I know wrestlers on the PWI 500

Bradon Espinosa vs. Farmer Billy Hills at Cape Championship Wrestling
Photo by: My 1-2-3 Cents

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

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I still remember buying my first pro wrestling magazine. I was 11 years old. It was the December 1984 issue of Pro Wrestling Illustrated. Barry Windham was on the cover and my favorite wrestler at the time, Kerry Von Erich was the poster inside. I bought every issue of the magazine from that time until the end of 1995, when the internet and Rec Sports Pro Wrestling (and my lack of space) took over. One of my favorite issues became the annual PWI Top 500. 

The first issue came out my freshman year in college. Hulk Hogan stood on top of the rankings in 1991. It made sense. He had a solid year, regaining the WWF Championship and defending the honor of America against the Iraqi-sympathizer Sgt. Slaughter. The unique thing about the Top 500 though was getting to learn more about wrestlers I'd never heard of before.

Espy goes to the top
Photo by: My 1-2-3 Cents

Now, some 27 editions later, I'm finding that I now know (like in person) some of the wrestlers who have made the list. I haven't seen everyone on the 2017 list, but I do know Brandon "Espy" Espinosa has once again been ranked. I met Espy during our days with All American Pro Wrestling. He was quite a talent then and has only continued to excel in the years that have passed. He has traded the Missouri Wrestling Revival Championship with his former partner in AAPW, Ace Hawkins this year and continues to wrestle around the country. In 2016 he did a show with Stride Pro Wrestling as well. 

"Golden Boy" Greg Anthony vs. Heath Hatton in AAPW
Courtesy: Jason Wilkey 

"Golden Boy" Greg Anthony has graced the PWI 500 list too. I also met Golden Boy in AAPW, where he wrestled everyone from Heath Hatton to The Mississippi Madman. He's recovering from a recent heart procedure but has been an established member of the NWA: Midsouth roster for years now.

Yep, that's me with Matt Cross (and guests)
Photo courtesy: Missouri Wrestling Revival

Matt Cross, who first came to prominence on Tough Enough several years ago, also wrestled a couple of times for AAPW. He too has been on the PWI Top 500. He continues to rise on the indy scene and is one of the top guys in Lucha Underground right now. 

As I mentioned, I haven't seen the complete list for 2017, if I missed someone on this year's list that I do know, I apologize. Congrats to Okada for being the first Japanese wrestler to top the list and to everyone else who made the cut. Check out the standings right here.

Introducing Pro Wrestling Elite

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

Three years ago if you would have asked me to name five independent wrestlers, I think I would have struggled. Now, after working with two different indy wrestling promotions, I’m proud to say, not only can I name hundreds of independent wrestlers, I can call many of them my friend as well. 

If you’re a fan of indy wrestling, you know that many of the same guys and gals wrestle for multiple companies.  While I haven’t had a chance to see them in person, one group I’m learning more about is Pro Wrestling Elite.  The company is based west Tennessee and features some outstanding talent, both rising stars and established legends.  I’ve worked with many of the guys in the locker room, including the very gifted Brandon Espinosa, the wildly popular Farmer Billy Hills, the brutally aggressive Bull Bronson, and the cunningly clever “Golden Boy” Greg Anthony.

Brandon "Espy" Espinosa 

Each man shines when he's in the ring, and you can believe they bring 110% when they come out to wrestle.  Most of my experience with Espinosa has been calling his tag matches.  He teams frequently with Ace Hawkins, and the pair has been very successful in the Midwest.  Their match against Team Overkill (Matt Cage and Christian Rose) was my favorite match to call.  They battled in a ladder match that I think rivals anything you’d see on the big stage.

Don't go messin' with this country boy
Farmer Billy Hills

Farmer Billy Hills has a special place in my heart.  I’ve visited his family (two legged and four legged) in Mudlick, Kentucky.  He works just as hard outside the ring as he does inside it.  Farmer does some amazing things between the ropes (and outside them) when you consider how big he is.  I’ve seen him fly through the ropes and take out opponents on the arena floor.  His attitude in the locker room is inspiring, and he never stops learning. 

He's a bull in a China shop
Bull Bronson

Bull Bronson is one of the most intimidating and quite honestly brutal wrestlers I’ve ever worked with.  His aggression in the ring has resulted in a lot of pain for his opponents.  I’ve seen Bull take out guys in handicap matches, knock down defenseless announcers, and throw guys through tables like it’s just another day at the office.  He’s a force to be reckoned with, and I suspect we’ve only seen a sampling of the pain and destruction Bull Bronson can deliver.  Simply put, he doesn’t care who gets hurt along the way, and will do what it takes to make it to the top of the mountain.  Honestly, I find his aggression and brutality refreshing.

