NXT goes to war

The latest episode of Smackdown was as equally amazing it was concerning. The whole time I was fighting the fan in me. Smackdown was my favorite brand as a kid and at twenty-five years old I still prefer it over RAW. This makes it hard to stay totally bias but I must and I have. Smackdown was invaded by NXT, they beat down a lot of the Smackdown talent. I was shocked when Adam Cole beat Daniel Bryan or when Matt Riddle and Keith Lee stomped Sami Zayn. Shayna Baszler jumping Banks, Cross, and Bayley was something I didn't see coming. The idea of an invasion is built on this, but this is were I start to worry that the WWE is making a mistake.

NXT started in 2010 after the end of ECW. WWE was looking at developing new talent in a way that was rather bold. Typically, WWE would have talent come from two places, Florida Championship Wrestling which they ran. Or, it would look outside the company to find already developed talent. The ladder is still used today, case in point being AJ Styles. The plan was simple, have NXT be a place where we could see the future stars of tomorrow. This move made it so that the WWE could make it a third show and also make money off this show directly. In the past, FCW was just a developmental territory. Meaning they would lost money for the most part because of two things. One, you wouldn't see FCW in massive arenas, and two, you would be able to market talent meaning the merchandise wasn't a viable income option. This was why the WWE wanted to have a third show like ECW but they mismanaged it and it never would become a NXT.

For a few years, NXT was a "game show". With wrestlers coming out and trying out promos, wrestling, and competing for a WWE contract. The show was not good, and that's being nice about it. Even though it lasted five seasons, Vince McMahon was thinking about cancelling the show based on its horrible reputation and ratings. However, Triple H would save NXT and help it thrive. His creative insight would lead NXT to be seen as the best WWE has to offer. A lot of this success comes from the direction Triple H gave to a lot of the first NXT stars. The fruits of his labor resulted in NXT being the only real reason to pay for the WWE network. The world was shown Finn Balor, Kevin Owens, Sami Zyan, Bayley, Sasha Banks, Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair. Wrestling in the WWE wouldn't be the same once NXT hit. Everyone loved NXT, the style was very Indy and completely different from anything the US audience had seen. This would feed the hype train for NXT and as off this writing NXT is still a massive draw for the WWE and is a huge success.

My love for NXT as of late however, is being tested. While some my like the idea of having Finn Balor on NXT, I hate it. Its hard for me to enjoy the new talent when you have the chance to see Finn Balor at anytime. The mixing of jobbers coming from Smackdown and RAW over to NXT isn't great. Jobbers are needed but the reason they're jobbers is because they lose all the time. Having a jobber come over to a development show makes both the jobber look way to weak and makes the idea of the show being all development talent lost. NXT UK talent coming over to NXT isn't a horrible idea because both brands are marketed as developmental. Having 205 live stars come over doesn't make a bit of sense. All this moving wrestlers from show to show and trying to make all shows feel competitive will not work. This is all that I think about when I see Finn on NXT, the last few big events have all been to make the company shows look better. This is never going to work because that's not what these shows are meant to do.

205 Live was a way to show off the cruiserweight championship but no one watches it. NXT UK is meant to show off European wrestling and is seen as the twin to NXT. These shows are niche and are for people who're looking to watch other styles of wrestling. The issue is that these styles can be shown off on RAW or Smackdown. NXT should only be used as a way to show off new wrestlers and their styles of wrestling and not as a clone of ECW. The reason ECW failed was because they wanted it to be on the same level as both RAW and Smackdown. NXT needs to be left alone, and the other small shows need to end. If the shows are failing then cancel it and move on. Having a moving roster isn't the answer. However, this type of change has brought the company short term success and the most recent episode of Smackdown was rated very high. The WWE is making the same mistake again, just change NXT for WCW and it'll feel the same.

