I Need A ROH Show - February 7th 2012

Kyle Patin and Zach Grigg of iNeedWrestling.com discuss the latest episode of Ring of Honor TV, the upcoming iPPVs, Tommaso Ciampa, tag team wrestling, and much more.

India - Who Knew? By Jimi James

Above: Ring Ka King wrestlers, Scott Steiner, Magnus, Abyss & Sonjay Dutt

The Great Khali is back in WWE. He made his comeback at the Royal Rumble and has a spot in the Elimination Chamber. No, he's not back because of fans petitioning for him to come back. He isn't back because WWE is lacking without his mic skills and in ring ability. He's back because WWE might be a little worried.

Ring Ka King debuted in India and I think it may have turned heads in WWE just a bit. Just a short time ago, WWE had interest in India. India was an untapped market for wrestling that the native people have been begging for. But the WWE never did anything with India and chose to remove interest from establishing a market there. Shortly after they let Khali go without renewing his contract.

Interesting that the week Ring Ka King debuts, Khali returns at the Royal Rumble. Now this is all speculation on my part. I've read statements from some who believe Khali is back in WWE because of Ring Ka King, but nothing confirmed. I should say this for those that don't know, Ring Ka King is a TNA project.

As I write this, Ring Ka King has aired four episodes, crowning a new Heavyweight champion in Matt Morgan. I have watched all four episodes, and I cannot endorse the product enough. It is refreshing to watch. I say it's refreshing because it's not often one gets to watch a new wrestling company start fresh on a grand scale.

Now, being that this is an Indian wrestling company, part of the show is in the native tongue of the country. But, this is not an issue. The commentary is primarily Indian, but the passion of the announcers, particularly Joe Baath, makes the language of wrestling universal. I stated while watching that I like the announcers for Ring Ka King better than any other announce team going today, even though I don't understand a word.

Ring Ka King also does a great job of using big name veterans to grab prospective viewers attention. But, the best part of Ring Ka King is the use of native talent and giving a shine to talent that wasn't allowed to get over elsewhere. Names like Isaiah Cash, Hollywood, American Adonis, Zema Ion, Dr. Nick Dinsmore, Bulldog Hart, the Sheiks, and others have a chance to be stars like they should be. What, you don't recognize those names? I guarantee you know who they are.

The best part of the episodes is the audience. Again I say refreshing. The crowd is passionate about wrestling just like we are. Americans cut promos in the ring and the fans are trying to understand. But, Indian fans know, it's not what you talk about, it's what you do in the ring. For example, Chavo cut an in ring promo to which the crowd was indifferent. When the Sheiks interrupted and attacked Chavo, the crowd went nuts as Chavo fought them off. Also, in India, Scott Steiner can put his hands on a heckler in the crowd. Now who doesn't want to see that. In wrestling, the crowd makes the show, and India gets it.

I didn't detail the episodes on purpose. I want those that read this to go and check out Ring Ka King for yourselves. Watch the episodes and think to yourself as I did, Man, WWE blew I huge opportunity here. Sorry WWE, Khali is great, but not great enough to stop this momentum. TNA is cornering the market in India, and WWE let it happen.

UFC 143 - Duckman Gives Us His Thoughts

I know you usually visit WLH to read my ramblings on pro wrestling. Not today. Today I’m rambling about my other favourite pastime/hobby/sport. Mixed Martial Arts. So if you’re not a MMA fan or you don’t want to read my opinion Saturday’s UFC 143, and in particular the fallout from the fight for the interim Welterweight Title between Carlos Condit and Nick Diaz, then the following ramble probably isn’t going to interest you. Fear not loyal WLH readers, normal service will be resumed next week. For the rest of you still with me, let’s do this!

For those of you who only know me through my writing here or the Marks for Xcellence Wrestling Podcast (www.mfxpodcast.com) allow me to give you some background. I’ve been a fan of MMA since around 2005/6. I, like millions of others, became aware of the UFC thanks to the first few seasons of the Ultimate Fighter TV show. I had obviously known of the promotion before this but I didn’t really understand what MMA was. It wasn’t until TUF opened my eyes to the sport and I discovered it wasn’t actually the barely legal human cockfight that the media portrayed it to be.

