Mick Gene 10-18-2006

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The Unofficial Top 10 Most Important Moments in Next Phase Wrestling

The following is, in my opinion, the top 10 most important moments in NPW. Top 10 lists can never be agreed wholly upon. I hope you find this column entertaining as a trip down NPW's memory lane.

10. The First Show. The guys involved with Next Phase's first show, Christmas Slay '99, will tell you it was terrible. Still, you've got to start somewhere. All the first champions were decided and it was clear that even though Big Smith won the NPW Heavyweight Championship, the Ultimate were the franchise players.

9. The Wrestling Revolution 2000 Incident. Even though none of us likes to think about it, this has to be the most controversial moment in NPW. There's no need to get into who's at fault and who was involved, but it solidified that what took place was not the direction we wanted our style to go.

8. King of Extreme Comes to NPW. At first a DCW event, the King of Extreme elimination hardcore tournament was taken to a new level by NPW and became the most anticipated show of the year. Too many great and memorable moments happened at King of Extreme to run down, although in my infinite nerdiness I would happily do the research.

7. Big Smith vs. Omega, Next Event 2000. For me, this was the first memorable match in Next Phase Wrestling. Whenever I think of best of the early years, this one comes to mind first. With the flow of the match being better than anything we'd seen at the time and of course the explosive finish, Big Smith defeating Omega for the NPW Hardcore Championship raised the performance bar for the organization.

6. EBW Comes to NPW. Dare Devil, Wayne and Jade Shocker, X-Celerator, and Scarlet Spider coming to Next Phase Wrestling helped to sinch that time as being our "boom" period. A new style was introduced and new faces meant fresh and innovative feuds. Most would go on to win championships and headline shows, notably Wayne Shocker reigning as NPW's last Unified Hardcore Champion.

5. Joey the Intern Becomes Joey the King. After Randy Dekin left Next Phase Wrestling and we escaped General Sherman's clutches, we needed someone to step up as the new promoter. Emperor Tukre owned the place, but he didn't run it. Joey was the one who told Sherman no when he tried to get us to join him and his friend's boxing commission. He shared our vision of what we wanted NPW to be, and it resulted in our "boom" period.

4. Wild Bill wins the NPW Championship. Although he wasn't a fan favorite and he used the aid of General Sherman to accomplish it, Wild Bill defeating Arnie Ambiguous at Open Season in November 2002 made a statement that spoke volumes. When NPW started, Randy Dekin made it clear that he didn't think Wild Bill had what it took to be a main eventer, let alone a heavyweight champion. Well the periods in NPW when Bill was "just a lightweight" and when he was champion are night and day. Interest in NPW would flourish all through Wild Bill's reign as champion.

3. Ultimate Disbands. When the Backyard Brawlers defeated Alpha and Omega at 2001: A Wrestling Odyssey, they didn't just end Ultimate's reign as NPW Tag Team Champions. They ushered in a new era. For over a year, Ultimate dominated NPW's shows and was the focal point of nearly every main event. Alpha and especially Omega would still continue to make their marks, but stand outs like Wild Bill and Big Smith took the ball, eventually ushering in NPW's "boom period."

2. DCW comes to NPW. It's gonna be hard to write this one without putting myself over too much (it's enough that I listed it at #2) but since NPW only started with 5 guys, it would've been only a matter of time before things got really stale. Since guys like Mars, Arnie and Wildkat came to the scene, NPW didn't end up with nothing else to do. I was originally going to call this entry "Zero comes to NPW" because without his training, which was a major factor to our "boom" period, we still would've been grabbing right handed headlocks. Did Zero's help turn us into professional wrestlers? Gawd no. I'd be insulting the guy if I made that claim. However, we learned how to be safe and it gave us a whole new insight on what goes on in the ring.

1. NPW Moves Into the Brummett Arena and Livestock Center With the Perfect Ring. To me, this was the start of the "boom" period I've spoken of several times in this list. It gave us a renewed excitement to do what we did. We were back indoors since the Sherman's Manor stint. We had a new ring that bumped like a stack of pillows and El Ninja didn't have to worry about the top rope breaking on him. Joey the Intern was booking matches that we wanted to see whether it be for the wrestling or the humor. Our roster had become complete with the additions of the EBW guys and Sparky. The NPW Championship had more meaning than ever when it was around Wild Bill's waist. We looked forward to the next shows and didn't mind wrestling when it was freezing out because it was just so much fun. When we had to move to the Brummett Field and Cow Pasture, there may still have been some zest there and great moments did happen like the Zero vs. Benson feud and the very enjoyable last show. But nothing tops NPW's "boom" period, and it happened because of the venue and the ring.