WCW tried this in the early 2000's and it failed because WWE stars wouldn't agree to lose to WCW on their show. This made the WWE stars look very good and WCW looked weak in comparison. The whole invasion was seen as a joke, and the big takeaway from it was that Triple H wouldn't let Booker T win. So overall it was a fail, which makes me hate the current WWE writers and bookers even more. The idea of an invasion is very exciting but its never worked, and more importantly,  this is the second NXT invasion. The first was The Nexus and John Cena buried them. He saw them as a joke and wouldn't play ball, this is going to come up at some point. Someone will say no and then the ideas for this invasion will have to change and then it'll fail. The invasion is meant to show off both sides as massive armies, but if one side doesn't want to lose that kills all momentum going forward. I refuse to think that AJ Styles will let a NXT star pin him on RAW. That goes for Kevin Owens or Bayley or Finn Balor. The top stars wouldn't do that unless they got something huge out of it. Daniel Bryan and the Miz are both family men who're looking at retirement in the near future. Both of them giving a rub to the NXT guys makes sense. But, Kevin has another ten years in him at the least, Charlotte just doesn't like to lose so she would't agree to losing. Seth Rollins has a few years left and wouldn't be booked to lose to a new guy because he's the face of the WWE. The massive stars aren't going to start handing out wins anytime soon. So why do this?

The WWE is afraid of AEW. They want to show off that NXT has great stars and want people to come watch them on Wednesday. This invasion is meant to help with this issue but I don't see it working. WWE is shooting itself in the foot by doing this. If any of big stars lose to the NXT guys than that means the NXT guy should go to either RAW or Smackdown. Do to the fact that they're ready for the big brands since they just pinned a massive star. This means that the person they want you want people to see on Wednesday will be moving off that show. This then causes NXT to start all over with new faces. Which'll cause WWE to lose ratings on NXT because we don't know any of the new talent. This means that AEW will just draw in all the fans who're jumping ship. I hope I'm wrong but I doubt I am. WWE is a company that has a bad record when it comes to planing ahead. It's a company that will make moves because it needs a ratings boost but really they don't have a plan moving forward. This type of story telling will only hurt NXT and cause it to face a downward spiral. NXT and Smackdown both are facing hard times as far as ratings are concerned. The way the WWE is handling could be seen as a sign of desperation.

The WWE needs to close shows that're failing and focus of keep on developing new talent. The fact that I have to say this shows that they're not looking into the future. The company needs to cut cost and lose some shows. The way they run the WWE is old school and that'll be what kills them. If they can't move past the idea of an invasion after its failed so many times before than maybe they deserve what they get.

Keeping it competitive: Gail Kim

The idea that women could be wrestlers had been challenged. Mae Young and The Fabulous Moolah did made the path easier for future women, that being said, most promotions in the 1980's didn't want talented female wrestlers. They wanted models to show off their bodies and promote their promotions. This wasn't just one promotion or a part of the world that was doing this. The industry had kinda taken a step backwards and didn't want to show off great female wrestling unless they we're skinny and made of mostly plastic. For most fans at the time, this was a none issue. In the WWF women were fought over, best example being Miss Elizabeth. No one thought this was a bad idea because she was meant to be the wife of Macho Man Randy Savage. The notion that this was a none issue would even go into the 1990's. WCW along with WWF would have female "wrestlers" in their promotion but never built a solid division around a Women's Championship. WCW would be the worst about bringing in new talent as they just trained the Nitro Girls and thought that would make a change. This however, would only make the situation worst up until the closer of WCW. Around this time, a very talented woman was training in Canada. She would be the spark that would challenge other women in the early 2000's to move from model to wrestler.

Gail Kim is the example of someone who was ten years ahead of the game. In 2000, Gail would go train in Toronto at the Ron Hutchison's school of pro wrestling. For two years she would wrestle in the Indy circuit and at one point was a masked wrestler called "The Queen of the Cats". She would lose to a future TNA wrestler Tracy Brooks and have her mask ripped of in a hair vs mask match. Her hard work on the Indy circuit would pay off when in 2002 the WWE would call her and within eight months she would be working OVW as a developmental talent. 

This next part is both my opinions and the facts and obviously we're starting with facts. Gail's first TV match and win was also when she first held the WWE Women's Championship. This would be held by her for four weeks until Molly Holly beat her for the belt. This would then start her heel turn and her next few years she would be her feuding with Molly Holly, Lita, and Trish Stratus. The final match of her first WWE run would be a lose at the Pay-Per-View Taboo Tuesday. She would lose a battle royal to Trish Stratus, and the following week she would be cut quote, "Due to cost cutting".

