Post by Chris Lionheart on May 11, 2007 21:31:53 GMT -5
A special press conference has been called, as Chris Lionheart speaks his first words since the closure of The New Blood Wrestling. He steps up to the podium of microphones. His hair has grown back, following a head-shaving by current XWA wrestler Genesis at March's TNB pay per view.
Thank you, Thank you. Your questions please.
Mr Lionheart, before we get into all the questions about TNB and your current status, can I ask what is up with the new Scorpion tattoo?
It's body paint, actually. I will wear this in most of my matches to comemorate my good friend, and fellow wrestler, Lilsting. He wasn't a title belt hog, or known outside of his home federation, but he was instrumental to the early success of WCW's relaunching in October 2005. Unfortunatley, Lilsting passed away a few weeks ago, he will never again be able to step foot inside a wrestling ring. Although he left us as a 'bad guy', he was a true good-guy in real life. He will be sorely missed and fondly remembered.
Now, what exactly happened with your first run at the top of World Championship Wrestling, before it became The New Blood Wrestling, you were President, right?
I think anyone that knows me, and knows my history, knows that I got a tremendous break when a guy by the name of Eric Bischoff gave me the opportunity to really lead WCW to where I thought it could be, and should be. I got a tremendous break, and I owe a lot to Eric Bischoff, I owe a lot to that WCW company, and to the employees. This was back when I was first brought in, November 2005, and acted as Bischoff's right hand man.
Then on July 12th 2006 things began to change. I was fired from an organisation and I returned to WCW on a cause to rid WCW of the same afliction that I had been fired trying to cure: Old, stale wrestlers on top, and political owners. I brought in my ''New Blood'' stable to get rid of them. Then, XWWS shockingly walked onto Nitro. A few weeks later, out comes RCW. I was on the frontline defending WCW. And I suffered a hideous attack a month later by Jacob Cruise, which made me have to wear a face protector. This all lead to Turner/Time Warner buying the rights to ECW from the bankruptcy courts, and trying to revive that as a seperate brand. All this was too much for Eric Bischoff, and he took a leave of absence - naming me the President of World Championship Wrestling. That's how I gained the position.
I'll admit it, whilst I was in power, and I crushed that ECW brand, absorbing it back into WCW, I got a little cocky too. I became power-mad. I gave oppotunities to my friends at the time, and they backfired on me. When World Championship Wrestling was sold by Turner/Time Warner to private investors, these 'New Owner's' first order of business was to strip me of my position and replace me with a 'General Manager' named Christian MoneyMaker. After that, i was just a wrestler again.
But then what happened? How did you go from being thrown out of power, to the owner of the company, purchasing it from the very people who stripped you of your power?
It's a funny thing, this wrestling business. What's old is new again, and the vicious circle keeps on turning. The New Owners renamed World Championship Wrestling as The New Blood Wrestling, and they made sweeping changes right accross the board. The title belts, the event sets, the company name and corparate identity... it all changed. Christian Moneymaker, depending on who you ask, did a lot of good for TNB, or he did a lot of bad. I say he did a lot of good. But in this business, your company is only as good as the guys running it. And both of those New Owners had some non-wrestling related problems crop up all at once. What basically happened is that factors which were removed from TNB prevented the head guys from giving it the attention it deserved. Without someone to physically produce the shows and run the behind the scenes, TNB was dead in the water.
So they sold it to me, and the first thing I did was the freeze the company. I can't run the company by myself. Still... no assets are being sold off. No one is buying the company from me, or anything like that. If the time comes at a later date that TNB can be reopened, it will. As it stands right now though, TNB is being discontinued. I've encouraged the talented workers there to head to XWA- Xtraordinary Wrestling Association, where some of them were already working on their days off from TNB. TNB and XWA had a close working relationship, so TNB members shouldn't feel too different stepping into XWA's waters.
With that being said, what is that title belt you have over your shoulder?
This is the "King of Crimson" title. Another design from me, like the old PRO title. It is a title belt which can only be defended in ''First Blood'' matches. It was planned for TNB, but without a TNB to debut it in, I guess it's going to stay with me.
But what will you be doing?
I sure as hell won't be moving backwards. The companies I have been outspoken about and have damned in the past, I haven't changed my position on. I might go over to Japan, where the King of Crimson title can really get some exposure in their death match orientated atmosphere. I might return to the British Wrestling Alliance, and show my old trainer Keith Williams who's 'the man', once and for all. But... I do have some business to finish up in the United States. I might even retire all together. That probably wouldn't be too fair, though, there is a married couple who're as hard as steel, I'm sure if the husband ever got into the same ring with me - he'd have something to say about me closing TNB when he was at the position he was at. And there are a few guys currently residing in XWA, that I'd really like to get my hands around their necks once again. See if I can finally choke Genesis out and shut him up once and for all. Or maybe that masked, purple freak.... In this business, never say never. And with Chris Lionheart, always remember that ''Nothin's For Sure!''
