Zilla Fatu debuts

After some speculation in recent months, Zilla Fatu, son of the late Umaga and member of the Samoan dynasty, made his surprise debut on NXT television earlier this week. The 26-year-old athlete interrupted a match up between Cruz Montana, the former Mike Santana, and Grayson Waller to determine the number one contender for the NXT championship. The fact that Zilla debuted on the brand during this segment implies that he will be involved in the title picture of the developmental show.

So, the question is, will this be too much too soon for the newest addition to the WWE of the Samoan family tree?

My initial impression is yes, mostly because despite only being in the business for three years, Zilla had a public dispute with Booker T, prompting him to exit the Hall of Famer's Reality of Wrestling organization where he trained to learn the ropes for the period of time before the two mended fences. Fatu also had a stint with Game Changer Wrestling two years ago before the company announced that he wouldn't be working for them again in the future, cancelling his previously scheduled dates for the company.

I could be wrong, and truthfully, I hope I am, but for someone to have those types of public rifts less than two years into their tenure as a wrestler, it just doesn't seem like national television, with the exposure and the responsibility that goes with it, will be something that will be handled well by Zilla Fatu at this point in his life. It's doubtful that someone, regardless of who they are, can go from the point of online arguments with a trainer to mature enough to handle the publicity of WWE television in the span of a few years.

Don't get me wrong, this isn't meant as some type of personal knock on the son of Umaga, but rather to point out the nature of the business for young performers that get too much responsibility to handle too early in their careers when they don't have the proper perspective to realize the opportunities in front of them. Nattie and TJ Wilson were signed to WWE contracts when they were very young, but were mature enough to handle it and the result is that they still work for the company more than two decades later. On the flip side, Tony Atlas (or whoever the ghost writer was) literally wrote the book "Too much, Too soon" that was released more than a decade ago before it was also the title of an episode of Dark Side of The Ring about his career last year. Teddy Hart had more than one chance to be the next generation high-flyer of the Hart lineage before he became such a dumpster fire that he wasted any potential he might've had. Renee Dupree signed a contract at 18, and five years later, his career was basically over.

To put Zilla Fatu on national television with just three years of in-ring experience is very rare, at least for the modern era, a period when talents that had several years of international experience under their belts, making them more than ready for the main roster, still had to spend at least a few of the prime years of their career on the developmental show. If Zilla is mature enough to handle this level of notoriety or the responsibility, that by extension, is a representation of a publicly-traded, global corporation remains to be seen.

However, that doesn't mean that was automatically the wrong move, at least in terms of the broad concept.

I wrote a few articles about second generation stars earlier this week, and one thing is for sure, the WWE definitely needs to make a significant and consistent push toward a youth movement. Despite all of his already noted personal blunders in recent years, the reality is that Vince McMahon's latter tenure as the boss  was woefully sloppy. If I had to guess the reasoning behind the professional woes, I'd say that it was unintentional complacency, particularly after TNA fell off a cliff in the aftermath of the Hulk Hogan debacle in the early-2010s, and before the launch of All Elite Wrestling in 2019.

Vince took the easy, predictable, and stale road to use part-timers at the top of the card since it didn't require any of the heavy lifting involved in putting a level of faith into a younger talent and then constructing storylines that could showcase them to the fullest potential. With any investment in sports entertainment, there's some risk. Does anyone remember the extremely monotonous Raw show throughout the mid-2010s when you could skip a month of the program without actually missing anything from the angles? Brock Lesnar was the part-time champion, and the brand was booked around the centerpiece not being there for three months at a time.

The domino effect of that was that the WWE audience, particularly the more causal demographic, got conditioned to view the vast majority of the current roster as secondary to guys from the past. There was a reason that at certain points in time that nostalgia was the biggest drawing card that the company had. I'm not saying to discard the stars from a previous generation at all, their cache is an extremely valuable asset in a variety of ways. But, outside of very few exceptions, the office hasn't truly run with, or put stock into younger talent to take the top spots that are trusted to move the needle. John Cena, Bill Goldberg, AJ Styles, and Brock Lesnar are retired. Seth Rollins is younger than those peers, but given his laundry list of injuries, as talented as he is, it's possible that his career will end earlier than it would've other wise. Roman Reigns claimed in recent interviews that he will explore the potential of retirement within a few years. At the very least, I could see Roman stepping away from full-time competition in favor of limited cameos a few times a year. Randy Orton is one of the last guys standing from that early-2000s group, but again, his injuries, including as recent as Wrestlemania earlier this year, make the time he has left in the ring unpredictable.

Thankfully, it seems like there has been a push toward younger wrestlers more recently, specifically with Oba Femi being pushed as the future at 28 years old rather than a decade from now. Bron Breakker is the same age, and should be considered as much, if not even more of a priority in terms of moving up the card. As mentioned, only time will tell if Zilla will be a part of that youth movement, but he's undoubtedly getting the chance to make a name for himself after a debut like that. Of course, it goes without saying that management shouldn't try to rush him, and should view him as a long-term project. If he spends three years on NXT to arrive onto the main roster as a polished pro by the time he hits the age of thirty, WWE brass could potentially have a star for the next 15 years for the organization. Ironically, despite the cache that goes along with the Samoan family, I'd say that the office should allow Zilla to work on his own to avoid him getting lost in the shuffle of the lackluster retread of the Bloodline storyline. The biggest takeaway from this story might not be the debut of Zilla himself, but rather the indication of a possible youth movement since the company needs new stars.

