The Custom Made News Report 07.29.07

Welcome folks, to the Custom Made News Report. I apologize for the lack of a column last week. As I mentioned before my departure, I was wrapped up with some personal matters. I had a fill-in lined up, but that also fell through for reasons that have not been made known to me. However, we’re back this week with all of the news that I consider to be important from WWE, TNA, Japan, Mexico, and the indy scene, so let’s head right in to it!

Congress Comes Marching In

Usually I don’t like to lead off with the same story as my Saturday news counterpart John Meehan unless the situation has developed in some appreciable way. However, given that my opinions on this matter vary greatly from John’s, I figured that it would be appropriate to provide my perspective.

For those of you who have been living under a rock and may have missed the story, the short version is as follows: Two congressmen have made a request that WWE turn over information about its drug testing program. It’s a rather expansive request, including but not limited to the drugs covered under the current policy, information about administration of the tests and the consequences of failure, the number of individuals who have failed tests, and, perhaps most interesting of all, the “protocol for therapeutic use exemptions for WWE wrestlers” and the “number of positive tests for which wrestlers received therapeutic exemptions for which no penalty was assessed.” I say that the last two requests are the most interesting because they will allow a fairly objective determination of how frequently WWE talent (and perhaps even the WWE itself) use loopholes in the current wellness program in order to further their own ends.

(The quotes above are taken directly from the written request that Congress made upon WWE, which can be accessed in its entirety here.)

The first question that will cross many fans’ minds upon first learning this information – and the question which John vehemently answered in the negative – is whether this is a worthwhile endeavor. Frankly, I think that it is. Are there more pressing issues facing the United States government? Certainly there are. We do have a poorly managed war ongoing, we still have people living in poverty, and we have a portion of the population that, due to nothing more than outright bigotry, is denied the right to marry and the attendant rights and privileges that come along with it. I also agree with John’s assessment that, on some level, Congress’ motives are not entirely noble and that they most likely are just attempting to score “pop culture points” with voters.

So the government has its priorities out of order and is probably acting completely out of self-interest . . . and I don’t care. That’s not enough to get me to decry this entire project. You know why? Because, for as long as I’m going to be alive and as long as you’re going to be alive, the government is ALWAYS going to have its priorities out of order, and politicians will ALWAYS be self-interested. Humanity is imperfect, and, as a result, so are the systems that humanity designs. However, as long as we’re all working in a flawed system, we may as well accept the benefits that it can provide to us. And, maybe I’m naive, but I think that a federal investigation of World Wrestling Entertainment has the potential for bringing about positive changes in the company.

The immediate counter to that is, “But Ryan, what about Major League Baseball? There were tons of congressional hearings about steroid use in MLB, and nothing has changed there!” You’d be right in the sense that there were no changes. However, there’s a key difference between WWE and MLB in this regard: Shareholders. World Wrestling Entertainment, unlike Major League Baseball, is a publicly traded company. They have to keep more than just fans happy. They also have to keep individuals who own stock happy. A congressional investigation of professional wrestling will result in volumes of information that is not public knowledge emerging in to the public sector. Should a significant number of stockholders learn about some of the loopholes in WWE’s current drug policy (of which there are several) or learn of a shockingly high number of wellness policy violations, they, not the federal government, may demand some level of change that will benefit professional wrestling’s talent pool and prevent the infamous “death list” from growing any longer than it needs to be.

Of course, there are those who claim that change isn’t necessary at all. The Ken Kennedys and the Fit Finlays of the world have been (at times literally) screaming at the top of their lungs for the past month that the wrestling world is clean now and that there are no more problems on an institutional level. I’m not going to pretend that I know better than them what is currently going on in WWE locker rooms. However, I will say that statements of that nature are exactly what one would expect a WWE employee to say, regardless of whether it is true or not. Given that fact, we’re left with two options: 1.) Wait twenty years and see if Finlay and Kennedy are telling the truth or 2.) Take a deeper look at the situation NOW. Doing the former means that, if the WWE employees’ statements are lies, we will see at least one more generation of professional wrestlers dropping dead in their forties before significant change can be made. However, if the latter option is taken, WWE is cleared of all charges of wrongdoing if their employees are being honest. If they’re not honest, numerous lives can likely be saved that otherwise would not be.

