Alas, as the Good Book tells, there is a season for all things under heaven.  A season to reap, a season to sow.  A season to gather stones, a season for throwing stones away.

And so it was, that on December 1 in Helsinki, Finland, seven years and 10 countries grappled in since his debut, my former protege Mikko Maestro finally achieved his dream: he defeated The Man in Finnish FCF Wrestling today, Yours Truly, “The Rebel” StarBuck.

In a game match fought over the course of a half-hour, Mikko Maestro showed no quit and would not be denied.  He wanted the 30-minute Iron Man match, and he got it.  In the end, with literally one second remaining on the clock, Maestro got the one and only duke of the match after hitting his second trademark Uranage (Rock Bottom for you casual WWE fans out there) of the night.

No complaints, no qualms.  Mikko Maestro struggled hard to get this spotlight opportunity and he made good on a fatal 13th installment of a tradition that I started back in 2006, the Finnish Winter War aka Talvisota.

Mikko Maestro is now FCF Champion but I’m cashing in my rematch clause this coming weekend on Saturday, December 8 in Tampere, Finland.  Mikko Maestro has now become the hunted, and in a few short days’ time, he’s going to have to pray for a miracle to retain that title and keep a sixth record FCF title reign from happening for this old dog of war.

Get ready, and count your blessings… Champ.

(All match photos by Timo Muilu, more match photos up at my official Facebook fan page)