September 16, 2002   WOW, did the "HLA" segment on RAW, featuring UPW's own Looney Lane and Savvy ever get a lot of media attention!  Far be it from me to second guess the concept for the angle or its presentation -- for when it comes to the pro wrestling business, WWE is way ahead of any of us.  What I can comment on though is, I'm glad Looney and Savvy did it.  One, this is the entertainment business.  They were playing a role and in my opinion, did a darned good job of it.  Two, whether or not this angle goes anywhere, Jenny and Sacha scored some major points with WWE.  They came in with just a couple of day's notice, were given a lot to do and performed admirably, took some serious bumps without complaining and all in all, were well-received as complete, enthusiastic professionals. It's often been discussed that when Lisa Marie "Victoria" Varon first went from UPW to WWE, she went as one of the Godfather's "hos."  Now, less than 2 years later, she looks to be a contender to wear the WWE Women's Title in the forseeable future.  Remember, "ho," "HLA," --or for that matter "Ringmaster" or Dr. Isaac Yankem-- this business is forever evolving and the cooperative, team player that hangs in there has a good chance to get over in a strong role.  So to Jenny and Sacha -- congratulations; and to WWE, on behalf of myself, Savvy, Looney and all at UPW, thanks for the opportunity.   Seven of our UPW talent are currently on tour with Zero-One as part of its "Genesis 2" tour. This time out, the UPW contingent consists of Tom Howard, Sylvester "Predator" Terkay, Nathan Jones, Brian "Spanky" Kendrick, Televise "Skulu" Masalosalo, Ryan "Keiji" Sakoda and UPW referee/booker Marty Rubalcaba.  Although you would thinks the odds would be against it, by all accounts, ALL have been very well-received throughout the entire tour.  I think that given time, Spanky will evolve as one of the best  workers in the business.  Keiji is now realizing the potential so many have seen for him and he promises to be a player at Zero-One.  Skulu has one of the best and most easy to identity gimmicks I've seen in some time, and that will get him a long way.     Zero-One continues to get just more and more solid with each tour and I'm glad we have the opportunity to make a contribution.  I'm hopeful that we'll soon be able to bring them to Southern California for a meaningful live outing, which would be telecast via pay-per-view in Japan   I'll go on record right here and now by saying that I think Tom, Sylvester and Nathan are a big part of the future of this business.  Although many aficionados of  independent wrestling feel it is not "fair," having extraordinary size coupled with a compelling look is a huge advantage in this business.  Each of these gentlemen has this in abundance, but beyond that Tom, Sylvester and Nathan each bring several other assets to the table. There have been tons of rumors, internet and otherwise, that they're going to WWE, Pride, New Japan, etc. Although I have no doubt they'd make a significant impact wherever they may go, they are currently solid with Zero-One, where Mr. Hashimoto, Mr. Nakamura and their hard-working company have done an excellent job in getting The Green Beret, Predator and The World's Strongest Man over.  No matter  what the future might bring, before all is said and done, look for each to make a MAJOR  mark in this business.   Ultimate University enrollment and attendance is at an all-time high.  A "trend" that has recently emerged at UU is that we have a larger --and more serious-- group of women training than at any time in our past.  We currently have no fewer than six that in my opinion, "have the goods" to go all the way.  The business --and WWE in particular or so it seems-- are currently looking for women who can work.  Strangely, I think that gives our girls an advantage.  Here's why:  As little as 2-3 years ago, women with particular "assets" were still being brought in solely "valet" and "manager" roles.  Most had never gone to wrestling school or had any real training.  Once the business began to look at women more as in-ring performers, the majority of the girls had to get their training either through the pressure-filled situation of actual matches or whenever they could steal a few minutes of ring time once the ring was set up in an arena but before the doors opened for the fans.  Although certain Divas, Trish Stratus for instance, have obviously thrived, learning "on the road" is by its very nature a challenging proposition at best.  As I mentioned, in terms of looks and athleticism, we have at least six "real" female prospects.  At UU, we have four training days per week, one practice show per week, a strong group of excellent trainers and I'm confident, a strong understanding of how to prepare these girls for their shot.  The question now is.....will "our" girls have the dedication that is so necessary to make it? All this having been said, it will be extremely interesting to see what the next few months will bring.   One of the girls I've been very impressed by is Anni King from "Tough Enough 2."  Through Tough Enough, she was given her start in a much different way than most.  (Yes, I know the actual training was strenuous, but c'mon, how many wrestlers-in-training live in a mansion with a hot tub and get paid besides?!?) A blown out knee ended her TE bid for that developmental deal...at least for the time.  She has since --with an extremely positive attitude-- worked through her injury and given her all to her development as a professional wrestler.  I think her chances are good.  