Author: Marc Madison (Editor in Chief)

The ability to draw the audience in and have them despise you is an art unto itself. For Don Muraco, his ability to do just that made him among the most revered of his generation. Muraco was born in Sunset Beach, Hawaii. The native Hawaiian first began to hone his craft as an amateur wrestling champion. Muraco was an athlete and, like all athletes, was at a crossroads with where their career would go. Would he pursue football, or would he pursue wrestling? Muraco would choose wrestling over football and would begin his early training along the Canadian and US…

King Tonga and The Tonga Kid/ Haku and Tama were The Islanders. Both men are of Polynesian descent, and with that comes a great deal of expectation already. With wrestling’s long-standing familiarity with the Anoai’s and the lineage tied to wrestling with them, so comes the expectation of others that are also from the islands. Both men, they had developed their careers in wrestling in familiar circles. King Tonga first competed in International Wrestling in Montreal, Quebec, Canada while the Tonga Kid, who first competed in 1983, also includes his time competing in Montreal as well alongside Dan Kroffat as…

With the last name, Anoa’i comes with it a great family lineage in wrestling. For Rodney, ‘Yokozuna’ Anoa’i, his path to greatness set a precedent that others within the family. Ones that came before him hadn’t been replicated. As he grew up as part of the Anoai family, it was Rodney that was trained by his uncles Afa and Sika. The duo were former WWF tag team champions, The Wild Samoans. The story of his training under his uncles comes as he was expelled from school. In an effort to set him straight, he was sent to train with his…

On April 29th, 2001, WWE presented Backlash 2001 from the Allstate Arena in Chicago, Illinois. It began with a video montage of the Two Man Power Trip, Stone Cold Steve Austin, and Triple H, and the unholy alliance they formed at the time. The notion was that he who had all the power had all the gold. Was it true? WWE was informing fans of this. Jim Ross and Paul Heyman were on commentary and shared what fans should anticipate on this evening. Note: Two matches were broadcast prior to the event on Sunday Night Heat. Jerry Lynn defeated Crash…

During his time in the ring, Gary Albright earned the moniker the Master of Suplex, a nickname that best defines his wrestling ability and highlights his strength. Simply enough, a suplex is defined as a wrestling hold in which a wrestler grasps his opponent around the waist from behind and carries him backward. When you are dubbed the Master of Suplex, it would suggest your ability to grasp, carry, and in most cases, toss your opposition with an exceptional amount of balance, strength, and leverage. This was the case of the career of Gary Albright, who left an indelible mark…

At 32 years of age, Jermaine Haley first earned a name for himself on the Australian wrestling scene. This is the journey of Bronson Reed. Over the course of the first eleven years of his career, the man known as Bronson Reed captured several titles along the way. The native of Adelaide, South Australia, Haley wasn’t content with only competing in the land down under would also move around Europe and Asia as well. The key to any competitor’s success is growth. With greater opportunities come a greater chance for growth and subsequent success. What isn’t typically shared about is…

The Wild Samoans, Afa, and Sika were the patriarchs of the Anoai family. After their time as a team in the ring, the next generation within the Samoan Dynasty would be with the Samoan Swat Team. Samula ‘Samu’ Anoai is the son of Afa along with Soloafa Fatu, who is Afa’s nephew. In the mid-1980s, Samu would compete in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, for Lutte Internationale promotion owned and operated by Dino Bravo and Gino Britto. This was coincidently the first time the cousins worked together. After closed, the two would compete for Carlos Colon in Puerto Rico. It would be…

The Samoan Werewolf, Jacob Fatu, has risen to the top of the independent wrestling scene. His growth has led to his emergence as the face of Major League Wrestling. If his last name is familiar, it should be. He is the son of Sam Fatu, who competed as The Tonga Kid or Fatu during his time in the WWF. And he was trained by his uncle, WWE Hall of Famer, Rikishi (real name Junior Fatu). This lineage means he is also related to many members of the Anoa’i family, including The Usos and Roman Reigns from WWE. As a talent…

On Sunday, April 30th, Smash Wrestling presents Put Up or Shut Up from the London Music Hall in London, Ontario. With eight matches slated to take place as part of back-to-back series of shows, Smash is ready to reload and push forward in 2023. With internationally trained talent, Smash Wrestling Championship title, a tag team, four corners, and homegrown talent competing, this show looks to be one to remember. Smash Wrestling Presents Put Up or Shut Up Puma King vs. Carter Mason In a battle between an international talent and a homegrown one, Puma King battles the King of the…

Before a visionary faced an established phenomenal talent, we had two men who didn’t cross paths before making a statement over a decade ago. The match took place on April 28th, 2006, in Muscatine, IA, at an NWA No Limits show. AJ Styles and Seth Rollins (then competing as Tyler Black) took place against one another for the first time. The two men facing each other were current WWE champion AJ Styles and former WWE champion Seth Rollins. We should mention that this match was before there was a ‘Seth Rollins;’ at the time he went under the moniker of…