What's the status of Avery Styles?

Nepotism is nothing new in professional wrestling. In fact, in some ways, the business was built on it. The reason being isn't almost meant in the most sinister fashion either. Keep in mind, the origins of sports entertainment where based on the crooked games, or the "con" of the carnival circuit. Even in its purest form, the business is built on deception, with the result designed to give fans their money's worth in the end.

When the result is predetermined, it's easy for some ham-and-egger to proclaim that they would've drawn as much money as Ric Flair, "if they were only given the chance." If a player drops the ball in the end zone, strikes out at the plate, or misses that last-second shot, the final score reflects the end result. Since professional wrestling, particularly the angles that draw money aren't that cut and dry, which is ironically what allows the business to survive over the years, any local yokel could be delusional enough to believe with a minuscule fraction of hope that they would've been as successful as the guy that actually got the opportunity to excel at the craft.

Because of that, specifically in a bygone era, promoters would rather trust someone that joins the family business before they would put stock into the independent contractor that could no-show or demand more cash before they would go to the ring. 

It might've been nepotism, but that doesn't automatically translate to anything nefarious.

Fritz Von Erich built and syndicated his World Class territory around his sons David, Kerry, and Kevin. That trios proved that they could go and carried the organization through its peak. The aftermath, as well as the commendable, but ultimately failed efforts of Mike and Chris are a different story. Dory Sr. broke his sons into the business, and they both surpassed their famous father with legacies of their own. Within the modern landscape, we've seen an entirely new chapter with the legacy of the names Rhodes and Flair.

The bottom line is, a famous last name has cache, and at least in the short-term, there will be a novelty level of interest  based upon it.

That's why the recent "controversy," if you want to call it that, surrounding the son of AJ Styles, Avery is a little puzzling.

The 19-year-old Styles has roughly half a dozen matches under his belt, and spent time training with Nattie Neidhart at her version of the Dungeon that she established with WWE producer, TJ Wilson. As is usually the case, Game Changer Wrestling ran a pair of shows around WWE's pay-per-view weekend when TKO brought Summer Slam to Minneapolis two weeks ago. Since GCW is a touring, but still independent organization, they essentially link up with local independent leagues in each market where they bring shows for mostly trivial logistics, such as the ring, chairs, and event staff.

For their trip to Minnesota, GCW utilized the set up of Arik Cannon, a longtime independent worker that has run F1RST Wrestling in his home state successfully for several years. F1RST was the local portion of the events that GCW ran Summer Slam weekend, with co-promoted shows to cater to the local fan base, as well as those that traveled to Minneapolis for the pay-per-view.

Since those shows, Nattie posted online that she saw Avery as someone that wants to pay his dues in the sport, implying that he doesn't want to coast on his last name. That prompted the previously mentioned Arik Cannon to respond on Twitter that the second generation Styles didn't help with ring crew or chairs, going as far as to claim that Avery was asked to help, but wasn't around for the construction of the squared circle. Naturally, AJ chimed in to defend his son, explaining that Avery was paid to wrestle for GCW, not set up Arik Cannon's ring.

AJ might have a point, but I'm not sure anyone will be declared right or wrong in his skirmish since most of it depends on individual perspective.

Obviously, Arik Cannon is implying that Avery Styles thinks that he's above the menial task of setting up a pro wrestling ring, and technically that's possible, the youngster might've assumed that it's not his problem since he wasn't there for F1RST Wrestling. At the same time, at least as of this writing, there's nothing to indicate, nor has Avery Styles said anything publicly to suggest that he was too arrogant to lend a hand.

Don't get me wrong, in the social media age, where every yo-yo with a voice app has a podcast since they think their opinion is important enough to be heard, or everyone thinks they can be a Youtube star because they can record themselves shopping with an iPhone, it's very possible that some entitled punk thought they were above helping others.

However, until I'm proven otherwise, I'd say that Avery Styles deserves a break on this one, or at the very least, the wrestling public doesn't need to assume the worst until he actually gives them a reason to.

Yes, Avery is getting a chance to travel and wrestle for Game Changer Wrestling because his last name is Styles. There are thousands of independent wrestlers across the country that won't get the chance to do that simply because they don't have a way to stand out from the crowded landscape of other wrestlers that are trying to do the same thing, but the bottom line is, the name Styles can generate a level of interest for GCW.

From a business perspective, GCW is in somewhat of a tough spot within the scope of the industry. The company is often a bridge between promotions, and looks to utilize talent for unique opportunities to keep itself in the conversation. The problem is, Jon Moxley was only going to be available for so long, Matt Cardona was eventually going to get the call to return to WWE, and some of core roster could be scooped up at any point so GCW has to try to stay ahead of the curve. Keep in mind, the WWE had difficulty moving tickets to Summer Slam, an independent league is tasked with trying to draw numbers from a niche demographic, which isn't easy to do, particularly within the current economy. So, they booked the son of a WWE name on the weekend where they are trying to draw in some of the fans that were in town for the WWE pay-per-view.

