DANGER ZONE

Well once again it's another long overdue installment of the Danger Zone coming at you as I type this one out from Nick Dangerous' hometown of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

Victory at Last

Tony Awesome wanted me to dedicate this entry to my victory over Andrew Fiasco and donning of Mr. Awesome as the only owner of the company, but with all due respect to Mr. Awesome, I'd rather not dwell on the past and move on.

Celebration of a True Champion

Even before I made homework out of Andrew Fiasco I wanted to do this, could be say the whole reason I got rid of Fiasco in the first place was so I could do this. During Fiasco's reign Nick Dangerous was victimized, but he wasn't the only one victimized, as a close friend of his and mine was arguably made an even bigger victim, and not only because of Andrew Fiasco, but I'm gonna dig up some skeletons in referencing John Lugo, and Eric "Cazzo" Van Zandt as two people who have taken advantage of having the name Mr. Rich on its roster.

If you were to measure the sense of humility deep inside of Mr. Rich, you'd have enough to make the entire cWo a modest and humble environment. Mr. Rich has been put on the bench more times than I have fingers and toes for wrestlers whose only offensive move was tapping out before Rich taught them the true fundamentals of the squared circle.

Ask Chazz Mendel if he believes he'd be where he is today if he didn't tangle with Mr. Rich as many times as he did in IWF in 2003. Ask Andrew Mendel if he'd be where he is today if he never locked up with Mr. Rich in a best of seven series in the PWR. Ask Johnny Serious where he'd be if he never crossed paths with Mr. Rich. If they're telling you the truth, their answer would be the same as Chris Michaels. Making unanswered phone calls to the cWo just begging, begging for a job.

So being that Mr. Rich has been in Edmonton with Nick Dangerous and I, making sure that our come one, come all wrestling class attendees are ring ready for next week's Driven. As hard as we're working I was able to catch Mr. Rich to conduct an interview that he was willing to provide me on his break. So here's an interview I held with him earlier this afternoon.

With no further adieux ladies and gentlemen I present to you Mr. Rich, who will make history with me as I conduct my first ever Danger Zone interview. First and foremost sir I would like to say that it's an honor to have you.

Mr Rich: Thank you John. It is a pleasure and an honor for myself to be your first guest in this historic first ever Danger Zone.

Well let's get right into it then. I'll start by making it known that the key reason I wanted you specifically for my first interview is to return the favor to you for your kind gesture to me in the preview of Fiasco's fate two weeks ago, and also to remedy the disrespectful way your peers have treated you these days, and simply remind the fans and wrestlers alike that a lot of today's main eventers would hardly be curtain jerkers if it wasn't for you.

Not to go off on a tangent, but Andrew Phillips, Chazz Mendel, Johnny Serious, just to name a few, wouldn't be where they are today if it weren't for cutting their teeth in the ring with you, you wanna go a little more in depth with that?

Mr. Rich: I believe you may be right John. I mean let's be honest. I have been in this business for years. Some of these kids out there today weren't even born when I first set foot in a wrestling ring. Now I respect a man like Chazz Mendel, but yeah, he paid his dues in the ring with me. Serious should be down on his knees, thanking me for where he is today. And though many cWo fans no not the history of Phillips and myself, but our battles in the ring a few years back in my oppinion, made him the wrestler he is today.

Very few fans might remember the PWR, even less may remember the IWF, but these are two organizations of the past which housed yourself, Nick Dangerous, Andrew Phillips, Johnny Serious and Chazz Mendel in the past. We've seen you in a best of seven series with Andrew Phillips, in two thousand and three it seemed the only person you'd ever wrestle was Chazz Mendel when before then Chazz wasn't seen as anything more than a potential Rising Star champion, but after you were done with him he was headlining, among the superstars you've had a history with, knowing where the experience you provided them brought them today, do you have any regrets in sharing that responsibility?

Mr. Rich: Regrets? Hmmm, you know, I sit back and think of how many champions I have wrestled when they were something a little above nothing. Yeah, it makes me sick that while promotion heads pushed these guys, I sat, riding the back seat, time after time. So yeah, I wish I had nothing to do with these guys sometimes. But that is life. And while these now so called superstars like Andrew Phillips and Johnny Serious rule the main events, not only do I not get thanks, but I get very little respect around here.

Well I know first hand that one person who broke from the norm and chose to listen when you spoke was Nick Dangerous, the two of you have a history that goes back to PWR, when you were both part of a faction called the Executive, which had one goal that you two never gave up on, to bring wrestling back to its roots. Would you say the two of you have been successful in reminding the fans what wrestling ought to be?

Mr Rich: Nick Dangerous and I go way back. And to be honest, we have had our good times and bad times. But it was not because we couldn't get along. It's because we both know what it takes to win. And to me at least. That is the way wrestling ought to be. And I think like us or hate us, these fans out there have to appreciate people like Nick Dangerous and myself. They have to look up to us. Because we are the kind of people these cWo fans, hell, any wrestling fan wants to be like.

So if I can get a mission statement from you, because I know with the manner you've been treated lately is a travesty of professional wrestling justice there has to be a motivation within you to silence the critics and finally get what you've deserved for some time, what are your goals currently in the cWo?

Mr. Rich: I'm too old to have goals John. But m mission. My mission is to bring back some class to the cWo World Championship. We can't have guys like Andrew Phillips running around with the title. And the thought of Johnny Serious or Josh Cantrell getting a shot at a world title or the U.S. title just eats up at me. I know, that I have not been a full time wrestler in a few years, but I know that I am better and more deserving then just about anyone here in the cWo. I know that Nick Dangerous, the only cWo wrestler that I can honestly trust and call a friend will be back soon. And in a perfect world, one of us is World Champion, the other is U.S. Champion. That is my mission statement!