I followed UFC but I wasn’t really much more than a fan of the big name guys and the guys from TUF. I was a casual fans. I was still predominantly a wrestling fan. My interest in the sport really picked up when Brock Lesnar joined the ranks of the UFC. I guess that’s not an usual story. UFC has claimed a large chunk of the wrestling fan base who are aged between 18-35 and are no longer interested by the product that WWE or TNA produce. No matter what Vince tells you, they’re in competition and the UFC are winning.

So, due to my borderline obsessive/compulsive mindset, just like with wrestling or any other sport I follow, as soon as I became a full time fan of MMA I had to find out as much as I could about the sport. I studied hours of old fights. I bought as many DVDs of PRIDE, UFC and other less well known promotions as I could. I devoured articles, books, podcasts and any other MMA media I could get my hands on. I haven’t missed a UFC show in years. I educated myself on what MMA was, who was important to the sport and also learned as much as I could about different styles of fighting.

Over time I was able to get a grasp on the finer points of the sport and in turn my enjoyment of what was going on in the cage increased tenfold. I don’t class myself as an expert by any means but I wouldn’t call myself a casual fan either. I feel confident enough to speak on the subject in a public forum but just don’t expect me to step into the octagon any time soon! So, hopefully that little explanation buys me enough goodwill from those of you still reading to comment on Condit vs. Diaz and to look at the reaction of MMA fans to the outcome of this closely contested fight.

At UFC 143 Carlos Condit defeated Nick Diaz by a unanimous points decision(48-47, 49-46 and 49-46) to become the interim Welterweight Champion and put himself in line for a PPV main event fight against current long time Welterweight Champion and all around UFC superstar – Georges St-Pierre. GSP is currently out with a knee injury and therefore the UFC moved this top contenders fight to an interim Title fight. The thinking behind this fight was simple from a marketing point of view – the fans want to see Nick Diaz against GSP for the Title. This was the fight the enigmatic Diaz would need to win to get his original fight with GSP back on the cards. He famously screwed up the first one by failing to appear for contracted media appearances and was pulled from the fight by Dana White.

While a lot of people inside MMA believed Condit had all the skills necessary to beat Diaz, the majority of those fans who idolise Diaz (and believe me, they really love the guy), saw this as a fight Diaz would dominate and win just as he had against BJ Penn in his last UFC fight. I had my doubts given the difference in age and size between Penn and Condit. BJ is still a tremendous fighter but he’s not in his prime and he’s nowhere near as big as Diaz/Condit. Plus Condit has a whole different style to BJ and he’s coached by Greg Jackson, one of the best in the business.

Still, most pundits and fans predicted a Diaz win and the match they all wanted against GSP later in the year. I predicted the same. That didn’t happen. Diaz was on the end of a defeat that many of his fans (and he personally) felt was unfair. I’ve now watched the fight three times and I feel those who are claiming Diaz was ‘robbed’ or that Condit spent the fight ‘on the run’ aren’t being objective or looking at this fight from the perspective of anyone else apart from Nick Diaz. Which is understandable, they are his fans after all. Still, it feels like no one out there is putting across an alternative point of view. That’s what I’m going to do.

I understand the appeal of Nick Diaz. He looks like a real street fighter. He talks like one. He doesn’t play the political or promotional game. He pisses Dana White off all the time. You have to respect him because he goes into the cage, he smashes people and he gets the hell out. There’s a lot to admire about Nick Diaz. He’s extremely talented, extremely marketable but he’s also extremely unpredictable and volatile. A promoters worst nightmare and dream come true, all wrapped up in one enigmatic dude from the mean streets of Stockton, California.