Thank you, Thank you. Your questions please.
Mr Lionheart, before we get into all the questions about TNB and your current status, can I ask what is up with the new Scorpion tattoo?
It's body paint, actually. I will wear this in most of my matches to comemorate my good friend, and fellow wrestler, Lilsting. He wasn't a title belt hog, or known outside of his home federation, but he was instrumental to the early success of WCW's relaunching in October 2005. Unfortunatley, Lilsting passed away a few weeks ago, he will never again be able to step foot inside a wrestling ring. Although he left us as a 'bad guy', he was a true good-guy in real life. He will be sorely missed and fondly remembered.
Now, what exactly happened with your first run at the top of World Championship Wrestling, before it became The New Blood Wrestling, you were President, right?
I think anyone that knows me, and knows my history, knows that I got a tremendous break when a guy by the name of Eric Bischoff gave me the opportunity to really lead WCW to where I thought it could be, and should be. I got a tremendous break, and I owe a lot to Eric Bischoff, I owe a lot to that WCW company, and to the employees. This was back when I was first brought in, November 2005, and acted as Bischoff's right hand man.
Then on July 12th 2006 things began to change. I was fired from an organisation and I returned to WCW on a cause to rid WCW of the same afliction that I had been fired trying to cure: Old, stale wrestlers on top, and political owners. I brought in my ''New Blood'' stable to get rid of them. Then, XWWS shockingly walked onto Nitro. A few weeks later, out comes RCW. I was on the frontline defending WCW. And I suffered a hideous attack a month later by Jacob Cruise, which made me have to wear a face protector. This all lead to Turner/Time Warner buying the rights to ECW from the bankruptcy courts, and trying to revive that as a seperate brand. All this was too much for Eric Bischoff, and he took a leave of absence - naming me the President of World Championship Wrestling. That's how I gained the position.
I'll admit it, whilst I was in power, and I crushed that ECW brand, absorbing it back into WCW, I got a little cocky too. I became power-mad. I gave oppotunities to my friends at the time, and they backfired on me. When World Championship Wrestling was sold by Turner/Time Warner to private investors, these 'New Owner's' first order of business was to strip me of my position and replace me with a 'General Manager' named Christian MoneyMaker. After that, i was just a wrestler again.
But then what happened? How did you go from being thrown out of power, to the owner of the company, purchasing it from the very people who stripped you of your power?
It's a funny thing, this wrestling business. What's old is new again, and the vicious circle keeps on turning. The New Owners renamed World Championship Wrestling as The New Blood Wrestling, and they made sweeping changes right accross the board. The title belts, the event sets, the company name and corparate identity... it all changed. Christian Moneymaker, depending on who you ask, did a lot of good for TNB, or he did a lot of bad. I say he did a lot of good. But in this business, your company is only as good as the guys running it. And both of those New Owners had some non-wrestling related problems crop up all at once. What basically happened is that factors which were removed from TNB prevented the head guys from giving it the attention it deserved. Without someone to physically produce the shows and run the behind the scenes, TNB was dead in the water.
So they sold it to me, and the first thing I did was the freeze the company. I can't run the company by myself. Still... no assets are being sold off. No one is buying the company from me, or anything like that. If the time comes at a later date that TNB can be reopened, it will. As it stands right now though, TNB is being discontinued. I've encouraged the talented workers there to head to XWA- Xtraordinary Wrestling Association, where some of them were already working on their days off from TNB. TNB and XWA had a close working relationship, so TNB members shouldn't feel too different stepping into XWA's waters.
With that being said, what is that title belt you have over your shoulder?
This is the "King of Crimson" title. Another design from me, like the old PRO title. It is a title belt which can only be defended in ''First Blood'' matches. It was planned for TNB, but without a TNB to debut it in, I guess it's going to stay with me.
But what will you be doing?
I sure as hell won't be moving backwards. The companies I have been outspoken about and have damned in the past, I haven't changed my position on. I might go over to Japan, where the King of Crimson title can really get some exposure in their death match orientated atmosphere. I might return to the British Wrestling Alliance, and show my old trainer Keith Williams who's 'the man', once and for all. But... I do have some business to finish up in the United States. I might even retire all together. That probably wouldn't be too fair, though, there is a married couple who're as hard as steel, I'm sure if the husband ever got into the same ring with me - he'd have something to say about me closing TNB when he was at the position he was at. And there are a few guys currently residing in XWA, that I'd really like to get my hands around their necks once again. See if I can finally choke Genesis out and shut him up once and for all. Or maybe that masked, purple freak.... In this business, never say never. And with Chris Lionheart, always remember that ''Nothin's For Sure!''
