Ultimate University returns to Los Angeles, beginning Wednesday May 7!

[UPW Lite]

April 29, 2008

To: All Ultimate University Students and Prospects

Fr: Rick Bassman

Re: Ultimate University returns to Los Angeles, beginning Wednesday May 7!

Go to http://upw.com/uu/about.htm for all the info!

We’re happy and excited to announce the return of Ultimate University to The R1 Center in El Segundo, CA. Located 5 miles from Los Angeles International Airport, this is a conveniently and centrally located facility. (We understand this may affect some returning students, but to that, we bring up the old standard line…”Read The Hardys’ book”… “read Edge’s and Christian’s” books…You’ll hear their stories of driving many hundreds of miles and paying many thousands of dollars --much more than UU-- to go to wrestling school, only to practice in a freezing, broken-down gym. If you’re serious, you’ll make the drive!

UU and UPW has a rich history at R1, including dozens of notable guests –from The Rock and Roddy Piper to Diamond Dallas Page and John Cena--, dozens of “UPW Lite Shows” and many WWE visits. R1 owner Rico Chiaparelli has a rich history of its own. A former NCAA Division 1 Wrestling Champion, he has guided the MMA careers of Randy Couture, Mark Coleman, Vladimir Matyushenko and Frank Trigg.

Here is what the “New Ultimate University” will consist of:

* 3 day-a-week class schedule: Mondays and Wednesdays at 8:45pm and Saturdays at 1:00 pm
* “Promo Class” (schedule TBA soon) including focus on Character Development, Psychology and The Business of Wrestling.
* Monthly tuition fee of $200 p/mo. (previously $250 at R1). Once you’ve made 17 monthly payments, your fee is reduced to a $50 monthly maintenance fee. Previous payments made to OC Dojo will be credited toward your payment here.
* A variety of patient, experienced and seasoned instructors, including The Ballards, Joey Ryan and Scott Lost, who be evaluating you each class for personal review by Rick Bassman.
* Guest Instructors and Guest Stars, from amongst the greats in pro wrestling.

As the school that discovered and trained John Cena, Victoria, Chris Masters, Jon Heidenreich, The Miz and many more, and aided in the development of Samoa Joe, Brian Kendrick, Paul London and Melina and we effectively teach pro wrestling as well as any school in the world.

Orientation.

Ultimate University relaunches will begin Wednesday, May 7, 2008 at 8:30 p.m. At that time, we will have a short orientation, sign waivers and paperwork, and then…we’ll get to work! Please email info@upw.com to confirm your attendance.

With this return of Ultimate University, myself and my experienced staff will continue the tradition of great interaction with the students, to insure that your development in professional wrestling is top notch.

We and look forward to seeing you at Ultimate University at the R1 Center!

[bobo]

So Bassman couldnt make a go of it in MMA?

[Masked-Informant]

That list of names, Cena, Miz, etc is not impressive at all. Maybe some of the worst workers out there (with the exception of Victoria) I'd argue the School of Hard Knocks and Rey Misterio's Gym (in TJ) have a way better record, with better results (Misterio Jr, Psicossis, Extreme Tiger, Alex Koslov, etc) at half the price.

[TheBoards]

Really? John Cena is not impressive?! Your talking about the most famous wrestler on WWE's roster right now. Having that alone should make anyone in the world trying to make it to the WWE join their school.

[Masked-Informant]

Famous? What ever happened to talented, a great worker, both on the mat and in the air? That's what's wrong with talent these days. They learn a few highspots, talk a good game, and think they're good. And to make it worse, trainers, teachers, coaches, etc encourage that because they too suck.
Hopefully this Ultimate thing will put out some great all around talent, guys that can actually wrestle, unlike Cena, and more like Benoit, Malenko, Eddie Guerrero, Ricky Steamboat, etc.

[The No-Holds Bard]

I think Masked-Informant should be a teacher. He can train new guys better than the UPW trainers can because he knows that he dislikes Miz and Cena but likes Benoit and Malenko.

[SoCalFranchize]

I have to agree. I mean, Scott Lost...I mean, he's a terrible wrestler. So's that Joey Ryan kid who developed leaps and bounds while training with Spanky at UPW (and obviously thinks the talent UU has turned out has been so bad, he's elected to TRAIN for them). Andrew Hellman, Pete Goodman, Johnny Goodtime...terrible, terrible workers. Lil Nate...godawful (just ask Roddy Piper). Funky Billy Kim, Hardkore Kidd.....down right suck.


Obviously Rick is going to use Cena as his prime example as he is the MOST SUCCESSFUL GUY THERE. Not to mention, all the Cena bashing just isn't funny anymore. It's like knocking Bush...it's no longer original. The guy works his ass off, and truth be told, isn't really that bad. Is he Shawn Michaels? HHH? Taker? No. But, he;s got more going on for him in the ring than Hogan does, move for move, hold for hold, and the fact is, he may not be the best, be he doesn't suck.

It's called marketing, kiddos. You tout the most notable and well known of your successes to draw attention to your product. If Cena isn't your thing, fine. If you're looking for a more "talented" example of what UU has churned out in the past, go check out any one of your local indy shows. They're all made up of 1) UPW guys, 2) Rev Pro guys, 3) EWF guys, and 4) Fly ins.

Oh, and while I'm at it, Miz doesn't suck either. Hate on him because he's annoying, hate on him because he's an "MTV wrestler," hate on him because he WAS green, but he's developed nicely and continues to do so. Even the PWInsider marks have gotten off of him, and started giving him props, and they had made a hobby out of trashing the guy.

