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Title: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: funk51 on May 03, 2013, 01:25:49 PM
killer kowalski school had triple h, chyna, perry saturn,damien sandow.putski's=stevie ray , booker t, ahmed johnson , chris masters. samoan school=batista, most of the samoans wrestlers who are all related. ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? ???
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on May 03, 2013, 02:36:41 PM
Tough call.

Stu Hart and his "Dungeon" are credited with producing the likes of Dynamite Kid, Davey Boy, Benoit, Lance Storm, etc. The problem I have with that is that most of those guys had prior and/or additional training elsewhere. They may have gotten their North American start (first exposure) in Stampede, but that's all the Harts can honestly take credit for in many cases.

Verne Gagne's camp turned out some fantastic talent. Verne had guys like Billy Robinson and Iron Sheik up there training the freshmen. Some guys, like Steamboat, had an amateur background, which Verne loved. Others, like Flair, were a huge work-in-progress. From what I've heard, Sheik did most of the formal grappling training. Robinson would come down only occasionally to "stretch" trainees; more to satisfy his own ego. Verne made those trainees, work, though. You can find old footage of some of those brutal sessions that were designed to weed out the week and create superior, legitimate athletes.

Karl Gotch trained both of Boris Malenko's boys, both of whom have outstanding reputations as legitimate shooters. Gotch also took his style (honed from what he learned on several different continents) to Japan, where he was responsible for teaming with Antonio Inoki to literally revolutionize the pro style over there. It started in NJPW, but soon expanded to Baba's All Japan and others.

I would have to say that Gotch gets my vote based on those facts.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Mr Nobody on May 07, 2013, 12:50:10 AM
Bruno Sammartino
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on May 07, 2013, 03:15:18 AM
Bruno Sammartino


I wasn't aware that Bruno trained anyone other than Larry Zbyszko.

Unless you count his son David.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Karl Kox on August 10, 2013, 05:39:08 AM
Dory Funk Jr. or Kowalski
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: The Showstoppa on August 10, 2013, 01:15:17 PM

I wasn't aware that Bruno trained anyone other than Larry Zbyszko.

Unless you count his son David.

Is that not enough?   ;D
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Mr Nobody on August 10, 2013, 01:25:55 PM
Ric Flair.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on August 10, 2013, 02:36:01 PM
Is that not enough?   ;D


I never pegged you for a Larry-Land fan, as he did most of his work up north.
 8)
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: polychronopolous on August 10, 2013, 02:42:58 PM
How about that "Sarge" guy from WWE? Is he still around? Did he train anyone of note?
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: The Showstoppa on August 10, 2013, 04:00:52 PM

I never pegged you for a Larry-Land fan, as he did most of his work up north.
 8)

Zbysko as a heel on GCW in 90's was golden. 

Story about Z.  Saw him walking around at a hotel in Atl before a WCW event in the late 90's.  Ole Big and I were having a few and saw him.  Called something out to him and he ignored us.  We started a Bruno chant.  Lol.  Couple o marks. 
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on August 10, 2013, 04:05:07 PM
Zbysko as a heel on GCW in 90's was golden. 

Story about Z.  Saw him walking around at a hotel in Atl before a WCW event in the late 90's.  Ole Big and I were having a few and saw him.  Called something out to him and he ignored us.  We started a Bruno chant.  Lol.  Couple o marks. 


Man, you guys are the shits!

 :D
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: The Showstoppa on August 10, 2013, 04:12:35 PM

Man, you guys are the shits!

 :D


I have a feeling you would have fit in nicely.

And I meant Z's work in Ga in the 80's. 
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on August 10, 2013, 05:04:19 PM
I have a feeling you would have fit in nicely.


I may still...

 ;)
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: The Showstoppa on August 10, 2013, 05:11:08 PM

I may still...

 ;)

Unfortunately our version of The Horsemen are scattered now.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on August 10, 2013, 05:13:15 PM
Unfortunately our version of The Horsemen are scattered now.


Do we have enough for an LOD?
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: The Showstoppa on August 10, 2013, 05:27:20 PM

Do we have enough for an LOD?

"Tell em big man!"