Good as gold, and he knows it...
"Golden Boy" Greg Anthony 

Greg Anthony truly is golden.  He’s an old school wrestler who talks a big game, but unlike many wrestlers today, can back it up in the ring.  Golden Boy is one of my favorite indy guys on the mic today.  He tells fans that he is good as gold, and then climbs into that ring and backs it up.  I had the pleasure over Wrestlemania weekend to see Golden Boy wrestle and do some work on the mic.  He went toe to toe with the legendary Rock ‘N Roll Express, rivals that he and partners like Jason Rage and Matt Riviera have beaten for the PWE tag team titles before.

I’m looking forward to creating a relationship with PWE.  If you’re looking for some great indy action, I would suggest giving these talented wrestlers a look.  Here’s a link to the website, let me know who some of your favorites are on the roster.

Global Force Wrestling: Our Roster

By Kevin Hunsperger (with Chad Smart & Chris Hagstrom)
@kevinhunsperger, @chadsmart, & @chrishagstrom on Twitter

Some of the old gang over at Rafters Radio reunited online for a quick discussion about the newly formed Global Force Wrestling.  Jeff and Karen Jarrett are behind the effort.  You can read all the details right here.  The company recently announced on social media that they want fans to do a Fantasy Draft, picking four men and one woman to join the force.  The other rule, they must all be independent wrestlers.

I'll admit I still have a pretty limited area of experience in the world of independent wrestling, and when I put together my original list, I shared picks with Chris Hagstrom and Chad Smart.  But in an effort to have some variety, I expanded my horizons and updated my picks.  These are all great stars on the Indy scene, and because the rules state five, it was tough narrowing it down.  I based some of my picks on the men and women I've worked with over the last few of years in All American Pro Wrestling and Pro Wrestling Collision.  Others, I have watched and enjoyed as a fan.  So here we go.

Matt Cross

Kevin's Picks:

Matt Cross: I first met "M-Dogg 20" at AAPW Main Event in January 2012, but had seen his work on the previous season of WWE's Tough Enough.  Cross was cut from the show early on, but I think there was a disconnect with the judges and host "Stone Cold" Steve Austin.  I'd put him in GFW because I believe many fans know who he is.  He's got a great attitude (at least what I observed on the two occasions we worked with him) and he can do some pretty amazing things in the ring.  Even though he's been growing out the beard for a long time, I'd probably have him shave it as to not look like he's competing with Daniel Bryan and Eric Young.

Pokerface
Photo courtesy: Jason Wilkey

Pokerface:  During the first season of AAPW Collision, Pokerface was one of my favorite guys on the roster.  He was pretty quiet backstage and I didn't get a chance to talk much with him, but he was a hard worker and a professional every time he was at a show.  I remember at a non-TV taping event I did an interview segment in the ring with him where he threatened to beat me up.  Due to some unfortunate events, Poker wasn't able to stick around with us, but I think his future was pretty bright within the company.  He is doing great things in Tennessee right now and by the way, he beat M-Dogg 20 at that Main Event show.

Golden Boy in action
Photo courtesy: Jason Wilkey 

"Golden Boy" Greg Anthony:  Like Pokerface, Golden Boy eats, sleeps, and breaths wrestling.  He doesn't look like your typical Superstar, but his promos and his work in the ring are outstanding.  I always enjoyed talking with him at AAPW shows and pick his brain about the business.  Anthony has an old school mentality, which I respect and think still has a place in modern day wrestling.

Jervis Cottonbelly
Photo courtesy: My 1-2-3 Cents

Jervis Cottonbelly: I've only seen Jervis wrestle in person one time, and that was at a Wrestling is Intense show.  In fact, it was the last show the company had.  Jervis is a unique character who I think not only wrestles very well, but also has that marketing appeal to children that is valuable in the business.  I see a line of "Gentle" Jervis Cottonbelly merchandise ranging from masks, to toy moncels and fake mustaches.  I once did an interview with him through Google Plus and he's always got a great attitude.

The Great Cheyenne
Courtesy: Jason Wilkey

The Great Cheyenne: While working with AAPW, The Great Cheyenne came in and did several shows with us.  Fans wanted more ladies wrestling, and Cheyenne was able to deliver.  She could easily be booked as a monster heel and run over both the women and men on the roster.  I loved calling her matches and her blood curdling scream still rings in my ears from time to time.

And folks at GFW, if you're looking for a commentator who is willing to get in the ring and take a beating, call me...

Chris's Picks: 

DISCLAIMER: There are so many great wrestlers out there today that are under utilized and it is difficult to pick only four guys and one girl. I would like to add more to the list but I am staying within the parameters of the Draft. This list is also not meant to hurt anyone's feelings that I have worked with in the past. And finally… keep in mind that my picks do not include anyone associated with WWE, TNA, or ROH. 