This is when my opinion comes in. She wasn't a Trish Stratus and I mean that in every way. She wasn't someone who would do weird story lines(see picture above). She wasn't a model, she didn't have blond hair and she wasn't the typical wrestler that the WWE would normally push. This just reminds me of Booker T and Triple H and their story line in the early 2000's or Brock Lesner and Kofi from a few weeks ago. The company gets a wild hair and changes things cause it fits them better. It also seems very odd cause when you put all this back to back you get a picture that is a little more white than black and white. Again, I say this knowing that not every champion has been white. However, she never won on Pay-Per-View which would have made her a huge draw for the company. Also its odd that they cut her for lack of funds, just doesn't seem very WWE. The history WWE has with people of color isn't great and I'd come off as mute of this wasn't apart of this article.

Okay, back to facts. 2005, TNA calls, this changes how the world sees Gail Kim. She becomes the manager of America's Most Wanted and Jeff Jarrett. This is a perfect fit for her as she is seen next to top guys in TNA which makes her a known heel on TV. In 2006, she makes her singles debut on the Pay-Per-View Victory Road in a 6-man mixed match. She would go on to lose this match but would get a chance at revenge at the next Pay-Per-View Hard Justice defeating Sirelda. Gail would have a small feud with James Storm and Jacqueline. This feud would end the following year after a lose to both in a mixed match that also involved Petey Williams. This would lead into a small feud with Robert Roode. This which hold her over until a battle royal would leave her outlasting nine other women. Because of this, Gail Kim would be the first TNA Women's Knockout Champion. This would lead her to being the top women's wrestler in TNA with feuds with Awesome Kong and ODB being the best opponents she fought. Gail Kim would lose to Awesome Kong in a street fight in 2008, leading her back to the WWE just three years after they let her go. 

Her second WWE run is remembered for one thing. She eliminated herself from a televised battle royal match. The information I read isn't to kind and if you took all her wins and losses she was way under .500. Her last act in the WWE wasn't something that was unwarranted. The creative process wasn't the same as TNA, she wasn't the top women in the company. Vince and friends knew she was the best but decided not to push her. No one knows why, but I think it had everything to do with her past run with WWE and the fact that she probably didn't want to play by WWE rules. She's not a model she is a seasoned wrestler. She could have been the head of the whole division but the WWE saw her as someone to put of Superstars. Her second and last run on WWE was over in 2011 and she said she vows never to sign with the company gain.

From 2013-2016, Gail Kim would be a huge part to the success of TNA. The issue is that a lot of the booking was really bad. Like most of the material I read wasn't that great and I'll be giving you a very quick read. In her three years back at TNA, she held both the TNA Woman's Knockout Championship and TNA Knockout Tag Team Championship at the same time becoming one of only two people to ever do this. Her first title reign back with TNA was a total of 210 days, the longest in the promotions history. She would go on to hold the TNA Knockout Championship another five times, one of those reigns lasting 88 days. This would bring her total count up to 7, making her easily the most decorated champion in the companies history. This would lead many to call for her to be put in the TNA Hall of Fame. She would be the first woman to be put in the TNA Hall of Fame.

Gail Kim was without a doubt a massive star outside of the WWE. Her dedication to her talent rubbed some the wrong way, but her career shows it was all worth it. She has become to many the reason the Women's revolution came to pass. Her failing in the WWE had been well documented and the company had to have wanted to move past the bad vibes. To me, she is a modern day blueprint for how all wrestlers should treat those who want to hold them back. No one company can make or break a persons career. Gail Kim is a prime example of what happens when you strive to be better. Her passion and love for the sport will always be what the fans remember and to most she's one of the best women's wrestlers of this generation.

The baddest women in wrestling

Wrestling was a men dominated sport for the longest time. Some women would be seen in the 1920's but not as wrestlers but as card girls. This was a way to make the sport feel like boxing. The first real shot women would get to be the stars of the sport would be during world war two. The men who had lead the sport up to this point were off fighting, thus women had the chance to show their skills. This would be the start of many women promotions and be the jump start to the women's revolutions.

