Chris Blackwood shows the pain of being slapped!

While wrestling may appear to be staged some moves can cause a huge amount of pain.

Usually wrestlers do not use their full force when delivering the patented slap across the chest but Chris Blackwood's injury proves that this is not always the case.

The Midlands based performer has recently acquired a red raw hand imprint on his chest for his troubles.

He said: "I got this during a recent match and it was incredibly painful.

"I can't say I've ever been able to see the outline of a hand on my chest before.

"I was working with a friend called Dan Ryder so he will be getting one back next time!"

WWE Raw Review :: London 02 Arena 20/4

This was the second time I have been to see WWE Raw live and the show did not disappoint.

On arrival to the O2 arena my mate and I were greeted with the usual howls of 'wooo' with excited fans replicating Ric Flair's signature phrase. We also came across a number of men dressed up as Hulk Hogan while others chose to carry around full size title belts on their shoulders.

Merchandise stands had queues that were three or four people deep and with printed t-shirts at £25 a pop this wasn't going to be a cheap outing for some people.

The event began with a dark match between William Regal and Dolph Ziggler and Regal must have felt disappointed that he wasn't considered for the main show especially as its in his home country.

Compared with my last experience of Raw in Manchester I thought that the atmosphere in the arena was far more electric with all areas of the crowd being very vocal.

This was particularly apparent whenever John Cena appeared as half the crowd booed him and the other half cheered him. The amount of reaction he generated was unbelievable.

The English crowd seemed to have a liking for the heel wrestlers which was shown early on as chants of Y2J could be heard despite Jericho telling the crowd they were parasites and hypocrites.

At one stage male fans were booing every punch by Cena and cheering every punch by Jericho which I wasn't expecting to happen. Obviously most of the women and children were cheering for Cena but they were being drowned out.

This also happened when Randy Orton was fighting Triple H which was the best match of the night. Orton had the WWE champion on the canvas and was stomping on him in an arrogant manner when all of sudden I could hear 'RKO RKO RKO' from the crowd.

I don't think Orton was too happy about this considering he is meant to be a massive heel and he snapped at the crowd making them boo him. This is certainly something for the WWE to note as this is not the first time I have heard Orton being cheered.

There was an embarrassing moment in the very boring match between Kane and CM Punk where they botched the small package pin. CM Punk left the ring victorious but then had to come back in, awkwardly walk up to Kane and perform the then ending again. It was painful to watch and they were lucky that Raw was not being shown live.

After Raw had finished the crowd was treated to some more matches as the new WWE show 'Superstars' was being filmed. Having endured a match earlier between Big Show and Rey Mysterio we were given another serving of the lethargic giant who paired with Kane to take on Misterio and CM Punk in a pointless tag team match. Rubbish.

We then had Edge vs Kofi Kingston followed by Edge vs Cena which really didn't excite.

The one disappointment of the night was that Shawn Michaels didn't make an appearance but overall it was an enjoyable show and I would give it 7/10.

See the full match results here.

My favourite wrestling moves

As a young lad I used to wrestle against my little brother on my parent's bed and I was a massive believer of finishing him with a pedigree (seen above).

If we rolled back the years and had another match I would still use this move to end the contest providing he would let me win of course. He is now 18 and persuading him to lose to me may prove slightly more difficult.

Although I don't like Triple H anymore due to his face turn, the pedigree is still one of the most effective finishers ever. The sight of someone having their arms hooked and then their face slammed into the canvas is very powerful and looks like it would hurt.

Unfortunately this theory was proven to be true when in year 7 (1999) my form had a massive wrestling match in the classroom and someone performed a pedigree which went wrong. The lad in question left school to go to hospital in a neck brace but fortunately was OK.

Another move which was particularly popular throughout my early senior school days was the vertical suplex (pictured below). A very standard move to watch on TV but when the two biggest lads in your class are holding someone up in the air in a suplex position as a teacher walks in the room it becomes very entertaining. I don't think the teacher in question could quite believe his eyes.


There have been many great finishing moves throughout the years including The Rock's Rock Bottom, Shawn Michaels' Sweet Chin Music, Steve Austin's Stone Cold Stunner and more recently Randy Orton's RKO.

The defining quality in all these maneuvers is that they can be applied out of nowhere. Surprising the audience is the best way to create excitement and that is exactly what happens when these finishers are executed.

