Huksie Howard Interviews Zakk Spadez

Huskie: Wrestling fans, welcome back to Wrestle Ohio. Today I am joined by one of the brightest up and comers in all of Ohio, Zakk Spadez. Zakk, how are you doing and thanks for your time.

Spadez: Just fine, thanks for having me.

Huskie: How long have you been in the wrestling business, and how did you get your start.?

Spadez: It will be three years in September. When I was 17 years old I was at a place called Rhino’s, and I met a guy named Josh Rafferty. I was showing off cell phone videos of me wrestling my buddy Andrew, aka AJB, in the backyard. He watched the videos, laughed and asked if I wanted to learn how to wrestle for real. Then he proceeded to tell me he was a pro wrestler, and that he knew Batista. He told me to get a hold of him and he’d hook me up. I blew him off, not believing a word he said. Later, I looked him up to find out he was telling the truth. I tried calling him but he changed his number. A couple of years later, I’m in the crowd of one of Jimmy Yang’s PT Wrestling shows, and I see Josh Rafferty walk in the building. He remembered me, he introduced me to Jimmy and then I started my training.

Huskie: That’s interesting, aren’t you glad that you found out he was legit?

Spadez: Yeah, it actually haunted me for the next three years. It turned out that he wrestled for HWA, and was a part of the original 5 Most Wanted and he was on the first season of The Ultimate Fighter. After that, any time ANYONE said they were a pro wrestler, I believed them with out hesitation. So safe to say, before I found Jimmy’s school I spent a lot of time wrestling in the backyard. Everyone I would meet back them would speak so highly of the HWA and Cody Hawk, and it only made me regret it more.

Huskie: What was it like training under a guy who had been in WCW, TNA and WWE?

Spadez: It was interesting to say the least. Jimmy has VERY high standards. I used to always say the nicest thing he’s ever said to me was “That didn’t suck as bad as I thought it would.” Plus he never showed any emotion, for the longest time I though he didn’t like me. Training didn’t become fun until I convinced my buddy Andrew to leave OVW and come train with me under Jimmy. Then I realized Jimmy was like that with everyone. I trained with Jimmy for six months, and then he shut the school down because he couldn’t keep the building anymore.

Huskie: From there did you train anywhere else?

Spadez: That was a scary time. PT Wrestling was the first and only Indy show I had ever been to. With the building shutting down, and Jimmy taking off to the WWE, I had absolutely no idea what to do from there or where to go. Then I got on Facebook one night and I got a message from Benjamin Kimera asking me if I’d be interested in working for his fed in Middletown. Ben was the “King of Cincinnati” at PT Wrestling, and he happened to live down the street from me, so I immediately jumped at the opportunity to ride with him. While wrestling at XVW I was able to get in the ring and learn from minds like Benjamin Kimera, Cody Hawk, Dave Crist, and Matt Stryker. But as a professional wrestler your training never stops. With every booking I get, and every person I wrestle, I’m always learning. I have also learned a lot from Heather Owens, Aaron Williams, Jake Omen, Tarek the Legend, and Eddie Gonzales. The list of people who have been apart of my training is much longer than that.

Huskie: What is it like being on the road traveling from show to show?

Spadez: Experiences vary a lot! It really depends on the crew your rolling with. I’ve had some horrible car rides early in my wrestling career. But if you got the right crew, the car rides are where you can learn the most about your wrestling style. You have three or four people you can throw ideas around on the way to shows and then pick apart your match on the way home. I can’t tell you how many things I do in the ring that started off as a joke in the car ride up. I love the traveling, sure it may draw and my body might stiffen up from being cramped up in the car, but when I’m in the car with the boys, it’s like I’m separated from the stress of the real world.

Huskie: Would you like to share with us some of the things you have done in the ring that stared out as a joke?

