FIGHTS: Will the NWA's Master Plan in New Japan blow up in their face?

by Bowie Ibarra

Newly-crowned NWA champ 'The Ironman' Rob Conway will be the NWA's representative going into this weekend's NJPW Supershow, 'Invasion Attack'.  The word on the street is that he'll be facing NJPW stalwart, Satoshi Kojima, who is not only a vet in the ring, but has a lariat that would make Stan Hanson proud.  It's a big weekend for wrestling fans, but also a big weekend for Conway.

You might remember when the NWA President Bruce Tharpe took to the YouTubes to call out NJPW and insult them and their fans with his planned run at their organization.  I couldn't help but notice Tharpe didn't have then-champ 'Tokyo Monster' Kahagas present for the taping.  When I saw that, there was a sense that Tharpe was holding his cards to the vest.  He fast-tracked Kahagas to the championship belt only months before in a 16-man title tournament that had Kahagas show up in the final by his decree.

Did Tharpe lose confidence in his golden boy?  Was he just holding his cards to the vest, knowing that Kahagas was, indeed, a fighting champion and, knowing his schedule, considered that Kahagas might lose the belt somewhere along the way?

Either way, Tharpe has pushed all in with the new champ, Rob Conway.

Rob Conway?  I know, right?

Wrestling fans outside of San Antonio might remember Rob Conway as an arrogant WWE wrestler.  He's gone on the indy wrestling circuit for some years now, keeping his skills sharp and waiting for an opportunity.

It came March 16 when then champ Kahagas was set to face challenger NWA-Branded Outlaw Heavyweight Champ Jax Dane.  When Dane was jumped by the NWA World Tag Champs The Kingz of the Underground, taking Dane out of contention, Conway was granted a shot and won.

Check out the historic match here:

Say what you will about Rob Conway, but the fact remains that the guy was able to take that golden opportunity and cash it out.  The guy has been looking for a big break for a while now, and he got it.

But now his first title defense is going to test not only Conway, but an entire organization.  The NWA invading Japan could be great, or it could fizzle out.  A lot of that rests on Conway's performance against the tough-as-nails Kojima. 

But is Conway ready?  It's my opinion that he is.

Let's face it, the guy was able to beat Kahagas, who was on an unbeaten streak since he won the belt late last year.  Kahagas might have got the belt under shady circumstances, thanks to Tharpe.  But he still showed he was a quality champ by defending it all over the US.

Conway is a good representative for the NWA in Japan.  He has WWE credentials, has kept his skills sharp since then, and has the potential to do well.

Ironically enough, 'The Vanilla Godzilla' Jax Dane will be at his side as they travel to the Land of the Rising Sun.

When put in perspective, this is the opportunity Conway has been waiting for years to have.  Now that NWA has given him the ball, here's hoping he makes it out of Japan healthy and with a victory for NWA.

That win alone will easily propel him to a great title run as NWA champ.

Best of luck, champ.

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BOWIE V. IBARRA is the author of the 'Down the Road' zombie horror series from Permuted Press and Simon and Schuester. 

His combat sports themed book, PIT FIGHTERS: BAPTISM BY FIRE, features a luchador from Mexico who transitions to mixed martial arts competition.  It is available in paperback and on Kindle for .99 cents.

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FIGHTS: Is NWA Pres. Bruce Tharpe writing checks his ass can't cash?

by Bowie Ibarra

National Wrestling Alliance President Bruce Tharpe has made no effort to endear himself to fans or promoters.  But that's hasn't been his top priority from day one, it seems.

To catch you up on the controversial Tharpe, he's a lawyer that finagled all the rights of the NWA out of the hands of the previous owners and taken it for himself.  Crushing promotion and promoters who were not ready to work towards his vision, he even went as far as changing the outcome of the NWA world title match by allowing Kahagas to enter the finals of the elimination tournament fresh and defeat Chance Prophet and Damien Wayne.

At any rate, his NWA has moved forward, and is proving prosperous in the state of Texas as well as other satellite franchises around the country and even outside the continental US (Kahagas is even defending his NWA title in the Dominican Republic).

But now, Tharpe is yanking the chain of one of the big dogs of international pro-wrestling notoriety:  New Japan Pro-Wrestling.  Yes, that NJPW.

Check out this video Tharpe sent to the organization, talking trash to non-English speakers and one of the world's leaders in outstanding pro-wrestling and threatening an invasion:

 

Clearly, Tharpe's holding his cards to the vest by not identifying who will be the NWA's choice to pit against all challenges in NJPW.  But holding the 10lbs. of gold makes it clear its probably going to be TokyoMonster Kahagas.