Mae Young was the first star to come out of this revolution. Her career started in 1939 after she was beat in a shoot match. Mildred Burke beat Young in a few seconds however Billy Wolfe saw something and told her she should become a wrestler. Within two years, May was in Charlotte, North Carolina training with The Fabulous Moolah and Ed "Strangler" Lewis. Reportedly, Ed said quote, "I don't like girl wrestlers, women should stay in the kitchen, but after seeing you, you was born to wrestle." This by today standards is a stupid remark to make, but it must have gave Mae Young motivation to keep showing men what she was made of. A few months after this conversation took place she was the best talent in the country. She would wrestle under the names "The Queen" and "The Great Mae Young"

By the 1950's, she is working for Mildred Burke at WWWA, an all women's wrestling promotion. In 1954, Mae and Mildred both travel to post-war Japan. They're the some of the only women to do so as professional wrestlers from the US. Mae Young was a very talented woman, and between the 50's and the 70's she would win her fair share of titles. NWA Florida Women's Championship, NWA United States Women's Championship and NWA Women's World Tag Team Championship with Ella Waldek. She would later work for the WWE in the 90's but none of the story lines were much to talk about. However, when she was with the company she became Miss Royal Rumble and would make it into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2004. Both of these are huge accomplishments but it was her legacy that would lead to The Mae Young Classic in 2017. This would be a 32 women tournament that would showcase the best the world has to offer as far as women wrestling. This would lead into the second annual Mae Young Classic that would conclude at the first ever WWE all women's Pay-Per-View called Evolution.

Mae Young was a innovator not just for the sport of wrestling but for women's sports around the world. At a time when women were seen as nothing but wife's, nurses, teachers and mothers, she made the world see her as a bad ass woman who didn't take no for an answer. Her dedication to the sport would make the whole world take notice and would pave the road for others to follow. She was an amazing individual and we're lucky as fans to have her legacy still molding how we see female wrestlers today.

The hardest job in the business

The world of professional wrestling is challenging. People can get hurt, sick, or just burnt out. A lot happens behind the scenes that can cause anyone to get tired. However, there are ways to help people stay calm and avoid all the bumps along the way. Promotions have methods to help with these issues. For most, its allowing couples within the promotion to travel together. Others, allow talent to take free days to just relax away from both the business and fans. Both are very effective and can save a lot of time and help keep talent happy. But for some, the schedules are to tight to allow any such pleasures. That's when promotions have to get creative and have to work out deals. The goal is always a give and take, you do x and y will come soon enough. This is how WWE does business. The first step in almost every deal is a push. A simple request that is always brought up and depending on the talent is handed out without question. A push can make most do anything but to get that push going you need to have a fall guy. That's when you call the jobber.

The goal of a jobber is simple. Sell your ass off, and make guys look good. The jobber can go on to do other things but they still have to lose. The biggest problem is that sometimes promotions do to much and you get a guy like James Ellsworth.  He was a jobber through and through but WWE wanted him to do more. He would lose all the time but he would also get mic time more than was necessary and was lousy at promos. He would turn hell for a while which lead to nothing special and then became the mouth piece for Carmella which was a waste cause she can cut a promo. Overall, he was a guy that they asked a lot of and got not a whole lot back. Carmella was a solid champ but her run was lacking cause of James Ellsworth.

Barry Horowitz was a great jobber. He knew what was asked of his and though he was given some mic time he wasn't asked to do much. He jobbed for WWF from 1987-1990, he got three wins and then went to WCW. He jobbed there and went 1-50! He lost damn near every match and the one win he got was in a dark match. He would then come back to WWF in 1991 and be booked as the "Jobber to the stars". He would lose all his matches in '91 up until '92 when he would win in a dark match in Canada. '93 would start with all loses until June when he won his second match. This would be his wrestling career up until 1995 when he got a small push. This would lead to nothing special but he wasn't seen as a jobber after that small push. He would be seen as an underdog and crowds grew to like him and his gimmick. He was a great talent and his hard work helped grow WWF and WCW.