For Avery, he has only worked a handful of matches, and his dad is one of the most graceful performers to ever step foot in a ring. Plus, he's not working his rookie matches in front of a hundred fans at a small local show, but rather a decent independent crowd for an event that was broadcasted online. If Avery goes for the flying forearm and lands on his face, it's going to make the rounds on the internet more or less immediately.

That can be a lot of pressure for a 19-year-old wrestler with only a few matches.

After Cannon and AJ chirped at each other online, GCW promoter, Brett Lauderdale weighed in on it, more or less taking a middle ground, which is the only thing that he can realistically do. GCW has a loose working agreement with WWE, with the ability to get a few names from the roster for some of their bigger events of the year so it does nothing for him to side against AJ's kid. At the same time, Lauderdale can't risk alienating his primary audience, a group that would be more familiar with Cannon's career.

The most ironic part about any of this is that regardless of how Avery Styles' career turns out, this entire situation will mean zero in the grand scheme of things. Yes, he's getting a noticeable start because he's AJ's kid, but he's only going to sustain those opportunities, including in GCW, if he can actually go in the ring. With the small sample size, he seems like an athletic youngster, but it's not as though his last name is going to give him an entire career. Cody Rhodes and Roman Reigns are very successful, whereas George Gulas and David Flair weren't. David Flair was put in a terrible situation in WCW, but that's a different story for a different time. Ultimately, Avery Styles will sink and swim in the industry based on his own abilities, specifically in the long run. As for Arik Cannon, he got paid to set up the ring and for his involvement at the events so I'm not sure he has too much to complain about. 

Will WWE sign Brock Rechsteiner?

Could another Steiner be on his way to the WWE?

As we know, the 28-year-old Bron Breakker, son of Rick Steiner, took the WWE by storm in many ways since he inked a WWE developmental deal in early-2021. The real-life Bronson Rechsteiner dabbled with a handful of matches on the independent circuit a few years before he signed the contract, but for all intents and purposes, he learned from scratch at the WWE Performance Center. A former college football player, the future Breakker played for the Kennesaw State Owls on the gridiron for four years before he decided to enter the 2020 NFL draft after he completed college. Bronson went undrafted, but signed as a free agent with the Baltimore Ravens for that year's training camp before he was cut from the team.

Given his athletic background and explosive ability, he seemed to be a good fit for a potential pursuit of sports entertainment. It didn't take long to see that the newly-named Bron Breakker was a natural inside the ring ropes, showing a level of poise rarely seen by those that are new recruits from the Performance Center. It would be unfair to put him in the same category as Kurt Angle since the Olympic gold medalist is in a league all his own, but considering how quickly Breakker excelled at sports entertainment, there were certain assimilates as far as raw ability.

Breakker was showcased in NXT, but truth be told, he was ready for the main roster at least a year before he got there, becoming a victim of circumstances when he was used as the anchor for Vince McMahon's failed NXT 2.0 rebrand when Triple H was on medical leave because of a heart issue.

Since he joined the main roster in early-2024, Bron Breakker was spotlighted relatively well, winning the Intercontinental championship twice throughout the year. More importantly, he was paired with Paul Heyman and The Vision stable, which carried a level of cache with it, mostly because if someone is associated with Heyman, it translates to something meaningful within the scope of the organization. As I wrote at the time, Breakker has main event potential and it should be something that the office books carefully, as not to miss the boat on such a stellar talent, particularly when a portion of the legitimate money-drawing stars are already retired.

Breakker suffering a hernia that put him out of commission until Wrestlemania earlier this year spurred rumors that the injury might've delayed main event plans for him, and given that he was rather directionless since that time, at least until recently, there might be some merit to that speculation. Still, something as simple as Breakker winning at next month's Money in the Bank pay-per-view could be an indication that management still has big plans for him. Again, given how seamlessly he adapted to the sport, it would be wise for TKO to make a hefty investment in the future of Bron Breakker.

But, what about Brock Rechsteiner?

The 23-year-old cousin of Breakker made a name for himself in college football as well, playing for Jacksonville State for four seasons, primary as a wide receiver. One of his college photos was of him in the football uniform, sporting his dad's trademark chain link headpiece and holding a World Heavyweight championship replica belt. According to Scott Steiner, his son signed a WWE NIL deal last year to have the option to pursue pro wrestling when his football career concluded.

Unfortunately, Rechsteiner's time on the field might've already ended. He went undrafted this year, but signed with the New Orleans Saints just a few months ago, hoping to make the team by the end of training camp at the end of this month. Just a few days ago, it was reported that he was suspended for six games. The New Orleans Saints official website confirmed that Brock Rechsteiner violated the NFL's performance-enhancing substance policy. 

You could say it runs in the family, but that's a different discussion for a different time.

Generally speaking, it's usually a long shot for undrafted free agents to make the final 53-man squad, but not impossible. Some guys can even make a decent payday on the practice squad of an NFL franchise. That said, at this point, regardless of the fact that the second-generation Steiner can still practice and participate in the preseason games, would the Saints truly consider signing an undrafted free agent that would theoretically have to sit out the first six games of the regular season? Furthermore, why would they make any significant investment into a player that already has one strike for PEDs against him before he plays in any type of NFL game?

