by Joshua Shibata
“The Future” Frankie Kazarian: The “Future” discusses his start with Killer Kolwaski, his favorite opponents and matches, and his favorite movie.
JS: Well I am here with the very first MPW World champ, Frankie Kazarian. What’s up champ?
Kazarian: Not much, what’s up with you man?
JS: I’m cool. Alright, at the age of eighteen you went off east to go train at the school of Killer Kolwaski. What was it like training with the famous Kolwaski?
Kazarian: It was a lot of hard work, a lot of fun. I was working alongside Prince Albert. It was great; I totally engulfed myself into it. I worked five days a week. It was my whole life. I didn’t really have any friends over there so I only had time for wrestling.
JS: Yea it must have been tough, to just pack up your things and move out east.
FK: Yea it was hard. But I was told by a friend, actually Bret Hart, and he told me that was the best school in America to go to, so I didn’t think twice about it. I knew there were some good schools out here but I packed up… actually I worked a year before and saved up all the money I had and drove all the way out there.
JS: And upon your return west you became a star all along the Indy scene.
FK: Something like that.
JS: Yea something like that.
FK: Yea I worked a few Indy feds, as many as I could.
JS: Yea you made your name especially big in UPW. What was it like working in all the different feds along SoCal?
FK: Well I started out slow, I started working with EWF when I started working here. From there I have been working with UIWA and APW up north, I’ve actually been working in UPW for only a year but that’s been great.
JS: Yea you’ve been getting a lot of exposure from UPW, lots of people know you from that.
FK: Absolutely and I have been grateful for that because that’s what it is all about the exposure.
JS: So then out of all the feds, which ones have you liked working with the most.
FK: I have to say I’ve enjoyed all of them, because I’ve had good and bad matches in all of them. I have a lot of fun in UPW because the Galaxy shows are probably the best shows in California. But I had fun when I worked at UIWA, I had fun last summer at IWC, I always have fun when I go up north to APW. But yea, UPW it is the best independent in the country bar none.
JS: Alright moving to the media today, with the demise of WCW and sadly, ECW. Do you think it is harder now for independent wrestlers to make it big now that there is only one source for professional wrestling, which is McMahon’s monopoly?
FK: I thought that at first, but I don’t know. It all depends on how it unfolds with the whole WCW angle. Because there are a lot of spots open and there are a lot of talented guys out there, and hopefully that can open up a lot of jobs for the guys here in California. But if that doesn’t go then it is only the WWF and that would make it really tough. But you never know someone could pop up and give Vince some competition. But I think in the long run it will benefit the industry of wrestling.
JS: Do you think any of the Indies could go on there own and become the next big thing, like ECW did?
FK: You know anything is possible, you can’t say no. But it is really hard, look at ECW one day they are on top of the world and the next they are in the gutter. It’s just running a promotion is hard, just ask Paul (Logan X). It’s a pain in the ass.
JS: So what wrestlers inspired you to become a wrestler.
FK: Well it started when I was six. The first wrestling match I saw, and that was it. When I was first watching back in 1985 I was a big fan of Tito Santana and Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat. Then as I grew up a little bit I became a big fan of Owen and Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels obviously. Then I just started training and watched a lot of old stuff with Killer Kolwaski; so I think those guy were my inspiration.
JS: Now your style is a little mixture of everything.
FK: Yea I would consider myself a chameleon of sports wrestling. Any style of wrestling in my environment, I can adapt to it. Whether it be catch, hardcore, Lucha, mat, aerial I can do a little bit of all.
JS: And that’s always helpful.
FK: Yeah, I don’t want to be stagnant and be stuck in one way and have people think it’s boring.
JS: So which style do you like the best?
FK: Probably mat wrestling. It’s a lost art, you know hold to hold.
JS: Chain wrestling.
FK: Right, I think it’s a lost art and people are ready to see it again. Because their tired of things like chairs in every match.
JS: So I bet you must of enjoyed the Angle-Benoit match at Wrestle Mania.
FK: Yea those guys are the reason why I’m still watching WWF. They always have the match of the night.
JS: Throughout your career, what have been your best matches and favorite opponents?
FK: Best matches, uh I just talked to Dave Meltzer the other day, and he asked me the same question. That’s a hard question. The last match I had here at MPW when I worked with Adam Pierce and Christopher Daniels? I would love to repeat that kind of match
JS: I was here to see that match and it was easily a five star classic. On the website I work for, SoCal UNCENSORED (cheap plug) it was voted match of the month.
FK: That was definitely one of my top five. It was the first time I stepped into the ring with Daniels on a show. My first show at UPW I worked against the ‘Suicide Kid’ Mikey Henderson, that was good. Any time I wrestle B Boy it’s a good match. The Cubanitos, if we’re talking about favorite opponents, the Cubanitos, B Boy, the Ballards uhm… Mikey Henderson, the list goes on but those are guys I know really well. Ricky Reyes especially, we always have good matches.
JS: This is MPW’s second show and it must have been an honor to be picked by the MPW brass to be their very first champion.
FK: Oh yea I really consider it an honor. They wanted me to represent and I’m proud to. And I think we proved it to everyone last March.
JS: Yea that was a great match. And everyone was expecting Psychosis to be on the card, and paid to see him, but I went home happy after seeing your match with Daniels and
Pierce.
FK: That’s what I wanted to do. I mean, love me or hate me, you see me on the card you know your going to be entertained. That’s all I’m really after.
JS: What do you do in your spare time, away from the ring?
FK: When I have any spare time. I have two jobs and I live about two and half hours away from the local training area. So when I do have free time, I watch wrestling tapes and workout. I like to catch a movie every once and a while. I think the last movie I saw was Blow.
JS: What’s your favorite movie?
FK: My favorite is “Braveheart”. Comedy it would have to be “Blazing Saddles”, that was a classic. Mel Brooks is the man. What I usually do is just relax, quiet down from the action in the ring.
JS: Where do you see your self in the future?
FK: Where I see myself is competing and entertaining on a higher level. Whether that be WWF, WCW or whatever new promotion pops up. It’s wrestling regardless I’m going to be wrestling. I can’t predict the future, I mean I may break my leg but I see myself somewhere wrestling.
JS: Well thank you very much for your time champ, and good luck on your match with Little Guido.
FK: Thank you brother.