Child dies jumping off a roof

A nine-year-old has died from jumping off a roof allegedly trying to imitate his favourite WWE star Jeff Hardy.

Damori Miles made a parachute out of string and plastic bag and attempted Hardy's signature 'swanton bomb' finishing move.

According to his friend Shakar, 11, Damori had seen this type of stunt when playing the Smackdown vs Raw video game.

Whilst my condolences go out to his family I have never seen Jeff Hardy perform a swanton bomb from a roof with a parachute on.

To link the WWE with this death seems slightly unfortunate for Vince McMahon and I'm sure fingers will be pointing his way.

His 11-year-old friend confirmed that he was attempting to copy Hardy and I think this source is a little unreliable when considering there are so many other games, films and television programmes that feature dangerous actions.

Young children need supervision and guidance when following far-fetched programmes that appear to be real.

If a parent doesn't have an interest in what their child is doing they cannot know what they are being influenced by.

How and why this lad was inspired to jump off a building puzzles me because this would suggest he had no idea of the difference between fantasy and reality.

In this day and age children are bombarded with far more unsuitable material for their age than they have been in the past.

For some it would be harmless but for others who are more easily lead, it is dangerous because their mind isn't developed enough to understand you can't do certain things in real life.

It really depends on the individual and their parental back up.

For example when I was nine I thought everything about wrestling was real and I'm sure this kid was no different.

I was guilty of doing moves on my brother and hurting him and vice versa but we were never tempted to do anything really silly.

I would say in general the WWE is far more child friendly than ten years ago and really believe that this child's actions were caused by something else.

Read the full story here.

Draft picks fail to excite

The WWE draft picks last Monday didn't particularly interest me.

As of late most of the big name wrestlers have been working overtime by appearing on Raw and Smackdown so the decision to move Triple H to Monday nights seems insignificant.

The fact that he is going to appear on Smackdown this week against two other supposedly Raw superstars, Rhodes and Di Biase, further backs up this statement.

It seems to me like Triple H was drafted purely to get a 'pop' from the crowd. I don't see the point of that because it's not like he is the most popular face to grace the company.

The most significant change up was the separation of Miz and Morrison. For me this is big as one of these guys is going to get a massive singles push and it should be Morrison. Read my recent post about why here.

It is slightly disappointing as they were such a good tag team but having been together for quite a while I suppose it's about time for a change.

I am surprised they have been moved onto different brands and presumably the writers aren't going to go with the customary 'lets see who is better' angle when a tag team break up.

I'm certainly looking forward to seeing what the have planned for the pair of them. Without a doubt the most boring draft pick has to go to Kane. He hasn't had a decent story line for so long now and it is a case of just waiting for June when he will be retiring from the ring.

Finally a mention must go to Jerry Lawler for mixing up the names of John Cena and Jack Swagger during their match. He called the ECW champion John Swagger which I found very amusing. The best thing is that no-one corrected him!

Former WWE stars set to appear at English event

Well I've never heard of One Pro Wrestling but the English promotion has former ECW and WWE stars Nunzio, Balls Mahoney, Kid Kash and Sandman on it's upcoming match card.

When I first saw this I couldn't quite believe it and the event 'To The Extreme' which is taking place this weekend at the Doncaster Dome is not to be missed.

There is some confusion as to when the event is starting as the times are mentioned twice on this page however they are not the same!

The biggest draw by far is Sandman who had a stint on WWE Raw for a while and if I saw him on any card I would go to event purely to see him perform live.

He always gets an electric reaction from crowds and a prime example of this can be seen below at One Night Stand.


I do find it hard to understand why this popular crop of American wrestlers have ended up in Doncaster but I suppose once you have worked for the WWE the only way is down.

I'm sure the four men in question will have been offered quite handsome deals to make an appearance on the English independent scene.

Ticket prices suggest this with the cheapest option at £20 for stalls. Floor seats come in at £35 and a ring side seat would set you back £50. This seems rather steep in for an English promotion and this is put into perspective when you consider my WWE Raw ticket cost £40.

EXCLUSIVE :: Interview with Chris Blackwood

Chris Blackwood is an English wrestler currently working for Midlands based promotions Leicester Pro Wrestling and Alternative Wrestling World.

He has been part of the independent business for around two years after joining a training scheme at AWW in early 2007. At the moment he is performing as Lucian L. Jones who is a despicable street thug and he is loving it.

