|
|
Interview with Kevin Knight (January
2010)
Kevin Knight
Interview (Dec 2009): Posted: December 15, 2009  IWF
Interview with WWE Superstar John Layfield: Posted: April 2008 (WEST PATERSON, NJ)- Mamajuana presents John Layfield…Raw Superstar and former WWE Heavyweight Champion…as Guest Instructor at the Independent Wrestling Federation Training School, West Paterson, NJ. Mr. Layfield hosts a Wrestling Seminar for IWF students, graduates and indy wrestlers on April 30. WrestlingIWF.com had a chance to talk with John Layfield to get his thoughts on his new Energy products, his personal pro wrestling training experiences, as well as what participants can expect at his seminar at IWF Wrestling School: IWF: Mamajuana and 418 Energy present a Pro Wrestling Seminar with John Layfield at IWF School in West Paterson, NJ. First, please tell us how your involvement with these energy products came about? JOHN: I WAS
WORKING ON WALL STREET AND HELPED A NUTRITIONAL COMPANY BUY ANOTHER ONE (COMPANY). IN DOING SO, I REALIZED AN OPPORTUNITY
TO PARTNER WITH THE BUYER AND FORM A JOINT VENTURE TO DEVELOP TARGETED NUTRITION...THAT'S HOW LAYFIELD ENERGY WAS FORMED. IWF: How do Mamajuana and 418 Energy differ from similar products on the market? JOHN: MAMAJUANA IS A VIRILITY PRODUCT. "LIQUID VIAGRA" I HAVE
HEARD THE ORIGINAL MAMAJUANA CALLED, WE HAVE CREATED SEX IN A BOTTLE. WE HAVE ALREADY AGREED TO NATIONAL DISTRIBUTION
WE JUST HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL PRODUCT IS ON SHELVES IN STORES TO ANNOUNCE IT. YOU CAN BUY IT AT MAMAJUANAENERGY.COM. IT IS GETTING
UNBELIEVABLE TESTIMONIALS. WE WORKED FOR OVER A YEAR DEVELOPING THIS. NO YOHIMBE AND NO GINGKO SO THERE WOULDN'T
BE ANY PROBLEM GETTING PRODUCT LIABILITY INSURANCE, MADE IN AN FDA APPROVED LAB. 418 ENERGY IS MADE FOR GOLFERS,
IT HAS A NATURAL ANTI-INFLAMMATORY BUILT INTO IT AND COGNITIVE INGREDIENTS...ALLWHAT GOLFERS NEED. THERE IS NOTHING
LIKE 418 ENERGY, WE MADE IT SPECIFICALLY FOR GOLFERS. IWF: Looking back, tell us about the early
stages of your wrestling career and about your road to the WWE? JOHN: I WAS
BROKEN IN BY BRAD RHEINGANS...1980 GRECO ROMAN WORLD CHAMPION. I WRESTLED IN TEXAS, JAPAN, MEXICO, AND LIVED IN EUROPE
FOR TWO YEARS WRESTLING THERE. I FINALLY MADE IT INTO WWE IN DECEMBER 1995. IWF: During your training, who was most instrumental in your development and what was the most important advice you received? JOHN: DICK MURDOCH ONCE TOLD ME WHEN I WAS ON MY WAY TO AN INTERVIEW "MAKE
SOMETHING HAPPEN" AND THAT HAS BECOME MY PHILOSOPHY IN LIFE. IWF: How long did it take you to "get it" and were there any defining moments that stand out when you truly understood what performing and the business were all about? JOHN: I DON'T THINK I HAVE IT NOW. I
WENT OUT THE OTHER DAY AND GOT LOST. I AM STILL WORKING ON GETTING IT. I HOPE TO GET CLOSE ONE DAY.