Speaking of WCW, they had a guy called Maxx Muscle who to be honest I never heard of. He was a guy that didn't do much of anything which is a waste. The company had other jobbers that I could have brought up but this guy is exactly my point. He shouldn't have been on TV as a jobber in the first place. The research I did shows that he was later moved into a bodyguard role for Diamond Dallas Page which isn't the issue. The issue is, why would I be scared of a guy who I just saw lose a few weeks prior. Why would anyone look at him and see him as a killer and a monster (which is what the bodyguard role is meant for). I see this as a slap in the face to the audience who isn't going to buy this character. This is more a reflection on the promotion than Maxx. His career is forgettable because he didn't lose enough and trued to be something he wasn't. Its a shame and I hope that others learn from it.

Wrestling needs guys in these roles, however I've noticed a change. AEW doesn't really have a jobber and WWE have a few jobbers but they outsource them. They have shows all over and where ever they happen to be they get a jobber from a small promotion in that area. This isn't a good or bad thing, its just the changing of the times. My guess is, AEW is using the wins and losses records as a way to hide jobbers behind actually developed characters. That way if they like a guy and they want to push them they don't have to put the work in to change anything. The idea of having a loser on retainer might be seen as old school and the tides might be moving away from the need of them. Nevertheless, jobbers have always been needed and maybe its something that's just not being show on TV's anymore. I think that the sport is changing rapidly and we as fans are loving it. Here's hoping that the changes that are being made stick around and become standards going forward.

How the sport evolved: Tag Teams

In the early days of American wrestling, there were no tag-teams. Hardcore didn't exist, TLC wasn't even a concept, and no one had ever stepped foot inside a steel cage. The first of these innovations to the spectacle of wrestling would not come to fruition the mid 20th century. To be considered the strongest wrestler you had to defeat the current champ yourself, having another guy get involved didn't make sense. This was in contrast to Mexico, they loved the idea! More guys in the ring meant more action, which brings in more people and most importantly more money. The states would only use tag teams for special promotions. Most wrestlers didn't want to share the ring, and this sentiment was nearly universal at that point in time.  How did this change though? What or who made the idea of tag teams go from niche to necessary? Oddly enough, this major shift started on the west coast.

In 1901, San Francisco would be host to the first tag team match in the US. However, the dominance of one v one combat wouldn't be shaken up until these two men became a tag team in 1948.

The pairing of Black Shadow and Blue Demon were the first true test to see if tag team wrestling could work on a global scale. Both athletes worked together to defeat their opponents until Black Shadow lost his mask and turned heel in 1952. This would become a classic story line for almost every tag team, creating new sources of drama and tension for the audience. The pair worked matches together and Blue Demon became a household name. This was what wrestling needed at the time. A massive kick in the pants to the sport, which was felt all over.

These pictures illustrate how wrestling culture changed throughout the mid 20th century. The Lisowski Brothers we're tough, large, mean, and perfect for Detroit. The brothers would work together on rare occasions and because of this it was always big news when they teamed up.

The brothers both had single careers and for a time one of the brothers would be AWA Tag Team Champion with another wrestler under another name. Besides working together in Detroit, they worked all over the mid-northwest and also in Canada. They were a huge draw and a great tag team in their day.

As far as I can tell, The Kalmikoffs might be the first stable in the US. The two athletes you see in the picture are Ivan and Karol. They would later be joined by both Nikita and Igor, and the four would be a team up until '64 when Karol Kalmikoff tragically passed away due to a heart attack. The brothers would go on to hold gold in the in most of the top promotions, dominating the sport. AWA World Tag Team Champs, Three time NWA Canadian Open Tag Team Champs, NWA Texas Tag Team Champs, the list goes on and on. The four brothers had wrestling in their blood and it showed every time they stepped into the ring. A lot of teams today would be well served to look at the Klamikoffs and how this family of wrestler helped spread the word about tag team wrestling.