In this interview Blackwood reveals how he got into the business, why he likes it so much and why it's so good to play a heel character.

Why and at what age did you decide to get into wrestling?

Watching-wise, I’ve been into wrestling since I was about 4. My granddad used to sit me on his lap and we’d watch World of Sport together on a Saturday afternoon. I started watching WWF as soon as we got satellite TV, and it’s just spiraled out of control from there.

As far as actually wrestling, I did some backyard stuff when I was about 18, just doing stupidly dangerous stuff with no training for our own amusement.

I got into training and such by getting drunk at an AWW show in Birmingham about 2 years ago. They announced they had a training school, and in my lack of sobriety I decided that I was going to start wrestling again.

When did you do your first show?

I had my first “proper” match as part of a 20 man Royal Rumble style match on 30th November 2007. I sucked big time and got thrown out too early and messed up the order of the rumble. Thankfully I’ve got a lot better since then.

What is the best thing about the job?

Most definitely it is the rush from hearing people either boo or cheer you. Wrestling is all about getting a reaction from the crowd, and as soon as you hear those boos or cheers, you know you’ve done your job right. The worst thing for a wrestler is to have an audience that really couldn’t give a damn one way or the other about them. Well that, and being able to get away with being horribly slack to people because I’m “in character”. He he!

Are you making money out of it or is more a hobby?

I’m in it purely for fun at the moment. If I get travel expenses it’s a nice bonus, as I haven’t ended up out of pocket, but I don’t think there’s too much money to be made from the UK wrestling scene at the moment.

Have you had professional training? How often?

I’ve been in training on and off since late 2007. I used to go twice a week, but now money’s getting tight I’ve had to cut that down to maybe once or twice a month to keep the ring rust off. Luckily I’m still getting booked on shows, so that means I can use that to keep in some kind of decent wrestling condition.

How important is it to have a good body? Do you work out?

Some people would say having a good body is the most important thing, but I honestly don’t think it’s the case. Sure if you’re massive and muscular then you’re more likely to get noticed, but I’m a firm believer that there’s no substitute for talent. I do work out, but not religiously. I’m starting to think I’m just not built to be anything over 14 and a half stone!

What character do you play?

Basically my character thinks and acts like he’s a bad boy, but he’s not really. He’s all about being ghetto-fabulous, being “overtly urban” so-to-speak. It’s just a jumped up version of those kids who you usually see in gangs with their hoods up, hanging around outside shops, smoking fags, listening to the latest grime track on their new Sony Ericsson, and holding a Staffordshire Bull Terrier on a lead. Couple that with the catchphrase “Don’t you know who I am? I’m Lucian L. Jones, Bitch!”, and that’s my character!

Do you prefer being heel or face?

It’s difficult really as being a face is great as they’re the guys who always get cheered, and get to be everyone’s friend (and more importantly people actually want to buy your t-shirt at the end of the night!). Whereas when you’re a heel it’s like a kind of catharsis. If I’ve had a bad day then it’s a great way to vent by getting all up in the audiences faces and giving them grief. You get to lie, cheat, just pretty much do whatever you can to make the crowd hate you. It’s so much fun it’s untrue.

Did you find taking bumps hard to get used to? Do you ever think twice about a bump now?

The hardest part was not automatically putting my hands down to try and protect myself. It’s quite hard to try and overcome years of nature telling you not to let yourself fall over! After pretty much my first lesson I started to get the hang of it though. Now it’s second nature though. The only bumps I worry about are the ones that I’d be taking outside the ring, but truth be told 9 out of 10 of those don’t really “hurt” as such.

I interviewed another wrestler, Simon Platt of WAR Wrestling in Rugby and he said that the ability someone has to pull off a good match was more important than their image... do you agree/disagree?

I agree to a certain extent, same as I said earlier you can be the biggest most muscular guy in the world, but if you can’t carry a match then it doesn’t mean squat. Just look at someone like the Ultimate Warrior, he was bought in because he had “the look”, and then turned out to be one of the most appalling in-ring workers ever. Ideally though, if you can work a great match, AND have a good image then you should have it made.

He also said that the business is too easy to get into due to promotions needing people to fill their cards and therefore there are a lot of poor performers out there. Do you agree/disagree?