SKANDOR AKBAR INGRAINED IN ME THAT THE MAIN EVENT HAD TO BE SPECIAL...IN EVERYTHING FROM DRESS, TO APPEARANCE, TO
STYLE. JIMMY CROCKETT TOLD ME THE SAME THING OVER AND OVER...IT MADE AN IMPACT. IWF: At IWF Wrestling School in addition to yourself, WWE Hall of Famer Tito Santana, WWE Trainer Tom Prichard, WWE Legend Honky Tonk Man, WWE's Steven Richards, WWE's Nunzio, WWE legend Ricky Steamboat, former UFC and WWE Champion Ken Shamrock, and former WWE Diva Dawn Marie have hosted clinics. How valuable are these sessions for trainees? JOHN: IT'S THE ONLY WAY TO MAKE IT, THERE IS NO EASY ROUTE. I WISH THERE
WAS. IWF: This Seminar at IWF Wrestling School marks your first-ever lecture at a training facility for young hopefuls. What qualities and attributes separate an ordinary "independent" wrestler from a first-class "professional" wrestler? JOHN: IF I KNEW
THAT, I WOULD MAKE MILLIONS. GUYS WHO MAKE IT HAVE A PASSION FOR THE BUSINESS. THERE ARE A FEW EXCEPTIONS,
BUT FOR THE MOST PART GUYS WHO MAKE IT LOVE IT. YOU HAVE TO LOVE WHAT YOU DO OR YOU WON'T BE GOOD AT IT.
THIS BUSINESS IS NO DIFFERENT. IWF: Many trainees and young wrestlers expect to make it to WWE after just a few months or few years of training. What are some things that young wrestlers need to keep in mind during the early years of their career? JOHN: YOU HAVE
TO LEARN EVERYTHING...EVERYTHING! TOO MANY THINK WRESTLING IS JUST ABOUT HIGH SPOTS AND PHYSIQUES. I HAVE CERTAINLY
PROVED THAT WRONG AND I'VE DONE FAIRLY WELL IN MY CAREER. IWF: With about 20 years of experience as a wrestler, you have seen countless wrestlers come and go. What are the keys to a prosperous wrestling career? JOHN: STAY HEALTHY AND STAY OUT OF TROUBLE. I DID NEITHER,
SO I GUESS BEING LUCKY HELPS OUT TOO. CONSTANTLY EVOLVE. THE BUSINESS IS DIFFERENT FROM WHEN I BROKE IN. THOSE
WHO CHANGED WITH IT ARE STILL HERE, THOSE THAT DIDN'T AREN'T HERE.  IWF
Interview with WWE Legend Honky Tonk Man: Posted: April 2008 (WEST PATERSON, NJ)- WWE Legend Honky Tonk Man…the Greatest Intercontinental Champion of All-time…returns as Guest Instructor at the Independent Wrestling Federation Training School, West Paterson, NJ. Honky Tonk Man hosts a Wrestling Clinic and Seminar for IWF students, graduates and indy wrestlers on April 16 and April 17. WrestlingIWF.com had a chance to sit down with Honky Tonk Man to get his thoughts on his personal pro wrestling training experiences, as well as what participants can expect at his upcoming classes at IWF Wrestling School: IWF: Take us back to the early stages of your wrestling career and tell us about your training experience? HTM: I trained 2 nights a week, 3 hours each session. My training partner was Koko B. Ware. Our trainer was Herb Welch of the famous Welch-Fuller family of the south. We trained countless hours on holds, and reversal of the holds, takedowns and escapes. I was 9 months into training before Herb released me for a match. After that match, I realized I knew nothing. I went back to training for another 3-4 months having matches off and on. IWF: During your training, who was most instrumental in your development and what were some of the most important tips you received? HTM: My trainer, Herb Welch was the most instrumental. He had wrestled all over the states and was very well respected by all the wrestlers. He drilled me on fundamentals and taking the business seriously. He hated lazy work! IWF: How long did it take you to "get it" and were there any defining moments that stand out when you truly understood what performing in the ring was all about? HTM: I took about 4-5 years…somewhere in that time frame to stand back and say, "I have been doing this all wrong!" Fundamentally I was very good, but the mental part was way behind the fundamentals. It takes awhile for the mental part to catch up to the physical part. IWF: At IWF Wrestling School in addition to yourself, WWE Hall of Famer Tito Santana, WWE Trainer Tom Prichard, WWE's Steven Richards, WWE's Nunzio, WWE legend Ricky Steamboat, former UFC and WWE Champion Ken Shamrock, and former WWE Diva Dawn Marie have hosted clinics. How valuable are these sessions for trainees? HTM: It is very important for the students to get a chance to listen to and to ask questions of these veterans of the business. The trainees get a better insight into the big picture. Sometimes the trainees think the teacher is full of nonsense when he tells them how things really work and the need for doing certain things the trainees might think are boring and mean nothing. The outside veterans can help shore up the trainees' confidence in the trainer. IWF: You conducted many clinics at IWF Wrestling