Or will it?

 



Tharpe has proven himself to be a shady mother f**ker, so who knows what he has up his sleeve.

But is he writing a check the NWA can't cash?  Not necessarily.

People have been writing off NWA as a joke for years now, and people can have their opinions, which is fine.  Just because some big names in indy wrestling took a big dump on the title and tradition (yes, I'm pointing out the talented Colt Cabana and Adam Pierce) doesn't mean the people hoisting the mantle of the NWA are bums.  Here's my opinion based off of what I've actually seen from the organization live and in person.

The heavy hitters in the NWA are legit.  Look at this list (as of this writing 3/5/13):

NWA World Heavyweight Champ:  Kahagas
NWA World Tag Team Champs:  Kings of the Underground Scot Summers and Ryan Genesis
NWA National Heavyweight Champ: Damien Wayne
NWA North American Champ:  Byron Wilcott
Regional Title holder out of San Antonio, Texas, NWA-Branded Outlaw Heavyweight Champ Jax Dane

Any of these champs could hang with the best NJPW has to offer.  So Tharpe might be talking trash, but he has talent that can actually back it up.

Tharpe might be a ruthless jerk, but the promotions that don't want to follow his lead can do their own thing.  Many have.  The one's that stick with it will reap the benefits.  And the NWAs probably better off letting the ones that cashed out go their own way.  The less shitty backwoods wrestling promotions who can't hang with the standards the NWA is touting, the better.

Let's face it:  Vince McMahon didn't get to the place that he got to by being nice.

I, for one, want to see it flourish again.  The NWA and its long tradition is one of the most beautiful pieces of wrestling history.  And even though one of the biggest assholes in pro-wrestling history might be at the helm of the organization, he's doing what it takes to bring respect back to the NWA franchise.  The respect Kahagas has show to the history of the title he holds (read: Picture of the belt by Kerry von Erich's grave), and the respect the KotU have shown to Tharpe (who seemed proud to be pictured with the new champs) demonstrate the kind of respect the NWA is earning from fans and wrestlers alike.

That is, the fans that are paying attention and not just walking lock-step with what one clever and talented indy guy said.

Nice guys finish last.  We'll see how the Tharpe regime continues to progress and build up the oldest organization back to prominence once again. This run on the NJPW promotion needs to be successful.

We'll wait and see.

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BOWIE V. IBARRA is the author of the 'Down the Road' zombie horror series from Permuted Press and Simon and Schuester.  His combat sports themed book, PIT FIGHTERS: BAPTISM BY FIRE, features a luchador from Mexico who transitions to mixed martial arts competition.  It is available in paperback and on Kindle for .99 cents.

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Agree?  Disagree?  Leave a comment below using your Google+ or Blogger account.

You can network with Bowie and explore his other titles at his personal website, ZombieBloodFights.com.

FIGHTS: The controversial Eddie Mansfield threatens Texas wrestlers, horns in on Kahagas title run

by Bowie Ibarra

Looks like some old dogs from pro-wrestling's past can smell money.

Eddie Mansfield, the controversial grappler from the 80s, has joined the camp of Kahagas and set his sights on dominating the wrestling rings of Texas.  Mansfield claims he was one of the greats in Texas, and perhaps he was.  But he is most remembered as one of the people who participated in the infamous John Stossel 20/20 segment where he allegedly outed some of the 'secrets' of pro-wrestling.

I would like to know the working relationship between manager Dontay Brown, who finagled Kahagas to the controversial NWA title win, and Mansfield.  Brown would be foolish to let Mansfield in on his contract with the Tokyo Monster.  But I'm not sure if Brown still has a hand in Kahagas' pocket, or if he's transferred managerial rights to Mansfield.

One thing's for sure, Mansfield is nothing but trouble.  And if he's looking for fights in Texas, he's got them.  There are plenty of Texas wrestlers who are worthy of a shot at the 'ten pounds of gold'.  Texas heavyweight standouts include Scot Summers, Mike Dell, Jax Dane, Ryan Genesis, Ray Rowe, Jaykus Plyskin, Michael Faith, Ann Dromeda, James Claxton, among many others.

No disrespect for Kahagas, he's good.  The question is, if Mansfield is going to run him hard like this across Texas, how long can Kahagas put up an effective offensive against the state.  He'll be scouted every match, and weaknesses will be assessed by each subsequent competitor.