Again, I agree to a certain extent. Some promotions will just drop you straight into a match, no matter how wet behind the ears you are. But generally speaking, those are the kind of promotions that put on the worst shows. I think a lot of problems also stem from promotions saying they do training, but have a trainer that isn’t as experienced as they should be. Generally a student can only be as good as whoever teaches them, and if the trainer isn’t great how do you expect the trainees to get on?

Do you have another job?

Yep, not quite that famous yet! I work in forensics by day, but by night become Lucian “Legendary” Jones. Who knows, one day wrestling may be able to become a living for me, but I can’t see it happening anytime soon!

JBL deserved a better retirement match

I expected JBL to come out on RAW last Monday and give one of his outrageous ten minute speeches to explain why he lost so easily.

Despite saying he had quit the WWE at Wrestlemania I presumed that he wouldn't leave the business after losing the intercontinental title in a match that lasted 21 seconds.

Unfortunately he didn't appear and the next day I came across a blog post from him on wwe.com.

In it he confirms his departure and talks about starting the next chapter of his life. He mentions how one of his biggest regrets after getting injured was that he wasn't going to make it to Wrestlemania 25.

It was fitting that he did in fact make it which is a credit to him as clearly he never gave up and got his wish of appearing at the 'grandest stage of them all' for one last time.

He said he had no plans to be involved in any type of on air character in the future which is disappointing because he was a brilliant commentator. His partnership with Michael Cole was hilarious and a real hark back to the days where the colour commentator disagreed with absolutely everything the play by play man said.

I regard JBL as the best heel mic worker ever and I think his 13 year career warranted a better send off.

If the match had to be short then so be it but it would have nice if he had come out of character at the end and said thank you to the crowd. When he angrily said 'I quit' I don't think too many people knew if he was being serious or not.

Alphainventions

I have recently stumbled across a very useful website for promoting my blog.

When I submitted my URL my hit count increased dramatically and the best thing about it is that there is no charge for the service.

On submission your blog goes into a cycle with many others until it is eventually removed.

Visit the site at http://www.alphainventions.com

This is a great way of getting a few more hits and I sincerely recommend it.

I hate sledgehammers

I said we could possibly witness one of the best Wrestlemanias of all time and I think I got a little too excited with that prediction.

This was a really good pay-per-view however it wasn't amazing mainly because the two title matches simply weren't thought out well enough.

I think it was absolutely criminal to set up the ending to Wrestlemania with a sledgehammer shot. What an outrageous decision and I think the writers really need to get over using that 'iconic' weapon.

It made Triple H look weak as he wasn't able to beat Orton without cheating. I know Triple H has a lot of say behind the scenes and why on earth he would want to win the main event like that is beyond me. Orton was built up so much in the run up and to have him lose in a mediocre match like that seems completely pointless.

The encounter between Shawn Michaels and the Undertaker was so good that it set up the preceding matches for a fall. Everyone wanted the same level of emotion and it just could not be re-created particularly with the world title match ending so suddenly.

These two legends showed everyone how it's done and had the every single person in the crowd in the palm of their hands. The match structure was just perfect with a number of brilliant moves, counters and unexpected kick outs and it will go down in history as one of the best ever.

I must mention how good the performance of Ricky Steamboat was. I was wondering before hand who out of the legends would work the majority of the match and I soon got my answer. The beginning was awful but when Steamboat got in the ring he showed that he had kept himself in shape and could still pull off a great match.

The match between the Hardy brothers wasn't as good as I though it was going to be. When Jeff came out I immediately felt that he should be involved in a title match and not some meaningless poorly plugged battle with his not so popular brother.

My overall rating for Wrestlemania is 7/10. Do you agree or disagree?

Wrestlemania Preview - Spoiler free

The biggest date in the pro wrestling calendar is once again upon us and what an event it promises to be.

The match card this year is packed with interesting rivalries and it's a certainty that there will be a number of special moments which will go down in history.

Every year people say it's going to be the best Wrestlemania ever which is not always true in my opinion. However I thoroughly believe that this Sunday we will be witnessing one of the greatest Mania's of all time.

I will now give my opnion on the matches I am looking forward to most.

Triple H (C) vs Randy Orton

This match has been promoted brilliantly and is the clear main event. In recent years there have been 2 or 3 matches that could have been at the top of the bill but this strategy has now been changed. The Triple H / Orton rivalry has been given the most airtime and has included some shocking moments. The WWE clearly see Orton as their new top man and I would be very surprised if he didn't walk out as champion.