School since 2002. Since that time, 17 different IWF graduates performed with WWE. What qualities and attributes separate an ordinary "independent" wrestler from a first-class "professional" wrestler? HTM: It all goes back to the training, the trainer, and the atmosphere of the wrestling school itself. If the training is professional, the trainer is professional, and the school is run professionally, then the students who graduate and move on will in turn be more professional. The IWF does all of the above and each of the graduates are professionals when they go on to the next level. The groundwork that is laid at the IWF camp is one of the best I have ever seen. Some of the "run of the mill ordinaries" are just that,"ordinary." They will never move to the higher level simply because they do not know how to take it to that level. IWF: Yourself, Tito Santana and Tom Prichard among others, have been credited for the success of IWF Wrestling School as a result of your roles as guest instructors. The common theme is basics, fundamentals and storytelling. To some young wrestlers, this seems boring when compared to stunts, dives and barbed wire. Any idiot can do a stunt, a dive or fall into barbed wire, but it takes a skilled professional athlete to master the basics and tell a logical story. Why are these the most important elements for a wrestler to learn? HTM: As you stated, anyone at any given time can do a stunt move. Guys and girls do them during Spring Break all the time, whether they are sober or drunken to the gills. Being able to put it all together to captivate and audience is a different kind of skill. It is a skill, as I said before, that is not just physical, but it is a mental thing. You have to be able to control the audience's emotions. High-flying stunts, barbed wire, fire, blood, and dives off the rafters are exciting to watch, but they have to be put into a storyline that will control emotions. IWF: Today, with the short attention span of society in general and instant gratification expected, many trainees and young wrestlers expect to make it to WWE after just a few months or few years of training. What are some things that young wrestlers need to keep in mind during the early years of their career? HTM: Fundamentals, fundamentals, fundamentals! Without these elements you are a lost ship on the ocean. When all else fails, the fundamentals you have learned will always bail you out of trouble. Short attention span is something we have "given in to." I think given the right circumstances on any given day, we can, if we are fundamentally sound and have a good understanding of the mental aspects of a good versus evil storyline, any of us can control the audience's emotions for any given amount of time. Top rated movies go for over 2 hours. Where is the short attention span there? IWF: With almost 30 years of experience as a wrestler and having performed in four WrestleMania's, what are the keys to longevity? HTM: Staying healthy. Doing those things in the ring that you are comfortable doing. Never push the limits the body has set forth. The mind might say go for it, the body says I can't do that. Listen to the body. The longer you stay around, the more chances you have to be prosperous.  Exclusive IWF Interview with WWE Trainer Dr. Tom Prichard: Posted: August 1, 2007 (WEST PATERSON, NJ)- Independent Wrestling Federation sat down with WWE Developmental Talent Trainer Tom Prichard of Florida Championship Wrestling prior to his WWE Seminar, Clinic and Tryout in 2007 at IWF Wrestling School. Prichard, a former Tag Team Champion with The Heavenly Bodies and The Bodydonnas, spoke about his role as a coach, and what it takes to make it as a successful wrestler... IWF: First, tell us about the early stages of your wrestling career and about your training? TOM: I am a lifelong wrestling fan and have watched my whole life. From the time I was 4 years old I knew I wanted to be a professional wrestler. I started watching on TV in El Paso, TX and there were great workers like The Funks, Harley Race, The Infernos, The Von Brauners, Nick and Jerry Kozak, Grizzly Smith, Rickey Romero, Gory Guerrero, El Santo and many other top names who I didn't know at the time were top names pretty much everywhere they went. Or, they were being groomed for a top spot. West Texas was run by the Funk family and they were very smart in how they did business. When I was 10, we moved to Houston and got acquainted with a whole new crew of wrestlers; Wahoo McDaniel, Johnny Valentine, The Spoiler, Gary Hart, The Great Malenko, Fritz Von Erich, Jose Lothario, and Dory Funk Jr. just won the NWA World championship before