Speaking of Nick Dangerous, fans with any idea what's good for them should be anxiously awaiting Nick's return, but before we see Nick Dangerous we're prepared to see some aspiring students of the game make their debut, now as often as time provides you've been in Edmonton, Alberta with Nick Dangerous helping him in his wrestling school to get these kids ready for TV in a week's time, now I could tell the fans reading myself how good a job you two have been doing but nobody would ever take my word for it, so coming from you, do you think these guys will be ring ready by next week?

Mr: Rich: I know they will be ready. People wondered where I was between Cyberslam VI and Glory 2. I was with Nick, working as a trainer in his school. Who has more experience then me in the ring. No one. I have been able to train these guys some of the "in-ring" psychology that I hear these internet marks talk about so much. Of course I think they are ready. I brought Johnny Serious into the wrestling world and I think all of these guys that we have been training are far more talented then Johnny Serious in the ring.

And these young upstarts aren't the only ones you've been getting ring ready, since the suspension of Nick Dangerous on May sixth you've been with him as he has been preparing for a match with Johnny Serious long before Serious thought it was even a possibility, wanna provide a little insight on what Johnny Serious has in store for him at Slam in the Sand?

Mr. Rich: Let me tell you this. Johnny is in for some SERIOUS hurting. I have been working with Dangerous and knowing Johnny as well as I do, I have been able to prepare Nick Dangerous for just about anything. At Slam In The Sand, expect a quick and clean win for the returning Nick Dangerous. And that, you can take to the Bank!

Now this question is more for us than it is the readers, but...(laughs) let's get real here, did Serious really think Evette would leave you for him?

Mr. Rich: Ha ha, Stupid kid. Johnny Serious, and the rest of the cWo needs to understand one thing. I don't just do things, I plan them! Remember that!

Remember the dumb look on his face when Evette made Serious realize the only women interested in him are the women on Mike Logan's blacklist?

Mr. Rich: Yeah. Evette would never be interested in a low class loser like Johnny Serious. Do you remember the expression on Johny's face when Nick Dangerous came in and smacked that chair in the back of his head? Now that was classic.

(laughing)Should call him Johnny Oblivious. On the subject of Evette though, Josh Cantrell's new lady friend must be related to him because she has a big mouth, calling out Evette? She has no idea what she has in store for her. Now we know that in the past you took on the stance against women's wrestling, in IWF you made a reputation for yourself in challenging for their women's title with intention of destroying it. Has your stance on women in wrestling changed since then? Or wold you do it all over again?

Mr. Rich: First, let me correct you. I went after the women's title for two reasons. One, to be the only true GRAND SLAM CHAMPION of the IWF, and two, to prove that women wrestlers stand no chance against Men! And let me remind you that I did win the WOMEN's TITLE. Now, if the ladies want to fight amongst themselves, I am all for it. And Evette, being a former women's champion, I know she can hold her own. And if she wants to battle it out with Phantasy, than so be it.

Ah, forgive me for being mistaken, I was working for the competition at the time. We're coming close to the end of the questions I have for you this evening but I have a few more coming up, one was that I was curious if you've had enough time to formulate any opinions on the influx of new blood that Tony Awesome has acquired since the firing of Andrew Fiasco, be it positive or negative, anyone you see being huge stars in the business? Anyone you'd like to challenge on your own?

Mr. Rich: United States Champion, Jacob Baxter. He is the type of talent I tried to mold Johnny Serious into. He has a certain flair to him that I truely like. I see big things for this guy in the future. As for someone I would like to challenge. You know, I can't stand the smug look of Barrett Hawk. There is a kid that needs to be put in his place!

My last question before we go into word association is how life has been without Andrew Fiasco?

Mr. Rich: Life has been great. Now that that little weasel is gone, well, there is no one holding me down anymore. I know that the reason why I have been tossed aside like yesterday's trash is because of that low class punk!

I'll add that my quality of life has increased ten fold since getting that piece of garbage out of here. I think I can speak for the whole roster on that. Now let's do some word association, it's simple, I say a name, you sum him up in one or as few words as possible. I'll start with Tony Awesome.

Mr. Rich: Awesome Owner!

Josh Cantrell.

Mr. Rich: Overrated

Chazz Mendel

Mr: Rich: The Better Mendel

Nick Dangerous

Mr. Rich: True Champion!

The World Gentleman's League.

Mr. Rich: A Waste of time. I like Thaddeus, but ...yeah, waste of time

And lastly, Mary Joe Wolf.

Mr. Rich: No comment, I'm Married!

Well sir, it's been a pleasure, an honor, and a really hard interview to top, but I'm glad I was able to get a moment of your time and hopefully this interview will have opened at least a few more eyes to the legacy that is Mr. Rich. Anything on your mind that you'd like to get off your chest before we wrap this up?

Mr. Rich: Yes. The cWo has has kept me aside for way too long. I don't know if it was age discrimination or pure jealousy. My history has gone unnoticed for way too long. I have been a highly decorated Champion in previous wrestling federations and I will begin to continue my legacy here, in the cWo. Every peasant here that stands in my way or tries to deny my divine right to be on top will know what it's like to be wrapped up in BAD INVESTMENT! I want to thankyou John for allowing me a venue to speak my mind and giving me the opportunity to allow my WALL STREET fans a chance to see me in the spotlight, where I deserve to be.