Wacky Wrestling Theory 12.04.08: Interview With the Stars of RING OF HONOR

There is no doubt that Ring of Honor is a much beloved wrestling organization here at 411mania. And why shouldn’t it be? The breathtaking matches, the exhilarating moments of drama and athleticism, the unique characters and the plethora of match styles; ROH truly is the cumulation of any lifelong wrestling fan’s hopes and desires for a truly great pro-wrestling organization.

Wacky Wrestling Theory: I don’t think it’s a wacky theory to proclaim that Ring of Honor is home to the best wrestling in the world, but I would also go as far to say that ROH has had some of the best dancing in pro-wrestling. Jack Evans, Special K, Rocky Romero, Larry Sweeney, Curry Man vs. Jay Lethal, Julius Smokes and currently Rhett Titus himself, are just some of the standouts that have shown awesome rhythm in ROH. Aside from the great in-ring action and dances, what other unorthodox aspect of pro-wrestling do you think ROH does the best?

Todd Sinclair: Ring of Honor is home to the best wrestling in the world, no doubt… but I can’t agree with it being the home of the best dancing. Sure, the guys you mention can get down… but if you think they’re better than WCW’s Alex Wright and the WWF’s Lance Storm, you’re sorely mistaken.

Rhett Titus: That’s right Rhett Titus is the lord of the dance with the biggest sword in his pants. I can’t think of any other aspects off the top of my head that are good about ROH but I’ll tell you the bad aspects. The stupid chants from the fans! “You’re Gonna Get Your Fuckin Head Kicked In? Please Don’t Die? Match of the Year??? This is Awesome???” I’ll tell you idiots what is awesome, when you loudmouth fools leave the building and Rhett Titus counts the money he made off of you schmucks for coming and yelling your stupid chants.

Sugarfoot: Unorthodox? Hmmm…. we really know how to find some really odd talents. I’m not knocking any of these guys, but we have crazy guys like Delirious, Brodie Lee, and NECRO BUTCHER. All them have come to Ring of Honor for some reason or another, but they are quite peculiar individuals. Delirious mumbles and mutters weird speak. Brodie always has that crazy trucker look in his eye like there’s something he’s done wrong and you don’t want to talk to him about it. Necro Butcher is always looking to fight, I should know… he beat me up and left me a mess in Chicago once.

WWT: Since you mentioned Chicago, Alex you really seem to be incredibly popular with the rabid fans in the Windy City. Do you have a favorite Chicago wrestling memory, such as the fan reaction to Cena vs.. HHH at Wrestlemania 22, the wild Chicago Street Fight at Wrestlemania 13, or maybe the Chi-Town Rumble Flair/Steamboat main event? And how does your favorite classic moment contrast with your own greatest wrestling highlight in Chicago?

Sugarfoot: I actually have two favorite Chicago wrestling memories as a fan. One is watching Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart in the steel cage from Summerslam ’94. At the time, Bret Hart was one of my favorites and the rivalry between him and Owen was very compelling to watch. When they went to the top of the cage for the superplex I thought it was just nuts that two brothers would go through this much for the WWF World Championship. The second Chicago memory was watching the second Samoa Joe vs. CM Punk match live. The crowd for that match was nuts! Especially in those last 15-20 minutes, those fans really rallied behind CM Punk and thought he was walking out of Chicago with the ROH World Championship.

Now to compare these moments to my own personal memory is tough, because contrasting me, “Sugarfoot” Alex Payne, to ROH alumni like CM Punk and Samoa Joe just seems crazy or comparing me to Bret Hart or Owen Hart is just ludicrous. But you asked me to compare, so I will and it’s easy. Wrestling in front of nearly 1500 Chicago fans at RISING ABOVE this past November is my career highlight so far. It’s every wrestler’s dream to wrestle for a company with significance, such as Ring of Honor, and be on pay-per-view. At the age of 21, after leaving everything behind me for 3 years, to bust my butt, to wrestle in front a rabid crowd with the new production, to wrestle on my first pay-per-view, and to hold my own with Claudio Castagnoli, Silas Young and Sami Callahan, THAT WAS AN ADERNLINE RUSH… or a SUGAR RUSH for that matter.

