that I’m sure opened a lot peoples eyes to just how good and solid a wrestler he is. Last year we saw JT in a main event match for the EPW championship against the then champion Jamie Jurah. In that match JT was in great form, took it to Jurah and came ever so close becoming the new EPW champion. Matches like these in singles competition, as well as the matches they have had in the past show that winning the tag titles was no fluke for AZ and JT, although they like to cut every corner they can, they still have all the credentials of a solid and worthy championship team.

So it’s all going to go down on August 13 at EPW’s 10th annual Hell or Highwater to be held at the Vasto Club in Balcatta. The tag team championships will be on the line in a match that guarantees to be a thriller. Can AZ and JT combine there skills with there cunning ability to break the rules and constantly outsmarting there opponents or will we see the team of Chase Griffin and Dan Moore return to the glory days of old and get the tag team gold around there waist as it has been in the past. Many questions will be answered and I want to see you all there to see how this one plays out, one thing is for sure, it’s an event not to be missed.

Next month I will take a look at the EPW championship picture which at the moment is red hot. Hell or Highwater is building up and you don’t want to miss this one. Well that’s the Mean Scene for this month, until next time keep supporting local wrestling and stay tuned to www.epwperth.com

Spotlight: June 2011 - "Gorgeous" Garry Schmidt (EPW)

WHAMMY! One half of the Brothers Schmidt and the 2010 EPW Rising Star Cup winner, "Gorgeous" Garry Schmidt has been on the scene now for five years. Trained by Lance Storm at the Storm Wrestling Academy in Calgery, Alberta, Canada, Schmidt recently made his US wrestling debut for Mach One Wrestling in California.

Photo: Explosive Pro Wrestling

Height: 6' (182 cm)

Weight: 209 lbs (94 kgs)
Hometown: Aisle of Perfection

Debut:
March 4, 2006

Trained by:
Lance Storm, Davis Storm

Finishing Moves:
Drop Dead Gorgeous

Entrance Theme: Gato Barberi - Theme from Firepower
Favourite Matches:

vs. Alex Kingston vs. Gavin McGavin - Rising Star Cup Final. WA vs. VIC (September 12, 2009)
This was sort of the start of me and McGavin's one on one battles and for a long time this was my favourite match I've ever had. Kingston certainly has a great mind to putting a good match together and considering we both started wrestling at the same time but never wrestled each other, it was a cool thing for it to finally happen and hey there was some great chemistry there. In this match we even had "Gorgeous", "Kingston" dueling chants which is different to hear cause you have a face and a heel but to get such a reaction was just a great moment and enstilled a greater confidence in my ability to perform.


The Schmidts vs. TMDK (non-title match). EPW at the Malaga Markets (January 16, 2010)
This match to be honest I was Schmidting bricks backstage (laughs, get it). Not to sound like I'm sucking up or anything but when you get in the ring with Mikey Nicholls and Shane Haste, you need to bring it and keep up. In this match I kinda felt like it was a do-or die situation for as far as im concerned we needed to have one of those tag matches where you can look back and see us perform at our best. In this case it takes 4 to tango and those guys in my opinion are top class. They brought it hard but things also were so easy. Things clicked. We isolated a team member well, we created some good "moments" in the match which made the crowd want to see us cleaned up more. To hear those guys praise us genuinely for the match and to hear that this was the best tag match the Schmidts have ever had was a great moment and feeling.


vs. Gavin McGavin. Midday Mayhem (April 10, 2011)
My feeling about this was, we have had so many matches in the past and in my opinion we were constantly getting better and better. This match admittably I feel we added a bit too much to put it together but either way, I was proud of it. We showed the crowd that we know each others moves and this showed with the counter exchanges, we stepped it up with the emotion here and there and creatively we wanted an ending to the match that said "Garry Schmidt... you're cheating has finally caught up with you... you were caught in your own trap"... something like that. It was definatley great to end it on that note and to also have a certain respected member of Staff comment on this being our best match was a great little cherry on top.

Worked for: Explosive Pro Wrestling, Mach One Wrestling
Career Achievements:
EPW Rookie of the Year (2009); EPW Rising Star Cup winner (2010)

Monday, June 13, 2011

The Lewd View #3 - 'Mad' Mike Massive

He's Lewd... He's Tattooed... He is Mr. Attitude! Southern Hemisphere Wrestling Alliance's, Aston Crude brings to you his Lewd View!