And, if nothing else, disclosure of this information to Congress by WWE will provide fans with a more accurate picture of what is going on behind the scenes in the wrestling world. Individuals who pay money for a product should have access to full information about what goes in to creating that product so that they can ultimately make the decision to change their spending patterns if they disagree with how the product is produced. Due in part to willful ignorance and due in part to deception by WWE, there are still plenty of fans out there who do not realize the full extent that steroids and other elicit substances play in wrestling. At the very least, if full disclosure by WWE is made to Congress, those fans will have the opportunity to finally make an informed decision about whether they continue to support the promotion.

OVW’s Biggest Show Rained Out

Phew. With all of that taken care of, let’s move on to some more lighthearted matters, shall we?

WWE developmental territory Ohio Valley Wrestling was expecting its biggest crowd in history for a show last night at Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom in Louisville. Though OVW has been doing the Six Flags shows for a while, this one was special because it not only featured Jerry “The King” Lawler but also included an appearance by John Cena. Cena, who was part of the OVW roster many years ago as the Prototype, would no doubt be the largest star to ever set foot in an Ohio Valley ring. Unfortunately, things went south for OVW not too long after the show got underway. A large rainstorm hit Louisville, and the show had to be cut short.

Fortunately, the OVW staff was quick on their feet. Instead of sending everybody home unhappy, they cut out the middle of the card and skipped straight to the main events when it became clear that the show was going to have to be cancelled. Those matches saw Cena defeat developmental talent Shawn Spears and Lawler defeat KC James (formerly part of the Smackdown roster with tag partner Idol Stevens) in a no disqualification match. Reports indicate that the ring was already soaked in the middle of the Lawler bout, though James still took a piledriver on the wet mat. That man is far braver than I, though I guess of anybody in the world, Lawler would be the guy to trust with protecting you in that move. There were also two undercard matches held before the heavy rain began, which featured Beth Phoenix winning a nine woman scramble match by pinning Nattie Neidhart and Neidhart returning to the ring to manage cousins Harry Smith and Teddy Hart to a tag team victory over TJ Dalton and Jamin Olivencia.

Victory Road a Failure

TNA should be bracing itself for some very bad news. Early buyrate estimates from F4W Online for TNA’s latest pay per view indicate that between 10,000 and 15,000 people purchased the show.

I know that not a lot of people in this corner of the internet talk about PPV buyrates, which is something that surprises me. These numbers are the ones that truly indicate how well a professional wrestling company is doing, not television ratings . . . which may as well be handed down by the Lord himself for all of the importance that folks online treat them with. However, the simple fact of the matter is that you can have every person on the planet watching your television show, and it will mean NOTHING if you’re not making money off of the program. TNA earns virtually nothing for Impact. They don’t get a cut of the add rates, and right fees, if any, are not a primary source of their income. They get the majority of their cash out of the PPV market, and we’re not talking about a company that is exactly rolling in dough. We’re talking about a company that still has yet to turn a significant profit. Even when they do, they’ll be attempting to make up five solid years of large losses. Panda Energy’s continued financial relationship with the promotion is virtually acting as their life support system and has been for some time.

It would be one thing if a buyrate of 15,000 was part of a steady increase. However, that’s not the case. PPV buys had held steady for quite some time heading in to this show, and the 15,000 number actually reprsents a significant decrease. The recent average was in the neighborhood of 25,000 buys. When TNA was doing its weekly pay per view series with absolutely no free television promoting the shows, they were doing in the 10,000 to 15,000 neighborhood. This time around, however, they did between 10,000 and 15,000 buys with four weeks of television that presumably should have enticed individuals to buy Victory Road.

There is only one conclusion that can be drawn from this: The booking heading in to Victory Road was a failure. A completely and utter failure. Yes, people can and will try to make excuses. (I’m betting the leading candidate is that fans are turned off from wrestling shows in the wake of the Benoit tragedy.) However, when your paying audience gets cut in half over the course of a month, some fault has to be attributed to the booking team. Most of you know that I already have an entire column devoted to analyzing TNA’s booking on a week by week basis. Because of that, I’m not going to completely rehash things that I’ve already said. However, I will put the basics out there one more time:

WWE and UFC have taught us what fans want to see out of a pay per view in 2007. They want two guys who have a simple, believable personal issue with one another fighting each other in the main event. They want those two guys to both be credible fighters, and they want a good deal of the issue between the two men to involve who the better fighter is. That’s what made Undertaker vs. Batista and Michaels vs. Cena huge successes at Wrestlemania. That’s why house show numbers for WWE have been up this year beginning with the Cena vs. Umaga program. That’s what made Tito Ortiz vs. Ken Shamrock one of the biggest drawing rivalries in the history of pay per view. Despite the number of times that this formula has been successful, however, TNA refuses to use it. The build to Victory Road saw some ill will develop between Samoa Joe and Kurt Angle . . . but, unfortunately, they weren’t wrestling each other. They were wrestling the Dudley Boys, and TNA seemed to think that fans would pay to see this just because all of the champions were involved in one match with all of their titles on the line. Somebody in that promotion needs to wake up, smell the coffee, and realize that these sorts of gimmicks have not made money for anybody in professional wrestling for quite some time. All fans want are believable characters who have believable issues with one another. Period. Is that really so hard?

Of Cages & Trailers

Astute TNA fans may remember that, several months ago, Christian missed about a month’s worth of television tapings and pulled out of a couple of shows promoted by 1PW in the United Kingdom so that he could film his motion picture debut. The project, entitled Dark Rising appears to be a VERY low budget horror/horror parody project, with Christian playing the obnoxious best friend of the male lead. The trailer for Dark Rising recently surfaced online, and here it is for all of you out there in 411-land:

From watching it, this is roughly what I expected. Christian is playing a character that doesn’t seem all that dissimilar from the one that he’s portrayed in wrestling for the last several years, which is a good way for him to gain experience leading up to future move on to roles that require acting outside of his normal range. Aside from Christian’s appearance, the trailer doesn’t give wrestling fans one good reason to check out the movie unless you’re a.) already a fan of this genre or b.) have a family member who was involved in the production. I would imagine that this will be a direct-to-DVD release.

Konnan Kidney Success

It’s being reported in a few different places that Konnan underwent a successful kidney transplant last week. For those of you who don’t know the full story here, it’s a pretty bittersweet one. Several months ago, Konnan was to have an artificial hip installed, but, during some preparatory work for that operation, doctors discovered that his kidneys were completely shot. The hip surgery was delayed while some work was done on the organs, and it was determined that ultimately he would either have to find a donor or die. However, like the vast majority of pro wrestlers, Konnan is without health insurance and was having difficulty putting together the money for his operations. TNA, his employer at the time, would only loan him the cash, so fans were able to step in and run a successful campaign to help defray the lucha star’s medical costs. A kidney donor was found in a separate campaign spearheaded by Rob Feinstein, and that lead up to the operation of this past week.

In addition to being the year in which Konnan received a new hip and a new kidney, 2007 also marks the man’s twentieth year in the pro wrestling industry. Konnan first started training to be a professional wrestler in California and Mexico in the late eighties after a stint in the military. He quickly became one of the biggest stars in lucha libre, due in large part to his natural charisma and the sort of incredibly ripped “bodybuilder” physique that was not common in lucha at the time. He got his first big exposure in the United States in 1990, teaming with Rey Misterio, Sr. to represent Mexico in the Pat O’ Connor Memorial Tag Team Tournament held at that year’s Starrcade. In 1991, in one of the most memorable moments in lucha libre history, he lost his mask to Perro Aguayo in a match in Mexico City, a moment that resulted in many of the fans in attendance openly weeping for their hero. The angle surrounding the loss of the mask made Konnan one of the first men in lucha to become an even bigger star after losing his hood as opposed to fading in to obscurity. He became a massive crossover star, appearing in Mexican soap operas and dabbling in rap music.

Konnan’s influence on the American wrestling scene is often understated. Though his stint with the WWF in the early 1990’s as Max Moon can best be classified as a joke, it was only a few years later that he began to act as Paul Heyman’s point man for Mexican talent. If not for Konnan, individuals like Damien, Psicosis, Juventud Guerrera, and Rey Misterio would most likely have never seen the light of day in ECW. It was that ECW exposure that lead to those four individuals and numerous other Mexican stars appearing in WCW . . . and it was the WCW exposure that lead to many of those men ultimately receiving WWE contracts and Misterio being made in to one of today’s single largest stars in wrestling. Without Konnan, it is doubtful that any of this would have happened.

His own career in the United States blossomed at around the same time. He joined WCW in the mid-90’s, first with the same look that he had in Mexico. He did a fairly generic “foreign star” gimmick and managed to take the United States Championship off of the One Man Gang before ultimately dropping it to Ric Flair. It was shortly after this loss that Konnan adopted the more hip hop influenced persona that most American wrestling fans associate with him. He remained under contract to WCW until the day that it folded and was always a popular upper midcard act, though he was never given the opportunity to seriously compete in a main event capacity.