WWT: Rhett, you are the current holder of the ROH Top of the Class Trophy. Trophies are often collateral damage in feuds between wrestlers, for example like at Wrestlemania IV when Bret ‘Hitman’ Hart destroyed the Battle Royale trophy awarded to the cheating Bad News Brown. Recently, your own trophy was manhandled by Delirious. Can you comment about the current state of the trophy and how you feel about what was done to this prestigious award?

Rhett Titus: To tell you the truth I am not displeased Delirious broke the trophy. I just didn’t appreciate him Panic Attack-ing it into my face and smashing it over my back. I got a cut on my back from that! That trophy was getting annoying to carry around… now there’s room for more hoochies in my car on the way to shows….. YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

WWT: The handshake has historically been a very important part of the Ring of Honor culture. As members of ROH, can you give us the scoop from the locker-room on who has the most powerful handshake, who has the limpest wrist, the clammiest palms, the grossest fingernails, or any other handshake related merit or calamity?

Rhett Titus: The most powerful handshake has to be Claudio’s. The grossest fingernails are definitely Dirty Ernie Osiris, sometimes you wonder if he even washes after he wipes. As for the limpest wrist I probably would say myself, Rhett Titus, as people usually tend to call me out on a limp handshake. But brother, you better believe that is the only thing limp about Rhett Titus.

Sugarfoot: I really don’t like to pass judgment on how someone shakes my hand when I see them at the events, but since you asked I guess I could assess some handshakes for you. Brent Albright probably has the most powerful handshake. It’s like shaking hands with a vise grip. The limpest wrist is probably Shane Hagadorn. I think he’s got the limpest handshake because he’s not used to ever shaking hands with anyone growing up because no one ever wanted to meet him.

WWT: How do you feel about the use of video replay in pro-wrestling, Mr. Sinclair? Ring of Honor has always been based on honesty and integrity, but in some cases, such as the underrated classic 2 out of 3 Falls match between Bryan Danielson and Colt Cabana, a video replay would have shown that Danielson used a low blow in the final moments of the match while you were distracted, and thus if he was disqualified it would have drastically changed ROH history. Are there any decisions you wish you could take back with the luxury of a video replay in Ring of Honor?

Todd Sinclair: I’m not a fan of instant replay in any sport. The world isn’t perfect, and neither are humans. I feel that having video replay takes away some of the judgment calls and human error that makes sports so wonderfully unpredictable. So I think adding video replay to Ring of Honor would be a terrible idea.

There aren’t any decisions that I’ve made in ROH that I wish I could fix with instant replay. I’ll readily admit when I make a mistake in one of my calls (stopping the match between Danielson and Homicide from “Destiny” would be an example of this), but I wouldn’t change any of those calls if given the option — even in the case of the lowblow in Danielson vs. Cabana. I was tricked into not seeing the lowblow, and I’m embarrassed about it — but I stand by every call I made in that match.

WWT: One thing that Ring of Honor has yet to feature is an in-ring wedding. In theory, it seems natural for a promotion with the word ‘ring’ in the title to highlight this romantically wacky tradition in the pro-wrestling universe. How do you feel about weddings inside pro-wrestling rings and do you think that ROH will ever play host to a wrestling wedding?

Sugarfoot: Not a fan of someone getting married in a wrestling ring. Traditionally, someone always wants to be a party crasher and ruin the wedding whether its in midst of the wedding, before or after. People should just get married outside the wrestling ring to avoid any troubles.

Rhett Titus: In-ring weddings are awesome! They always seem to end so… perfect?? If I wasn’t a man of many women I might consider getting married in a wrestling ring. Though it is a fantasy of mine to fornicate in the middle of a wrestling ring. I have some big spots in mind, let’s hope I don’t blow them. But in all honesty, ladies the Shimmer school is open now, let’s make my fantasy a reality.

WWT: Rhett Titus, Shawn Michaels, Rick Rude, Val Venis; who would win? But I’m not talking about a match, I’m talking about when it’s last call and there’s only one women left at the bar?

Rhett Titus: I think 4 men of our caliber wouldn’t have to fight it out or anything… I get my last 2 drinks, guzzle them down quick and do that 1996 Quad City DJ’s “C’mon Ride The Train Choo choo and Ride it!!!” We might grab a straggler at the bar just so none of us would have to fight about being the caboose.