The odds are that Rechsteiner's football days over.

It's not surprising that there's already speculation that Scott Steiner's son could join his cousin under WWE contract sooner rather than later, especially because of the report that he already signed an NIL contract last year. Fightful Select has a report that some within the WWE already assume that the younger Rechsteiner will be there after the NFL preseason finishes up, but I'd take that story with a grain of salt in this scenario.

Don't get me wrong, it's not unrealistic that another member of the family could break into the pro wrestling business, the Samoans and the Harts did it for decades, but the circumstances of Brock Steiner could be a road block. The harsh reality is that Brock just tested positive for PEDs so the TKO corporation simply isn't going to associate itself with someone that just got suspended for steroids. Sure, it's possible that there might be a reasonable explanation for it, it's not completely unheard of that athletes can unknowingly test positive from tainted supplements, but unless Brock goes the extra mile to potentially prove that in an effort to dispute the suspension, the narrative is that he's an undrafted free agent that looked for an illegal advantage to try to make an NFL team.

There's no reason for WWE to risk the negative publicity for an unproven commodity of someone that has no prior wrestling training and thus no barometer for how successful he might or might not be as a sports entertainer.

At 23, Brock Rechsteiner has many years ahead of him, just not on an NFL field. Depending on his level of commitment to football, there are a myriad of smaller leagues he could play in if he is set on trying to eventually land on an NFL team. In fact, there have been a series of wrestlers that played in the Canadian Football League before they eventually signed with the WWE. Regardless of what path he takes, I find it very doubtful, despite any reports that might say otherwise, that he has an immediate future within the WWE developmental system. Basically, after enough time passes and his name fades from the headlines, specifically for failing an NFL drug test, it's more of a possibility that Brock could quietly be added to the line-up of the Performance Center. All things considered, assuming that he failed the test because he was on steroids, it might be better for him to take it as a life lesson and refocus himself to pursue pro wrestling in a few years. One thing is for sure, it would be much better for the WWE to sign a focused 27-year-old Brock Rechsteiner than to offer him a deal today if he would waste the opportunity.

CJ Sensation returns

Just over two years ago, CJ Sensation, a pro wrestler that broke into the business when he was still in high school in the late-90s, was at a crossroads in his life. He already fought his toughest battles, not only beating addiction, but pursued higher education in the field to become a counselor to help others that deal with those same struggles. A member of the wellness team at Jade Wellness Center, a recovery facility in western, Pennsylvania, the real-life Craig Stephenson earned other certifications along the way to increase his knowledge of overall health.

"I have been doing that for a little over four years, and I'm forever grateful for being in a better spot physically, mentally, and emotionally to be able to help others navigate significant positive changes they would like to see in their lives," Stephenson said. 

But despite the personal and professional growth that he achieved by 2024, CJ was told he would had to grapple with another health hurdle, a brain disease that required surgery. Thankfully, the procedure was successful and relieved the slew of dizzying symptoms that he had been experiencing for quite some time before doctors made the diagnosis.

"Overall, I feel like since the initial brain surgery there have been significant improvements and symptoms have mostly resolved but I will still get the occasional dizziness but I definitely attribute to headaches going away to the surgery as well as being a proud owner of a CPAP Machine for Obstructive Sleep Apnea. I had a sleep study done and I was averaging stopping breathing 8.2 times per hour which was stopping the oxygen to my brain which is a pretty scary thing to think about," CJ explained.

The staples in the back of his head that closed the incision site left a lengthy scar. However, the roadmap of scar tissue wasn't alone, as a faded, similar surgical souvenir from years earlier was just a few inches lower on his neck. "The Snapshot" was a enthusiastic young lion that found his niche in Pittsburgh rings as a dazzling cruiser weight, becoming a highlight of the tri-state area around the start of the new millennium. A flute accident left him with a broken neck, putting his in-ring future in serious doubt. While he still made occasional wrestling cameos over the years, he spent most of the past two decades since the neck injury as a referee, pivoting his path in the industry to becoming one of the most dependable officials on the circuit. He shared the ring with many national names since he was a trusted asset to any organization that he worked with.

"I have still been dealing with significant neck pain with the C6/C7  fusion in 2003, and I've come to find out that my C2/C3 have congenitally fused over the course of the past 23 years. On June 15th of this year, I underwent a left side cervical radio frequency ablation where they passed an electric probe through 3 sets of needles to burn off the nerves that send the pain signal to my brain and then followed that up on June 29th having the right side procedure done. I have seen such a significant improvement and these are supposed to last 6-18 months," Craig commented.

The brain issues of 2024 made him question if being in the ring in any capacity was wise, especially given the amount of health issues he had already overcome in his life.

Knowing how easy it is to get wrapped up in the over-the-top spectacle of professional wrestling, Craig decided to step away from the ring, focusing on producer and backstage roles, primarily for the International Wrestling Cartel, one of the longest-running organizations of the steel city circuit, and where he cut his teeth in the sport during his formative years as a performer.

