TheGrappling Times TEN YEARS IN THE MAKING: new fans to their regular southern NWA (UK) Hammerlock is on the circuit shows, they also brought over brink of their annual October tour to Bryan Clarke (Adam Bomb/Wrath) celebrate their ten year anniversary. shortly after he left WWF other stars to After opening up originally as a come over include Tatanka and Jim training school they have risen to the Neidhart. This was in the time period top of the ladder, boosting not only when Brian Dixon and Org Williams great attendances but can easily say were running extensive tribute shows that no one else has created so many around the country. accomplished wrestlers over the past When Hammerlock joined the decade than Hammerlock. National Wrestling Alliance it opened As we quickly approach the a door of opportunity, one time of year when Hammerlock travels Hammerlock immediately took when to all of it’s regular venues in the showcasing Gary Steele in a short tour course of a few weeks and then flies its of America which lead to a serious of top wrestlers over to America for the matches with then NWA World NWA Anniversary show to put on Heavyweight Champion Naoya Ogawa what is usually either the best or one of which saw him hold the title for a the top matches of the event. period of 7 days, the first British man When you cast your mind back to hold the title in its prestigious to ten years ago it was a depressing history. time. World of Sport had been gone for In the following months five years and there were only a Hammerlock went full steam into handful of names left on the circuit expanding it’s venues putting on more with Brian Dixon and Max Crabtree shows further north of its southern running shows that were far below any boundaries. standard seen in the UK before. It was Then in February 2000 the pits, with the exception of Robbie Hammerlock filmed a short series Brookside of course. called Trans-Atlantic Wrestling Andre Baker had worked all Challenge which was shown on all but over the country for many promoters two of ITV’s regional stations and was and he decided that one way to try to filmed at the Meridian Television not just revive his own living in his Studies in Southampton. chosen profession but also try and During the show there were a build up the sport and athletes that took series of tournaments pitting part in it, was by opening the Hammerlock stars against those from Hammerlock training school. NWA regions in America. The singles Baker had a strong background final came down to Gary Steele and in martial arts and he used this as well Chris ‘Sinn’ Champion. as his experiences in deciding how to Although not to everyone’s train his students. Over the next few taste it was a great achievement to put years Hammerlock would not just train on a show of that standard and quality professional wrestlers but give them a for a company such as Hammerlock competitive education in shoot and reinforced their status in country as fighting, which later became a a wrestling promotion, not just a recognised martial art ‘Ring wrestling school. Wrestling’. By this time many of their Hammerlock were the first former workers had found themselves company to bring over Jake ‘The working for the then Portsmouth based Snake’ Roberts and brought in many Frontier Wrestling Alliance. The likes Issue 10 1/11 October 2003 TheGrappling Times of Doug Williams, Alex Shane, Jodie the best in the country, Doug Williams. Fliesch and Johnny Storm were His talents have taken him all around attracting critical acclaim, this meant the world once, and there is no doubt that Hammerlock had to produce even that he will be making more trips in the more workers and saw many of their near future. crop blossom into more accomplished One of the problems of workers. wrestling (I will be guilty of this After several years running as a during this very column) is that at promotion the decision was made to times, a champion looses the focus of bring in the NWA UK Heavyweight the fans as they turn to trying to figure Championship. It was commonly out who would make the next expected that either Gary Steele or champion. Johnny Moss would win the FWA puts on good shows, but championship and Gary did in Telford. they were finding themselves in a Following that was the NWA position where they were always UK Junior Heavyweight Title which putting the same people on top. That Majik won and stills holds, although was until this year. FWA has made a relinquishing it to Paul Vault for a real attempt to build stars for the number of days before winning the title future, people that can compete with back. the likes of Doug Williams and maybe Hammerlock pressed on and in carry the ball when he is away, or the closing months of last year when the day comes he is not available announced a television deal, while to compete anymore. little has been heard about it since, One of the hottest prospects in Hammerlock have kept interest from the FWA is James Tighe, a great fans of the UK scene bring new athlete and someone that has been all wrestlers onto their shows with the over the past years FWA shows like a likes of Danny Williams, Alex Gold rash, and not the sort of rash you are and Sean Davies. embarrassed to show your doctor. With an in ring future looking On October 18 at British as bright as always the publics Uprising II Doug Williams will put his attention will be focusing on the title on the line against the young man announcement made last year, can from Chichester in what could well be Hammerlock live up to their the beginning of a new era for Frontier expectations? Or will the talk of Wrestling. television slowly fade away as it has In many ways it makes sense to for other people before. That is a try and get a new face in the main waiting game for sure. event and especially working with ******************************* Doug Williams. There is no doubt that FWA TITLE – THE NEXT Doug has the experience to be able to GENERATION: It doesn’t matter pull out the sort of matches the FWA what company it is, people will always fans expect from their main events look at the champion and for every with a worker like Tighe, and will good one there has been a couple of possible US and Japan tours looming bad ones, the champions that people FWA are going to want their number want to forget, but somehow they just one guy on their shows. I am sure they don’t have the chance before the next don’t want a repeat of the Christopher one comes along. Daniels problems where he won the Since March the man who is title but was then very hard to book king of the hill for the FWA is one of due to Japan commitments and then Issue 10 2/11 October 2003 TheGrappling Times having to have Doug Williams get the are going to be able to afford to bring a strap back in a different country. big name back and that they are going Either by having Tighe take the to be able to get them over with the title at Uprising and then bushing him FWA fans. Daniels and Styles have as the unstoppable rookie or just by worked well in the UK in the past for starting a feud with Williams that will FWA and Jerry Lynn can always go get him more over with the well, it would be nice to think that the opinionated and well educated FWA use of Americans would not be used in fans they have choose the right person this way. to put on top. His performance with They need to have a strong Flash Barker (admittedly someone else British champion who is given the that can carry people into top class chance to not only wrestle Americans matches) Tighe showed (and why not Japanese) but to beat professionalism, stamina and a mature them as well, Doug Williams will wrestling mind when working with the always be the measuring stick for an fiery veteran. FWA champion, so much depends on I am sure some fans would like his own personal career before much to see Simmons get more involved at can be decided with that championship. the top of the cards and there is no ******************************* denying he has such a good character JODIE SAYS GOODBYE by you are not going to be able to hold Douglas Stokes: Out of the blue? Of him down for long but at the moment I course it was, no one had ever doubt he would be able to work the expected one of the countries top same kind of match with Williams that performers to slowly fade away and James Tighe could and that is not then announce his retirement. disgracing the ability of Simmons. Over the summer period Jodie It does, however look like we Fleisch scaled down his amount of are seeing the end of The bookings to an amount not seen before Family/Shane & Ulf feud and whoever by him, this would of course be a comes out of that one on top would of period of the year in which he would course making good booking sense to be most busy in his own country.