WWT: Sugarfoot, I’ve always thought that the ‘Garvin Stomp’ was one of the most effective uses of the foot as an offensive weapon in pro-wrestling because it pinpoints all the limbs with such snap and precision. What do you think is the best foot-based wrestling move and why?

Sugarfoot: It’s got to be the Superkick. Look at the number of guys Shawn Michaels has put down with it. Kevin Nash, Sid Vicious, Triple H, Chris Jericho, Bret Hart; the list is long!

WWT: I recently had a theory that Pro-Wrestling icons like Hulk Hogan and Stone Cold Steven Austin were bigger stars than some American cultural icons such as Mickey Mouse and Benjamin Franklin. Well, he’s another one for you, who do you think is the better icon and why: ROH Legend Samoa Joe or the King of Pop Michael Jackson?

Rhett Titus: Michael Jackson definitely. Does anybody even remember that other Samoan retard? And for you to call him a legend is absurd. What did he ever do for ROH??? You wanna talk about ROH legends, let’s talk about Rhett Titus. I have scooped up more chicks inside and outside the ROH locker-room than anyone ever. Now that’s a legend brother.

Sugarfoot: I’m inclined to lean towards Samoa Joe because there’s a good chance if I don’t say him and choose Michael Jackson instead, the next time I see him he might beat me up. Even without the fear of getting beat up, I’d choose Samoa Joe. He’s really helped redefined what a wrestler can look like and wrestle like in this modern era of pro wrestling.

Todd Sinclair: As great as Samoa Joe is, I have to go with Michael Jackson. Michael has stuck around the public eye for like 40 years, and whether he’s writing great pop songs or hanging his baby over a balcony, his actions are relevant to popular culture to this day. Joe needs to stick around for a couple more decades (and maybe start doing some really freaky shit) if he wants to compete with that.

WWT: Todd, If you could have complete artistic control over the design of the ROH referee uniforms, would you change the traditional black and white striped shirt, and if so, what kind of dream uniform would you envision for yourself or all the refs?

Todd Sinclair: I don’t have a dream uniform for ROH referees. I think the traditional stripes should remain, but maybe made in a cotton material that “breathes”. Polyester is the worst. I do have a “nightmare” referee uniform — the old school blue-shirt-with-bowtie. There’s no way that was comfortable to wear.

WWT: Hmm, bowties… Rhett, as an active purveyor of the bow tie, how would you compare yourself to other legendary bow tie brandishing pro-wrestling superstars like ‘The Model’ Rick Martel or Bob Backlund?

Rhett Titus: I think I have made the bowtie a lot more stylish than Rick Martel and definitely Bob Backlund. Not only that, but these guys didn’t wrestle in their bowties like Rhett Titus. I have style even when I’m in the ring wrestling, brother. And also the fact that I’m too lazy to take it off when I go tanning so I don’t want people to see my tan lines when I’m wrestling, so I gotta keep it on.

WWT: In my opinion one of the best feuds of the 2008 has been the FIP/ROH rivalry between Roderick Strong and Erick Stevens because the storyline was constructed physically in the ring, as each match built up the tension and aggression in an athletic and competitive way, without any conversation or deep back-story. On the other hand, another great feud this year was the Austin Aries/Jimmy Jacobs rivalry that included many personal storylines and passionate speeches. Do all of you think that in the future pro-wrestling will be based more on athletic, MMA-inspired feuds or will personal rivalries dominate the wrestling scene?

Sugarfoot: It’s really hard to say because it depends on the issue between the wrestlers involved. Look at Bryan Danielson vs. Nigel McGuinness; initially it was solely about unifying the Pure and World Championships. Their rivalry stemmed from the championship to being the best wrestler in ROH. The physicality of the matches really helped every bout they had together thus adding one-up-manship athletic rivalry to their feud. As time went on and both men had a change in attitude, their rivalry continued to get more personal.

So what I’m saying is, pro-wrestling will always have a definite athletic feud, personal rivalry, or a good mix of the two. I don’t see pro-wrestling ever just sticking to one or the other. Pro-wrestling needs to have the drama of both types of rivalries to maintain interest in a general audience.

Todd Sinclair: Battles have been fought throughout history for many reasons — “my god is better than your god”, “you have something that I desire and I’m going to take it from you”, or even as simple as “I hate your guts and you hate mine”. Most of the world’s rivalries go way deeper than “let the best man win”, and I think that’s going to continue to be the norm.