"It's been such a significant learning experience working backstage and helps me appreciate the wrestling business on a whole new level. I'd like to think that with 29 Years into this, learning all aspects of wrestling in and out of the ring, helps add more value to myself as a professional. It's about being able to be in a capacity to assist with helping produce the best  show possible," Stephenson remarked.

"A typical show day for me is sometimes grabbing lunch with some of the boys and getting to the building as early as we are able to get in to make sure ring setup and all aspects of production get handled in coordinated manner as best as possible. Once talent starts arriving, I kick it into high gear and coordinate as much as possible to try and make sure things go off without a hitch. I'd see between 2 PM and when the show starts at 7 PM, I am walking around like a chicken with my head cut off. Once the show begins, I'm typically sitting at Gorilla coordinating times and communicating with referees, as well as any other production staff," he added.

But, the energy of the crowd can be too alluring, even for the most seasoned of veterans. For someone that overcame cocaine and alcohol abuse, the pop of a wrestling audience is the best rush that CJ Sensation ever had, a nod to the sport that he dedicated his entire adult life to. After the successful surgery in 2024, more than a year strictly behind the scenes, and positive results from his physicians during that time, especially after the previously mentioned follow-up procedure this past June, CJ made the decision to put the stripes back on to continue his role as an official to go along with his other duties.

But. it wasn't a decision he took lightly, as he consulted with doctors to get cleared to step back into the squared circle earlier this year.

"It was honestly a tough decision to get back into the ring as a referee, and I consulted with the neurosurgery team and surgeon that performed my  brain surgery. I was told as long as I don't put myself under any voluntary whiplash type movements, I should be fine, but to obviously consult back with them should any of the symptoms return regardless of how minimal. I always get the urge to want to physically interact, but cooler heads have prevailed. The older I get, my body just isn't cut out for that type of physicality anymore," Craig said.

Recently celebrating his 45th birthday and six years of sobriety, Craig looks to achieve his personal and professional best, with the direction of his personal trainer and current IWC star, Elijah Dean offering fitness guidance. There was a time in CJ's life when his early mornings consisted of finishing the bottle of booze from the night before. Now, when he's awake before the sun comes up, it's because he gets in a quick thirty minutes of cardio before he leaves for work. The Grey Goose from years ago was replaced with his meal prep lunch for the day. After at least eight hours on the clock, he doesn't race to the club, but rather to the gym to get strengthen training in for the day. After hitting the showers, he's not ready for another round of drinks, but rather to hit the couch so he can binge watch a few episodes of the current series that he's set to get through before he does it all again the next day.

"I was 206 LBS in October of 2025, and a few weeks ago, I was 160lbs so a total loss of 46 pounds with it mostly being body fat in nine months," CJ explained.

So, after nearly three decades since he first stepped foot into a professional wrestling ring, Craig Stephenson has not only overcome obstacles, but finds himself as assets to the sport in more ways than he had in his younger days. Taking into account his personal strides, professional development, and work on his own fitness goals, it's very possible that the 45-year-old Craig Stephenson is the best version of CJ Sensation that the pro wrestling business has ever seen.

"Being at the training school has reinvigorated my love for the art of  professional wrestling, and I was taught that when my time is up in this  business, the best practice is to leave it better than I came into it.  I think the thing I would like to be remembered most for in  professional wrestling is resilience and the ability to overcome adversity to be able to help guide the next generation. Wrestling is family, and I can never repay how grateful I am that people didn't give up on me when they undoubtedly should have," CJ concluded.

Dory Funk Jr. passed away

It was with great sadness that I heard that news that former National Wrestling Alliance heavyweight champion, Dory Funk Jr., the technical contrast to his wild brother Terry, passed away yesterday at the age of 85.

Dory, the second-generation mat mechanic, broke into the business in the early-1960s, following his legendary father's footsteps into the family business. Dory Sr., who promoted the Amarillo territory when Texas had multiple organizations across the massive state, reached legendary status of his own as the "King of the Texas Deathmatch" during his heyday in the ring. Dory Sr. died from a heart attack at the age of just 54 shortly after he retired from the ring in 1973.

Before the end of the decade of his debut, Dory Jr. won the NWA world title, defeating Gene Kiniski in early-February 1969, and kept the belt for nearly four and a half years before he dropped it to Harley Race in  mid-1973. That ranked Dory as one of the longest-reigning NWA champions in history and brought along with it the grueling schedule of the traveling champion. The title run, especially in that era when the champion had to be voted on by the collection of promoters under the Alliance banner, cemented Dory a career that spanned an astounding seven decades.

To attempt to parse detail on every aspect would be far too lengthy for one article, book, or DVD collection. However, even the broad stroke on the canvas that is professional wrestling can illustrate just how much of an impact that Dory individually, as well as the Funk family collectively had on the sport on a global basis.

Similar to some of the other "gaijin" or foreigners like Stan Hansen and Brusier Brody, the Funk brothers obtained mythical status in Japan during the 70s and 80s, a true peak for pro wrestling in the country, a time when the fierce, but respectful competition between Antonio Inoki's New Japan, and Giant Baba's All Japan led to record crowds, as well as major television ratings for their programs in primetime slots. Dory was an integrate part of that success, working in the office to bring over American talent for Baba's events. Dory was the technical grappler, while Terry's hardcore style gave both of them their own unique place in the sport. Dory is known for his crisp uppercuts and slick maneuvers in the squared circle. With as much respect and reverence is held for tradition in Japan, the Funk name still maintains legendary status in the country today.