Undertaker vs Shawn Michaels

Two of the biggest names in wrestling history go head to head and I just know this match will be a bit special. The build-up has been pretty good and I particularly liked Michaels religious entrance last week on Smackdown. Michaels has done most of the VT's and promos and I have to say the one in the graveyard was slightly embarrassing. When he said 'rest in peace' I burst out laughing. I want HBK to win but I suppose Taker's record will be protected.

Matt Hardy vs Jeff Hardy

Brother versus brother matches always make for good viewing. Ignore the poor advertisement of this match - the WWE have had bigger rivalries to plug. Matt Hardy's VT with the dog was absolutely ridiculous! This match will be emotionally charged and I am confident that these two talented individuals will deliver the match of their lives and do their family proud. I really don't have a clue as to who will get the victory.

Edge (C) vs John Cena vs Big Show

Big Show makes his first appearance in a championship match at Wrestlemania since 2000 however I think he is just there to make up the numbers. If he did win the title it would be pretty amazing but I can't see this happening. The story line involving these three isn't the best as I think everyone is a little bored of the Edge and Vicky love hate relationship hence why I have this as the fourth best match. This title has changed hands quite often so I'm not sure what they have in store next. Surely Cena can't win a championship at Wrestlemania again?

Money in the bank

This is always an entertaining match and should include some neat spots. My only snag about this is that none of the wrestlers included seem worthy of winning it.

What is your opinion on the Wrestlemania card? No spoilers please.

WWE's UK tour imminent

World Wrestling Entertainment makes its first stop in Britain on April 17th and I for one cannot wait.

The reason for this is that I am very forunate to be going to see the televised episode of Raw at the O2 Arena in London three days later.

I prefere to go to the televised shows as I think that the wrestlers want and need to perform at their best. Whereas at the standard 'Wrestlemania Revenge Tour' events they can get away with putting 70% effort in as only the crowd in the arena will see it.

My other gripe about the Revenge Tour is that it features the same matches each night so I would presume that it must be rather tedious for the wrestlers to do the same moves with the same finishes for nine evenings.

The main event for Raw has been announced and to be honest I'm not overly excited about it. It is a tag team which features John Cena and Triple H taking on Edge and Randy Orton.

I always think putting a meaningless tag team match as the main event is a cheap way of getting the four biggest names out all at once in the same ring. Perhaps this is a 'can't lose' for television ratings but I'd much rather see a match with something riding on it.

For instance a world title match involving two of those four would be far more suitable. I'm not asking for a title to change hands but an entertainining contest with a few nervous moments for the champion would have the crowd gripped.

Raw ends with Triple H beaten to a pulp

The last episode of Raw had a truly electric ending which really intensifies the rivalry between Triple H and Randy Orton.

The segment made me cast my mind back to the days where Triple H seemed to beat someone to a bloody pulp virtually every week with a sledgehammer.

Now his role has been reversed which has made for some very interesting viewing.

Clearly the WWE want to make Orton into a massive star and this is certain to happen as he plays his twisted angry character brilliantly. Using Triple H to achieve this goal is a perfect decision by the creative team as they have been able to bring his wife into the picture.

Hurting your opponents wife as Orton did is without question the best way to generate massive heat from the crowd as seen many times over the years. To make things even more outrageous he then kissed Stephanie when she was 'knocked out'.

Every WWE fan would have been shocked by what they saw and there is no better way to get people talking than to show such disturbing scenes.

I would go as far to say that Orton is potentially a more effective heel than Triple H was when he was leading the company. I know this is a big call but Orton is simply on fire at the moment and the writers must be credited for how the angle has been put together.

My favourite wrestlers :: Shawn Michaels

In my opinion Shawn Michaels is the most charismatic wrestler I have ever seen.

I have watched him since he entered the WWE in a tag team called The Rockers and have witnessed his rise to the top of the company.

In his hey day he appealed to just about everyone in the crowd. Men wanted to be like him, women fancied him and children idolised him. When I went to see WWE live at the Royal Albert Hall in 1994 I badgered my parents into purchasing the Michaels clip on earrings which I got most use out of!

I also distinctly remember saying to my Mum after the show that I was going to have a hairy chest like Shawn when I was older.

Now aged 43, it is no surprise that we still see him on our television screens given his massive popularity and marketing potential.

He has kept himself in fantastic shape and although he is starting to look old now, his showman personality is still there wanting to work the crowd and work some amazing matches.