Rhett Titus: It’s great to watch two guys get in there slug it out just for the sake of sluggin it out… as long as its not Rhett Titus’ beautiful face getting slugged. I don’t think its so much rivalries that inspire feuds but I think its more so jealousy. For example, that ham and egger Delirious being jealous of Rhett Titus. His looks, his physique, his swagger, his ability to scoop up Daizee Haze. Delirious had none of that going for him, which is why he decided to hate on Rhett Titus. I’d prolly be jealous of Rhett Titus if I wasn’t him. And in those other cases you mentioned, Jimmy Jacobs was jealous Austin Aries took Lacey away from him. Erick Stevens was jealous of Roderick Strong and his success. Jealousy comes in to play a lot more than you think in wrestling. My brother Fat Joe once told me J.O.S.E., Jealous Ones Still Envy, and I’ll never forget it.

WWT: On a recent ROH show, there was some implication of a possible ménage a trios encounter between yourself Rhett Titus, Daizee Haze and Delirious. That being said, in singles competition do you like one-on-one wrestling matches or feel that your talents are one display better during 3-Ways?

Rhett Titus: I absolutely hate 3-ways in wrestling; you have one guy beat then some other schmuck comes up from behind you and ruins it. But 3-ways in the bedroom are a great time brother; I love those as long as its two chicks. When the thrust is too much for one there’s another to take the rest of the load!!

WWT: Todd, as a huge hockey fan, how would you approach refereeing a hockey fight? Do you think that NHL referees do a good job or do you have a different perspective as a pro-wrestling referee on what they could be doing differently?

Todd Sinclair: I’m a firm believer that issues should be worked out by the combatants involved, so my approach to getting involved in a hockey fight would be to let the guys duke it out and only step in when necessary. As for NHL referees and linesmen, I think they do a fantastic job, especially when it comes to playoff time. They uphold the rules, but they’re lenient when appropriate, allowing the two teams to decide who is the best. The game should be in the hands of the players, not the referees.

WWT: Well, former commentator, WWF President, and all around philosophical thinker, Gorilla Monsoon, always believed that tag team matches got too out of control and should always require two referees. Do you find tag team or multi-person matches more difficult to referee than singles matches, why or why not? And would you ever endorse the use of two referees in a match?

Todd Sinclair: Tags and multi-person matches are much harder to officiate. When you get more than two people involved in a match, it’s difficult for a referee to see everything that’s going on in the ring. I only have one line of sight, and sometimes things happen outside that line of sight that I can’t control. Those matches may be hard, but I very much enjoy them.

Only under extreme circumstances would I endorse having two referees in a single match (like a Cage of Death, for instance). Like I said when I was talking about the NHL refs, I’m a proponent for letting two teams decide who is the best, and not having a match rest in the hands of the official(s). Rules must certainly be followed, but there’s a time and a place to let some small infractions slide — I think having two referees in a match would take that aspect out of pro wrestling.

WWT: Ring of Honor has put on some of the most innovative and classic wrestling matches in recent history. ROH sometimes feels like the wrestling equivalent of an epic film, like Apocalypse Now or Raging Bull. If a famous movie director could come in and produce a pay-per-view for Ring of Honor, who do you think would do the best job and why? For example, would you want the big WWE-ish box office action of a Michael Bay, or the Kaiju Big Battel-esque B-movie mayhem of a Lloyd Kaufman Troma film?

Rhett Titus: I dont know either one of those jabronis. Michael Bay, Llyod Troma? The only director ROH fans care about is the man who directed and videotaped the Daizee and Rhett fiasco right from his very own cell phone. And that’s none other than Rhett Titus. I was able to show how Daizee is a whore all while leaving you all wanting more. Though if I was trying to do more than tarnish the reputation of one Daizee Haze and be serious about producing this video Daizee Haze would DEFINITELY not be in it. I can find sexier girls walking through a wrestling fan convention. And come on have you ever seen some of these fans??? eeek…

Sugarfoot: Well, I’m going to be biased on this one and say I’m not a huge fan of B-level movies that much and making Ring of Honor look like something out of a bad Godzilla rip off isn’t the vision I’d like to watch ROH as. If I were going to want to see Ring of Honor produced by a movie director, I’d choose Christopher Nolan. Simple answer why… have you watched Batman Begins and The Dark Knight??? This man did a good job of researching and understanding what he had on his plate with those movies and I’d want someone with that sort of dedication to do the same IF he was producing Ring of Honor on pay-per-view.

