The show will be returning on Sunday, February 11th at the PMC Spotlight Blackbox Theater in Circuit Makati. Time is TBD (probably 2pm).
For tickets, please check the ticket2me.net website. For more on the upcoming show, please check back on their Facebook page which is FPW - Filipino Pro Wrestling. This blog will have updates as well. Thank you.
Mike Madrigal, Ralph Imabayashi and Cali Nueva would go through a competitive tournament to reach the finals. I was fortunate to see all three wrestlers live last August. There was no question in my mind then that all three grapplers deserved to be in the final on this very day.
Prior to seeing the August show, it was watching each on You Tube video when all three were with Philippine Wrestling Revolution. I knew about Ralph Imabayashi being PWR Champion longer than anyone in the promotion's history. But, after watching some video with Mike Madrigal and Cali Nueva, any one of the three could be the first FPW Champion.
This wrestling fan has watched this match a couple of times now and it was as action packed of a three way match as any triple threat match I've seen worldwide. All three brought their 'A' game that day to the PMC Spotlight Theater.
I want to say that Red Ollero and Poch Spice (who is also the ring announcer) did a good job with the commentary. They brought a lot of excitement to the match as well.
As 2024 is a few days old, I could see any of the three in this match holding the FPW Championship this year or sometime down the line. If you haven't seen the match, the link to it is below. Hope you guys enjoy it. The fans who were there back in April did just that!
This blogger has read the numerous comments from MWF wrestlers, staff and fans who are interested. Especially with the wrestlers, please read what they have to say before committing to this. What is mentioned is very important and it is from their experiences in the ring.
To find out more, please check the Manila Wrestling Federation page on Facebook. It is a lot more detailed there than what I'm sharing on this post!
To the fans who are reading this post, and live outside of the Philippines, I know first hand of several promotions that have had off and on sessions over the last few weeks (Grapplemax in Singapore and PWS Korea for example). If you are interested, please send me a message on Facebook (under SF Wayne) and I will try and connect you with a representative of the promotion. Promotions in Southeast Asia are continuously looking for aspiring people that want to become wrestlers.
All the best to MWF, Jake, Nigel and all the aspiring people going forward. Chelsea Marie, Joya, Isaiah Valencia, Joey Rosas and Kurt Jiminez have reached MWFs main roster over the last couple of years. There are at least two others that I know of that could be MWF bound in 2024!
One of the things the fans need to remember is that pro wrestling in Southeast Asia is not the WWE, AEW, TNA and New Japan Pro Wrestling. The four companies are established companies that have been around for awhile. The wrestlers, for the most part, are being paid full time to entertain the fans and are making good money.
Recently, I read where Triple H and management gave a majority of the wrestlers time off around Christmas time. That is a change from when Vince McMahon was running things. It appears that it helped somewhat because the shows that I've seen so far in 2024 have a little more bounce to them.
The four major promotions mentioned are on the road throughout the year. It is definitely different from the days of The Territory Era where wrestlers didn't travel quite as much and far. To wrestlers with these companies, they are constantly on the road.
With the Southeast Asia wrestling promotions, definitely it is a lot different. The travel within the promotions is very minimal. With wrestlers in a promotion, they are either going to school and/or doing a second job besides entertaining the fans. Certainly, they are not making the salary of the big four companies. Promotions currently are working hard in attempting to get sponsorships, donors and more to help pay for the venue as well as the employees.
Where WWE, AEW, TNA and NJPW have anywhere from 800-1000 shows per a calendar year, a Southeast Asia promotion may have anywhere from six to 10 shows. So, we are talking apples and oranges here. Hopefully, the fans see this. I look at this like an independent promotion in the Bay Area where I live. Most of the companies here have seven to eight shows per year.
Having one show every six weeks to two months is really good. Wrestlers need the time to train, try and stay in as good of shape as possible and more. There is also recruiting people to wrestle, promoting the product and more. Last year was a great year in what was just mentioned here. In 2024, it will even be better with the vision of the promotions in the region.
Looking forward to 2024, this fan is grateful for any promotion in Southeast Asia to have shows. With the amount of shows, this gives promotions time to prepare with production, planning, making sure that the wrestlers have practice time to prepare, and making sure that equipment is more than adequate and in great shape.
I feel if wrestling fans see the big picture, which this wrestling fan sees, the quality of the product will reach greater heights than ever in 2024!
A few days ago, Filipino Pro Wrestling came out with their top five moments for 2023. I would probably agree with the five that they came up with.
