Ahead of Dragon Gate’s debut in the UK, Mark Sloan took the time to talk to me about his career, last year’s NOAH show, the upcoming Dragon Gate show, and a few other things in between.
Chris: Ok, well to start with incase anyone doesn't know who you are, or they've heard of you but are not sure of your experiences, give us a little bit about your background in the wrestling business.
Mark: Certainly, I am Mark Sloan, Portsmouth based UK wrestler/promoter and have been wrestling actively since 1995. I got my start with All Star Promotions and have wrestled for every major company (defunct or active in the UK for the last decade. I founded the Frontier Wrestling Alliance in 1999, opened Europe's largest and most prolific training school "The FWA academy" in 2002, formed A-Merchandise in 2005, spent the next 3 years boosting the production standards of many UK wrestling based groups and then last year I was responsible for brining Pro Wrestling Noah to the UK in 2008 and now of course in just a short time Dragon Gate in UK.
C: Between being a wrestler, promoter and a trainer, which do you prefer? Do they all have their highs and lows?
M: Indeed they do, all have their good and bad points as you have mentioned. I don't think I have a preference they are all difficult in their own way. I try to bring the optimum level of whatever I am doing at the time. Sadly for me, a lot of injuries in the last few years have made wrestling much more difficult than it should be; training people was enjoyable while people's attitudes were right....
C: Was that one of the reasons you opted to close the FWA Academy? I know you still have a few select students under your wing.
M: Right, a subject that I am known more for than my wrestling probably. In a nutshell I found that the majority of people who came to "train" to be a wrestler actually wanted to play wrestling, and that isn't what I was about. The financial side of things was great but at the end of the day sometimes it is better to take a stand against the decline of your industry rather than feed it. People who really wanted it made it known to me and those that didn't either didn't carry on or faded into obscurity, some still train elsewhere but I cannot see why people think that you do not need to train! It's insane, every other active sport, people train multiple times a week to stay in top shape but for some reason people think once you have had a few matches your training is finished? I think that is why wrestling is in such a bad way in this country 95% of all the people coming into / already in it, have the wrong attitude to it.
C: There seems, in my view, to be a declining talent base to the industry, with people foregoing psychology and fitness for a string of highspots which don't mean anything.
M: You are partially right; I don't think it is so much a particular style. I just think the attitude in general is wrong. What they do in the matches is just one faucet of what is wrong , the attitude outside of the matches is just as much to blame, maybe more so.
C: You've already mentioned the 2008 NOAH European Navigation show, and the upcoming Dragon Gate show, but what was your first exposure to the Japanese wrestling scene, its style and wrestlers?
M: Well I was never a real fan of Japanese wrestling, I actually only really started to follow it because Doug Williams was being brought in by Pro Wrestling NOAH. My interest obviously grew from there. People used to say back 5 or 6 years ago that my ring style was of a Japanese nature, which is strange because I didn't really follow it that much and wouldn't have known. As far as the first exposure to Japanese wrestlers, my second match February 96 I believe was at the local guildhall and I went on last. The matches I had to follow Robbie Brookside vs. Terry Boy, Great Sasuke vs. Danny Boy Collins, Tiger Mask and other top Japanese talent. Stands to reason I couldn't even think to follow them J. I also faced a lot of the guys from Pro Wrestling NOAH when they came over in 2006 onwards, to gain experience, thanks to NOAH's European Agent, Doug Williams, we got to face some of the top talent in the world with our FWA academy students, graduates and myself all benefiting from their style, approach and in some cases experience.
C: Yeah, I remember guys like Mohammed Yone, Takeshi Morishima, and Takashi Sugiura coming over. Was it Doug William's links to Pro Wrestling NOAH that brought the European Navigation show about?
Absolutely, on both accounts. I think, myself and the tag partner at the time were the first UK guys to work Yone and Morishima and it was a great experience. Sugiura worked with the Academy champion and Doug Williams in a cracking match, it is experience like that for a 19 year old that money just couldn't buy. Of course Doug was instrumental in helping organise the Noah event. I was eternally grateful for his faith and trust in us to delivery the event and he worked very hard to bring it all together on the Japanese side of things. He didn't have to but he was a tremendous help (Probably a massive understatement!)