When his WCW contract ultimately lapsed, he appeared in TNA wrestling, where he remained until earlier this year. Though obviously TNA did not provide Konnan with the same level of exposure as WCW did, it was perhaps the American promotion in which he was able to do his most critically acclaimed work, acting as the mouthpiece for the Latin American Xchange or LAX. The character, described by a few viewers as the “Latino Malcolm X,” provided some of the best promos in the history of the young company, and it was clear from non-kayfabe interviews that Konnan was proud of what he was able to do in the role. His departure from the company was due to a repeated butting of heads with management and the fact that he had recently taken an office job with lucha promotion AAA after the group’s original promoter, Antonio Pena, passed away. Konnan continues to work behind the scenes in AAA and is hoping for a brief in-ring return once he is medically cleared to do so.

MORE TOURNAMENTS

Just when you thought it was safe to go back to Japan, two companies are planning big round robin tournaments for August. New Japan Pro Wrestling will be holding its annual G1 Climax singles tournament the week of August 5, while Dragon Gate will host the “Summer Adventure Tag League” from August 5 through August 26.

Both tournaments include names that will be familiar to wrestling fans in the United States. In DG, ROH/PWG part-timers CIMA and Dragon Kid will be a team, as will former ROH Tag Champ Naruki Doi and WSX alumnus Masato Yoshino. Yoshino’s WSX tag partner Genki Horoguchi will pair up with Gamma, while Doi’s old partner Shingo Takagi will have former FIP’er Cyber Kong in his corner. Meanwhile, on the New Japan side of things, the G1 field will include Giant Bernard (formerly WWE’s A-Train), Milano Collection AT of ROH and CHIKARA shows past, IWGP Champion and former WCW job boy Yuji Nagata, one-time Wrestlemania competitor Akebono, Hiroshi Tanahashi (who had a cameo in TNA), and former nWo members Masa Chono and Hiroshi Tenzan. We should have updates on these tournaments throughout August right here in the news report.

Jetta Flies to the United States

Dave Prazak, lead announcer for Ring of Honor and promoter/booker of SHIMMER: Women Athletes recently appeared on Squared Circle Radio in the United Kingdom, and he announced that a new piece of international talent will be debuting on SHIMMER’s next taping, which is currently set for October 13 in Berwyn, Illinois. It will be none other than British wrestler Jetta.

Jetta

Jetta, at only twenty years of age, is already a five year veteran of professional wrestling, working for the majority of the UK’s significant independent promotions. Her career highlights thusfar include making an appearance for ChickFight, a promotion that regularly holds women’s wrestling tournaments and internationally releases them on DVD. The appearance saw Jetta advance to the second round by defeating Skye, only to be eliminated by MsChif. Additionally, Jetta is one of the handful of British wrestlers who has appeared for Ring of Honor, as she and fellow Brit Eden Black teamed up against Sara Del Ray and Allison Danger on the Fifth Year Festival: Finale show this past March. Her SHIMMER debut creates the possibility for several interesting matchups that indy fans on both sides of the pond will be looking forward to.

General admission tickets for the October SHIMMER show will be made available through SHIMMERwrestling.com in the next few days.

Indy Preview: CHIKARA Maximum Overdraft

On August 5, 2007 at 4:00 PM EST in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, CHIKARA pro wrestling will be presenting “Maximum Overdraft,” its latest show at the former ECW Arena. This is perhaps one of the bigger shows in the history of the company, as they are bringing in some relatively big name outside talent as well as presenting major matches involving the company’s current roster. I’ve been following CHIKARA via DVDs and the internet for quite some time now, and I strongly suggest that those of you in the area head in to check out the promotion’s wacky mix of lucha libre, puroresu, and comedy. Advance tickets are $15 and available online at CHIKARAPro.com. If that plug isn’t enough to sell you on the show, let’s see what matches you get for your fifteen bucks . . .

Chuck Taylor will defendant the Young Lion’s Cup

The Young Lion’s Cup has become a centerpiece of the CHIKARA promotion over the last several years. The Cup, put on the line every year in a tournament, is defended like a championship belt until the next tourney takes place. Thusfar it has helped to make Shane Storm, Max Boyer, and many more in to credible wrestlers in the eyes of CHIKARA fans, and this year the title found itself in the hands of one Chuck Taylor after a hotly contested tournament. Taylor, who is currently one of the most talked about names on the lower tier of the indy scene, has had a hell of a year. In addition to the YLC, he also won CHIKARA’S “Rey de Voladores” tournament earlier this year and has had a lengthy reign as the IWA Mid-South Champion. Thus, whoever decides to answer Chuck’s open challenge here will be in for a hell of a night, as Taylor is on a major hostreak and will not be unseated easily.

