Australian Wrestling Scandal
Wrestling with promotions Down Under
Greg Tingle, Sports, Wrestling and Entertainment Journalist breaks the story on Sunday 29th September 2002
The below is from a very reliable source that is close to the source, and I have known this person to be of the highest ethics and integrity for close to a decade in the Australia wrestling business.
TIME TO SPEAK OUT AS I WAS GIVING SOMEONE
THE OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE GOOD OF
THEIR WORD AND THEY DID NOT SO NOW I WILL SAY ALL.
SEVERAL PEOPLE WHO WERE ORIGINALLY INVOLVED WITH a certain promotion WENT
OUT TO SEE the promoter TODAY REGARDING MONEY THEY WERE MEANT TO BE PAID UP
ON THE MONDAY LAST AT TRAINING FROM THE PREVIOUS WEEKENDS TAKINGS.
THE pcyc WRESTLING RING WAS USED FOR 2 SHOWS LAST WEEKEND TO LOWER ALL COSTS
INVOLVED SO THAT WRESTLERS THAT WORKED ON THE INITIAL SHOW COULD FINALLY BE
PAID THE MONEY FROM THAT SHOW THAT WAS PROMISED TO THEM.THE PROMOTER ALSO
SAID THAT HE WOULD BRING IN NO OUTSIDE PAID WORKERS SO THAT THE WRESTLERS
COULD FINALLY BE PAID.THAT WAS THE ARRANGEMENTS THAT I MYSELF MADE WITH the
promoter in DISCUSSION WITH WRESTLERS THAT WERE WAITING TO BE PAID FOR THE
INITIAL SHOW.
FIRSTLY an older wrestler UNFORTUNATELY AT TRAINING THEN STATED TO ALL THE
SAME WRESTLERS THAT INFACT HE WAS GOING TO GET PAID FOR THE WEEKENDS WORK
WHICH WAS AGAINST THE PREVIOUS ARRANGEMENTS OF PAYING OFF HIS DEBTS TO
PREVIOUS WRESTLERS FIRST.
AS IT BECAME MORE AWARE OF OTHERS BEING PAID ABOVE WRESTLERS THAT WERE OWED
MONEY ORIGINALLY AND PROMISED MONEY TO FIRST the promoters LIES WERE
STARTING TO CATCH UP WITH HIM.I APPROACHED the promoter ABOUT last SUNDAY
AND HE SAID HE HAD ALREADY MADE PROMISES AND THAT HE WOULD CORRECT THEM THE
FOLLOWING WEEK TO MAKE SURE THAT PEOPLE GOT PAID FOR THE INITIAL SHOW AND
FOR THERE COMMITTMENT IN ATTENDING TRAINING EVERY WEEK AND PUTTING IN MONEY
THERE.
AS A RESULT HE STARTED A NEW SCAM FIRSTLY
ABOUT NO LONGER BEING THE PROMOTER
SO WRESTLERS OWED MONEY WOULD HAVE TO See someone else.
WHEN A FEW OF THE WRESTLERS ARRIVED today to a SHOW TO TRY AND COLLECT
THEIR MONEY THEY WERE TOLD BY promoter THAT HE COULD ONLY SPEAK TO THEM
AFTER THE SHOW AND THAT THEY WOULD HAVE TO PAY $8 ENTRY TO WAIT TO SEE HIM
AFTER THE SHOW. AFTER THE SHOW THE WRESTLERS WERE THEN TOLD BY promoter THAT
HE WAS NOT THE PROMOTER ANY LONGER AND THAT THEY WOULD HAVE TO SEE someone
else, that person then told them THEY WOULD HAVE TO SEE THE BOOKER. AND THE
WRESTLERS ENDED UP LEAVING AS THEY WERE GIVEN THE RUN AROUND AND OBVIOUSLY
NONE OF THEM WERE GOING TO SEE THEIR MONEY.
THE MONEY THEY OUTLAYED TO HELP promotion
INITIALLY WAS $30 EACH THAT THEY
WERE TOLD WAS FOR INSURANCE AND WHEN one ASKED FOR A RECEIPT promoter
PROMISED HE WOULD BRING IT THE FOLLOWING WEEK THEN NEVER SHOWED UP AT ALL
THE NEXT WEEK.
INITIALLY $2 PER TRAINING SESSION, WITH
THAT BEING PAID THREE TIMES A WEEK
AND AS I BECAME THE TRAINER THERE THIE WRESTLERS THAT TRAINED THERE WERE
OFTEN IN NUMBERS OF UP TO 30 PEOPLE TRAINING A NIGHT, 10 TO 12 WRESTLERS
TURNING UP WAS CONSIDERED A QUIET NIGHT.AFTER THE FIRST SHOW HE SAID HE
WOULD PAY EVERYONE ON THE MONDAY AT TRAINING. ON THE MONDAY AT TRAINING HE
SAID THAT HE HAD NOT SEEN THE BACKER YET SO THEREFORE HAD TO PAY THEM
WEDNESDAY, TUESDAY I RECEIVED A PHONE CALL SAYING THAT HE NEEDED TO BUY SOME
THINGS FOR THE PROMOTION SO HE HAD DECIDED TO PUT THE TRAINING FEES UP TO
$5. i TOLD promoter THAT WAS TOO HIGH AS THE GUYS ALSO PAID $3 DOWNSTAIRS
AND THEY ALL USUALLY CAME 2/3 TIMES A WEEK AND THE GUYS WERE GENERALLY TAFE
OR COLLEGE STUDENTS ON LOW INCOME THINK $8 X 3=$24 PER WEEK AND $96 PER
MONTH WHICH WAS OUT OF THERE AFFORDABILITY.