Dory was such a staple of the NWA territories and Japan before Vince McMahon's national expansion of the early-80s that his smooth as silk technical style didn't seem like it would mesh well with the sizzle over substance approach of the WWF. Still, Terry and Dory, renamed Hoss Funk for whatever reason, worked in the promotion for a year after that arrived in 1986, which was probably a wise decision financially since the organization was in the midst of the boom period of the late-80s. Despite the short stint, WWF management knew how skilled he was, and Dory would again play an integrate role in the development of talent, this time in the United States, roughly a decade later.

With more than 25 years already logged in the ring, regarded as one of the top workers of all time, Dory had a reputation that garnered him more work around the world into the 1990s. He worked tours of Japan, Puerto Rico, and even made an occasional appearance in the fledgling Extreme Championship Wrestling group alongside his brother, Terry. The Funks vs. The Public Enemy in a no-rope barbed wire match in 1994 was one of the bouts from the organization's formative years that was used on several commercials to generate the VHS sales that helped keep the company afloat.

Dory retired from full-time wrestling by the late-90s, but a second career of sorts awaited him as he established the Funkin' Conservatory training center, a program that became a part of the WWF's early form of a developmental system in 1998. Kurt Angle, Mark Henry, Edge, Christian, The Hardy Boyz, and Rhino were just a few of the numerous names that went onto to became major stars after they learned under the direction of Dory. It's fair to say that there was an entire generation of WWF stars that Dory had a major impact on their success. Even after the WWE set up its own developmental system, Dory still trained future wrestlers at his own dojo for several years.

Amazingly, Dory still wrestled sporadically over the years, mostly smaller cameos for the Funkin' Dojo project, but also had a final match in Japan just two years ago at the age of 83. As a part of a Terry Funk memorial event in Kawasaki, Dory Funk and Osamu Nishimura defeated Atsushi Onita & Raijin Yaguchi in an exploding death match for the FMW-E group, a spin off of the original Frontier Martial Arts Wrestling league from the 90s.

The Funk brother, both former NWA world champions, were inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2009. Dory made a few convention appearence in recent years, but outside of the final match in Japan was mostly out of the spotlight to enjoy retirement. 

At 85, the passing of someone is more about celebrating the life than mourning the death. Still, Dory's death marks a somber note in the anneals of pro wrestling. With the passing of Terry in 2023, Dory was the last link to the family legacy, a Funk legacy that started more than 80 years ago when Dory Sr. debuted in the sport in 1940. Furthermore, Dory was one of the very few competitors left from the true heyday of the National Wrestling Alliance, an era when the champion not only had to be an iron man in terms of performance and the schedule, but also had the ability to draw money around the world. That's possible the biggest piece of the puzzle of Dory's individual legacy, he was one of the architects that built the prestige, as well as the formula of what made the National Wrestling Alliance such a force in the industry for decades. It goes without saying that the ability to draw money is what allowed the territories to flourish, but it speaks volumes to the fact that Dory held the title for more than four years, as it showed that promoters were confident in his ability to sell tickets as the world heavyweight champion. Promoters knew that they could make money with Dory at the top of the card, and that's why the position as champion was such a select group of performers, particularly in that era. Terry, Harley Race, Lou Thez, Jack Briscoe, Ric Flair, and a few others were among those that defined the role of what was expected of the NWA Heavyweight champion. Dory certainly had his part in that as well.

With Terry and Dory as the only pair of brothers that won the NWA World Heavyweight championship, I think it's appropriate to conclude this article the same way that I finished the write up about Terry's passing three years ago. Dory Funk Jr. has passed away, but legends never die.

My sincere condolences to the friends and family of Dory Funk Jr. at this difficult time.

Demolition at D&E

The golden era of professional wrestling was such a unique era for many reasons, and the impression that those over-the-top characters, as well as the spectacle of sports entertainment, made on fans left such a lasting legacy that those grapplers of the concrete canvases and grueling road schedule found themselves a second career of sorts through the relatively new convention circuit.

These guys worked a few hundred matches a year in their prime, often with split crews working different towns under the same promotional banner to meet the demand of the 80s. Sure, some of them had a previous occupation at some point in their lives, but  most of them were destined to be professional wrestlers. The business that originated on the carnival circuit, based on the human psychology of the battle between heroes and villains, became a part of the fabric of who they were to their core.

Let's be honest, Randy Savage was destined to be "The Macho Man" in the squared circle. The second generation star simply wasn't going to sell insurance in a cubical, working a 9-to-5 job.

In the case of the Slim Jim pitchman, he passed away more than 15 years ago. Sadly, the iconic and colorful superstar missed his chance at the previously mentioned second career of the meet and greet appearances with the fans. Reportedly, Savage was at odds with the WWE since his abrupt exit from the promotion to jump to the rival WCW group in 1994 so he spent many of his final years outside of the spotlight.