The Order of the Neo-Solar Temple & The Southern Saints vs. Jigsaw, Shane Storm, Player Uno, Tim Donst, and Moscow the Communist Bovine

The Southern Saints are newcomers to CHIKARA, and not much is known about the three man team of Chris Styles, Jason Reed, and Shawn Reed aside from the fact that they are indeed from the south. However, their partners in this match are no strangers to CHIKARA crowds. Diabolic cult leader Ultramantis Black has turned his Order of the Neo-Solar Temple in to a force to be reckoned with in the professional wrestling world. A good part of the group’s intimidation factor comes from the five thousand pound man-monster Hydra, a competitor so feared the world over for his brutish intensity and Herculean feats of strength.

Hydra

While the Saints and the Temple are two established factions working side by side, there is apparently no rhyme or reason as to how the technico team has been formed. Though Jigsaw and Storm are long-time favorites of CHIKARA audiences, their team is rounded out by three relative rookies who, to the best of this author’s knowledge, have not regularly teamed before. That makes this match an uphill battle for ShaneSaw and company, with their best bet being to take advantage of a rift caused when the egos of the Saints and the Temple collide.

Sara Del Ray vs. Daizee Haze – Best Two of Three Falls

Oh yes. Del Ray and Haze are two of the three semi-regular female competitors for CHIKARA (with the third being Allison Danger). The two have had a hell of a little rivalry in the promotion. A good match is guaranteed any time that they lock up against each other, though there’s been something special about the CHIKARA series. This would appear to be the climax of that feud, as the two ladies step in to the ring to take each other on in a best two out of three falls match. Given the lack of depth in this company’s female roster, it doesn’t appear that there will be many professional implications of this contest’s outcome within CHIKARA. However, it will settle many personal issues, and, if Daizee can win the match by pinning Del Ray two times in one night, she would certainly have a very strong claim to a shot at the SHIMMER Championship that currently adorns the American Angel’s waist.

La Parkita Original vs. Payaso del Futuro – Mexican Minis Action

CHIKARA head honcho Mike Quackenbush told the story of how this match came about on the excellent Joe vs. the World podcast. After several years of attempting to get more Mexican wrestlers on their shows and having terrible difficulty in actually doing it, La Parkita just showed up one day at a CHIKARA event. Seriously. Completely without warning, he just stops by and asks the men in charge if there’s anything that he can do for them. Knowing that a lucha minis match would be right up their audience’s ally, the powers that be said sure. Parkita is providing his own opponent for the evening, Payaso del Futuro, which translates to “Clown of the Future.” If that doesn’t indicate to you that this match will be a good time, you probably have no soul.

Ricochet vs. Eddie Kingston

“The King of Diamonds” Eddie Kingston has been on an absolute tear in CHIKARA rings lately. He’s been feuding with Hallowicked and repeatedly destroying the pumpkin headed grappler in a fashion most brutal, including ripping the “stem” off of Wicked’s mask with his teeth. Given that his opponent has been on an insane big man tear that would make Bruiser Brody proud, the diminutive Ricochet probably doesn’t stand a chance. Though he may be able to create some opportunities for himself with his unique high flying offense, I don’t see things ending well at all here for the flippy youngster.

Team FIST vs. The Briscoe Brothers

The Briscoe Brothers have been the hottest tag team in independent wrestling over the course of the last year, absolutely setting Ring of Honor on fire with their epic title reign. Now, thanks in large part to the budding working relationship between ROH and CHIKARA, Mark and Jay make their debut for the company. They couldn’t pick better opponents for their debut either, as they lock up with the reigning CHIKARA Campeones de Parejas (tag team champions) Team FIST. Though they may not be as well known as the Briscoes, FIST are every bit as dangerous. The first half of the team, Gran Akuma, has recently been making waves in both ROH and FIP and may throw one of the hardest kicks in professional wrestling today. His tag team partner is Icarus, a product of the famed Texas Wrestling Academy, the same camp that produced the likes of Bryan Danielson, Paul London, Bryan Kendrick, and Hernandez of LAX. If anybody can give the Briscoes a run for their money, it is Team FIST on the unit’s home turf.