Todd Sinclair: I think that Kevin Smith could direct a great ROH pay-per-view. He could put together wacky stunts (Grizzly Redwood and Ernie Osiris could plot to tear down the entranceway), tons of great dialogue (imagine a 10-minute scene about how love got away between Delirious and Jimmy Jacobs) and in the end a hot chick and a complete dork would lead a dance number to the Jackson Five’s “ABC” (like if MsChif just happened to win the “Win a Date with Todd Sinclair” contest…). And the whole ROH roster would like hockey.

WWT: At ‘ROH – Up for Grabs’ you lost a close one to uber-jerk Shane Hagadorn. How do you keep such a positive attitude even though you have to train and wrestle against so many delinquents like Hagadorn and Rhett Titus?

Sugarfoot: It’s hard from time to time to deal with guys like Shane Hagadorn and Rhett Titus between being on the road going from town to town and training. At training, at least you can go in there and just wrestle them for a couple days a week, but when you have to spend a weekend with them it can be torture. For instance, Shane Hagadorn has the worse bladder problems! If you are succumbed to travel with him, it’s literally every 30 minutes a stop to the restroom. If you travel with Rhett Titus, you’ll be in a rest stop and he’s checking his abs out in the mirror or every reflection he sees himself in. It gets embarrassing when he’s checking out his reflection in an old woman’s glasses.

These two are the worst drinkers too! One guy is completely obscene and likes to damage things while the other can’t keep himself together to make it to the restroom to go pee. So, how do I keep a positive attitude? It’s not too hard when you know how much of a real mess these guys are. Plus, there are good guys like the Ninjas, Grizzly Redwood, Bobby Dempsey, Bryan Danielson and too many others to list around to make wrestling fun without Shane Hagadorn and Rhett Titus mucking it all up for me.

WWT: Rhett, since “The Thrust is a Must,” could you tell us which cities you find the most ‘thrust’-worthy and what kind of women you are looking for to ‘must’ it with?

Rhett Titus: Hmmm, the most thrustworthy city is prolly NYC… the city that never sleeps… they’re in bed but not sleepin’ I keep them up ALL night LONG… As for the women I’m looking to score with right now, well it would have to be the ladies in St. Louis and Nashville where I will be this weekend. Email me ladies: [email protected] ;-)… and also I’m tryin to score with Daisy De La Hoya of Rock of Love 2 fame. You can help me out by voting for me at http://daisyoflovecasting.com/people/rhettdathreat

WWT: Mr. Sinclair, please consider this hypothetical scenario: you are in the middle of the ring, on your right one wrestler is pinning a prone wrestler to the mat, on your left is one million dollars in cash that is yours for the taking. But there is one catch; the cash will disappear forever in 2 seconds. What do you do, take the money and potentially lose face or do your job, count the pinfall and lose out on the free money?

Todd Sinclair: What are you trying to do, get me fired?? No way I’m answering that question.

Of course, here at Wacky Wrestling Theory and 411mania, we would never want the great Todd Sinclair to lose his job, so let’s end the interview at that!

I want to thank the stars of Ring of Honor for coming together for this interview and sharing some of their wacky thoughts about the serious world of pro-wrestling.

ROHwrestling.com has given me the early scoop on their latest super sale. Starting today, they are having a Buy 3 Get 2 Free ROH DVD sale, that’s right it’s Buy 3 Get 2 ROH DVDs for free! There is no excuse for passing up this opportunity to get your hands on some of the incredible DVDs from this year, including in my opinion, some overlooked recent classics like Dragon Gate Challenge 2, Eye of the Storm, and Battle of the Best, alongside current critical favs like Supercard of Honor III, Return Engagement and New Horizons. So go to www.rohwrestling.com for the big sale, and all your regular Ring of Honor news!

And don’t forget, if you are in St. Louis on this Friday, December 5th, or Nashville this Saturday, December 6th, you have the opportunity of a lifetime to be a part of the exhilarating live ROH experience.

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All photos are courtesy of Scott Finkelstein at getlostphotography.smugmug.com