Heath Hatton
Photo courtesy: Sarah Gardner

Heath Hatton:  The obvious first pick for me. Hatton has not been wrestling as long as some people may think, but he has a great look, skill in the ring (not to mention the best dropkick in the Midwest), and is on the radar of the three organizations mentioned above. If GFW is looking for a star, they will find it in Hatton. The biggest drawback for Hatton is his limited travel area. They say to make it, you have to travel the world and hone your skills. Hatton has the ability and a wealth of knowledge from legends and Hall of Famers, now he needs the chance to showcase it in front of new audiences.

Team Overkill
Photo courtesy: Jason Wilkey

Team Overkill:  Ok I'm stretching the rules with this choice but at least its ONE tag team. Matt Cage and Christian Rose are accomplished singles competitors, (Cage racking up gold in many midwest promotions and Rose with victories over majors guest stars brought in to Dreamwave Pro Wrestling), but in my eyes, they are without a doubt THE top tag team in the Midwest. They can have a great match with anyone and an amazing match with the best. The emotion they display can rile a crowd into a frenzy in 0.5 seconds. Both also do extensive tape study from past matches. These gentlemen truly eat, sleep, and breath Pro Wrestling. Not to mention extremely entertaining on twitter @BitterLunatic and @proudcaucasian.

Mr. Touchdown
Photo courtesy: My 1-2-3 Cents

Mr. Touchdown Mark Angelosetti:  Anyone who knows me well will giggle (And it's good…) but Mr. Touchdown has the complete package. Athletic, the look, charisma, an over the top character, and can back it up in the ring. A product of Mike Quackenbush's Wrestle Factory, Angelosetti has trained with the best and had matches all over North America. His athleticism allows him to wrestle any kind of match (technical, high flying, power, etc) and it's easy to "hate the jock." With the Rise of Chikara, we may see more of Angelosetti soon… At least one would hop

Danny Cannon

Dynamite Danny Cannon:  The one person I wanted to work with in AAPW and never got the chance to was Danny Cannon (or DC Dynamite if you watch AAW). He is the most acrobatic wrestler I have ever seen and done things even Adrian Neville would say… Wow. He is innovative,  explosive, and reminds me of a pit bull at times. Small in stature but powerful and fast. He had disappeared from the indies for a while but recently has resurfaced and am extremely happy for that. YouTube some of his work in IWAU and AAW to see what I mean. 

Angelus Layne

Angelus Penny Layne: I may not follow women's wrestling as much as I should. And this was a very tough category to pick as The Great Cheyenne, Stacey O'Brien, and MsChif are all at the top of the women's ranks and MsChif may very well be the best on the indies today. But my vote goes to Layne as I have seen a lot of her work and know what a fierce competitor she is. She is not afraid to take calculated risks in the ring and with her hair. Anyone who has followed her career knows that she went from a bubbly young upstart, to the disturbed and calculated competitor we see today. She will have continued success in Shimmer and hope to see her in more matches soon.

Honorable mentions:

Colt Cabana as a commentator (because comedy)

Archibald Peck, Mixed Martial Archie, The Mysterious and Handsome Stranger, R.D. Evans and the rest of the Faces of Evans

Adam Pearce

Chad's Picks:

Mr. Touchdown

Chris Hero

Uhaa Nation

Chuck Taylor

Candace LaRae

As Good As Gold

"The Golden Boy" Greg Anthony
One To Watch

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

I bought my first issue of Pro Wrestling Illustrated in 1984.  I can still remember it, heck I still have it.  It was the December 1984 issue, Barry Windham was on the cover and my idol Kerry Von Erich was the centerfold.  For the next 11 years I bought the publication.  I've still got them.

Last year something cool happened.  PWI featured my friend and colleague in the business, Chris Hagstrom.  At the time Chris was the executive producer of All American Pro Wrestling, a company I was doing play-by-play for.  It was awesome to know that all our hard work had paid off and AAPW was being mentioned on the same pages as WWE, TNA, and Ring of Honor.

In the most recent issue of PWI, another friend in the business stepped into the national wrestling spotlight.  "The Golden Boy" Greg Anthony graces the pages of PWI.  The magazine did a feature on Anthony, who is a competitor with Traditional Championship Wrestling.  He's a part of their "One to Watch" segment.  Golden Boy is no stranger to PWI, as they ranked him at number 434 in the most recent PWI 500.

"Golden Boy" in action
Photo courtesy: Jason Wilkey

Big props to Anthony, who has worked very hard to get where he is today.  I know The Golden Boy doesn't look like you're typical wrestler, but inside that ring he's like his catch implies, "good as gold."  I had the opportunity to work with Anthony in AAPW.  I always enjoyed him in the ring, as he was a throwback to the old school legends.  His work on the mic was always on par too.  I always enjoyed being in the promo area when it was time for the Golden Boy to do his work.