Spadez: Well of course. Judi-Chops is a favorite between Aaron Williams and I. One day before a show, Aaron’s wife showed us a viral YouTube video of a redneck ninja by the name of “Diemon Dave”. The video was just too ridiculous to describe, but basically it’s of a hillbilly trying to advertise his ninja school! We were mimicking the video the entire trip to the show. I made the joke that I was going to finish my opponent off with a ridiculous Judi-Chop. My match and Aaron’s were back to back and we both threw in ridiculous Judi-Chops, and Aaron still will from time to time. Also me licking people’s faces started off as a joke in the car as well. No real in depth story to the face licking except the fact that I’m just weird and love to creep people out.

Huskie: If you could wrestle anywhere in the world. Where would it be a why?

Spadez: That’s a really tough question. I mean honestly, I love it anytime that I’m wrestling in a place that I’ve never been before. So I guess the easy answers would be places like Japan, California, Florida for obvious reasons. But in my heart, I’d really like to wrestle a show in Charleston, South Carolina. My dad took off when I was a kid, so a male role model was something I lacked growing up. But there was a guy my mom worked with at a bar named Brian Hensley, the dude was friggin huge, covered in tattoos, always had girls chasing after him, would have made a great wrestler. He was like a big brother to me. He used to get me all of the wrestling pay per views taped for me. I always told him I’d be a wrestler someday. Well he moved to Charleston WAY before I started training and has never actually seen me wrestle a match in person. So emotionally, that would probably be number one for me!

Huskie: What is your favorite match of all time?

Spadez: That is a tough question. I have a couple of favorites, the street fight at Summerslam between Triple H and Shawn Michaels. The I Quit match between Steven Austin and Bret Hart and William Regal vs. Chris Benoit at the Pillman show.

Huskie: What is your favorite match that you have been involved in?

Spadez: That’s easy! The casket match I recently had with AJB at LSC. I’ve been in a lot of matches but that was my first big singles main event. Not to mention, it was with a kid I have been best friends with since high school. We killed each other out there and the crowd was on their feet nearly the entire match. Even after I was thrown inside the casket, the ground felt as if it was rumbling, from the crowd reaction. I have the poster of that show framed and hanging up in my house.

Entertaining the crowd is the ONLY reason we do what we do. Before that match I was worried I wasn’t going to live up to the hype, or be able to perform on a main event level. That match has really helped me get over my insecurities and made me hungry for more.

Huskie: What did it mean to you to be in the main event of a show?

Spadez: It was an honor, it meant a lot to know a promotion had enough faith in me as a wrestler to be in their main event.

Huskie: What is your dream match?

Spadez: Easy! Me vs. Triple H, he was always my favorite growing up.

Huskie: What are your thoughts on Indy wrestling in Ohio?

Spadez: Well, there is a lot of it. I remember before I became a wrestler I had no idea Indy wrestling even existed. Now I’m surprised I didn’t find it sooner. People talk about all the things that are wrong with Indy wrestling, where that may be true, I’m the wrong person to ask. I have no basis for comparison. I started wrestling after things had already started going down hill.

Huskie: In your opinion, what could make the Indy scene in Ohio better?

Spadez: There are too many people that are happy with where they are at. They are content with staying exactly where they are. I want to get over with the crowd, I want to wrestle bigger names, I want to get out of Ohio. Therefore I am always asking for advice so I can try to make my matches better. When I have better matches I slightly help the show. One crappy match can kill a crowd and cause people to lose interest. I think people need to stop being so sensitive and realize they suck and try to get better. Of course, I am not one to talk, because I still have a lot of work to do myself. Still, in the locker room very few people have that fire in their eyes.

Huskie: So far in your career what has been your favorite moment?

Spadez: That would be a tie between working Mayhem Fest with AIW and the Anime and Gaming Convention with Bizarro Live. At Mayhem Fest I watched Heather Owens dive into a mosh pit with all of her wrestling gear on. A and G I was yelling at nerds while carrying around a Hello Kitty doll. Both were awesome experiences I’ll never forget.