If there’s anyone the hardcore UFC fan base would love to see kick the hell out of the pretty boy, corporate good guy GSP, then it would be Nick Diaz. Many people see Diaz as a true fighter and a guy like GSP as an athlete turned fighter. A guy who has great skills and athletic ability but not a true warrior like Diaz. I can see why some people feel that way. There’s just something about Diaz that makes you want to watch. He’s an entertainer even when he doesn’t try. A true one of a kind.

Which seems to be the reason why so many fans are crying foul of the decision and calling for Carlos Condit to be kicked out of MMA for being a coward who wouldn’t stand and trade with a street fighting brawler. This is where my annoyance with the whole reaction to the fight comes to a head. I just don’t understand the pig headed and utterly ridiculous comments that Condit ‘ran’ for the entire fight and that he should have fought the kind of Diaz likes and wanted. THAT is what people are saying. They’ve been saying it for days. I’ll just let that logic fart linger under your nose for a moment or two. Give you time to truly appreciate the scent.

Now don’t get me wrong. I don’t agree with the scoring of the fight. I had Condit winning 3-2 (for anyone interested I thought Diaz took rounds 1 and 5 and Condit the rest) and the two people I watched the fight with also had Condit winning – one of them had him winning 4-1 which is how two of the judges in Las Vegas scored it. Then again I’ve spoken to friends and acquaintances online who had Diaz winning the fight by the same kind of margins. It was that kind of fight – a close, close decision between two high level fighters.

That’s why the claim Diaz was ‘robbed’ doesn’t sit well with me. I could understand if Diaz had entered a dominant performance. If he’d scored take downs, landed combinations of strikes, maybe a few submissions attempts throughout. If he had Condit in trouble during the fight then perhaps, perhaps you could claim Diaz was robbed. He didn’t do much of any of that on Saturday. He didn’t do much of anything.

In fact Diaz spent more time yelling at Condit to stand still so he could hit him than he did implementing any other kind of attack other than his bog standard march forward and swing a lot of punches. When that plan failed Diaz had nothing else to bring to the fight. Something his fans have failed to acknowledge in any way. To them it’s all Condit’s fault, or Greg Jackson’s fault, or even Dana White’s fault. If they could find a way to blame GSP I’m sure they would. Anyone but Nick Diaz. A similar reaction from Diaz himself was evident when he ‘retired’ from MMA after the decision. One of the most high profile examples of toys being thrown from a pram that I’ve seen in the UFC.

As for Condit? The man has been labelled a coward, a fake, someone who ran away during a fight. All complete and utter bullshit. Condit came into the biggest fight of his career to win. He didn’t come to put on an entertaining show for Diaz and his fans. To coin a wrestling phrase, he wasn’t there to put Diaz over. This is a sport. You win first. Which is exactly what he did. Condit and his team did things their way. He didn’t get dragged into the kind of fight Diaz wanted – he was smarter than that. Condit implemented the kind of game plan that has received praise when used by the likes of Frankie Edgar or Dominic Cruz – namely great footwork, combinations of strikes, constant movement, never backing straight up and always keeping his back off the cage.

Most importantly of all, and the stats from the fight back this up - bar one round, Condit landed more significant strikes than Diaz. Think about that for a moment. The guy who ‘ran’ hit the guy he was ‘running’ from more often over 25 minutes. In a sport like MMA the stats don’t always tell the true story but in this case they do more than support Condit’s win. They reinforce my belief that over the course of the fight his striking was more effective and he controlled the octagon far more than Diaz was able to. It’s important to remember that aggression and take downs aren’t the only criteria by which a MMA fight is judged.

I know fans get emotional but the reaction to Diaz losing has been nothing short of staggering. So many people complaining that they didn’t get the stand up war Diaz wanted. So many people labelling Condit as something he’s not, simply because he fought a much smarter fight than anyone else who has fought Diaz before. If this fury was directed at the judges and their scoring then maybe they would have a point. While I feel Condit winning was the right decision, I’m not convinced by how the judges got to that verdict. It was a razor close fight and unfortunately the scoring of the judges did not reflect that.