[Masked-Informant]

I'm not saying I could teach, I'm saying that Cena and Miz suck. And to mention Scott Lost, Joey Ryan, and the others just reminds me of how bad Cena and Miz suck. I understand why UPW mentions Cena, cause he is the most famous of the bunch, but if you want to brag about your wrestling school, why not mention guys that can actually wrestle.... like Scott Lost, Joey Ryan, and others when mentioning your success in training wrestlers.
If your school was about being the most famous guy in the WWE, then fine, mention Cena. But it's not, right? It about learning how to be a good wrestler. So mention the good wrestlers. (and if UU is about being the most famous guy in the WWE, then their track record sucks)
I guess I'm not impressed with Cena when guys like Ryan, and many other local So Cal kids have way better wrestling skills.

[Favi Chulo]

Sorry fellas had to jump in here. It really depends on the person. If you are willing to put in the time and effort, their are no limits to how far you can go in this buisness. You would be amazed at how many people come in, sign up, and take one lesson and never come back. Bottom line it is hard work.........Favi

[Benjamin Tomas]

Josh Wrote:

They're all made up of 1) UPW guys, 2) Rev Pro guys, 3) EWF guys, and 4) Fly ins.

You forgot to mention all the guys who came up under D at Slammers and the Asylum.


New Wave uses a few guys who have been around a bit, but the shows are 80% home grown talent.

Favi is training his own guys for his PWA effort.

Martin and the legendary Gil have been training guys in the art of Lucha Libre, and I'm pretty sure Bart has training at AWS.

I just didn't want you to give all the credit to Rick, Jesse, and AWC.

[SoCalFranchize]

I knew youd jump on that.

I didnt forget anyone, Ben. Martin's guys work primarily WPW, with few exceptions. The San Diego guys are starting to branch out, but still pretty new (and a lot of those guys trained with Drasin anyway).

The point was that the guys who work everywhere, the guys who are on virtually every indy show you will go to, and who make up the majority of those shows, came from the groups I mentioned. Im sure in time we'll be seeing the San Diego guys and Favis guys all over the place, but they're not there yet.

[Andrew]

I have to say that Miz and Cena are actually worlds better than Extreme Tiger.

[Jeff Meacham]

Originally Posted by SoCalFranchize

I have to agree. I mean, Scott Lost...I mean, he's a terrible wrestler. So's that Joey Ryan kid who developed leaps and bounds while training with Spanky at UPW (and obviously thinks the talent UU has turned out has been so bad, he's elected to TRAIN for them). Andrew Hellman, Pete Goodman, Johnny Goodtime...terrible, terrible workers. Lil Nate...godawful (just ask Roddy Piper). Funky Billy Kim, Hardkore Kidd.....down right suck.


Obviously Rick is going to use Cena as his prime example as he is the MOST SUCCESSFUL GUY THERE. Not to mention, all the Cena bashing just isn't funny anymore. It's like knocking Bush...it's no longer original. The guy works his ass off, and truth be told, isn't really that bad. Is he Shawn Michaels? HHH? Taker? No. But, he;s got more going on for him in the ring than Hogan does, move for move, hold for hold, and the fact is, he may not be the best, be he doesn't suck.

It's called marketing, kiddos. You tout the most notable and well known of your successes to draw attention to your product. If Cena isn't your thing, fine. If you're looking for a more "talented" example of what UU has churned out in the past, go check out any one of your local indy shows. They're all made up of 1) UPW guys, 2) Rev Pro guys, 3) EWF guys, and 4) Fly ins.

Oh, and while I'm at it, Miz doesn't suck either. Hate on him because he's annoying, hate on him because he's an "MTV wrestler," hate on him because he WAS green, but he's developed nicely and continues to do so. Even the PWInsider marks have gotten off of him, and started giving him props, and they had made a hobby out of trashing the guy.

Oh ... my ... GAWD! A voice of reason on the message boards of wrestling that MAKES SENSE! What a rarity! Thank the Lord I read this; my faith in my fellow wrestling fans is restored!

[gurentai_pt1]

“Promo Class”

lol. I'm not going to pretend I'm the best promo guy, but I'll teach promos in exchange for beer.

[Jay Cal]

Do you prefer Dos Equis or Corona?

[Mace]

This is from Lordsofpain.net:

We've been covering the story that former WWF champion The Ultimate Warrior is scheduled to make his in-ring return next month for the NWE promotion in Spain. Warrior will begin working out in the ring starting this weekend at Rick Bassman's UPW school in Los Angeles, according to PWInsider.com. Bassman is the man who initially discovered both Warrior and Sting back in the early 1980s.

There has also been some talk that the Warrior has contacted TNA star Booker T about using his wrestling school in Houston, Texas to prepare as well.


Oh boy. I hope Joey Ryan teaches him something...

[Benjamin Tomas]

Originally Posted by Mace

This is from Lordsofpain.net:

We've been covering the story that former WWF champion The Ultimate Warrior is scheduled to make his in-ring return next month for the NWE promotion in Spain. Warrior will begin working out in the ring starting this weekend at Rick Bassman's UPW school in Los Angeles, according to PWInsider.com. Bassman is the man who initially discovered both Warrior and Sting back in the early 1980s.

There has also been some talk that the Warrior has contacted TNA star Booker T about using his wrestling school in Houston, Texas to prepare as well.


Oh boy. I hope Joey Ryan teaches him something...

I hope he isn't training during the time the other students are. Can you imagine him holding up the whole class asking the teacher questions, like what does "Selling" mean? O him asking why he needs to learn to do a front roll?

[alknows]

PW Insider issued a correction and Warrior WILL NOT be training at UPW but will be working out with ROB ... VAN ... DAM!