The fact is, all of these guys were constructing an important part of any modern wrestling promotion. We wouldn't have tag teams if it wasn't for the hard work they put in. Making a change to a sport and working out the rules takes time and effort. A lot of hard work had to happen for us to be able to enjoy it, and the idea of tag-teams is not and should not be a novelty. That companies like WWE use them as place-holder matches; and just throw them on RAW and SmackDown when they're running out of booking ideas is horrible and lazy. This happens way less in promotions outside of Connecticut, NJPW is a prime example. The new talent must go through the tag team division first, because Japan has realized and integrated something that the pioneers of tag-teaming knew a long time ago.

Tag teaming is really, really difficult.. It's not just you working by yourself in the ring, it's all about teamwork and synergy. You have to work more because you have three other guys who are in the ring with you. More guys should mean more action and that's the expectation. The teams have to look good while man handling their opponents, so simultaneous offense is something the fans look forward to. Just like a regular promo must make a single wrestler look good, a team needs to feed off one another and demonstrate that they truly function as a single unit. A ton of work goes into the art of being a great tag team it's certainly not done over-night!

That's what makes what these athletes accomplish so great. They wrote the blue-prints for a whole new style of wrestling. The sport evolved because of these guys and it cannot be emphasised enough. We're lucky to live in the age of the tag-team. The simplicity of one v one was fine back in the early days of wrestling, but like all good things evolution was needed. New wrestlers need to be properly shown off and given the chance to shine. Thanks to the tag team rules we got to see The Brothers of Destruction, The Rock and Sock Connection, Rock n Roll Express, and The Four Horsemen. The future of wrestling is anyone’s guess. However, I'm excited because I can feel change in the air. The unknown should be embraced and innovation is likely to bring us a new form of the sport we didn't even know we needed, and that future fans will view as a staple, just like tag-teaming. Whatever the future holds, I look forward to it and hope we accept it as we have accepted tag team wrestling.

Joey Ryan is holy unique

Joey Ryan is a unique character not just in wrestling but in life. From his gimmick to his battle cry he is without a doubt a star in the Indy scene. I was watching him last night on Bound For Glory and was amazed by his commitment to his character. The man knows how to get a reaction out of the audience he always gets a huge pop. However, I was looking at his gimmick and his style and asking myself why is his gimmick so strong? I will try to answer my own question by looking at other wrestlers who have unique gimmicks.

The Boogeyman was weird. He ate worms and hit is head with a giant alarm clock. You would think that this would tank his career. I saw him live and was hooked. The same thing that Joey does Boogeyman did as well. The props Joey uses are very much tied to his character and make him feel like a real person. Its solid character work and is hard to do. Boogeyman did this with his staff, his worms, his face paint, the lighting they used for his entrance, this things the WWE did right with that character are over looked. Joey draws people in with his looks first and like The Boogeyman this makes him a must see talent.

Golddust is considered to be the most underutilized wrestler ever in the WWE. A lot of that has to do with his gimmick that Vince made him use. Though in my opinion, the character Golddust is an amazing example of making the most out of what you got. Unlike The Boogeyman, Golddust was only handed a wig as a prop. The actual work that was put into this character was all Dustin Rhodes. He was painted all gold and was told to act a little funny and that's it. What he did with it though is what matters and that's what Joey Ryan and Golddust have in common. Joey has props, but he still has to do his act. He still has to ask people to grab his dick and sell his character. Joey Ryan like Golddust has to make people buy into who he is. Golddust got gold a few time and was a solid mid-carder. I predict Joey Ryan will get gold on Impact within the next eight-teen months just because he is such a talented guy and everyone loves him.

Joey Ryan is a Indy Star though and through. His style of wrestling will never fly in the WWE but honestly that's not a big deal. He has become his own brand and in 2019 that's a way bigger deal. Internet currency buys you a lot, and he can post or say anything online and his fans will back him up. His style will should never be copied because at the end of the day its lightning in a bottle. The reason Cody left the WWE was because they wanted another Golddust and it failed because it was to much of the same thing. Joey Ryan is a massive stud with the whole world excited about Impact which isn't normal. Impact was a dead brand, but slowly over the past few years they have come back from the brink of death. He can draw a lot of eyes to the promotion and honestly make some waves. If Impact wanted to standout from all the other promoters they just did it. Joey is this generations Golddust, he will always have fans and always bring an audience. His talent is something that the wrestling world needs and hopefully he makes and impact on Impact.