This was a close fight. A really close fight. To say anyone was ‘robbed’ is to fail to understand any of the finer points of fighting and especially a failure to understand just what a close fight this was. Just because one guy walks forward swinging punches doesn’t mean he wins the fight. Conversely just because one guy circles away and sticks and moves doesn’t mean he loses the fight.

But let’s just all take a breath and think for a moment. Why on earth should Carlos Condit fight in a style that is suited to his opponent? I don’t remember anyone who follows football complaining that a team man marked their best players. Or a cricket fan complaining that the other team used spinners on a pitch that took spin. If a full back in Rugby is weak under the high ball then you can damn well expect a barrage of high balls to be coming his way from the start. This is how sport works. This is how you win.

Call them game plans, tactics, whatever you want. The fact remains that in professional sport it’s not about who is the coolest, or the toughest, or the most exciting. It all comes down to winning. Nothing else matters. When the stakes are as high as they are at the elite level (and Diaz and Condit are certainly the elite) you need to accept that the entertainment factor and what the fans want is going to go out the window. Carlos Condit came to win at UFC 143 and win he did. He might not have made any new friends but he showed that a good game plan, a focused mind and a high level of skill can beat anyone on any given day.

I just hope some of the fans who are calling this the end of the UFC as they know it will have taken the last few days to get things in to perspective. This is not about entertaining us. If you truly believe all the crap fighters talk before a fight about ‘standing and banging’ or any other empty bravado then you’re being worked better than all the John Cena fans who are worried he might ‘embrace the hate.’ Promos are for promotion, they don’t mean that’s how the fight is going to play out.

At the end of the day I can see arguments for either man winning the fight. I still believe Condit won a very close decision. I just can’t get behind the idea that fighting smart is somehow wrong and an insult to everyone associated with the sport. Nick Diaz is an awesome fighter, a legend of the sport and one hell of a cool guy but just because he’s exciting and charismatic doesn’t mean he automatically wins every fight he’s in. Just because he moves forward doesn’t mean he’s controlling the octagon.

Still, that’s the great thing about sport – there’s always something to discuss, dissect or dismiss on Monday morning! Personally I’d love to see a rematch between them before GSP is back in November. There’s a readymade story there for Diaz and his fans. Plus it might just finally put all this anti-Condit sentiment to bed once and for all. I hope so because a talented fighter like Carlos Condit deserves much more respect than he’s currently getting. I’m sure even Nick Diaz and his loyal fans would agree with that…maybe!

Thanks for reading. Remember you can follow me on Twitter @WLHDuckman

Until next time…

Peace

Duckman

PWG History of the Tag Titles Vol. 1 (DVD Review By Shaun Nichols)

This DVD review was taken from http://wlhdvdreviews.wordpress.com

PWG History of the Tag Titles Vol. 1 (January – April 2004)

In the next few weeks I’ll be reviewing all 8 volumes which cover every tag title in PWG’s history from the crowning of the first tag team champions to the most recent title change which happened in December 2011. I am a big fan of PWG especially over the last couple of years but I haven’t seen much beyond that so I’ll be interested to see what the first few discs bring. And with that in mind off we go……….

Homicide & B-Boy vs American Dragon & Super Dragon

This is the final of the tag team tournament known as the ‘Tango & Cash Invitational’ to crown the inaugaral tag team champions. The fans were surprisingly quiet going into this which surprised me. The match started with Super Dragon trading reversals with both Homicide & B-Boy as Danielson stood watching. Danielson teaming with SD seems quite the strange team, when he finally tags in he fakes a lock up a couple of times and then tags Super Dragon back in, he’s in fully comedy mode here. Moments later he does start to take this a bit more seriously when he outwrestles and starts to stretch B-Boy but the fans still aren’t reacting to this. Match does start to pick up when Super Dragon throws Homicide into several rows of chairs, fortunately nobody was sitting there and then a number of fans started to pick them back up ignoring what was happening in the ring. B-Boy does a get a hot tag but it doesn’t last long enough and it’s a case hits one big move and then it’s over to the other team. Danielson hits a big dive onto B-Boy on the floor but gets hit by a shining wizard seconds later by B-Boy and that’s the last we see of Danielson. Back in the ring Super Dragon gets nailed by a Copkilla by Homicide for the three count. Strongstyle Thugs are your first PWG tag champs, sadly no-one particularly cared **3/4