His entrance is one of the most memorable in the business particularly as he has never changed his theme music which he sang himself. You would think singing your own music couldn't possibly be effective or cool however he pulled it off so well that the song has been used throughout all his career.

Watch one of his best entrances below.


I think anyone would agree with me that Michaels was at his best as a heel in the early and mid nineties. His cocky brash style is what I and every current WWE fan want to see again however it doesn't look like this will happen.

We saw glimpses of this character return in 2005 when Raw was being held in Montreal and the hate from the crowd was still so evident even though the screw job happened in 1997. Virtually every word he said was mercilessly booed and can be viewed below.


Michaels was also effective as a face and he has created some magical moments down the years. A particular height was when he achieved his 'boyhood dream' of winning the WWE title in 1996 beating Bret Hart in a breath taking 1 hour iron man match.

You can always see the emotion in his performances in and out of the ring and this was most evident in his retirement speech in 1997 which made many people including me shed a tear.

My first impression of the English wrestling scene

There appears to be a lot of small promotions out there all over the country which barely have a budget due to very low exposure.

Here, the first problem is encountered as without a budget to promote a product there is never going to be many people coming to watch. Therefore revenue is not generated and expansion opportunities are very limited. Having little money also effects everything connected with the product including quality of wrestlers, training facilities, training equipment and show equipment.

So in terms of making money there appears to be little opportunity which is highlighted by the fact that Simon Platt's WAR promotion is non-profitable and is more of a hobby than a job.

The WAR promotion attracts a crowd of around 200 people which is almost a sell out as events are held in small venues like school gyms. From what I have heard 200 people is enough to create an atmosphere and all a wrestler needs to get a buzz out of performing which brings me to my next thought.

I was slightly surprised by the fact that it seems to be reasonably easy to become a wrestler and work a show. The smaller the size of the promotion the more likely someone is to be considered as they need people to fill their card. So effectively you could have a situation where a poor quality wrestler is told to do his stuff in the ring but then endangers his opponent due to lack of experience and or talent.

Proper professional training is not used and it appears that move and bump techniques have been passed on from others. This is fine however when things are passed on, they get changed and this could be the case.

If I was a wrestler involved in the independent circuit I would be slightly concerned for my well being if I knew that I had never been professionally trained.

You don't see it when watching on a screen but some of the moves performed are very dangerous and even if you get a move slightly wrong injuries can be caused. Simon Platt told me of a wrestler who dislocated his shoulder after being German suplexed because he landed slightly wrong.

There is a small margin for error in the ring which many do not realise.

EXCLUSIVE: Interview with Simon Platt

I was delighted to have the chance to speak to Simon Platt who currently is the promoter of The Wrestling Association of Rugby.

He is also an experienced wrestler having performed in his first show at the tender age of 15 and wrestles under the name of The Bird of Prey Falcon.

Platt, 22, now runs a wrestling school with his brothers which currently has over 25 students. It is a non-profit business with all the money collected being spent on training equipment.

From speaking with him I could tell that wrestling is his absolute passion whether it was performing in a show or training his students.

Here are a few questions I asked him.

What is the best thing about wrestling?

For me its always been the rush of performing in front of children who maybe do not 100 percent believe that what they are seeing is real, but they get so sucked in to the good guy bad guy pantomine style that they really show their emotions towards each wrestler. Its a great feeling to be centre of attention and to have each member of the audience in the palm of your hands especially when your out there doing what you love.

As a promoter what do you look for in a wrestler?

Unlike many promoters I won't refuse to put workers on if they don't look like monsters. I can appreciate though why the size of a wrestler is important as you want crowds to look up in awe at these giants. However I'm much more about convincing the crowd you're a wrestler because of how you look in the ring in terms of how slick you can work a match.

When you are performing what type of character do you play?

I wrestle for 4 promotions other than my own and perform as a heel. At WAR however I have recently turned face which is something a bit different. I've always worked under the name of The Bird of Prey Falcon which was picked for me nine years ago. I was given the option of choosing two names with the other being Ginger Platt so I think I made the right choice!

Do you prefer being a face or a heel?

I prefer being a heel as I like the feeling of getting a hostile reception which should set up a really positive reaction from the crowd for the next wrestler coming out. If I play my part well it doesn't matter who is coming out next, he will get cheered. Even if the person isn't overly charismatic, the fact he is coming out and standing up to me should instantly make him popular. I don't think about trying to get more heat than the other heel wrestlers, I'm simply playing my part for the good of the show and doing it to the best of my ability.