The top five does not include the two matches that I witnessed last August. The Robbie Eagles-Ralph Imabayashi and the Mike Madrigal-Duke Ortega matches were great matches in my opinion.
I believe they will likely appear in Season 2 of FPW - Astig which will likely happen sometime this fall.
Anyway, the top five moments can be viewed by clicking the link at the bottom of the post. For more on Filipino Pro Wrestling and season one of FPW - Astig, please check out all 11 shows on their You Tube channel.
Thank you to the staff at MWF for the very prompt schedule. Looking forward to being at one of the shows in 2024!
Alex Cool d. Hiroki.
Butch d. Karas.
War Bear d. Axe Wang.
The Joker and Ghost Wolf d. Black Ho and Ghost Fight and remains the NTW Generation Doubles King Champions.
Sky d. Lucifer and remains the NTW Undifferentiated Singles King Champion.
New Taiwan Wrestling's next show will take place on Saturday, January 20th. More on the show soon!
There was a mention about Ho Ho Lun, the Godfather of Hong Kong professional wrestling and possibly being on the card.
I had an opportunity in America of seeing him on television back in 2016 when he wrestled for WWE NXT. It was definitely great seeing a wrestler from Asia in the WWE.
After a couple of years, he returned to Asia to continue his career. He wrestled for a couple of promotions such as the Manila Wrestling Federation when he was the second MWF Pinoy Wrestling Champion. Eventually, he went over to Dragon Gate Japan Pro Wrestling.
I had an opportunity to see him live last month at MWF's final show of 2023. He wrestled "Danger" Rex Lawin in a #1 Contender's Match for the MWF title. Though Ho Ho Lun lost, the match was electric for those who were at the PMC Spotlight Center in Circuit Makati.
Ho Ho Lun, like Tajiri, is a knowledgeable wrestler throughout Southeast Asia pro wrestling. Neither wrestler needs to have a title. Showing up to wrestle at any promotion throughout the region will bring fans to the event.
Right now, Ho Ho Lun is on a wrestling tour throughout the United Kingdom. He says that he has a goal to one day appear at MKW's biggest show of the year. Don't be surprised if he does appear at the MKW show at the end of the month!
The lineup has not been announced as yet. However, I've been informed that The Eurasian Dragon from Ring Of Rebirth (Singapore) will wrestle in the show. Also, Shaukat will defend his title, the Ambition Wrestling Global Championship against an opponent yet to be named.
For more on tickets, please check the APAC Wrestling page on Facebook. Thank you.
Fabio Makisig after winning the MWF Pinoy Wrestling Championship in December 2022.
For the last couple of years now, this blogger has followed pro wrestling quite a bit in Southeast Asia. I've seen it firsthand in the Philippines with five shows over a calendar year.
Also, this fan has followed it quite a bit on social media outlets like Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), You Tube and several streaming providers.
This blogger has covered roughly 15 or so wrestling promoters throughout the region. There are several promotions such as Grapplemax Pro Wrestling in Singapore whom there's a high regard for. For much of the year, Big Dave was their Openweight Champion. He defended the belt against all comers and would also be on podcasts in the country sharing his thoughts of the coveted championship.
Late in the year, Big Dave lost a title match to Hotshot Wilson, a wrestler who was on the verge of being a champion for a couple of years. It will be interesting to see his reign in 2024.
Another pro wrestler I have a high regard for is a wrestler with the Manila Wrestling Federation.
At my first ever show outside North America, Fabio Makisig, definitely one of the most recognizable wrestlers in the Philippines, won his first MWF Pinoy Wrestling Championship in defeating another great wrestler in Jake De Leon. It happened at the Peta Theater Center in Quezon City at the 2022 Noche Buena show.
Like Big Dave in Singapore, Fabio defended the title against numerous competitors in 2023. The list included Nigel San Jose, Dabid Ravena, Migs Valdez, Robin Sane, Crystal, Ken Cifer and Jake De Leon prior to the eight man elimination last month.
However, it was more than the fact that Fabio defended and defended it successfully for nearly one year.
Fabio, as well as numerous MWF wrestlers, as well as staff members, took part in a lot of appearances in the Metro Manila community. There would be radio shows, television shows, appearances at a few of the area shopping malls.
Things would even be enhanced when around the middle of 2023, the Manila Wrestling Federation would be a part of a new channel in the country. The channel known as Rock Of Manila TV can be seen in much of the Philippines today!
Being fairly new to the pro wrestling scene in Southeast Asia, I'm not sure how popular MWF or that matter, Philippine Wrestling Revolution was prior to the pandemic.