X-Foundation (Joey Ryan & Scott Last) vs Homicide & B-Boy

Joey & Scott are the babyfaces and are managed by So Cal Val, it’s very interesting to see the character of Ryan back in 2004 compared to his ‘sleazy’ character in the last three years or so. This is the first title defence for Homicide & B-Boy, first half of the match is frankly not that great. The champs do get to enjoy a fair bit of control, using lots of submissions and quick tags to get the heat on Joey Ryan. This works quite well because Scott Lost has a flashier offence which works best when he gets the hot tag. Homicide takes over and hooks on a STF on Lost but fortunately for the challengers he makes the ropes. B-Boy gets hit with the Extinction Agenda which makes some fans think were getting a 3 count, well not yet. Homicide somehow dragon legsrews Lost over the top rope, the champs hit Ryan with the Steiner Bulldog but Lost breaks up the pinfall attempt. He also blocks an attempted Copkilla, B-Boy charges Joey Ryan but gets caught with a very nice small package for the title switch. Last few minutes were very good but it did take a long time to get there. ***1/4

Christopher Bosh & Quiksilver vs X-Foundation

Can the new champs make it past their first title defence? The challengers attack before the bell and use a spinebuster and the Hart Attack clothesline to get a quick couple of 2 counts, the challengers dominate Ryan for the first few minutes but he finally hits a jawbreaker to give him the chance to tag out. Scott Lost has unfortunately been knocked off the apron so Ryan’s forced to stay in. Ryan hits a pretty sweet superkick to finally make the tag, and Lost hits Bosh with a clothesline and a huracanrana for a couple of 2 counts. Bosh responds with a low blow and a single crab but Ryan makes the save. Champs seem in total control, but Lost misses a superman spear and then seconds later accidently superkicks Ryan which leads to a Bosh pinfall. This was a much quicker paced match than the first two but only lasted 8 minutes, the bigger story was Ryan walking out on his partner afterwards. **1/2

Super Dragon & Excalibur vs Christopher Bosh & Quiksilver

The early exchanges are between Dragon and Quiiksilver, Dragon dominates these but Quiksilver manages to avoid the major offensive moves included the dreaded curb stomp. They tag in their respective partners but the challengers still manage to control the vast majority of the early stages including Dragon finally hitting a double stomp on the unlucky Quiksilver. Quiksilver is forced to take a number of stiff kicks, submission attempts but hits an Ace Crusher to make the tag to Bosh. Champs decide the best way forward is to cheat through distractions and this allows Quiksilver to hit his own double stomp on Excalibur. In the few minutes, both teams enjoy periods of control in which they earn two counts but can’t get the all important three count. The challengers hit a top rope elbow/senton combination but they still can’t put away the champions. As we approach the last couple of minutes it seems destined that we will see yet another change of the guard. Excalibur hits a Tiger Driver for a very close 2 count, before Quiksilver finally succumbs to a double stomp and a psycho driver from Dragon. ***3/4

Also on the matches apart from the first match, you have the option to either listen to the standard crowd audio or the alternative commentary track which I would recommend. Listening to Excalibur commentating on his own tag title victory is particularly entertaining.

PROGRESS Press Release

FINAL LINEUP FOR DEBUT SHOW FROM
UPSTART LONDON PROMOTION

US INDIE STAR COLT CABANA JOINS LINEUP FOR “CHAPTER ONE”

"Do you remember when wrestling was awesome? So do we."
PROGRESS Wrestling is delighted to confirm the final lineup for their debut show,
“Chapter One: In The Beginning”, in March 2012.
The cream of the UK wrestling scene, plus internationally-renowned independent pro
wrestling superstar COLT CABANA, will compete in an 8-man tournament to crown the
first PROGRESS Champion.

