Let’s try this again, shall we?
I feel like it was last year when I wrote last on this site, talking about my big comeback match against Trip and how excited I was to get back in the ring and send Trip out with a bang. I was looking forward to coming back to the Buffalo crowd, and seeing the place that I would be in (probably) looking exactly the same way as I left it about five years prior. I was looking forward to ribbing a former tag team partner of mine during that show, which had about 3 or 4 other guys in on and would have caused him to cry about “disrespect” while we would all laugh our asses off. More than any of that, I was looking forward to saying good bye to the Buffalo crowd in a more formal manner than having the aforementioned former partner of mine “fire” me in front of a crowd that couldn’t or didn’t want to hear any of his senseless babbling anyways
Last year was going to right some wrongs. It was going to repair some bridges that needed to be repaired, and it was going to scratch that proverbial wrestling itch that I had developed towards the end of 2015 when the idea was initially presented to me. I wrote a blog saying essentially, just that. If you left off there and happened to tune out of the internet between the last time that I hit “Post” on a blog and now, then what I am about to say will come as a complete surprise to you.
That appearance did not happen.
Imagine my surprise when I find out that not only was another local promotion that I have/had a serious distain over going to be present at the show that I was going to be performing at, but I had come to find out that said promotion would be taking over the core of the company, and rebranding it under the vision of someone that shouldn’t have had any sort of book in the first place and was often credited as one of the main reasons that the original company went under. At the time the deal was made, those were not factors at all. Had they been, I would not have agreed to the match at all because I did not want to work with that promotion in any capacity (and I still do not want to). There were some deep, personal issues that went past the realm of wrestling that developed between the promoter of that company and myself, which I made public on the #GetReadyAmerica podcast and for me, I honestly did not find it worth my time to be in the same building as the guy that made a lame attempt to alter my personal life over his shitty playground.
So, I did not participate. I pulled out of the booking with about 2 or 3 weeks notice, and within an hour, Sean Carr was announced as my replacement. I thought that was that and I turned my focus to the IWF. I have known the Falco’s for about 15 years, and have seen the various incarnations of the IWF promotion, but never stepped foot there. I still had the itch, but there wasn’t a spot for me and it didn’t make sense to randomly insert some old guy that hadn’t wrestled in over 5 years in a program with someone that was new or whatever. So I would pop by and introduce myself to some of the newer talent and share a few laughs with some old friends while we waited for the best opportunity to reintroduce me to the Western New York fanbase.
This takes us to January 2017. I was the “Mystery Entrant” into the Marla Hansen Memorial Royal Rumble. Tylicious figured it out almost instantly after it was announced, but it was pure speculation until I got there where I was met with smiles, and an overall good vibe. The Rumble would begin in the second half of the show and I would both begin the match (Entrant #2) and end the match with Mikey Everynight (Entrant #1), whom incidentally is Marla’s son in law. Talk about a homefield advantage for him! The response that I got was positive and the questions of when I would be returning began. The answer was always, “It’s in their hands. Tell me when.”
After months of not being used and affectionately referring to myself as IWF’s Dennis Stamp, IWF’s Fall Classic would arrive and I will give the devil their due. These guys love to throw curveballs at their fans. In August, an idea had been discussed to have me come out in a mask and attack Eric Emanon following his match which would set up something between himself and I the following show. I was thrilled to do this, and mapped out the scenario in my head of how I wanted it to play out. Then…, SHOWTIME! As Eric was celebrating to his fans, out I come to literally no fanfare and once he turns around, I hit him with my signature lung blower and dropkicked him in the corner. From there, I would grab the IWF Suicidal 6 Way Championship and knock him out cold.
As I sat there, I began to hear murmurs from the crowd. Nobody knew who this was under the mask and I began to hear chants of “Who are you?” and people yelling for me to take the mask off and some even calling me a midget. I then dramatically paused, and then took the mask off and to anybody that has been around long enough to know who I was, there were stunned looks on faces, gasps, and clapping. I’d say about 60/40% the crowd did know who I was and did not expect me of all people to do that to the hometown hero. Someone that I have been openly supportive of throughout his growth in wrestling and NEARLY tagged with in June of 2016 when Cassius Cutcher could not make that show. Not only did I lay him out and lay the foundation for what’s to come, to add insult to injury, I took his Championship belt too.
The question that everybody wants to know is “why”? The answer to that….will come on Turnbuckle Talk Radio and a future edition of Better Live Than Dead. Come on, you didn’t really think that I’d just type out the why, did you?
November 17th is the date, mark it in your calendars. At IWF: Takedown, that match is happening. I will be there and when it has concluded, you will hear IWF Ring Announcer Chris Gullo say that the winner, “#ANDNEW IWF Money Champion, JC Money!”. The Suicidal 6 Way Title will be no more, and the Money Championship will be official and I will defend whenever I want against whomever I want. Who knows, maybe after I beat Eric and become the Money Champion, maybe I’ll drag Trip out of retirement and beat his ass like I should have last year. Maybe I’ll set my sights on Ron Falco and take his Ultimate Axxess Trophy and then cash that in against Skyros that night and take all of the IWF Titles before I ride back off into retirement as a first ballot IWF Hall of Famer.
The only way you’ll know for certain what will happen, is if you attend. So I invite you all to come on November 17th to not only the conquering hero’s return to the ring, but the coronation of a new kind of champion and the dawning of a new era in IWF that not even they knew was going to happen.
Buy your tickets now: http://iwfprowrestling.storenvy.com or at any of their other sponsors (Perri’s Pizza in Brockport or JBRD in the Greece Ridge Mall) because they will go fast and you don’t want to say in ten years, “Man, I wish I was there when JC Money defied his age and changed the course of IWF forever.”
Also, here’s a podcast:
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0KflKU7X6s?rel=0]
You can follow me on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @thejcmoney.
Photos made courtesy of Ivy Imagery.
