The views and opinions expressed below are solely those of the credited independent contributor, and do not necessarily reflect the views ...
The views and opinions expressed below are solely those of the credited independent contributor, and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of GeorgiaWrestlingHistory.com or any of its entities.
From Scott Hensley:
On the heels of professional wrestling's biggest event, WWE's Wrestlemania, I look back at where I had the opportunity to first see some of the stars before they were stars. On WWE's Monday Night Raw show several weeks ago, The Rock talked about his time as a wrestler at the fairgrounds in Nashville. I grew up in middle Tennessee watching USWA, which ran the Nashville Fairgrounds and did feature a lot of future WWE stars; and while I don't remember seeing a young Rock –I do know that at some point most superstars pass through this area within just a few hours from where I call home on their way to stardom as a part of independent professional wrestling.
Professional wrestling is certainly not as popular as it was during the “Monday Night Wars” in which stars like The Rock, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, Degeneration X,The N.W.O., Hulk Hogan, Goldberg, Sting, and many others stood front and center as the world embraced them. Some may even say professional wrestling has “died off” in the mainstream to more popular mixed martial arts fighting like UFC. The mainstream culture may not accept professional wrestling as it once did but millions of fans still tune in every week to WWE's flagship program Monday Night RAW and in the small town of Rossville, Georgia – a town with a population of just over 4,000 people – wrestling is alive and well for local promotion Empire Pro Wrestling. The promotion had over 300 in attendance for its 2nd Annual “Tooth and Nail” event on Saturday,April 6th, one of the best top to bottom wrestling events that will happen in the entire state during the year of 2013.
The North Georgia/Chattanooga area was once a hotbed for professional wrestling and almost everyone who lived in the area during the 1970's will brighten up with a smile and a story about Nick Gulas and Harry Thornton's shows that they saw at the Memorial Auditorium in Chattanooga. WCW grew to fruition just a couple of hours south in the 80's and 90's and the 2000's brought on talent flocking to Nashville for upstart rival TNA, as well as proven training ground NWA Wildside a few hours away in Cornelia, Georgia.The bright spots for talent and up-and-comers were really bright but there were plenty of dark spots in between. Local thrown-together promotions featuring fat guys, skinny kids, and unathletic performers in t-shirts and gym shorts “playing” wrestling blossomed up on seemingly every corner with many areas having three to four promotions running in the same weekend, earning the distinction of being labeled “rasslin” rather than professional wrestling. These “rasslin” shows, which were often in dirty and run down buildings just large enough to fit a ring in, gradually killed off a great deal of local interest in professional wrestling with many of those shows fighting over the remaining fans willing to attend. The majority of wrestling fans in the area retreated to a mainstream product they can enjoy from the comfort of their living room.
A little over two years ago, a warehouse building in Rossville, Georgia was transformed into a wrestling venue and Empire Pro Wrestling was born. It started with chairs and a barricade around a ring and grew to include an impressive stage, lights, fog machines and black curtains along the walls. The building is clean with plenty of helpful staff members and security at ringside to welcome fans and protect them when the action spills to the outside. The crowd is loud and enthusiastic for the wrestlers they love and love to hate. The building is also easy to find and just minutes from downtown Chattanooga, located off of Mission Ridge Road at 22 Austin Avenue in Rossville, Georgia.
The in-ring talent is the perfect combination of skilled veterans and up-and-coming young workers eager to master their craft and make a name for themselves. The veterans include many hard-working and talented competitors that have competed and made appearances all over the United States for promotions such as NWA Wildside/Anarchy Wrestling, Chikara, Ring of Honor, TNA, and even WWE. Some of the veterans you may find at Empire include commissioner Drew Delight, Adam Jacobs, Andrew Alexander, Rufus Black(the former Jessco Blue), leader of the Devil's Rejects “The Reverend” Dan Wilson, Tank, Ace Rockwell, Shaun Tempers, Adam Roberts, Bobby Hayes, Ben Thrasher, Jason Hampton, and Lamar Phillips. Also known to make guest appearances are respected workers Chrisjen Hayme, Seven, Patrick Bentley, Bobby Moore, Anthony Henry, Chip Day, Corey Hollis, and Kyle Matthews. The veterans and guests are just the start though because Empire has some of the hungriest young talent in any independent wrestling promotion. The quartet of Johnny Viper, Cyrus, Brandon Collins, and Jason Collins are known as the Illuminati and each brings a wealth of talent and passion to the ring that sets them apart from other competitors. Matt Fortune, a talented high flyer,along with his hilariously obnoxious manager Steve Dave have formed a partnership with former NWA North American Heavyweight Champion Shaun Tempers as Team Temptation. Logan Alvey, who was trained by Ace Rockwell and possesses an extremely impressive physique, is a newcomer with a wealth of potential. Chris Ganz, Chris Lightning, and the young team of The Double Dragons, KT Hamill and his underdog brother “The Chunky Dragon” Keith Hamill, are young fan favorites that go all out in the ring to impress.
Several Georgia promotions put on quality events each month and have earned favorable reputations with local wrestling fans and critics. These promotions such as Anarchy Wrestling, Platinum Championship Wrestling, and Rampage Pro Wrestling boast impressive rosters of talent, entertaining feuds, and quality matches. In its current state, Empire Pro Wrestling is right there at the same level with all those promotions. The matches build and keep fans on the edges of their seats. The events deliver a full evening of exciting wrestling action for only $5 and is hands down the best weekly professional wrestling product within hours of the Chattanooga area. I really encourage you to experience Empire Pro Wrestling at 8:05 PM each Saturday night off of Mission Ridge Road at 22 Austin Avenue in Rossville, Georgia.