we moved so he was now a touring champion, going from territory to territory so I was able to still see some of my favorites from West Texas. Paul Boesch was the promoter and we were able to go to the matches every Friday night at the Sam Houston Coliseum in the 70's. I made it a point to be around the entrance the guys arrived at in the coliseum and would try to talk to some while other times I just watched. I finally introduced myself to Paul and told him I wanted to wrestle. Of course at 11 years old I was told there’s no way but I was persistent and never gave up. From the time I was 10 up until I was 20 years old I was at the matches every week and in between those years I managed to work in the Houston office during summers, referee, second and set up rings. I was a gofer and did anything I could to be a part of the business. I never gave up my hopes and dreams. There wasn't a lot of encouragement to go around either but I wasn't going to let that stop me. IWF: During your wrestling training, who was most instrumental in your development and what were some of the most important tips and advice you received? TOM: The most influential person in my early training and development was my karate instructor, Bill Gray. About the same time we moved to Houston, my brother and I took karate classes and that’s where I met Bill. Bill brought a speaker to class one night who said, “There are 3 kinds of people in the world: Those who ‘try’. They'll never make it because when they don't they say “Well, at least I tried.” Those who ‘give it their best shot’. They'll never make it because when they don't they say “Well, at least I gave it my best shot.” Then there’s that third kind of person who says ‘Whatever It Takes.’ There is no denying these people because they will not stop until they accomplish their goal. There is no ‘try’ or ‘best shot.’ I thought that was the most profound thing I ever heard. What’s possible is done, what’s impossible will be done. How true! I was told I was too small, couldn't wrestle, didn't have ‘it’, blah, blah, blah. I knew what I wanted to do and while I wasn't sure exactly how I would get there I was going to get there! I took a lot of risks and made a lot of mistakes but that’s life. I just couldn't see myself doing anything else. Paul Boesch letting me work in the office and train with The Iron Sheik on Friday afternoons in an empty coliseum was a big help as well. Paul was a great influence and inspiration to me too. IWF: How long did it take you to "get it" and were there any defining moments that stand out when you truly understood what performing and the business were all about? TOM: The rule of thumb when I had my first match (1979) was you had to be working for at least 5 years before you would be allowed to call a spot or anything in the match. Back then you were put with a veteran every night and you listened to him. That’s how you really learn this business is on the job training and experienced veterans pass down their knowledge. I think I finally ‘got it’ when I turned heel in Louisiana. Then I was able to try things and try my hand at calling a match. It was right around my 5 year mark after working 5-7 nights a week for 5 years! It’s next to impossible to fathom that today. There’s just no where to go and do something like that. Going to the Pensacola/Alabama territory really gave me the freedom to try my hand at some ideas and get comfortable about who I was as a performer. But then again, going to WWE it was like starting all over again! The great thing about this business is it’s constantly changing. And the bad thing about this business is it’s constantly changing! IWF: In 1996, you began a new career as a trainer and coach for WWE. It is well known you had a hand in preparing The Rock, Kurt Angle and Ken Shamrock among others for their careers What were the qualities and attributes that separated those that made it to the big dance from those who didn't make it? TOM: The biggest qualities these guys all have is they are students of the game. They kept looking for improvement and new ways to do things. It wasn't “just doing moves for the sake of doing moves.” In the case of Rock and Angle they both became extremely entertaining on the mic and in the ring. Shamrock had a lot of talent as well. They all had the “Whatever It Takes” attitude! IWF: Kevin Knight opened IWF Wrestling School in 1999 because there weren't any quality schools in the area. His role was also that of a student as he began brining in countless stars and legends to conduct clinics. In addition to yourself, WWE's Steven Richards, WWE's Nunzio, WWE Hall of Famer Tito Santana, former WWE