THE NEXT TRAINING SESSION promoter DID NOT
SHOW UP BUT HE SENT HIS
SECRETARY WITH A NOTE TO GIVE EVERYONE IT BASICALLY SAID THANKS FOR ALL YOUR
HARD WORK THERE ARE STILL THINGS WE NEED TO GET FOR THE PROMOTION SO
TRAINING WILL NOW BE $4 EACH LESSON PLEASE DONT MAKE ME HAVE TO CHASE YOU UP
FOR THE MONEY.
SO LEAVING OUT THE MONEY GOING TO THE CLUB promoter WAS POCKETING $12 PER
WEEK FOR THE TRAINING OFF GUYS THAT WENT 3 TIMES A WEEK. IN A MONTH HE GOT
$48 FROM THOSE THAT TRAINED THREE NIGHTS A WEEK. ON AVERAGE THERE WERE
APPROX.35 OR MORE PEOPLE THAT CAME THROUGH THE DOOR AT TRAINING AND ON ANY
WEEK AT LEAST 30 PEOPLE PER WEEK ATTENDING AT A MINIMUM ONCE I TOOK OVER AS
TRAINER.THATS GETTING TO BE ABOUT $500 PER MONTH AT LEAST HE GOT FOR THE
TRAINING AT AN ABSOLUTE BASE LEVEL.. AS THE ACTUAL TRAINER I DID NOT RECEIVE
ANY OF THAT TRAINING MONEY AT ALL.SO I KNOW ALL MONEY WENT TO HIM.EVEN
THOUGH HE SUPPOSIVELY HAD A NERVOUS BREAKDOWN AND DIDNT TURN UP FOR A MONTH
BUT INSTEAD SENT HIS SECRETARY TO COLLECT THE MONEY.
FUNNY HOW OVER 10 PEOPLE THAT WERE OWED
MONEY AND WERE SUPPOSE TO BE PAID UP
LAST WEEK WERE INSTEAD ALL REMOVED OFF the last SHOW.FUNNY HOW THE SUPPOSED
BOOKER TOLD ME WHO REALLY ORGANISED WHO WAS ON THE SHOW.
IN SAYING THIS INFORMATION I HAVE NOT EVEN
YET STARTED ON HIS INAPPROPRIATE
BEHAVIOUR IN OTHER AREAS BUT MAY IN THE FUTURE AS I FEEL PEOPLE NEED TO BE
WARNED OF WHAT TYPE OF PERSON THIS MAN IS.(INCLUDING THE PHOTOGRAPHER ONE
YES I WAS TOLD RECENTLY)
AS FOR HIS LATEST WAY TO TRY TO DISCREDIT
ME BEFORE PEOPLE LISTEN TO THE
TRUTH. I WAS TOLD BY ONE OF THE WRESTLERS HE WAS SAYING THAT I HAD A BIG EGO
SO HE DOESNT WANT ME AROUND.
A BIG EGO REALLY SO IS THAT WHY I FORFEITED MY OWN WRESTLING MATCH TO
REFEREE IN TSHIRT AND TRACKSUITPANTS SO THAT THE GUYS HAD A REFEREE AND
COULD DO THEIR MATCHES PROPERLY?? IS THAT WHY WHEN someone WITHOUT TELLING
ANYONE BEFOREHAND GOT ON THE MIC AFTER HIS MATCH AND RAVED ON FOR 10 MINS
TRYING TO CALL ME OUT FROM BACKSTAGE TO DO SOME ANGLE WITH ME I DIDNT GO
OUT, FUNNY IF I HAVE SUCH A HUGE EGO ONE WOULD OF THOUGHT I WOULD OF RUSHED
TO GO OUT THERE TO BE IN HIS STORY.
OR DID IT HAVE MORE TO DO WITH THE FACT
THAT I WAS STICKING UP TOO MUCH FOR
THE RIGHTS OF THE GUYS HE OWED MONEY TO AND PROMISED TO PAY.
funny the said secretary quit last week.
I KEPT QUIET (ESPECIALLY BY MY STANDARDS ) ABOUT IT HOPING THAT THE RIGHT
THING MAY BE DONE AT THE END OF THIS WEEKEND AND THAT SOME OF THE DESERVING
WRESTLERS THAT WORKED SO HARD MIGHT BE GIVEN THE MONEY THEY WERE PROMISED.
SINCE IT DID'NT HAPPEN I WILL KEEP QUIET NO LONGER AT ALL.