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FWA News Update 9/03/03

FWA NEWS UPDATE – 9/3/05
 


‘WE QUOTE THE RAVEN, NEVER MORE…


Raven appears to be playing mind games with Alex Shane ahead of their big match at the TWC Supershow on Saturday March 19.


When the usually reclusive star spoke to The Daily Star for their Fighting Talk column in the national newspaper last Saturday, he took some pot-shots at the FWA British Heavyweight Champion. But what Star readers may not have realised is that the whole of this interview was not printed, and some of these comments ended up being edited out due to space restrictions.


Thanks to the co-operation of Daily Star reporter Patrick Lennon, we can now exclusively reveal what Raven said about Alex Shane that you didn’t see in The Daily Star.


He said: “Everyone knows Alex Shane is a pussy. He wants to fight me at the TWC Supershow but he won’t even put his belt on the line. He says he’s doing it to raise his profile worldwide. But in America, nobody knows who the hell Alex Shane is. No-one cares about Alex Shane in the USA.


“When Americans talk about British wrestlers, they talk about Doug Williams and Jonny Storm. They’ve been over to the States and they’ve beaten Americans on their home turf. They’re respected over here. When has Alex Shane ever beaten an American? He had his chance with Steve Corino last year and he got the crap beaten out of him.


“Alex Shane may be a big star in the UK but he’s never cracked America. And after March 19 when I beat him to a bloody pulp, America will still see him as a nobody.”


Raven may have a point here. It’s been about four years since ‘The Showstealer’ last won a match against a US opponent on FWA soil. In that time, the likes of Jonny Storm, Doug Williams, James Tighe, Jack Xavier, Mark Belton and Hade Vansen have all faced American opposition on FWA turf – and emerged victorious, some on many occasions. On the other side of the coin, the FWA’s Storm, Williams, Jody Fleisch and Burchill have been recruited by US promotions to wrestle over in the States.  But Alex Shane never has.


Sources close to The Showstealer say this is something that privately irks him, so Raven’s comments seem designed to push the buttons of a man who is usually a master antagonist himself.  There’s no doubt the FWA Champ will want to prove Raven wrong when the two men battle in a non-title Raven’s Rules no-DQ battle at Coventry SkyDome on March 19.


We understand that Alex Shane intends to respond to Raven in The Daily Star this coming Saturday.  It will be very interesting to hear what he has to say.


 


TWC MAIN EVENT CAUSES CONCERN


In other International Showdown news, many FWA insiders were shocked when the six-man tag team main event for the SkyDome supershow was announced this past weekend. Alongside Scorpio, FWA’s ‘The Anarchist’ Doug Williams and James Tighe will be on the same side when they face the Japanese contingent of Pro Wrestling NOAH’s Mitsuharu Misawa, Yoshinari Ogawa and Tiger Emperor.


The pairing of Williams and Tighe has raised some eyebrows, because of their philosophical differences. Doug wrestles within the rules while Tighe, despite his impressive technical skills, usually shows a surly disregard for them. Tighe has already been boasting that he expects to put on such an impressive display in Coventry that Japanese scouts will have no choice but to offer him work in the Land of the Rising Sun, where Doug is currently one half of the Pro Wrestling NOAH GHC Tag Team Champions with Scorpio.


How Tighe’s cocky attitude will sit with ‘The Anarchist’ remains to be seen. Doug is extremely well-respected by NOAH officials and wrestlers alike, and is proud of his standing in Japanese circles. He may feel concerned that having James Tighe on his team may affect that hard-earned reputation, especially as the Japanese are sticklers for respect and tradition.


Another potential problem which may concern Doug is the ongoing situation between Tighe and his deadly rival ‘The Wonderkid’ Jonny Storm. Storm will also appear at International Showdown, where he battles Spud, Petey Williams and Chris Sabin in a fatal four-way. Tighe, and his cohort Mark ‘Five Star’ Belton, have attacked Storm on several occasions recently, in an attempt to cause serious injury to ‘The Wonderkid’, but have failed to get the job done. As for Jonny, he too is threatening to smash Tighe’s face in next time he sees him, after James interfered in his recent FWA Title challenge to Alex Shane at New Frontiers….arguably costing him the title.


Storm and Tighe are set to clash in a tag team match at Morecambe on March 26, but even so, TWC and FWA officials are said to be extremely concerned about the potential for backstage violence between Tighe and Storm at the SkyDome. There is even talk of them setting up a meeting this week to discuss how to prevent the Tighe-Storm situation from boiling over at the Supershow, when the eyes of the wrestling world will be focussed on this event. We will keep you posted.


 


SECOND OPINION IS JACK’S SAVIOUR


Jack Xavier received medical clearance from a Birmingham doctor last Thursday and returned to in-ring action on the FWA Manchester show on Saturday. Apparently Jack’s ‘second opinion’ said there was absolutely nothing wrong with him and he’d fully healed from the hairline skull fracture he suffered in a backstage attack at Gold Rush, both physically and psychologically.