Intercontinental Champion Honky Tonk Man, WWE legend Ricky Steamboat, former UFC and WWE Champion Ken Shamrock, former WWE Diva Dawn Marie, former WWE star Tom Brandi, former ECW Champion Steve Corino, and TNA's Simon Diamond have hosted clinics. How valuable are these sessions for trainees? TOM: The hardest part starting out today is finding a reputable school and coach who knows what he’s doing. To be able to hear it from the people who have “been there, done that” is immeasurable. No two people have broke into the business the same way but the successful ones with longevity know and understand what someone must do in order to follow some direction. No one knows everything, therefore it is good to hear a different point of view as long as the information is constructive and helping the students attain their goals. You never know when you might see or hear that ‘one thing’ that inspires you or answers that burning question nobody else seemed to have the answer to. Too many times trainers give answers they “think” is right because they read it in a book or magazine. IWF: Kevin Knight formulated his coaching style for IWF Wrestling School by combining all the valuable knowledge gained during these superstar clinics. Who was influential in helping you to develop your coaching style? TOM: Once again, Bill Gray. His method of teaching kept things fun, interesting and informative. I actually learned and wanted to learn more. You must have a passion to learn the business but I also feel a good coach must have a passion for coaching. A good coach must also be willing to change and adapt as things change. IWF: You conducted many clinics throughout the country, including developing a relationship with
IWF Wrestling School in 2002. Since that time, 16 different IWF graduates performed with WWE. Now, there are thousands
of independent wrestlers in the country. What qualities and attributes separate an ordinary "independent"
wrestler from a first-class "professional" wrestler? TOM: Attitude. Too many guys think it’s all about how many moonsaults or huracanranas they can do. Stone Cold Steve Austin has NEVER done a moonsault! Less is more! The real pros understand it is about quality, NOT quantity. This is a business and it should be enjoyed. The object is not to kick each other as hard as you can. It’s to give the impression you are beating the hell out of each other! Pros understand this. Indie/Outlaws don't! IWF: Yourself, Honky Tonk Man and Tito Santana among others, have been credited for the success of IWF Wrestling School as a result of your roles as guest instructors. The common theme is basics, fundamentals and storytelling. To some young wrestlers, this seems boring when compared to stunts, dives and barbed wire. Any idiot can do a stunt, a dive or fall into barbed wire, but it takes a skilled professional athlete to master the basics and tell a logical story. Why are these the most important elements for a wrestler to learn? TOM: We can teach moves. We can't teach charisma or passion. How much talent does it take to do 15 huracarranas, 12 moonsaults, go thru 20 tables and still get up and do a flying dive off the cage? I'm sure it takes something but the object again, is to tell a story and entertain people. The Rock will still get more of a reaction by raising his eyebrow than some 165 pound guy stapling a dollar to his tongue. IWF: Today, with the short attention span of society in general and instant gratification expected, many trainees and young wrestlers expect to make it to WWE after just a few months or few years of training. What are some things that young wrestlers need to keep in mind during the early years of their career? TOM: Worry about having a solid foundation before worrying about “getting my tattoo on my trunks and ring jacket!” Without knowing the BASICS and having a solid foundation you will go nowhere fast! Ask veterans who have been where you want to be for advice! Become a student of the game and live this business 24/7. Don't live your gimmick…live and understand the demands and sacrifices required of this business. IWF: With almost 30 years of experience as a wrestler, trainer and coach, you have seen countless wrestlers come and go. What are the keys to longevity and a prosperous wrestling career? TOM: Attitude. Understanding ones strengths and weaknesses. Learn everything you can about everything connected to the business. It won't last forever. Are you thought of or capable enough to pass down what you learned? Longevity means WORKING SMART! That doesn't mean be lazy, it means work smart so you don't get a serious injury and aren't able to make a living any more. |
|