Did you find it hard to take bumps (e.g. being slammed on your back) when you first started out?

To be honest I got used to taking bumps pretty quickly. Although having run a training school for 6 or 7 years now, it seems there aren't many people who have a natural ability to do something the body doesn't feel is right. It's difficult to get into that sort of rhythm but I think focus is the key to getting over the pain. When I was wrestling regularly every time I took a bump I would concentrate so hard on making it look crisp that I forgot about everything else. I'm very nit picky with things like that and I still see a lot of faults in my work so I'm always looking to improve.

Listen to the full interview below.

http://mjweatherup.podomatic.com/player/web/2009-03-21T08_43_43-07_00

The Future :: John Morrison

Without a doubt in my mind John Morrison will become one of the biggest stars in the WWE in the next few years.

His image is one of the key things in my opinion as to why I think that he can be one of the leading heels in the company.

He combines his cocky persona with a perfect body which make him a draw for any crowd.

He reminds me so much of a young Shawn Michaels due to his charisma and unsurprisingly he rates HBK as one of his favourite wrestlers.

There was a significant moment on Raw about a month ago when Morrison did a super kick on Michaels which I interpreted as a message to indicate the torch is gradually being passed.

Currently Morrison is in a tag team with The Miz which is getting them both a lot of exposure as they seem to appear on all three brands and are given the opportunity to cut quite a few promos which always make for humorous viewing.

The way in which Morrison speaks in these promos is so over the top and exaggerated but it works and simply builds on the reaction he gets from the crowd. For example his amusing blatent puns in reference to his physique.

The WWE has clearly thought about the way they market him as they have changed his name from Johnny Nitro to John Morrison and tweaked his style slightly to be more rock star like.

His theme tune is quality and the slow motion camera effect when he appears is also very effective.

I am very sure we will be seeing Morrison in the world title scene in the near future.

Another former wrestler dies

The glitz and glamour of being a professional wrestler is seriously put into perspective when you count up how many ex-stars have died.

Andrew 'Test' Martin, 33, is the latest in a long line to have passed away and the profession is certainly looking more and more like a death trap.

The cause is currently unknown but by looking at the physique of Martin you would certainly suspect steroid use had something to do with it.

He had recently spoken on his Myspace page comparing the use of them to a facelift or botox.

This will surely play on the minds of many young men who are looking to get into the business as it looks like once you join the wrestling circuit, its tough to break out of and in time heath problems arise.

I can sympathise with the men that turn to steroids though as it must be extremely difficult to be on the road performing for 300 days a year.

It seems the use of them is simply what a wrestler is nurtured into due to the demands of the schedule and otherwise they wouldn't be able please all their fans around the world.

There was a wrestler I watched from the years of 1993-95 called Lex Luger and had an all American feel good gimmick. Now age 50 he walks with a zimmer frame and his wife died from a drugs overdose in 2003. She mixed anabolic steroids and two other pain relieving drugs with vodka.

My favourite wrestlers :: Bret Hart

There aren't many men who could get away with wearing a pink and black outfit and labeling themselves 'the best there is, the best there was and the best there ever will be'.

Bret Hart however could pull this is off and he is without a doubt my childhood hero. I worshipped the ground he walked on as did many other children throughout the 90's.

There were a number of things about Bret that generated his large fan base. He wore iconic pink glasses to the ring and before matches he would always hand these to a child on the front row which is very crowd pleasing.

The Hart family was and still is such a famous stable and Bret was the leader of it. He did such a good job of portraying his in ring character as he was simply being himself. He was a true professional with unbelievable charisma and confidence yet he wasn't in your face.

He really came across as a nice person and this can be confirmed by the number of wrestlers who said how good it was to work with him.

Bret's entrance was electric with an unforgettable them tune and I particularly remember the manner in which he walked emphatically to the ring with his arms out by his side knowing he was the main man.

His wrestling was of the top draw and he had a number of memorable matches against a host of different wrestlers. He prides himself on having never injured anyone he has fought against which doesn't surprise me one bit as he was a technically brilliant wrestler.

Despite much controversy Bret was inducted into the 2006 hall of fame and gave an emotional speech. He ended it with a quote which I think sums him up completely.