Delirious, Cheech, & Cloudy vs. The Colony

The Colony of Fire Ant, Solider Ant, and Worker Ant picked up a major upset on CHIKARA’s last show “Showdown in Crisisland” when they managed to unseat Team FIST and Max Boyer in trios action. It will be interesting to see whether they can establish a bit of a winning streak when they go head to head with Cheech, Cloudy, and Delirious. Cheech & Cloudy formed a relationship with the tag team of Incoherence (Delirious & Hallowicked) several months back when C&C dressed up as a mini version of the green and black attack. Ever since then, Wicked and Delirious have been more than willing to round out trios teams with the standouts from NWA Upstate. As far as an outcome is concerned, this may be the hardest match to pick on the card, though I’m betting that the ants are tired of being squashed (PUN!) and will come out on top.

Mike Quackenbush (c) vs. Black Tiger – NWA World Junior Heavyweight Title Match

Mike Quackenbush shocked the world a few months back when he defeated Tiger Mask IV for the NWA World Junior Heavyweight Title in an under-the-radar match in the small town of Portage, Indiana. The title, which dates back to the 1940’s, has been defended exclusively in Japan for much of its history and was held by the original Tiger Mask, a man who revolutionized lightheavyweight wrestling a quarter of a century ago. Quackenbush was looking forward to an historic title reign that would open many doors for him. However, things weren’t looking all that great when a trip to Japan to make his first title defense was cancelled by the promotion at the last minute. Now, however, things are looking up again as the NWA has provided Quack with a top level opponent in the form of “Black Tiger” Rocky Romero. This will be the first CHIKARA appearance for Romero, a former NWA Junior Heavyweight Champion in his own right. Though I would be surprised to see Quackenbush drop the strap in his first defense, constant reports of friction between the NWA and Japanese promotions who want the belt defended under their banner may lead to Romero – a regular competitor in Japan – winning the strap and taking it back to that country. Personally, I’m pulling for Quack in this one. As a veteran of over a decade and seemingly one of the nicest guys on the indy scene, he deserves the sort of increased exposure that this championship can bring.

Chris Hero & Claudio Castagnoli vs. El Pantera & Lince Dorado

Hero and Castagnoli, the Kings of Wrestling, are the single most dominant tag team in the history of CHIKARA. However, they’ve had their problems recently, with Claudio looking to break away from Hero and his cohorts, only to be dragged back in to the group due to a loss in a recent matchup. Now they team to face lucha libre legend El Pantera and his young protege Lince Dorado (“The Golden Lynx”) who has worked as a CHIKARA regular this summer in order to gain some experience before returning to his homeland to compete at a high level. The main event of the last CHIKARA show saw Lince pick up a huge win by upsetting Chris Hero, and now he looks to do the same in the tag team ranks. In addition to bragging rights, this match also has big implications for the CHIKARA tag team title hunt. Per CHIKARA rules, a team must earn three consecutive victories before they are allowed to challenge for the championship, and currently both teams in this match have one win apiece. The losers will find themselves back at the bottom of the rankings, while the winners could be the next challengers for Team FIST’s gold.

From Fan Boy to Ring Boy

Here’s an interesting note: Thursday, July 26 saw the wrestling debut of a Mr. Chris Sader. However, Sader just isn’t any indy geek. He’s already been featured on WWE Confidential and VH1’s Hogan Knows Best despite the fact that he’d never wrestled a professional match until this past week. His original claim to fame was as Hulk Hogan’s biggest fan. The twenty-three year old, a nurse by trade, has a massive Hogan memorabilia collection in his home, and the fandom has actually lead to a personal friendship developing between the two. The match, which featured Sader wrestling as “The Hulkamaniac” with tag team partner Jeff Mora against Angel Armani and Frankie Valiant, took place for Illinois’ Ringside Pro Wrestling promotion. Sader was able to pick up the victory in his first grappling bout. I wish him the best, but, when reading about the “Hulkamaniac” gimmick, I can’t help but think about one man . . .

Yes, I know most of you don’t get that reference. However, the three of you who do probably think it’s hilarious.

And that’s it for the fourth installment of the Custom Made News Report. I’ll be back here in seven days. Until then, check out my MySpace, where you can add me as a friend to receive notifications every time I post a new article. While you’re there, you can also check my top friends to add 411’s profile and receive exclusive content from several of the site’s authors.