Hey everyone and welcome to the latest edition of the Lewd View. Sorry it's been a while, but I didn't want to write another article by forcing it. Today's article is about my ongoing feud with "Mad" Mike Massive, and some other tidbits.


When I first joined the Southern Hemisphere Wrestling Alliance, after viewing a few shows, I realised that Mad Mike Massive has something special. He has a charisma, and a look that you can't look past (literally). He's passionate about the sport of professional wrestling, and his natural ability to draw the fans in to anything and everything he does is remarkable. You can't teach that. You either have the X factor that is needed, or you don't. I knew going in to the Southern Hemisphere Wrestling Alliance that Mad Mike Massive would be the perfect person to bounce off, and that's not another bad pun.


Photo: Amanda/ Southern Hemisphere Wrestling Alliance
The ultimate good guy. The man that stands for the working class Australian man. The man that stands for what is all right with pro wrestling - Mike Massive. In the other corner, the brash, cocky, arrogant son of a bitch Aston Crude. It's a combination that has been a classic combination since wrestling began. Good vs. Evil. Aston Crude gives up nearly 100lbs on Mike Massive, so what is it that yours truly, has to do? Find a weakness. Find a way to expose that weakness. If it isn't a physical way of doing it, it's a mental way of doing it. Making somebody as physically imposing as Mike Massive, making him show his insecurities in ways that have never been exposed before. This story has not just been a story to get to know what Mr Attitude is all about, it's also about seeing Mike Massive in a different light, which is developing his character and telling the story of this character in a way that's never been done before. I'm proud of what we have achieved so far, but also wish people could have witnessed a lot of whats happened. Going into Midyear Mayhem, the storyline of the year, the feud of the year, will reach its climax. I'm hoping to edit together a great video package for everyone to view online at www.youtube.com/user/astoncrude, highlighting said feud, as obviously most of the feud has not been exposed to all the fans out there.

Obviously I also wanted to make further comments on the business relationship between SHWA and EPW. I think it's great for both parties and eventually it will be fantastic for all the Perth Wrestling fans out there. So in other words, I agree with most people on the subject which kind of makes me saying it pointless, because nothing has been achieved by repeating what's already been said. Yep.


Another thing I wanted to touch on before I end this article today is wrestling fans in Perth still having no clue that EPW or SHWA exist. Doesn't that seem insane to you all? That I can be like "Oh I wrestle for SHWA" and the c***head im talking to is like "Errm, whats SHWA? :S" and I retort by saying "Well maybe you know of EPW?".. which is usually responded with that confused dumbass look people give you when they have no clue what you're talking about, when they should. Yeah. I've noticed that a lot, talking to wrestling fans. "Oh I had no idea they did that kind of thing in Perth." Why don't you look out your f*****g window?


Basically what I'm trying to say is that it surprises me that some fans either don't know about the local product, or actually refuse to acknowledge the local product as the "real deal". Newsflash yo, what the local product is putting out is way more entertaining than seeing whatever New York or "Impact Wrestling" are doing. You know Impact Wrestling just did the same rating they pulled in June of 2006? Nothing has changed. They have gone no where. WWE isn't so bad, but gosh their show bores me now. I can't stand it, so I turn to the local product to give me what I need. Real pro wrestling. People need to understand that your wrasslin' thirst can be quenched by giving EPW and SHWA a watch. We can supply whats lacking on your televisions every week. That's at least what I hope we all achieve. My character may be "righting the wrongs in professional wrestling", by going after Mike Massive, but in reality, the same principles are in place. I, along with every other WA wrestler, are righting the wrongs in professional wrestling by doing it the way we want to do it, and creating history and a legacy that people can be proud of. I think WWE and "Impact Wrestling" have become the wrong. The establishment. And we're all the fooken Sex Pistols.


Support your local product!


K.R.I's Picks of the Month:
DVD to watch: The Best of WCW Monday Nitro
Event to watch: Wrestlemania XVII
Match to watch: 22/09/1996 - In Your House: Mind Games - Shawn Michaels Vs Mankind
Favourite recent moment: Miz losing the championship
Most disliked recent moment: John Cena winning the championship

Quick plugs:
Just Mike Designs: The absolute gold standard with video editing, dvd production and flyer/poster designing. Find JMD on Facebook.
AWP Australia: Very reliable and professional wrestling attire/gear specialists. Find AWP on Facebook too.