"The best chance you have if you want to rise to the top is to give yourself up to lonliness, fear nothing and work hard.

"One thing that you will discover is that life is based less than you think on what you have learned and much more on what you have inside you right from the beginning."

Take a look at the video here.

Are there too many WWE Divas?

I think that there are currently too many Divas signed to the Raw and Smackdown rosters.

When taking into consideration the air time they get during shows which is usually around 10 minutes there are so many of the girls that seem to be doing nothing.

For example in the Maryse versus Melina match this past week on Raw they both brought along support from their brands.

Former champions like like Mickie James, Beth Phoenix and Michelle McCool who were standing around the ring must be really frustrated considering they are now simply mid card Divas which means they are going nowhere.

That's not to say that Maryse and Melina don't deserve their current roles as champions but there are a number of girls that don't need to be there for example Jillian, Layla, Eve and Rosa Mendes.

It seems that each woman gets her five minutes of fame as a champion and then get thrown on the scrap heap until a writer decides it's time for another title run. There is no sustained exposure like with the male wrestlers where even after a title loss the superstar can retain his popularity and public interest.

The WWE clearly feel that there is not a lot of overall interest in the Divas as they have announced a 25 Diva battle royal for Wrestlemania which will determine who will be crowned 'Miss Wrestlemania'.

Obviously this is a meaningless title and the fact they have 25 women involved adds to my opinion that there are too many. Instead maybe they could have spent the 10 minutes or so of air time on each show building up a really interesting fatal four way where both the Womens titles would be on the line.

Main event on titantron? Hmmm...

On Raw this past Monday the main event was shown on the titantron. If I had paid good money to come and watch the show I wouldn't be too pleased if the business end of the episode was shown on a screen.

Having been to a few shows myself I am trying to imagine the muted crowd atmosphere after the segment ended and the show was over. I must say though that seeing Orton thrown through the windows of 'his house' by Triple H was quite powerful and further builds the feud between the two.

I suppose the risk you take if you go to Raw or Smackdown is that you could get a weak show as opposed to going to a house show where it is guaranteed that all the best wrestlers will feature in matches. When I went to see Raw in Manchester a couple of years ago I distinctly remember waiting around for things to happen which is obviously due to the many advert breaks.

I record Raw and Smackdown on Sky+ and often find myself fast forwarding through long boring matches like the six man tag involving Mysterio and Christian this week for instance. That type of match is so clearly put there in order to fill time and has little impact on anything.

On the subject of Christian he got anything but a high profile return to the WWE. He just turned up on ECW one week to little commentator reaction and then when he came out on Raw he again got little reaction from Lawler and Cole. This seems strange for such a big name.

Start :: Game - My introduction

Welcome to my new blog 'Wrestling for Life'.

The reasoning behind this name is that I have followed WWF/WWE since I was four years old and believe that I will always be interested in this company and everything surrounding it. The story lines aren't always the best but when you have a number of talented individuals delivering the product interest will always be generated.

I think that the reason why the WWE and other wrestling companies appeal to so many people young and old is that you can interpret what is happening in so many ways. Young fans lap up all the action and want their favourite babyface (good) wrestlers to win without thinking about what happens behind the scenes.

Older fans however do not always follow the faces and often enjoy watching the heel (bad) wrestlers win. They also form opinions as to what they want to see happen which is not necessarily what they get. They believe they know who should get a push into the main event and blame the writers if they do not like what they see similarly to any television series.

Everyone knows that wrestling is staged however this does not stop it from creating unforgettable moments just as professional sport does which is why audiences will continue to grow.

One of my most vivid memories from my youth is watching a back lot brawl between Roddy Piper and Goldust at Wrestlmania 12 in 1996 age 8. This match involved Goldust trying to run Piper over in his car and it was the first time I had seen blood on screen. When watching this match I was extremely scared and had one hand over my eye, a technique which I still use from time to time when watching movies.

I have had a vast amount of practice in wrestling moves through fighting my younger brother and a large teddy bear on beds down the years. Titles changed hands very abruptly and matches usually consisted of me doing moves on my brother as he was considerably smaller. They say don't try this at home but I don't know many people who haven't tried a move before.

My aim is for this blog to cover every aspect of wrestling including WWE past and present and the English wrestling scene. I will also look at the positives and negatives of children watching wrestling.

This picture shows me with my arm raised at my first live event in 1994 at the Albert Hall in London.