At this point I might have to be that stupid puppet that "genius" Vince paired th with.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on August 10, 2013, 05:47:50 PM
"Tell em big man!"

At this point I might have to be that stupid puppet that "genius" Vince paired th with.


Then OB can be the one to stick his hand up your ass to move your lips!
 :-X ;D
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: The Showstoppa on August 10, 2013, 05:51:12 PM

Then OB can be the one to stick his hand up your ass to move your lips!
 :-X ;D

Damn.  A bit harsh.  ;D
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on August 10, 2013, 06:01:03 PM
Damn.  A bit harsh.  ;D


All right then, we'll draw straws...
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Mr Nobody on August 10, 2013, 06:46:52 PM
Paul Jones.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: The Showstoppa on August 10, 2013, 06:50:04 PM
Paul Jones.

One of OLE BIGS all time favs.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Andy Griffin on August 22, 2013, 05:51:40 PM
The WCW Power Plant

trained that superstar "Hardworkin' Bobby Walker"  ::)

Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: The Showstoppa on August 22, 2013, 06:27:24 PM
The WCW Power Plant

trained that superstar "Hardworkin' Bobby Walker"  ::)



Who was the guy who had the gimmick about being "average?"  It was actually decent. 
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Andy Griffin on August 23, 2013, 01:49:18 PM
Who was the guy who had the gimmick about being "average?"  It was actually decent. 

I think it was Bobby Walker...the whole gimmick that hard work>natural ability hahahahaha  oh, brother  ::)
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: The Showstoppa on August 24, 2013, 12:14:01 PM
I think it was Bobby Walker...the whole gimmick that hard work>natural ability hahahahaha  oh, brother  ::)

No. It was a white guy.  He actually. Got a little push.  I will try to remember. 
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: The Showstoppa on August 24, 2013, 12:15:22 PM
Mike Sanders. 
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Ron Jeremy on November 03, 2013, 04:40:10 PM
The Great Malenko trained many wrestlers in the Tampa area.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on November 03, 2013, 04:42:38 PM
The Great Malenko trained many wrestlers in the Tampa area.


How much of the training did he actually do?
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: The Showstoppa on November 03, 2013, 05:24:02 PM
Jimmy Valiant has a school now. 
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: gmflex on November 03, 2013, 06:47:24 PM
Wcw power plant  :-X
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on November 04, 2013, 01:57:38 AM
Jimmy Valiant has a school now. 


Geezus...
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on November 04, 2013, 01:59:00 AM
Wcw power plant  :-X


Now you're talking!!
 :D
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: AVBG on November 04, 2013, 02:15:53 AM
Gotch
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on November 04, 2013, 02:23:57 AM
Gotch


Gotch trained both of Boris Malenko's boys, Joe and Dean; a fact of which he was quite fond of boasting.

Years ago, I'd contacted Phyllis Lee who ran the office at Dean's school. I was very disappointed to learn that Dean did very little of the actual training there, as he'd just begun working as a road agent for Vince. Dean more or less lent his name to the school and collected the money, while someone else did the leg work.

Killer Kowalski's school was also that way; at least when I inquired.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: funk51 on November 04, 2013, 11:51:20 AM

Gotch trained both of Boris Malenko's boys, Joe and Dean; a fact of which he was quite fond of boasting.

Years ago, I'd contacted Phyllis Lee who ran the office at Dean's school. I was very disappointed to learn that Dean did very little of the actual training there, as he'd just begun working as a road agent for Vince. Dean more or less lent his name to the school and collected the money, while someone else did the leg work.

Killer Kowalski's school was also that way; at least when I inquired.
according to chris jericho's book hart dungeon was like that at the end. a hart took the money and some old guy with a book trained you[chris j] you never saw a hart again.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on November 04, 2013, 04:09:10 PM
according to chris jericho's book hart dungeon was like that at the end. a hart took the money and some old guy with a book trained you[chris j] you never saw a hart again.


I was literally days away from obtaining a Canadian work visa and trading in my Camaro for a Jeep en route to moving to the legendary Calgary, Alberta Canada. Email correspondence with Bruce Hart put a quick end to that bullshit!
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on November 04, 2013, 04:10:19 PM
according to chris jericho's book hart dungeon was like that at the end. a hart took the money and some old guy with a book trained you[chris j] you never saw a hart again.