Huskie: What do you want to accomplish in your career?

Spadez: Plenty of things. I want to become one of the top wrestlers in Ohio. I want to go back to the school AJB and I graduated from and run a benefit show, I want to make the PWI 500, I want to get my picture in the PWI magazine, I want to get to where I can quit my job and live off of wrestling. I want to wrestle across the country and on TV. There is a long list of things I want to accomplish.

Huskie: After your career is over. How do you want to be remembered?

Spadez: I don’t expect to be remembered, but if I am, I’d hope I’m remembered for being entertaining.

Huskie: What companies do you currently work for?

Spadez: I work for Rockstar Pro, HWA, LSC, Bizarro Live, and the returning PT Wrestling.

Huskie: What does it mean to you to go back and work for the first promotion that you ever worked for.

Spadez: It truly means more than words can possibly describe. I still have the video of my VERY FIRST match and it is horrendous. I only had two matches at PT Wrestling before they shut down, and both of them were horrible. I remember before both matches, I was so nervous I could barely talk, but trying to act cool and confident. It will be amazing going back to my original fed with everything I’ve learned. Plus, who wouldn’t be excited working a fed with Jimmy Yang in the back watching your match, ready to give you feedback as soon as you come through the curtain. July 5th can’t come soon enough. Remember…the return of PT Wrestling on July 5th at 1930 Fairgrove Ave. in Hamilton Ohio, bell time 7:00 PM.

Huskie: Let’s go back and talk about another promotion you are working for. That promotion being Bizarro Live, they are definitely the most unique promotion in the state. What are your thoughts on Bizarro Live?

Spadez: I love working Bizarro Live and your right everything about the promotion is unique. They’re off the wall, and sometimes cheesy, but that’s what works for them. Bizarro Live always draws big crowds, I have yet to walk into that building and see less than 100 people in the crowd. Bizarro fans are some of the easiest and most fun to wrestle in front of as well. As soon as I step through that curtain the “Spaz” chants are overpowering, it’s hard to hear yourself think. When I hear a crowd THAT fired up, I’m just that much more motivated to leave it all out in the ring. Plus, Bizarro Live is one of the few feds that moves around. As I said earlier, one of my favorite moments in wrestling was walking around in my wrestling gear at the Anime and Gaming Convention at the Great Wolf Lodge. Surrounded by comic books, video games, anime nerds and girls, it was an experience I’ll always remember. As long as Bizarro is running, Spaz will be there creeping out girls and giving the little kids nightmares!

Huskie: Why should a promoter book you?

Spadez: Because I’m straight up creepy and weird…AND I can wrestle. I may not have the physique yet, but it’s coming. Every match I wrestle, I rewatch over and over looking for ways to make it better. I have that fire, I take this wrestling thing serious.

Huskie: Is there anything you would like to say to your fans?

Spadez: Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you! I just hope that you guys have as much fun watching me as I have wrestling in front of all of you. Whether you cheer me or call me “Spaz”, I am loving every second of it, so thank you!

Huskie: Speaking of fans we have a question from a fan. Derrick Jolley asks “When can I hold the Hello Kitty again?”

Spadez: (laughing) The only place I still carry the Hello Kitty doll is at Bizarro Live. He’d have to come out to one of their shows. I suggest checking out the July 18th show at the Warren County Fair, he can watch me destroy Aaron Williams!

Huskie: How can your fans follow you online?

Spadez: On Facebook at www.facebook.com/ZakkSpadeZ or on Twitter @ZakkSpadeZ.

Huskie: Zakk, that is all the time that we have for today. I would like to thank you once again for your time, it’s been fun.

Spadez: It was my pleasure buddy, thank you!

Huskie: Alright wrestling fans, get out to a show near you and check out this amazing young man as he continues to make a name for himself in Ohio. Until next time, you’ve been Hanging with Huskie!