Karl River Infirri - Aston Crude

karlriverinfirri@hotmail.co.uk

www.youtube.com/user/astoncrude

Thursday, June 9, 2011

Between the Ropes: A Referee's POV

by Peter Soriz and Giles O'Brien

Love him or hate him, well most just hate him he’s the one that doesn’t know how to do his job, is completely blind, surely that was a fast count or just a two count, who am I talking about? The referee who can be found anywhere around the world stepping into the squared circle alongside the wrestlers who are the reason people buy tickets for the shows.

Many people see the referee as just the guy that gets in the way of the action the guy that vainly tries to break up the brawls just when they are getting good or just in time for the face to receive a devastating blow. The referee is neither face nor heel but has the constitution of a wet noodle, falling down unconscious to the slightest blow and will be completely oblivious to any activities the heels are getting up to behind his back but will always be alert for when the face is about to do something wrong. When the fan favorite losses the match the crowd instantly looks to blame the ref, hey the guy is just doing his job everybody makes mistakes but sometimes that one mistake can shatter the dreams of a wrestler and that missed interference that causes the face to lose his title, but is it really the ref’s fault that his hand came down and counted three.

The referees in EPW are just as important as the EPW wrestlers for without the man in the striped shirt calling the shots making sure the rules are being kept in order there would be no matches for without someone to declare a winner, there can’t be a finish to a match. That being said anyone could do the ref’s job right? How hard could it be to stand there and count to three? Well there’s a bit more to it than that, so with this article let’s dive a little deeper and see what it takes to be an official EPW referee and what a better way to start than to get to know them.

Matt Smarkson, Giles O’Brien and Peter Soriz are the men that step into the EPW ring as the officials, while all three men are doing the same job they bring a different style of refereeing to their matches just like the wrestlers not all are created equal, all are of different shapes and sizes, all are at a different level of match skill and experience but all can do the same thing count that ever important pin fall at the end of the match.

Photo: Explosive Pro Wrestling

The most senior official Matt Smarkson has seen his fair share of matches over his five years in EPW, in that time not only has he worked in Western Australia but also in promotions in South Australia and had the privilege to work with some current WWE Superstars at the NWA show which saw the creation of the NWA Australian title.

Photo: Explosive Pro Wrestling

Giles O’Brien has been with EPW for four years and has worked with a number of interstate wrestlers as well as some of the best this side of the country has to offer. He has seen his fair share of beatings at the hands of said wrestlers being one of the more authoritive figures in the ring.

Photo: Explosive Pro Wrestling

Peter Soriz is the newest to join the ranks of the EPW referee’s and is still learning each and every match recently refereeing his first tag team title match , and working his way up to referee his first EPW championship match.

Like the EPW wrestlers the referees have taken their fair share of bumps, sometimes the referee lying unconscious has changed the outcome of a match for both the better and worse result but some bumps have been more severe than others. In 2009 at ReAwakening 8, while breaking up a brawl between Jamie Jurah and Devlin Reeves, Peter Soriz took a fall onto the lighting fixtures slicing his side open and requiring a trip to the hospital and six stitches. At the Hell or Highwater event of that same year Giles O’Brien took a chair shot from Bobby Marshall which left him in a pool of his own blood and eventually having to have the wound on his head glued shut.

Ask any wrestler what the biggest thrill is and they will answer performing in front of a crowd of people all cheering or booing their name, the same can be said for the referees whose purpose is to remain invisible to the crowd until they are needed for those all important counts where for the briefest instant the spotlight is on their falling arm be it for a two or that all important three. In EPW each referee could find himself doing up to possibly three matches in one night and each is treated like the main event not just as a sign of respect to the crowd but to the wrestlers who are putting their bodies on the line for that moment of crowd reaction which gets the adrenaline running. As the music hits and the victor is celebrating the referee is disappearing out the back and preparing for the next match and what waits in store for everyone there.

It’s a tough job it’s a physical job but I’m sure none of these men would have it any other way.