In addition, PROGRESS has signed up to become the home of the new BWC Progress
Division. The British Wrestling Council (BWC) is the organisation that oversees pro
wrestling in the UK, and runs accredited training schools all over the country.
Although the current BWC Scarlo Champion XANDER COOPER defends his title at
student shows all over the country, PROGRESS will be the only promotion without an
affiliated training school to feature championship defences and at least one match
showcasing BWC students - the new stars of UK wrestling - on every card.

Final card for PROGRESS Chapter One: In The Beginning
Colt Cabana vs "Bollywood Dream" RJ Singh
Zack Sabre Jr vs “Party” Marty Scurll (as seen in the tabloid “Take Me Out” scandal!)
"UK Luchador" El Ligero vs Noam Dar
"Showstealer" Nathan Cruz vs Colossus
BWC Scarlo Championship match:
Xander Cooper (champ) vs "Dazzling" Darrell Allen vs Zack "Diamond" Gibson
PLUS
Huge main event for the inaugural PROGRESS Championship!
-----
continues...
PROGRESS Wrestling is the brainchild of award-winning stand-up comedian and
presenter Jim Smallman, and talent manager Jon Briley. Both are long-time wrestling fans,
and have always talked about putting on a show featuring the best wrestlers around; in the of Summer 2011 they stopped talking about it, and put the wheels in motion to actually make it happen.

The agenda is simple:
- to showcase the amazing talent working in the UK
- to move the public perception of wrestling on from Big Daddy, Giant Haystacks et al from
the 1970s and 80s 'World Of Sport' era
- no gimmicks
- no foam fingers
- no kids!
- no PG-rated, sponsor-approved 'comedy'
- affordable tickets
- to put on great wrestling for fans, by fans, in front of a loud and insane crowd.
-----
DETAILS AT-A-GLANCE
Sunday March 25th 2012
PROGRESS Chapter One: In The Beginning
The Garage, 20 Highbury Corner, London N5 1RD.
Doors 3pm. Bell time 4pm.
Tickets from £7-£15, Front Row tickets include a free Ltd Edition t-shirt.
Tickets available from:
www.progresswrestling.com
www.ticketweb.co.uk (tel 0844 847 1678)
www.hmvtickets.com (te 0843 221 0100)
Web: www.progresswrestling.com
Twitter: @ThisIs_Progress and #thisisprogress
Facebook: Progress Wrestling
YouTube: ProgressWrestling
-----
Colt Cabana will also be recording a live edition of his incredibly popular podcast “The Art
Of Wrestling” on the evening of Saturday 24th March. The podcast has hundreds of
thousands of subscribers and is the most popular wrestling podcast on iTunes.
Venue and time TBC, please follow @ThisIs_Progress on Twitter for updates!
-----

The Indy Corner (02/02/11) Featuring An Interview with Lionheart

This week on The Indy Corner Stu Rodgers & Duckman return with all good things independent wrestling. We talk WrestleReunion from the past weekend. Stu does a report from FightClub: Pro's first show of 2012 'Resolution' from January 27th and then the guys discuss the match announced by ROH for the Tenth Anniversary Show - ROH Tag Team Champions The Briscoes vs. The Young Bucks. To end The Indy Corner Duckman conducts an awesome interview with top Scottish wrestler Lionheart Adrian McCallum who has wrestled for both TNA & the WWE amongst many British promotions. Check out The Indy Corner in full below.





Check out this great career highlight video of Lionheart

Ring Ka King - Wrestlings New Horizon By Alex Kirkham

As wrestling goes, India has always been the nut that hasn’t been cracked as regards a promotion. WWE and TNA have both had tours of some kind to the country, but that never quenched the thirst for wrestling by the Indian public. This was a problem, that Jeff Jarrett, and his shrewd wrestling mind would soon come to deal with.