Thankfully, since Macho's untimely passing, work has been done on many different sides to mend fences to allow titans of the industry to not only get their proper recognition, but also their moment in the spotlight. Bruno Sammartino was brought back into the fold and inducted in the WWE Hall of Fame in 2013, bringing with it merchandise and features on the WWE Network.

The ability to bring aging stars into the limelight to give them their earned respect has become a wholesome portion of the modern era.

A man with roots in Western Pennsylvania that got his flowers as a part of the 2026 class of the WWE Hall of Fame will be back in the area for a special autograph signing this month. A Brownsville native, Bill Eadie, known as The Masked Superstar in the 1970s before he burst onto the national scene through WWF's television as Ax, will be back in some of his old stomping grounds August 21st and 22nd.

And, Ax isn't coming alone, as he will be joined by his longtime friend and partner Barry Darsow, known by many names over a career that spanned decades, but was most famously Smash to complete the pair of Demolition. ATD Promotions, a group that has hosted numerous signings since its inception in 2018, is set to bring the legendary tag team to D&E Collectibles in Sharpsburg, PA on the Friday, with a short trip to Niles, Ohio at the Retro Toy Market on Saturday.

"Bill and Barry are an absolute pleasure to work with. Both are true gentlemen and among some of my favorites that I’ve worked with from that era of wrestling," said Anthony D'Alfonso, founder of the ATD group.

For years, there was some speculation that Demolition, former three-time WWF tag team champions, might not be called to join the Hall of Fame because of a legal dispute over the rights to the Demolition name from years ago. However, when the announcement was made earlier this year, it was met with excitement and anticipation, both from fans and the legendary team themselves.

"Man, Ax and Smash have such a unique place in the history books, both individually and collectively. The attire and the face paint, especially in that era of larger-than-life characters, were pure pro wrestling. These performers looked like comic book  characters and rock stars combined. It's really great to see them get their long-deserved recognition," remarked Declan Finnegan, color analyst for the West Virginia-based Victory Championship Wrestling organization.

Along with the Hall of Fame induction, a slew of merchandise was released. T-shirts, more than half a dozen action figures, a Pop Funko set, and more gave fans a long-anticipated line of Demolition merchandise. Mattel's Elite and Coliseum Collection highlight the colorful face paint and attire of the championship duo in action figure form. Ringside Collectables featured figures of Ax and Smash as apart of their Unsanctioned line, as well as their Bell-to-Bell series. Brian Myers and Matt Cardona's Wrestling Figure Podcast released Ax and Smash through Collect Major's Big Rubber Guys line, a nod to the classic LJN set that original featured Ax.

"These events are especially exciting because they are just a couple months removed from their induction into the Hall of Fame. It’s going to be a celebration of that huge milestone," commented D'Alfonso.

"You hear about these guys, legends in their profession, and you're impressed. But, to get the chance to meet with and interact with them, thanking them for their contributions, is a something special. You see them on television without thinking one day you'd get a chance to shake their hands. These signings are really fun and memorable, because you don't get moved through like an assembly line like some of the corporate signings. You get the chance to have a meaningful interaction with them," added Joe Hanson, a regular attendee of ATD events.

Of course, the new merchandise offers a chance for autograph opportunities, and ATD Promotions has a slew of Demolition action figures, as well as a myriad of photos available for fans that want to avoid the task of tracking down their own items to bring to the signing. Photos of Ax, Smash, The Masked Superstar, Repo Man, and Krusher Kruschev will be available to cover the extensive careers of the accomplished tag team. For fans outside of the Pittsburgh area, there is a mail-in option, which can be purchased through the ATD Facebook page.

After a busy spring and now summer schedule, ATD Promotions has already started to put the pieces in place for some of its fall line-up. ATD will be responsible for bringing WWE Hall of Famer, Tito Santana, as well as former ECW heavyweight champion, Justin Credible to the  Carlisle Comic Con in Carlisle, PA on October 17th, with a dozen wrestling stars in attendance for that convention. Kurt Angle, Jerry "The King" Lawler, Carlito, The Killer Bees, Erik Rowan, and Greg "The Hammer" Valentine are among those scheduled for the event. There are mail-in options for Tito and Justin Credible through the ATD Promotions Facebook page.   

"I think staying consistent and our ability to deliver talent that the fans want to see has driven our success. Being able to adapt to change, particularly when it comes to post-Covid inflation has allowed us to evolve gracefully," concluded D'Alfonso.

Summer Slam night two review

The Saturday edition of Summer Slam was somewhat of a mixed bag, but overall it was solid and progressed narratives within the landscape of the promotion in a meaningful fashion. It's often said that pro wrestling is about the moments, and there's no doubt that night one of the Summer Slam weekend in Minneapolis delivered some memorable moments. Still, particularly with how underwhelming the 30-minute WWE title match was between Cody Rhodes and CM Punk, it seemed like night two had to pick up some of the slack in terms of the complete package of Summer Slam.