Getting pied
AAPW Fan Fest 2011

Anthony always took time to give me advice with my delivery as a commentator and helped me prepare mentally for my professional wrestling debut.  He also took a pie to the face (actually dozens) during a Fan Fest event.  I'm proud to say I got to pie him as well.

I haven't seen the Golden Boy in more than a year, which is unfortunate.  I'm not able to travel as much as I'd like to and watch other independent promotions, but I'd highly recommend if Greg Anthony comes to your town, check him.

PWI's 500: I Know Some of You

AAPW stars & guests in the PWI Top 500
Photo by Jason Wilkey

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

Since 1991, Pro Wrestling Illustrated has featured the top 500 men and women in the world of wrestling.  Each year they've come up with a list that covers the major companies and the independent leagues.  When the issue first started coming out, I had a subscription to the magazine and never missed one.  But with the rise of the Internet, I'll admit I stopped buying PWI, Inside Wrestling, The Wrestler, and WWF (yeah back then the F was still there) magazines.

Who knew 20 years ago when I was reading those rankings that I would one day be able to lay claim to  actually knowing wrestlers on the list?  And I mean legitimately know, not just guys I've interviewed like the Miz, Lex Luger, or Hacksaw Duggan.  Several AAPW wrestlers and guests made an appearance on this year's list.

We'll talk more about the top ranking guys on Thursday's From the Rafters Radio show.  You can click this link to listen live at 7 p.m. CST or search us on iTunes.  It's no surprise to me that CM Punk tops this year's list.  It's a well deserved honor in my view.  I'd like to share with you the folks I have had an opportunity to work with over the last 18 months or so with AAPW.  If you've not heard some of these names, I'm sure you will in the not so distant future.

Matt Cross, El Generico, PAC, and Colt Cabana
AAPW Main Event
Photo by Brian Kelly

Colt Cabana (44), El Generico (82), PAC (88), and Matt Cross (188) all appeared for the first time at AAPW Main Event in January.  It was a pleasure getting a chance to not only see these guys wrestle, but to call their matches too.  PAC and Generico had an amazing match which was probably the most challenging bout I've ever done play-by-play for.  Matt Cross put up a good effort against the undefeated Pokerface. He also returned to AAPW recently for Summer Chaos. Unfortunately I wasn't able to be at the announce table for Colt's match against Eric Wayne as I was preparing for my own match that night.  I'm excited that Colt will be joining us again on October 20 for Zero Hour.  More details to follow on that event.

Ace Hawkins & Brandon Espinosa
AAPW Collision
Photo by Jason Wilkey

Ace Hawkins (295) and Brandon "Espy" Espinosa (311) are great on their own, but they also make an excellent tag team.  They've dropped their "Minor Threat" moniker as they want to prove to the AAPW tag team champs they're serious about winning the gold.  By the way, Ace also appeared on WWE Extreme Rules as "Aaron Relic" alongside AAPW standout Heath "Jay" Hatton in a match against Ryback.  Who can forget that two is greater than one?

Other notables include Adam Pearce (62) who is the current NWA World's Heavyweight Champion. He's bringing that 10 pounds of gold to Marion, Illinois on September 22 and will defend it against Hatton.  I'm looking forward to that match for several reasons and will talk more about it soon.  I can't wait to meet him as well.

Mike Sydal (335) is a rising star, wrestling for AAPW and ROH among other companies.  Mike has had several matches in AAPW and he's got a lot of energy.  He's fun to watch and will continue to climb the ladder of success, much like his older brother Evan Bourne.

Dave Osborne (428) has had a handful of matches with AAPW as well.  He has come a long way and continues to improve as well.

"Golden Boy" Greg Anthony vs. Heath Hatton
AAPW Main Event
Photo by Jason Wilkey

"Golden Boy" Greg Anthony (434) has always noted that he's as good as gold.  I like his style in the ring and miss him at AAPW.  He's got an incredible amount of passion for the business and it shows in his work and his promos.  Golden Boy has offered me advice not only on commentary, but as I geared up for my one and only match back in January.  His advice is always appreciated.

Perhaps one of the biggest miscarriages of justice (thanks Gorilla Monsoon) is the fact that Sara Del Rey is ranked at 430.  She's only the fourth woman to crack PWI's Top 500 in its 22 year history. I've only seen her wrestle live a couple of times for Chikara, and I can tell you she deserves a much better ranking.  Of course, I'm sure the editors at PWI have a very difficult time coming up with this list and I don't envy them at all.  You're never going to please everyone.

What are you thoughts on the list?  Remember, listen to From the Rafters Radio and weigh in on the discussion via Facebook or Twitter (@RaftersRadio, @my123cents)