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Top 10 lists can never be agreed wholly upon. I hope you find this column entertaining as a trip down NPW's memory lane. 10. The First Show. The guys involved with Next Phase's first show, Christmas Slay '99, will tell you it was terrible. Still, you've got to start somewhere. All the first champions were decided and it was clear that even though Big Smith won the NPW Heavyweight Championship, the Ultimate were the franchise players. 9. The Wrestling Revolution 2000 Incident. Even though none of us likes to think about it, this has to be the most controversial moment in NPW. There's no need to get into who's at fault and who was involved, but it solidified that what took place was not the direction we wanted our style to go. 8. King of Extreme Comes to NPW. At first a DCW event, the King of Extreme elimination hardcore tournament was taken to a new level by NPW and became the most anticipated show of the year. Too many great and memorable moments happened at King of Extreme to run down, although in my infinite nerdiness I would happily do the research. 7. Big Smith vs. Omega, Next Event 2000. For me, this was the first memorable match in Next Phase Wrestling. Whenever I think of best of the early years, this one comes to mind first. With the flow of the match being better than anything we'd seen at the time and of course the explosive finish, Big Smith defeating Omega for the NPW Hardcore Championship raised the performance bar for the organization. 6. EBW Comes to NPW. Dare Devil, Wayne and Jade Shocker, X-Celerator, and Scarlet Spider coming to Next Phase Wrestling helped to sinch that time as being our "boom" period. A new style was introduced and new faces meant fresh and innovative feuds. Most would go on to win championships and headline shows, notably Wayne Shocker reigning as NPW's last Unified Hardcore Champion. 5. Joey the Intern Becomes Joey the King. After Randy Dekin left Next Phase Wrestling and we escaped General Sherman's clutches, we needed someone to step up as the new promoter. Emperor Tukre owned the place, but he didn't run it. Joey was the one who told Sherman no when he tried to get us to join him and his friend's boxing commission. He shared our vision of what we wanted NPW to be, and it resulted in our "boom" period. 4. Wild Bill wins the NPW Championship. Although he wasn't a fan favorite and he used the aid of General Sherman to accomplish it, Wild Bill defeating Arnie Ambiguous at Open Season in November 2002 made a statement that spoke volumes. When NPW started, Randy Dekin made it clear that he didn't think Wild Bill had what it took to be a main eventer, let alone a heavyweight champion. Well the periods in NPW when Bill was "just a lightweight" and when he was champion are night and day. Interest in NPW would flourish all through Wild Bill's reign as champion. 3. Ultimate Disbands. When the Backyard Brawlers defeated Alpha and Omega at 2001: A Wrestling Odyssey, they didn't just end Ultimate's reign as NPW Tag Team Champions. They ushered in a new era. For over a year, Ultimate dominated NPW's shows and was the focal point of nearly every main event. Alpha and especially Omega would still continue to make their marks, but stand outs like Wild Bill and Big Smith took the ball, eventually ushering in NPW's "boom period." 2. DCW comes to NPW. It's gonna be hard to write this one without putting myself over too much (it's enough that I listed it at #2) but since NPW only started with 5 guys, it would've been only a matter of time before things got really stale. Since guys like Mars, Arnie and Wildkat came to the scene, NPW didn't end up with nothing else to do. I was originally going to call this entry "Zero comes to NPW" because without his training, which was a major factor to our "boom" period, we still would've been grabbing right handed headlocks. Did Zero's help turn us into professional wrestlers? Gawd no. I'd be insulting the guy if I made that claim. However, we learned how to be safe and it gave us a whole new insight on what goes on in the ring. 1. NPW Moves Into the Brummett Arena and Livestock Center With the Perfect Ring. To me, this was the start of the "boom" period I've spoken of several times in this list. It gave us a renewed excitement to do what we did. We were back indoors since the Sherman's Manor stint. We had a new ring that bumped like a stack of pillows and El Ninja didn't have to worry about the top rope breaking on him. Joey the Intern was booking matches that we wanted to see whether it be for the wrestling or the humor. Our roster had become complete with the additions of the EBW guys and Sparky. The NPW Championship had more meaning than ever when it was around Wild Bill's waist. We looked forward to the next shows and didn't mind wrestling when it was freezing out because it was just so much fun. When we had to move to the Brummett Field and Cow Pasture, there may still have been some zest there and great moments did happen like the Zero vs. Benson feud and the very enjoyable last show. But nothing tops NPW's "boom" period, and it happened because of the venue and the ring.