Careful what you wish for, Mansfield.

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BOWIE V. IBARRA is the author of the 'Down the Road' zombie horror series from Permuted Press and Simon and Schuester.  His combat sports themed book, Pit Fighters: Baptism by Fire , features a boxer from Scotland who transitions to mixed martial arts competition.

Enjoy the blog?  Share it with your friends using the 'Facebook', 'Blogger' and 'Twitter' buttons below.

Agree?  Disagree?  Leave a comment below using your Google+ or Blogger account.

You can network with Bowie and explore his other titles at his personal website, ZombieBloodFights.com.

FIGHTS: NWA World Title Follow-up = Tokyo Monster jumps finalists

by Bowie Ibarra

I have to admit it was a shady start to such a prestigious world professional wrestling title tournament.  As mentioned before, I'm not sure why the tourney was rushed and how entrants such as Biggie Biggs were worthy to have their names engraved alongside such legends as Dusty Rhodes, 'Wildfire' Tommy Rich, and Ric Flair.

But as it turned out, the shady start to this tournament ended even shadier as the NWA National Heavyweight Champion, Tokyo Monster Kahagas, who was one of many worthy NWA competitors passed over as a participant, was entered as a ringer for the final.

It's another example of how great (and shady-as-f**k) management can make or break a wrestler and lead them to gold.  In this case, it was Dontay Brown who finagled his charge, Kahagas, into the main event.

As reported by Tony Brooklyn, NWA Vice-President and CFO:

OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE: On November 2 at NWA DAWG in Clayton New Jersey, Tokyo Monster Kahagas pinned Damien Wayne to become the new NWA™ World Heavyweight Champion.

Kahagas was a last minute entrant in to a scheduled eight man elimination match that advertised Chance Prophet, Justin "The Gift" Kincaid, Lance Erikson, Anthony Nese, "Greek God" Papadon, "Phat Daddy" Biggie Biggs, Lance Anoa'i and Wayne.

With only Wayne and Prophet remaining in the ring, Kahagas' manager Dontay Brown emerged with the reigning NWA™ National Heavyweight Champion. Brown was on the phone with NWA President R. Bruce Tharpe. Brown informed NWA™ Head Official Fred Richards that Tharpe had approved Kahagas' entry in to the match. Richards confirmed Brown's claim by speaking directly with Tharpe and allowed Kahagas' participation. Wayne then surprised Prophet with a quick pile driver and secured a three count. Shortly thereafter, Kahagas finished off Wayne with a "TMD" (Tokyo Monster Driver).

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To be honest, I'm not sure why NWA President R. Bruce Tharp made this move to tarnish his own tournament.  This only adds to his questionable reputation, and I imagine Dontay Brown found some sort of legal looophole in how the event was organized, and probably greased Tharps palm for good measure to allow this ultimate travesty (eat your heart out, Chris Trew).  Hell, the legal eagle Tharp might have been in league with Brown and Kahagas in the first place, for all I know. 

The way I see it, that's what the NWA gets for throwing this event together so fast.  Had they taken the time to organize as they should have, get their ducks in a row, and set things up correctly, Brown, Tharp, and ultimately, Kahagas, couldn't take advantage like they did.  

But its over now, and Kahagas now has a target on his back.  Specifically from the two warriors who earned their shot at the title in the sanctioned tourney, Chance Prophet and Damien Wayne, who had some words for Kahagas.  Here's hoping Brown (and Tharp) are providing enough dough for Kahagas, because he'll be taking the lumps.

This brings up another question brought up by a fan:  If the old NWA rules apply, does Kahagas have to drop the national title now?  And if so, will there be another (hopefully better organized and legally protected) tournament for that title?

Though it was a shady start to a new era for the NWA, its a charged beginnig to what I anticipate to be an interesting run for Kahagas, whose name is now along side such greats as Harley Race, Bobo Brazil, and Sting.

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Bowie V. Ibarra is the author of the 'Down the Road' zombie horror series from Permuted Press and Simon and Schuester.  His combat sports themed book, Pit Fighters: Baptism by Fire , features a lucha libre expert  who transitions to mixed martial arts competition.

Enjoy the blog?  Share it with your friends using the 'Facebook', 'Blogger' and 'Twitter' buttons below.

Agree?  Disagree?  Leave a comment below using your Google+ or Blogger account.

You can network with Bowie and explore his other titles at his personal website, ZombieBloodFights.com.