Chino Guinto is one of the first wrestlers from the Philippines that I watched back around 2020 on You Tube during the pandemic times. You could see from his matches, that he is a popular wrestler in this area.
He has wrestled for both Philippine Wrestling Revolution and the current Filipino Wrestling Revolution. This fan was fortunate to see him in action. In August, at the Astig show in Circuit Makati, he faced another one of my favorite wrestlers in Bolt.
Am grateful that Chino wanted to do this. A few weeks ago, he answered some questions. Here is how the interview went.
Wayne: How long, other than the pandemic time, have you been wrestling?
Chino: I started training with PWR mid 2015 and was debuted as a talent mid 2016.
Wayne: What moment in time did you feel that you wanted to become a professional wrestler?
Chino: I’ve always wanted to be a wrestler. But the reality was, there wasn’t an avenue to become one here in the country when I was younger. I did quite a bit of sports as a student athlete with football and basketball, among other things, and even then I’ve always felt that I wasn’t able to fulfill my full talent and skill potential. When the opportunity did present itself to become a wrestler, I was still hesitant if this was something that I wanted to do. But it was clear after my first bump that I was meant to be a wrestler.
Wayne: Chino, this may be a tough question, but what do you believe was your best pro match up to now?
Chino: PHX Championship match against Billy Suede, Oct 2019. It was the biggest local pro wrestling event at that time, with a wild crowd crazy for wrestling, and against someone established and helped elevate our scene—was an experience like no other.
Wayne: Do you have a favorite promotion or promotions that you watch outside of FPW? It can be local, international or both.
Chino: The main ones: WWE, AEW, NJPW, Impact, etc. The truth is, it would be foolish to not take notes and take best practices from these successful promotions.
Wayne: Do you have a favorite wrestler that you watch today?
Chino: I have my usual faves but I watch a lot joshi lately as well. Local: keep your eyes on Thiago. Man’s more than just muscles.
Wayne: Chino, what are your thoughts on pro wrestling in the Philippines now and its future?
Chino: Brighter than ever! We recently launched FPW Astig, FPW’s flagship Youtube show and got glowing feedback. We aim to make pro wrestling as a viable entertainment platform in the country and while we acknowledge that it will take a lot more work, this is a great step towards that direction.