The doctor also said Jack would have been fit to compete in the FWA All-England Title final eliminator at New Frontiers the previous week, an event the FWA’s Chief Medical Officer Dr Dirk Feelgood refused to clear him to compete on. When he heard this, we understand Xavier went absolutely ballistic and demanded a spot on the FWA Manchester event, expecting to bump into Dr Dirk – who is usually a regular on these shows – to demand an explanation. However, Feelgood was not there.


When www.frontierwrestling.com called the Doctor’s surgery for a comment, his answering machine said he is currently away in New Zealand on ‘medical research’. However, Dr Dirk has pledged to be at the FWA Live event ‘War On The Shore’ in Morecambe on Saturday, March 26. Whether Jack Xavier will also turn up at the Dome that night remains to be seen.


 


TRICKY RICKY


Ricky Knight this week called up FWA management to put his son The Zebra Kid’s name forward as a possible opponent for ‘American Dragon’ Bryan Danielson at Crunch.


Remember, Knight was instrumental in campaigning for Zebra to receive a match with Danielson’s fellow American Chris Hero at New Frontiers. But back then, it was thought Ricky and Zebra had reconciled and the Rowdy One had his son’s career interests at heart. Since then, Ricky showed his true colours by attacking Zebra after he defeated Hero on February 26. So speculation is rife that this latest request is more of a self-serving smokescreen on the veteran’s behalf.


In the angry aftermath of New Frontiers, Zebra demanded a rematch with his father for Crunch, but ‘coincidentally’ Knight is now trying to influence officials to sign ZK to a match with a completely different opponent – and at that, an American opponent with a reputation for taking his foes to a painful physical limit.


As of yet, FWA matchmakers have not announced Bryan Danielson’s Crunch opponent. As soon as they do, you’ll hear his name here first.


 


FWA TV THIS WEEK


…is on Friday night (March 11) at 9pm on TWC (Sky Digital, channel 427) and it features tag team mayhem from the recent New Frontiers.  James Tighe and Mark ‘Five Star’ Belton will take on Aviv Maayan and Ross Jordan, while Stixx and Stone will battle The Manchester Massive.


Join your host Tony Giles, with commentators ‘Hardcore’ John Atkins and Nick London, for all the action.


 


FWA LIVE IN MORECAMBE NEWS


FWA Live in Morecambe – ‘The War On The Shore’ comes to you on Easter Saturday, March 26 from the Morecambe Dome in Lancashire. The box office number for tickets is 01524 582803.


Already signed for War On The Shore are the following matches:


FWA All-England Title Match
The South City Thriller’ Hade Vansen v Raven


Tag Team Grudge Match
‘The Wonderkid’ Jonny Storm and Aviv Maayan v James Tighe and Mark ‘Five Star’ Belton


 The First Ever FWA Flyweight Title Tournament – First Round
Spud v Jack Storm
Max Voltage v ?


 FWA Manchester Guest Match
Doctor in the House – Dr Dirk Feelgood makes an appearance


The box office for FWA Live in Morecambe is now open. Tickets cost £16 for front row ringside, £10 for adults, £7.50 for children (16 or under) and £30 for a family ticket.  You can also purchase tickets for an afternoon Fan Slam at the Waterfront Bar, adjacent to the Dome, at the box office, at a cost of £4.50 (£5 on the door). The Fan Slam will be hosted by Greg ‘The Truth’ Lambert with his special guests including Raven.  As the Waterfront Bar is licensed premises, this Fan Slam is only open to fans aged 18 or over, or fans aged 14-17 accompanied by an adult.


The Fan Slam starts at 4.30pm and will last for around 90 minutes.  Doors are at 7pm and the show starts at 7.30pm.


 


FWA CRUNCH TICKETS ON SALE


FWA Crunch comes to you from the Broxbourne Civic Hall on Saturday, April 16 2005.  The box office number is 01992 441946.


Tickets are also available through the FWA On-Line Box Office.  Click the link on the www.frontierwrestling.com homepage for full details of how to book your tickets and for a seating plan of the tickets available through On-Line Box Office.


Tickets cost £35 for Gold Ringside, £25 for Silver Ringside, £15, £10 and £20.  Anyone purchasing a Gold or Silver Ringside ticket through FWA On-Line Box Office will receive a free downloadable video from a selection of FWA releases.


Doors open to Gold and Silver Ringside ticket holders at FWA Crunch at 5.40pm, for a dark match, and then at 6pm to all other ticket-holders.  The show will commence at 6.30pm.


Already signed for FWA Crunch are the following:


Jody Returns to the Ring
The Phoenix’ Jody Fleisch v Mark ‘Five Star’ Belton


American Dragon Roars
‘American Dragon’ Bryan Danielson versus ?