The show opened with what was scheduled to be Sami Zayn vs. Finn Balor to determine the number one contender that will challenge CM Punk for the WWE title. However, Nick Aldis interrupted and then added both Gunter and the returning Kevin Owens to the contest. There was chatter online about the impending returns of Randy Orton, who showed up in the main event of night one to cost Cody Rhodes the championship, and Kevin Owens, but given the seriousness of his injury, I'm not sure if fans immediately expected Owens to be in a match on night two. If anything, it might've been more realistic to expect him to return on Raw since the episode after signature PPVs often has something major take place to put new pieces of the puzzle in place. Still, this was very well done, and this type of surprise adds a fun aspect of spontaneity to the presentation. The match itself was all action and was only given about seven or eight minutes, which was probably the right decision because it finished up before it had the chance to get clunky with four participants. Owens got the victory, setting the table of Owens/Punk at some point, and taking into account that they had real-life animosity in the past from Owens' original matches in Ring Of Honor before Punk signed to the WWE, it allows there to be a basis for the feud. No, I don't think either of them are carrying a real-life grudge around from 2005, but the point is, it can be referenced to blur the line of reality. After the snooze fest between Cody and Punk on night one, I'd be skeptical of the match quality of Punk vs. Owens, but the promos alone will sell the bout to the audience.

Baron Corbin beat Trick Williams to win the US title, but for whatever reason, this segment didn't get over with the crowd at all. While I understand that Corbin has always been safe in the ring, some of his strikes against Trick were so light that they looked blatantly phony. The audience didn't buy the ground and pound spots with the punches, and this match never got into second gear. Don't get me wrong, I think Corbin is much better than how he was portrayed in his previous run in WWE, and clearly, the office does too since he went over for the championship, but this was a very lackluster title switch. If I had to guess, I'd say it just wasn't their night and things didn't fall into place as management would've hoped. Credit to Yachty for being willing to take the table bump, but it added nothing to the match, and the task to shoehorn it into the segment  with the set up hindered an already lagging presentation. It will be interesting to see if the total lack of reaction will affect how long Corbin keeps the title. I wouldn't be surprised if he loses the belt back to Williams at the next pay-per-view.

The ladder match for the WWE Women's championship was sloppy and overly choreographed, even for a ladder match. The set up for different spots looked blatantly contrived, specifically when Charlotte had more than enough time to get the title, but held onto the equipment that the belt was secured to so that they could do the spot where the heels took the ladder out from under her. Yes, there was obviously the visual of Charlotte holding on as she was stuck there, but I'd argue that the risk/reward ratio, particularly for someone that suffered a knee injury a few years ago wasn't worth it. Don't get me wrong, the effort was there, but these type of matches have a fine line of where they can be thrilling or blatantly staged. That being said, the moment where Chelsea Green made the comeback to get up the ladder to capture the championship was tremendous and that's what this segment will be remembered for.

Danhausen vs. Dominik Mysterio was only about five minutes and was basically the comic relief to pace the show. Would it have made a major difference if this match wasn't on the card? No, not at all, but taking into account the amount of merchandise that Danhausen moves, it made sense to showcase him somewhere on the PPV because the merchandise revenue is a difference maker. Danhausen got the win.

Penta vs. Chad Gable for the Intercontinental title was entertaining, but I have to be honest, with the amount of time that was left in the show, I expected a lot more from this bout. What they did was solid, but the match was only 10 minutes so they didn't get the chance to build any major drama before the finish. Furthermore, after Gable won the belt, it seemed very hokey and almost as if management tried to force the emotional narrative rather than allow it to unfold organically. Gable bringing his family in the ring was a carbon copy of what Nick Aldis did the night before, and despite the legitimate emotional from Gable,  it came across as pandering rather than a genuine moment. It should also be noted that we already saw a similar segment when he brought his family in the ring two months ago after the mask vs. mask match at the AAA event.

As much as I would've thought that night two would deliver the in-ring aspect of the product based on the card to compliment the sizzle of sports entertainment that night one was focused on, that simply wasn't the case. Sunday had an almost identical format as Saturday, with the 30-minute main event being three times as long as anything on the rest of the show. I almost can't believe that I'm saying this, but while Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins was marginally better than Cody/Punk, it was still a very slow and at certain points, boring main event. The pace was so deliberate and the attempts at over-the-top drama when they were talking to each other at several points fell flat because the camera didn't pick it up. I understand what they were going for, but it completely missed the mark. It boiled down to them standing around a lot and moving at a snail's pace for most of the segment. The reason I say that is, why would Roman Reigns stand there and look around before he decides to slowly walk over to pick up the chair? The title is on the line, why would there be any delays?

Eventually, Roman retained the title, and posed with Seth, which didn't make any sense since this was supposed to be a heated feud. Each night had its moments, but the argument could be made that both main events were duds so it brings up an interesting dichotomy between the two major leagues in the industry. All Elite Wrestling is overkill on almost every aspect of the product. Too much, too often for too long. It becomes so disjointed and unorganized that it becomes a chore to watch the same car crashes for five hours on pay-per-view. On the flip side, the WWE's approach, which seems to lean into an attempted at manufactured drama because TKO is probably looking for an Emmy nomination that there's not enough meat on the bone for it not to be a tedious viewing experience. It might be too simplistic, but a happy medium would be wonderful. Nobody wants to see two hours of commercials, but that doesn't mean that syringes to the face and cinder blocks are a good idea either. Maybe I'm too jaded or maybe I'm missing something with Summer Slam, but overall, it was an underwhelming pay-per-view.