Always Believe

The big beast Specimen wrestles Angel at Thunders Arena with predictable results.  I feature Angel here separately from the other dudes at TA who Specimen has tossed around.  The other guys like Mogly, Z-Man, and Tak all know going into their matches with Specimen what's going to happen to them.  But you can bet that Angel had different ideas.  He's small but he's a scrapper and doesn't back down from a challenge.  Everyone else can see that Specimen is a hundred pounds bigger, but in Angel's eyes they are the same.  He has every intention of winning the match.  On every wrestling team there's a lightweight who thinks he's really in a much bigger weight class.  He always wants to wrestle the bigger guys and usually gets his butt kicked in the process, but he keeps coming back.  At Thunders Arena, that wrestler is Angel.  Sure, he gets manhandled here by Specimen, but in his mind, Angel knows that next time will be different.

Specimen

The new beast at Thunders Arena these days is Specimen.  He's a bodybuilder at 5'10" and 250 pounds, so of course he gets to work his way through the smaller dudes who the powers that be at TA like to toss into the same room with him.  In my last post we saw Specimen hoisting Mogly overhead, and now we get to see him do the same with Z-Man and Tak.  Z-Man was looking pretty good in my last post about him, but here he learns the hard way how tough it is to stay top dog in the world of wrestling.

Mogly

Thunders Arena has a knack for finding athletic dudes who end up being play things for bigger muscle studs.  Angel and Tak are two that I have featured in the past, and now another one is Mogly.  He's a decent size at 5' 10" and 160 pounds, but this makes him easy pickings for the big heels of Thunders Arena.  We've already seen Mogly fall victim to Dominic, and then there was that stunning gorilla press by Z-Man.  Now we get wrestler Specimen having his way with the little (by comparison) dude.  Who's next in line to press Mogly overhead?  If I were the king of Thunders Arena, Braden Charron would be first in line, with Python on deck.

The Boys of Winter

This week on ESPN I saw something about spring training starting up and how the baseball season and the "boys of summer" are just around the corner.  It reminded me of back in high school when during wrestling season we liked to call ourselves "The Boys of Winter" (the guys on the hockey team probably had a difference of opinion).  It still being February, it's much too soon to be thinking baseball, so this is a tribute to boys who like to wrestle, and in particular the dudes at Rock Hard Wrestling.  There's no stupid drama here, no glitzy outfits or fancy light shows.  It's just a bunch of athletic dudes who don't mind dishing out some pain (or even receiving it) in that great competition that is wrestling to prove who the better stud is.

Wrestling Matt vs Fast Eddie

Ever heard of Funkdafied Wrestling Federation?  This New Jersey based wrestling promotion featured a match recently where a dude named Wrestling Matt faced off against Fast Eddie.  I think the match eventually went to Fast Eddie, but not before Wrestling Matt had the chance to execute a sick looking bodyslam.  You may know how I am about technique, and it's Wrestling Matt's awesome technique which makes me like these photos so much.  I also love the wrestling singlets.  It adds a sense of real atheltic comeptition to this match.  These two look like a couple of high school dudes having some fun by putting on a show in a wrestling ring.

Turkish Wrestling

So, here's something a little different for today.  The great thing about wrestling is how universal it is. A common denominator among cultures throughout history.  It's truly a global sport.  I mean, everybody knows that (unless you're one of the idiots on the IOC).  Wrestling is the national sport of Turkey, and oil wrestling in particular.  The annual Kirkpinar festival is the top competition for the sport and has been held continuously for over 650 years.  It's the world's longest running sports competition.  Victory can be achieved by a pin, which of course is typical for wrestling.  You can also win your match by lifting your opponent up over your shoulders and carrying him for five paces in any direction.  Sounds like a bodyslam would come in handy here.

Karl the All American

Our friend Karl the Muscle Boy doesn't want his European accent to cause anyone to question his loyalties.  In a recent video posted on his website, he proudly features the American flag as a backdrop to what appears to be a complete demolition of his opponent.  The contrast in sizes in the first photo leaves little doubt from the beginning about what's going to occur during their wrestling match.  I think what I like best about this bodyslam is how the skinny dude kicks his legs and flails his arms about after Karl scoops him up.  But Karl being an official certified Muscle Boy has little trouble keeping the other dude securely in his grasp.  For more info about the video, check out Karl's website.

Z-Man

Zack Vazquez has been wrestling for a while at Thunders Arena.  He's even done matches for Rock Hard Wrestling, and maybe some others, too.  His bio page on TA boasts that he was a state champion wrestler.  I don't know if that's really true, but the old photo of him above in a wrestling singlet seems to add some credibility to the claim.  At Thunders Arena, Zack often appears as a mouthy pretty boy who frequently gets crushed by much bigger guys (check out here for example).  Recently he's been featured in two matches at TA where it looks like he gets to show off some heel potential.  In one match, Zack tries to press Tak overhead, but I'm not sure if he ever succeeds (maybe someone who has seen the whole match can let us know).  But in another match against Mogly, there's no doubt that the Z-Man comes through with a pretty awesome gorilla press.  When you're a pretty boy wrestler like Zack Vazquez, a gorilla press is a good way to build some "bad ass" cred.  Speaking of Mogly, the last time we saw him, he was enjoying being in a similar position in his match against Dominic, but he doesn't look to happy at all here being manhandled by Zack.  Not to criticize Dominic or his technique any, but it seems to me this means that Zack is doing something right.

Wrestling Australian Style

Here are some more wrestling photos from Australia.  I like these because they show some different ways to execute a bodyslam.  Why just toss your dude down onto the mat?  With a little creativity, you can add some pizzazz to the slam.  In a cage match, just smash his face against the iron bars.  Got a ladder?  Even better.  He'll really feel that one.  Use your tag team partner for an unusual over the knee back breaker.  And if your dude has tag team partners, just toss him into their open arms.  You can take out the whole group at one time.