I'm also impressed much in the same way with Hawk Younkins (Tough Enough 2), Mike "The Miz" Mizanin ("The Real World" New York) and Erica "Jungle Grrrl" Porter and Nikki Fuller (both from WOW).  Each first appeared in a "pro wrestling role" through national television exposure and each has since put that glitz and glamour on hold and gotten down to business in the training ring.   UPW wrestler Brandon "Matrix" Troubaugh, who assists Tom Howard at UU on Saturdays (when Tom is in town, that is) was married last Saturday and is currently honeymooning in Hawaii.  As some have said, his marriage will surely kill off his G.A.Y. (Gorgeous and Young) gimmick for good.  Don't be so sure!  In either case, we look forward to having Brandon back at the University next week.   I'm heading out to Chicago on Tuesday along with UPW wrestlers Looney, Savvy, Matt "Horshu" Wiese and UU trainee and world-class bodybuilder Melissa Coates to do an episode of The "Jenny Jones Show," which will tape on Thursday.  Also booked through Ultimate to appear on the show are my friends, US Olympics Bobsledder and world-class weightlifter Gea Johnson and Women's Welterweight Boxing World Champion Lisa Holewine.  On Wednesday, we'll appear on the nationally-syndicated "Mancow" radio show, which originates from Chicago.  Just another stop on the road in the on-going attempt to make an impact inthe entertainment world.  Should be fun!   Last Thursday, it was my honor to share about 20 minutes of time on Michigan Talk Radio with none other than Governor Jesse "The Body"  Ventura.  We spent the lion's share of that time talking wrestling and particularly, what it takes to make it in today's business.  I've never met Governor Ventura before and I'm thankful he took the time out of his busy schedule to do this show.  As always, he was outspoken,  funny and... just a little intimidating!  There will be an MP3 file of the show posted to our site shortly.   As long as I'm name dropping, I spent a few hours with Roddy Piper on Friday.  There are a couple of ventures --wrestling and non-wrestling alike-- that we're exploring together, and if or when they occur, I'll let you know.  Roddy's book, "In The Pit With Piper," comes out November 1 from Penguin-Putnam and he starts his national tour the following day.  He'll be touring in a state-of-the-art rock n' roll bus and will broadcast the tour live on the internet.  Should make for interesting viewing, just as his book should for reading.   A non wrestling (sort of) note:  Ken Shamrock is training hard in Dallas --along with fellow Lion's Den members Guy Mezger and Tra Telligman-- for his November 22 UFC showdown with Tito Ortiz.  Although Tito is undoubtedly at the very top of the game, I'm looking for Ken to "surprise" a lot of people come fight-time. I've known Ken for several years now.  He attended our very UPW show ever, back at the old Extreme U gym.  He's a good guy, and a serious one.  When he's training "for real", he just may be unbeatable.   The PWI 500 is due on the newsstands on October 1.  Yes, as many have said, the issue is a "work," but what part of entertainment isn't?  (Did Sly really kill several hundred enemies barehanded in the Rambo trilogy?)  So, I'm looking forward to the Top 500, where I think UPW will be well-represented.  If there were any real justice, many UPW wrestlers would be in the Top 100-150 in the world (and some would be much higher), like UPW Champ Tom Howard, and  Sylvester Terkay, Samoa Joe, Frankie Kazarian, Shane and Shannon Ballard, Nathan Jones, Mikey Henderson, Outlaw Mike Knox, Hardkore Kidd, Keiji Sakoda and Spanky, and several Zero-One standouts like Shinjiro Ohtani and Masato Tanaka, and of course Shinya Hashimoto and Naoya Ogawa.  I'm sure all these deserving talents, as well as many other UPW mainstays, will make it in. No matter how it all comes out, it always makes for an interesting read.   The Southern California wrestling community is excited --as it should be-- that WWE is in town next week.  Sunday, September is the "Unforgiven" pay-per-view at The Staples Center in Los Angeles, Monday is RAW from The Pond in Anaheim and Tuesday is Smackdown from San Diego.  Hopefully, several Southern California talent will get the opportunity to appear in "dark" or "extras" spots on these shows.   As I noted last week, we've finally settled our UPW debut date --for October 19--  at The Edgewater Resort & Casino in Laughlin, Nevada.  Nevada State Athletic Commissioner Marc Ratner got involved personally and was both very nice and very helpful in getting the date approved on the calendar.   UPW is back at our "home", The Galaxy Concert Theatre, for "Home of The Brave 2" on Wednesday November 6.  The show features defenses of all three UPW titles, the beginning of tournaments to establish two new titles and what should be a great 3-way with Samoa Joe Vs Christopher Daniels Vs Samoa Joe.  There is a full press release on Home of The Brave 2 here.   In closing, on behalf of all at UPW, I want to send out my very best wishes to Stacey Lee Herren of Sonicfish, who has been a major contributor to UPW in so many ways the past couple years.  She is facing some serious medical challenges and I hope we'll all keep her in our prayers as she goes into surgery in the first part of October.  Stacey Lee is strong and I have to believe she'll come back with the same fire she's always shown.   Thanx to you all for checking in and I'll look forward to catching up soon.   Rick       Just because I like this picture! (l-r: with ORIGINAL UPW girls Carnidge, Savvy, Looney & Miss Delicious)     Ultimate Update Archives:   September 5, 2002   August 1, 2002   July 1, 2002 -- Ultimate University   June 21, 2002   May 25, 2002   --   Japan and more