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WRESTLING COLUMNS

And We Thought We Won"
August 1, 2005 by Hades Malakian

And we thought we won" WRONG! On July 9th, the fans of Combat Zone Wrestling were elated to find out that the UltraViolence was going to be returning to Philadelphia. It quite possibly was one of the happiest moments of my life.

After three long years, we were going to be able to have Light Tubes and Barbed Wire back in the home of hardcore. Frank Talent and Umberto Perez of the State Athletic Commission were finally going to let us have our death matches back. They even came into the ring and publicly announced it.

Just nine days before CZW's fourth annual Tournament of Death, that dream that so many of us thought we had obtained, was snatched away from us. The state athletic commission of Pennsylvania acted unfairly in the manner. I'm going to site incidents where the state athletic commission has done wrong by professional wrestling as a whole.

Look back at the event where Big Show versus JBL took place. The match in question was a barbed wire cage match. It wasn't only barbed wire, it was razor ribbon. I don't know about you, but I would have to think Razor Ribbon is far more dangerous for anyone than barbed wire. That match took place in 2005. The PSAC's ban on barbed wire and light tubes was put in place in 2002. And where did this match take place" Pittsburg, Pennsylvania. Why is it that WWE was allowed to do a match with barbed wire, when other companies weren't allowed too" My guess is, someone's palm got greased and they were conveniently looking away when the match in question took place.

Just two months ago, Jeremy Borash and Shane Douglas held their Hardcore Homecoming in the city of Philadelphia. It was a phenomenal show that took us back to the good ol' days for a little bit. And the main event of the night was an incredible barbed wire ropes match. And yet, the ban on barbed wire and light tubes was still in place. I won't condemn the event, because it was a good thing the match happened. But why is it that the PSAC allowed that match to take place in the same building that CZW runs its shows in" Is there a difference between Sabu and Justice Pain getting punctured with barbed wire" I don't really think so. I think in both cases it hurts like hell. Why is it that Hardcore Homecoming gets the right to use barbed wire and CZW doesn't" I can't tell you, but I think it has something to do with a little green paper we call money.

Not only was Combat Zone Wrestling told that they would be allowed to hold their TOD 4 in Philadelphia, they were informed in front of a crowd of about five hundred people and on video tape. Tapes of this will definitely be sent to the governor of the state to show that the PSAC is corrupt and unfit to rule on professional wrestling. Please, don't let this go. This is a bad thing for all wrestling fan. If the PSAC is allowed to get away with this, it will only get worse for wrestling all over the U.S. and the world.

If you would like to contact the PA State Athletic Commission about this injustice, you can do so via: email: [email protected], by phone at (717) 787-5720, or by fax at (717) 783-0824.

by Hades Malakian ..

Matt Carey wrote:
I'm not surprised by this. The entire state of Pennsylvania is corrupt. The government of the largest city in the state (Philly) is corrupt and/or inept. They are the target of FBI probes. Governor Rendell is probably one of the few in the state that isn't corrupt. He is also a sportsman, an Eagles season ticketholder/postgame analyst. I also wonder why the PSAC still rules on Pro Wrestling, as it is not actually a sport. I don't know this, so someone please enlighten me.

Steve Simon wrote:
The PSAC shuts down shows like Combat Zone Wrestling because they are dangerous and not a lot of fans watch them. There's no way they are going to let the death matches take place on their watch. If someone gets seriously injured or dies they will have a huge lawsuit against them by the parents and family members of the wrestler.

Stuart Pinch wrote:
I hate your column and I think it sucks.

Wes Martinez wrote:
Although your column was indeed well written and thought out thoroughly, I just decided to be an ass and voice my opinion by stating that Combat Zone Wrestling completely blows and I think John Zandig should die. THE END!

Anthony "Nitro" Fabio wrote:
You make a very good point. I beleive they let Hardcore Homecomming get away with it because it was basically an ECW reunion show and they understood how important ECW was to people in Philadelphia. I also think its wrong that they said it was allowed and then just took it away. Im a fan of really harcore wrestleing yet I also beleive that in some ways CZW is a disgrace to the wrestling world but I do enjoy it when they perform right. Some of their matches are a little too dangerous and stray too far away from pro wrestling. No, I am not saying a lighttube or barbed wire has nothing to do with pro wrestling. I am saying that weedwackers are and two or three story buildings are. I do believe that they should allow barbed wire and lighttubes just as long as the weapons are not taken too far. On that whole WWE thing you wrote I have a feeling the state of Pennsylvania knew the barbed wasnt going to play a major role in the match considering JBL and Big Show are rich men and the WWE also has alot of money so they can find a way to do anything.

Keith Learmonth wrote:
the people involved in the barbed wire match at hardcore homecoming all got in legal trouble, and the jbl/big show match had been planned in a way that the razor wire wasn't going to make contact with either wrestler. that's what i heard, anyway.

wrote:

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