C: Reflecting back on the show, would you consider it a success?
M: Of course. It was probably the most universally acclaimed show in Europe in recent memory. It was a great event for the fans and for Noah themselves, they put on a true event for the fans in attendance and I think anybody who was there live witnessed something special. The final two tag matches were just breathtaking, the Williams/McGuiness vs. Suzuki/Sugiura match was outstanding and the Dark Match was better than people thought it had a right to be. It isn't often you see 4 world class matches in the UK on the same night. This was definitely the case here.
C: Indeed, I was at the show next to the ramp and was blown away by the talent and matches on display, especially the GHC Jr. Tag match with Danielson and KENTA. I'd not seen anything of that caliber before live.
M: They held nothing back for sure and that’s what the fans wanted and they delivered. I didn't see much of the show, but I heard it and that was a thrill in itself, as I said before I think everybody got their monies worth at the event.
C: Do you think there will be a return of NOAH to the UK?
M: I think it is unlikely any time soon as the company has to concentrate on its home base for now. I would certainly be up for working with them again. They were professional and everything you would expect from one of the biggest companies in the world.
C: Yeah, they've had to regroup and refocus after Misawa's untimely death.
M: Amongst other things but another huge event in the UK would be impractical right now. I understand this and have not approached them about it. When the timing is right I am sure they will be back.
C: Has this been easier due to your experience with the NOAH show?
M: Absolutely, we are still learning too, we put on events for years but on a show where you are asking (in my opinion) a premium pricing, you need to deliver a premium product. We learnt so much from the Noah event (on our side) how we should have done things differently and how we would like to improve and we have learnt stuff from this event already. We try to surpass our efforts for each event.
C: You've got some British guys on the show, most of them with experience of the Japanese style, was that one of the factors when you were looking at who to book? Do you think any of them will get a chance to tour with Dragon Gate in the future?
M: Both Mark Haskins and Johnny Storm (as well obviously as Pac) have had previous experience working on these kind of shows and it plays a small part but alot of guys were under consideration and we sat down and discussed it at length, I think we have the right team. I don't think too much about what happens after the show, that is down to Dragon Gate, and it is not really something I worry about.
C: You've mentioned Pac there who was trained in part by FWA Academy. Is it rewarding to bring him back to the UK after the success he's had overseas?
M: Pac trained with us for a week, he wasn't trained by us. Pac is an exceptionally talented guy whose hard work and dedication took him to great heights. It is rewarding to see him doing so well for himself, it isn’t anything to do with the Academy or myself, Pac, just needed someone to get his name out there a little. I have alot of time for him, a top top guy. I take no credit for Pac, he deserves all the credit and praise himself.
C: Are there any matches you are looking forward to on the show?
M: I am looking forward to every match on the show. I hope we have done Dragon Gate justice, the tickets are sold out, we have spent literally thousands on exclusive production bits for this event. The organisational side of it has been worked on very closely and I just can't wait to give the fans the show they deserve!
C: Beyond this show, what does the future hold for A-Merchandise promoting Japanese supershows? Any other promotions in the pipeline?
M: We have had a couple of offers for company specific shows and one for a short tour in conjunction with one of the top UK groups but we're 100% focused on making Invasion: UK a great event right now and all other items for discussion are on hold currently. We'll assess the event, how we think we performed and what we need to work on before we get started on the next one.
C: Just to finish, is the show totally sold out or are there a few select tickets available, or will fans have to wait for the DVD of the show to see it now?
M: The show is Standing room only. There are a few seats being sold privately for people who either can't attend or have had somebody drop out. I am trying to look after these cases and don't mind helping people buy these seats if I can. The DVD will hopefully be available pretty quickly after the event so even people who cannot make the show live can witness what is sure to be an epic event
C: Any final comments?
M: Just to thank everybody who has been involved in organising these events, there are alot of unsung heroes who work behind the scenes to make the shows spectacular. While I won't name names as I would be sure to forget somebody! And in closing thanks for everybody who has purchased tickets to the event. I sincerely hope you enjoy it.