However, I can say since post pandemic, the wrestling scene led by the Manila Wrestling Federation has elevated their game. Certainly, the MWF Pinoy Wrestling Championship has definitely been elevated and Fabio has a great deal to do with it. Hopefully, the kapafeds who followed him throughout 2023 will not forget what Fabio accomplished as champion.
Now, with Jake De Leon as the champion, this doesn't mean that Jake cannot elevate things in holding the belt. He has been a recognizable face in the pro wrestling scene for a few years now. He's not known as "Mr. Philippine Wrestling" for nothing. Whether the fans like him or not, it will be interesting to see his path as champion going forward.
Certainly, this fan is looking forward to what the path will be in 2024 for Fabio, Jake, for Oro Plata Mata and the Manila Wrestling Federation.
Here are the results from Manila Wrestling Federations's 2023 Noche Buena. The event was held on Sunday, December 3, 2023 at the PMC Spotlight Theater in Circuit Makati.
Grey Shirt d. Orange Shirt.
Ken Cifer and Saint John Martin d. Zera and Umezawa to win the World Underground Wrestling Tag Team Championship.
Isaiah Valencia d. CJ Serafin.
El Kapitunero d. Brother Benny.
Joey Rosas d. Michael Su and Bitman to win the Hong Kong-Philippine Alliance Cup.
Danger Rex Lawin d. Ho Ho Lun in the MWF Pinoy Wrestling Championship #1 Contender's Match.
The trial of Oppa KT and Tarek turned out as a guilty verdict for Tarek.
Aaron Liwanag d. Jomar Liwanag.
Super P. d. Chelsea Marie, Joya and Patricia Ligaia in a four way women's match.
Jake De Leon d. Main Maxx in the final two wrestler pairing to win the MWF Pinoy Wrestling Championship.
The match began as an eight man tag team elimination match between the MWF All Stars (Fabio Makisig, Robin Sane, Nigel San Jose and Danny Zamora) versus Team Oro Plata Mata (Jake De Leon, Main Maxx, Dabid Ravena and Kurt Jiminez). Also, team Oro Plata Mata will remain intact going into 2024.
From the Philippines to Hong Kong to Thailand to Singapore and more, shows were selling out in venues.
Current wrestling promotions would stream or have their shows on television for the first time in years.
A Chris Jericho podcast would feature two promotions in Southeast Asia for the first time.
There was a promotion in one country making its successful debut over a 10 month calendar stretch. The same promotion would follow by showing their shows over a 10 week time frame on You Tube.
There would be two - four way women's matches, in two different shows, with two different promotions in the same country. Though, as difficult as it is finding women to wrestle, both promotions were able to pull it off! In both cases, the fans who were present at the shows, showed their appreciation. This fan was fortunate to be at both of the events!
Pro Wrestling Illustrated, now a global magazine, has recognized several wrestlers from the region. That is a good sign of things to come.
In a couple of countries, things are still somewhat slow in recovery from the pandemic. However, there is progress with the promotions as the year is coming to an end.
With 2024 arriving soon, things will continue to improve. Numerous promotions are recognizing and seeing it. The fan bases of the different promotions in different countries are noticing it and this fan feels it from the various social media pages.
One thing worth adding. Since the new blog began in October, over 5,000 people and 137 countries have read at least one post. This is more than what this blogger would have ever imagined. Thank you for making this possible.
Hopefully, the fans who read this, whatever country one lives in, has an opportunity to see a show in your area in 2024. The promotions are doing everything they can to make pro wrestling entertaining as possible. All I can say it please check it out!
Happy New Year and a safe 2024 everyone!
Realizing that WUW - Philippines doesn't get as much ink on my blog as it should, still, the promotion needs to be recognized.
Led by a very talented performer in Saint John Martin, the promotion put on a great show with Dexcon being a major contributor in August of this year. The show, as well as the meet and greet with wrestlers throughout the Philippines and some of Southeast Asia was great! It was this fan's first taste of a meet and greet in Southeast Asia and it was very memorable.
Having the show at the Brawl Pit Bulusan in Quezon City was really cool too. The fans are right on top of the action which made the show even better. What this fan liked was the cafe next to the venue called the S. Brewed Cafe. The food was really good and something I would recommend to someone that is making a day of the show activities.
WUW - Philippines will be having their next show in March 2024 sponsored by Dexcon once again. This blogger will have continual updates on who will appear. The show is called WrestleStorm on it will take place on March 24th.
Finally, regarding WUW - Philippines, congratulations to Ken Cifer and Saint John Martin for winning the WUW Tag Team Championship at the 2023 Noche Buena show.