The spread of UK wrestling

England has blown up in the past five years. Talented men and women have come out of this small island country with massive success. Though we're flush with guys like Walter and Zack Saber Jr and women like Becky Lynch, Rhea Ripley, and Paige. This wasn't a thing in the 1980's or even before that. Sure we had guys like Davey Boy Smith and Fit Finley who brought that tough British flair but they didn't achieve large scale success like others at the time. This begs the question, why? I think it had to do with timing and with the WWE not seeing what we see now.

To put this into perspective I want to tell a short story about Sir Atholl Oakeley. If you don't know who this is its totally fine, but he is important to UK wrestling. Sir Atholl Oakeley was born in 1900 and the second born out of four. He was bullied as a child and began to learn amateur wrestling at a young age. Before long he was looking into general strength and body building. He would go to a royal military academy and by 1930 he was out of school and had an idea. He wanted to bring wrestling back to the UK in a big way. He started a company called All-In Pro Wrestling with a fellow friend Henri Irslinger. They would preform and book the shows and some matches would be "work" matches. Atholl wanted it to be seen as a legitimate sport and so put his body on the line to make that happen.

In that same year, he would book for another promotion The British Wrestling Association or BWA. This would be the biggest promotion in the country. He won the British Lightweight Championship from 1930 to 1932.  Also in 1930, he would go on to win the British Heavyweight Championship and would hold that title until 1935. This would be enough for most wrestlers, however he traveled Europe as the British Champion. He had a short run as the European Champion in 1932 losing it the following year to Heinrich Froehner in 1933.

By 1935 Atholl Oakeley handed over his titles and retired from the sport.  He had changed UK wrestling forever. He started two promotions, held the top belts in the country, traveled with the belts all across Europe, and was leading both companies into the mid 20th century on a high note. He had made himself into a folk hero, rumors of him drinking 11 gallons of milk a day, his over 2000 matches over a 5 year period, the rumor that he wrestled a 9'0 tall opponent while traveling. He was a brand all his own, and he knew it. He brought BWA attendance way up and by 1935 they were wrestling in 40 different venues and sold out shows on a weekly basis. However, thing would change and before world war two pro wrestling was banned in the country. It was said to be a more violent and hard hitting sport at the time and it was seen as unwanted. This would change after the war however, but the damage was done and most companies couldn't get over that social stigma.

The country would eventually life that ban and in 1964 world of sports would start showing wrestling matches on TV's all around the UK. This would keep the sport alive and stable. The sport would have its ups and down but for the most part the US audience was unaware of what was going on. This was fine until around 2013 when a small Youtube channel would start to put shows out for free. WCPW was the first time I had watched or seen UK wrestling since the '06 ECW matches with Finlay. It was very fast, loud, aggresive, and most of all unique. This was something that I was unaware of in the US and I think most who watched WCPW can agree that it was awesome. The talent was fresh, the characters were different from any other characters we'd see in WWE. Guys like Matt Riddle, Will Osprey, Rampage, Killian Dain the list goes on. The UK had stars and the world took notice. However, Japan was ahead of the ball and would take the best UK has to offer way before anyone was aware of what was going on. 

Finn Balor was considered one of the best wrestlers NJPW has ever had in its organization. His list of accomplishment are long but the one that stands out is the Bullet Club. He was the founder of the club and it made him a house hold name in Japan. WWE saw him and snatched him up. He was one of the first big stars to come out of NXT. He is also the guy who started NWA Ireland which is where Becky Lynch learned how to wrestle along with Finn. When the WWE got him and saw what he could do along with WCPW success online they say gold. This is what leads us into today. The trend we have now didn't come from nowhere. Sir Atholl Oakeley was the gold standard for guys that Finn would later look to as his inspiration. He would do what Atholl Oakeley did, start a promotion, train new talent, win gold, and travel as a star with Japan. He picked up where Atholl left off and because of timing and his own talent this would cause the world to look at a small island and wonder who else lives there and can they wrestle?