BTW - did you see my reply re: Goldust?
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Ron Jeremy on November 04, 2013, 04:49:53 PM
Malenko did quite a lot of the training. I trained there for 2 years 89-91 and he was there 2-3 days a week. He also ran outlaw shows against FCW and out drew them. Peolple that came and went at that time were Sean Waltman, Black Harts (including Dave Heath-Gangrel), Shamrock (Vince Torelli from theCarolina's), Mark Mero, Van Hammer, Jerry "Lightning Foot"Flynn, Bob Cook.......the list goes on.  Gotch came there quite a bit. Tough old guy.


 
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on November 04, 2013, 04:52:40 PM
Malenko did quite a lot of the training. I trained there for 2 years 89-91 and he was there 2-3 days a week. He also ran outlaw shows against FCW and out drew them. Peolple that came and went at that time were Sean Waltman, Black Harts (including Dave Heath-Gangrel), Shamrock (Vince Torelli from theCarolina's), Mark Mero, Van Hammer, Jerry "Lightning Foot"Flynn, Bob Cook.......the list goes on.  Gotch came there quite a bit. Tough old guy.


If he was still alive, I would pay money today to attend a workshop with Karl Gotch!
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Ron Jeremy on November 04, 2013, 05:18:37 PM
Heard a rumor he drank 6 Meisterbraus(warm) driving over the Skyway one morning.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on November 04, 2013, 05:48:40 PM
Heard a rumor he drank 6 Meisterbraus(warm) driving over the Skyway one morning.


Please share...
I know hardly any Karl Gotch stories!
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Ron Jeremy on November 04, 2013, 06:17:00 PM
He hated that bridge. He used to come to the school on sundays and train with the shoot fighters that went over to Japan. Masami Sumari was the main trainer. Bart Vail from Miami also came over . Gotch was almost God like to the Japaneese boys. There is a video on youtube in which Gotch explains conditioning for wrestling/shoot fighting. I rarely trained the shoot style. The business then was highly protected. If my memory is correct, Gotch trained in the mining camps in Europe as a young man. I only briefly talked to him as I trained mostly American style. He was big in person.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on November 05, 2013, 02:40:13 AM
He hated that bridge. He used to come to the school on sundays and train with the shoot fighters that went over to Japan. Masami Sumari was the main trainer. Bart Vail from Miami also came over . Gotch was almost God like to the Japaneese boys. There is a video on youtube in which Gotch explains conditioning for wrestling/shoot fighting. I rarely trained the shoot style. The business then was highly protected. If my memory is correct, Gotch trained in the mining camps in Europe as a young man. I only briefly talked to him as I trained mostly American style. He was big in person.


I understand he spent considerable time with the Lancashire-area shooters; most notably Billy Riley. Supposedly, the Wigan miners developed the catch-as-catch-can style of shooting. I believe he also learned other systems from other parts of the world, but gained his greatest fame in Japan, where he worked diligently with Inoki to infuse his own unique repertoire with the pro style over there. Inoki apparently adopted this new style for his workers, which soon spread to other promotions like All Japan and IWGP.

Please interject anytime to correct any inaccuracies. I'm only going by bits and pieces of information I've gathered from various sources over the years.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: funk51 on November 05, 2013, 08:15:55 AM
  ;D
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Mr Nobody on November 05, 2013, 10:19:33 AM
Black Jack Mulligan.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: yates fan on November 05, 2013, 02:02:57 PM
stu hart!
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on November 05, 2013, 05:20:05 PM
stu hart!


Who did Stu train?
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Ron Jeremy on November 05, 2013, 05:40:14 PM
The Dudley boys have started a wrestling school in Orlando and some talent is starting to come along.
 

Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on November 05, 2013, 05:50:32 PM
Lance Storm has been turning out some good ring hands at his Calgary school.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: yates fan on November 06, 2013, 07:49:28 AM
who did stu train,you are kidding right,all his kids,bret,owenetc. jim nieinhartd,chris benoit,the british bulldogs,chris Jericho,the list is endless.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on November 06, 2013, 05:32:17 PM
who did stu train,you are kidding right,all his kids,bret,owenetc. jim nieinhartd,chris benoit,the british bulldogs,chris Jericho,the list is endless.


You may be surprised to learn that Stu did far less of the actual training than many people think.

Davey & Dynamite were both trained by Ted Betley in Lancashire before even coming to North America.

Benoit learned the basics in the "Dungeon," but earned his wrestling PhD while working in Japan.

Lance Storm & Chris Jericho were trained together by the Hart brothers. And again, both guys merely picked up the basics in Calgary while expanding their repertoire in promotions abroad.

As for the Hart boys, Hito and the Cuban Assassin conducted most of the lessons when Bret & his siblings were learning the ropes. Bret discusses that time at length in his (very lengthy) book.


You seldom hear any Dungeon graduates mention training with Stu. It sounds like he left the operation of his "school" and Stampede promotion largely in the hands of others. I get the impression that he sat in on some of the training sessions, but was nowhere near as actively involved as the public perception.

From what I've learned and observed over the years, the Harts are a lot of "talk."
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: yates fan on November 07, 2013, 09:31:11 AM
I guess that is actually true,that stu wasn't as much hands on,i read brets book,actually enjoyed it.but regardless it was still stus dungeon,just not necessarily his training.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on November 07, 2013, 04:03:41 PM
I guess that is actually true,that stu wasn't as much hands on,i read brets book,actually enjoyed it.but regardless it was still stus dungeon,just not necessarily his training.


I enjoyed Bret's book, too, primarily because it covers many of my favorite times in wrestling. If you're interested, a good companion to that book is "Pure Dynamite" by The Dynamite Kid Tom Billington.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: yates fan on November 09, 2013, 07:18:12 AM
I will have to find that book,i didn't know dynamite wrote a book,bret talks a lot about dynamite in his book,according to bret dynamite is the first guy to introduce him to anabolics.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on November 09, 2013, 08:01:24 AM
I will have to find that book,i didn't know dynamite wrote a book,bret talks a lot about dynamite in his book,according to bret dynamite is the first guy to introduce him to anabolics.


Dynamite was the first to do a lot of things, and I was always a huge mark for him. He recently sat down for a lengthy shoot project with Highspots.com. It's on my list!

You may also be interested in this thread: http://www.getbig.com/boards/index.php?topic=290326.msg4120145#msg4120145
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Karl Kox on November 15, 2013, 05:26:45 AM
Lance Storm has been turning out some good ring hands at his Calgary school.

If I was a young guy trying to break in, thats where I would go.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on November 15, 2013, 03:55:53 PM
If I was a young guy trying to break in, thats where I would go.


Always a fantastic worker, and his articles indicate he's got a terrific mind for the business.

He's also very well connected, which bodes well for his students finding work connections. He even left the Fed on excellent terms, too!
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Playboy on January 14, 2014, 05:57:13 PM
Without a doubt Stu Hart. Hiro Matsuda as well.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on October 08, 2015, 03:18:38 PM
Pitty bump...

I'm going with Verne & his AWA camp.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: calfzilla on October 08, 2015, 09:00:43 PM
Lance Storm has been turning out some good ring hands at his Calgary school.

If I was serious about being a pro wrestler I would most likely go here. Have lots of respect for Storm.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Montague on October 09, 2015, 01:23:42 AM
If I was serious about being a pro wrestler I would most likely go here. Have lots of respect for Storm.


Austin gave Lance & his school a rub on his podcast.

I was a huge mark for Storm in the late 90's. Had he been operating his school when I was training, I most certainly would have considered and gone up North.
Title: Re: which wrestling trainer produced the best crop of grapplers?
Post by: Playboy on October 09, 2015, 11:30:50 AM
If I was serious about being a pro wrestler I would most likely go here. Have lots of respect for Storm.
Stu Hart's dungeon bread some of the best players in the business. Benoit, Jericho, Bret Hart, Owen Hart, Lance Storm, Superstar Billy Graham, Brian Pillman, Bad News Allen, etc.