In the latter half of 2011, Jarrett along with backing from TNA, and input from names like Dave Lagana & Dutch Mantell, pitched an idea, for a weekly television wrestling show, filmed and shown in India to help plug the gap the country had as regards wrestling for their country. With the idea approved, and picked up by world renowned TV company Endemol, all that was left now was to put together a multi-cultural roster fusing together the best international talents with India’s very own breed of stars.

As the December 2011 taping dates drew nearer, Jarrett along with Lagana and Mantell, began to form a roster of talent, reaching from former TNA talent, WWE “Future Endeavours” and Indy stars looking to make a bigger name for themselves on a more global stage. Amongst the most high profile names were 3rd Generation star Chavo Guerrero, Former WWE tag champion and Hart family member Harry Smith, prominent Indy stars Joey Ryan and Jimmy Rave & former WCW Heavyweight Champion Scott Steiner. With a plethora of talent, the company was definitely well equipped to put on some high quality matches for their new audience.

Endemol were 100% behind the project of Ring Ka King, and in conjuncture with TNA, they went about promoting the companies inception and upcoming debut as an unmissable event. Amongst their plans, were to erect around 50 advertising boards around the city and country, to get India behind this new company, and make the country excited, because Pro Wrestling was finally India bound.

December soon rolled around, and Ring Ka King went into production for the 1st time. Based in the city of Pune, India, the company worked off a similar basis as its parent company TNA. A smaller arena, where by capturing the atmosphere and intensity and making it widely visible to the viewing television audience. To add that extra hype to the show, the extra dazzle it would need, they enlisted Indian cricket legend Harbhajan Singh to host the show. Singh, who is regarded as a modern day sports god in his country, obliged and became the shows host, a decision which would inevitably benefit the company.

Come the debut show, the atmosphere was electric, frenzied, and described by one person as “near to riot”. The fans were onboard, the roster was packed, and the booking had been done. Only thing left to do, was kick off this new promotion. As the show kicked off, Ring Ka King showed why it was different from other promotions. We opened with Bollywood dancers, filled the ring, bright colours, loud music and an excited buzz in the air. They were showing that they weren’t just another company, but one who respected the country they were in and were giving their fans what they wanted to see.

The 1st thing that this fledgling company need to do, was to announce a tournament for the newly created Ring Ka King Heavyweight Title. Involved were star names like Matt Morgan, Nick “Eugene” Dinsmore, Scott Steiner and Magnus. They competed over a number of weeks, to crown the inaugural champion, in matches which would put India’s finest against the aforementioned superstars. In a tournament that is currently on-going in the Ring Ka King episodes, I can guarantee you some exciting, high paced matches between some of your favourite stars, and a few surprises along the way.
Aside from the WHC title, we saw the debut of an Indian star in the making. Mahabali Veera was in action against the experienced head of Nick Dinsmore in the 1st round of the Tournament. As soon as his music hit, he was instantly over with the crowd. I will go out on a limb, and say that it was the best pop of the night. They were behind every punch, every suplex and every moment of this young mans TV wrestling debut. He seemed to be very ring aware, and showed no fear about a more experienced opponent in Dinsmore. He handled himself well, did each move to perfection and won via Thrust Spinebuster. This guy is definitely one to watch in Ring Ka King, and I definitely tip him for bigger things both within this company and elsewhere in the world.

Now to the important part for me. Ive been a wrestling fan all my life, grew up with it as a passion, not just entertainment or a sport I watch. Ive seen many changes within the industry, various era’s and companies come and go on various occasions. But with Ring Ka King, I get a really good feeling that its breaking boundaries, both culturally and visually. Its showing that Indian wrestling fans, are passionate and devoted like any other around the world. It bring an immense sense of happiness for me, to see TNA and Endemol, breakthrough with this company and provide India with the building blocks for their very own wrestling dynasty. Not just to send their wrestlers abroad to the classically larger companies, but to build them up, and use them in their own organisations.

All I can say, is long may Ring Ka King continue.

Any comments, post them below or hit me up on twitter @WholeKirknShow