Over the course of my extensive and colorful career spanning three decades and change in the professional wrestling industry, I always made it my career goal to be a star in Japan.
That objective was reached in 2010, by the serendipitous grace of God Almighty and a bit of tunnel vision from Yours Truly, where I set my sights on achieving that specific goal.
I arranged to book “The Japanese Buzzsaw” Yoshihiro Tajiri in Finland, where I would wrestle him in February 2010 during a hellacious Nordic winter war in Helsinki. Tajiri was so taken by our match, that immediately afterward, he asked me, “You want to wrestle in Japan? I think the Japanese fans would like you.”
Little did I know at the time, that Tajiri was just starting up his own new company, SMASH, and they were just getting their feet off the ground. I was booked as the top foreign wrestler at the main event level for SMASH during it’s entire, albeit short-lived, run. Thereafter, I was poised as a top attraction for WNC – Wrestling New Classic – which followed where SMASH left off in 2012 through to 2014.
Now, here in September 2024, and more specifically inside of 24 hours, I am primed to leave for the Land of Rising Sun once again. This will mark my 23rd tour of the country and my long-awaited return to Japanese shores since my last excursion there for Tokyo Pro Wrestling in 2018, where I was in the main event yet again against Tajiri.
Tajiri is, without doubt, the most influential person in my entire wrestling career. He is the man that opened the doors for me to enter Japan. When propositioned by New Japan Pro Wrestling in 2012, I declined their advanced out of loyalty to Tajiri, who had just started up anew with WNC at the time.
Now, that respect and honor is paid back yet again. On September 28 in Kumamoto, Japan, Tajiri will hold his 30th Anniversary event under the Kyushu Pro Wrestling banner. I am one of the few foreign talents that has been invited to be a part of this magnanimous occasion, and I am truly honored.
Just this past week, I was asked to take part in top Finnish stand-up comedian Niko Kivelä’s new promotional video, which fires up his upcoming comedy tour across Finland over the next few months. There was some crazy shit going down, with the tattooed Hellsinki Rock Girls models and a band known as the Horse Attack Sqwad, amongst others, on hand. For anyone who doesn’t know, the Horse Attack Sqwad have a gimmick where all the guys wear horse heads and all the songs are about horses. It’s messed up fun. I got to be myself, pumping out shitloads of 16kg kettlebell presses over the takes of the video, which, let me assure you, had my delts and traps about to explode! Real volume training till failure, over about 30-minutes of back-to-back takes on film. Check out the finished product…
Niko recalled meeting me about 10-years back when he was part of a radio show that I was on, so this was a reunion of sorts to boot. Niko has a tour across Finland, starting at the end of this month, so be sure to check him out live when he is in your area!
Niko found his way into a sleeperhold, but don’t ask how!
“Kolmas MINÄ toden sanoo” TOUR
26.2.2016 Lahti
27.2.2016 Järvenpää
2.3.2016 Vaasa
3.3.2016 Seinäjoki
4.3.2016 Jyväskylä
5.3.2016 Kotka
10.3.2016 Iisalmi
11.3.2016 Kuopio
12.3.2016 Joensuu
17.3.2016 Kajaani
18.3.2016 Varkaus
19.3.2016 Tampere – iso
31.3.2016 Hyvinkää
1.4.2016 Kuusankoski
2.4.2016 Turku
8.4.2016 Lappeenranta
9.4.2016 Porvoo
For anyone out there who doesn’t know, I am also an experienced voice-over professional, in addition to being a pro wrestler, rock musician, personal trainer and artist. My professional website is http://www.majalahti.com if you would like to acquaint yourself with what I do and who I’ve worked for.
Here are a couple of cool new videos for the Cancer Association that I did recently here in Finland, both in Finnish and in English:
If you need clean, concise and dynamic native American English for your productions, send me a message here on my website and we can discuss your proposed job.
I thought to write a breakdown of the things I witnessed from a coaching perspective at FCF Wrestling’s Jatkosota 2015 event in Helsinki this past weekend. Since many people don’t really understand the nature of the beast that is professional wrestling, maybe this will help to shed some light on the game, and folks just might be able to grasp how incredibly demanding the sport is on so many levels.
In the opener tag match which I was a part of, I was really impressed with the physical aggression of King Kong Karhula, who tagged with Pyöveli Petrov. The big man is undoubtedly at the top of his game right now after spending 10 years in the sport to date, as his timing is impeccable, every single move and all of his execution is full-out and in-pocket. He has all the bases covered: the character, the charisma and the ring skills. I would be surprised if WWE didn’t take a serious look at this guy in the very near future. The way Karhula brutalized my tag team partner Sly Sebastian in our tag match made me feel sorry for little Sly. Mean and nasty in the ring, Karhula is one to watch for, and promoters in Europe should seriously consider booking him, regardless of the financial struggles that most of the continent has been facing for quite some time already.
The Beast’s power displays in his match against Jessica Love were impressive, to say the least. Especially catching Jessica’s top rope crossbody and turning it into a jackhammer in one fell swoop for the winning pinfall was a thing to behold. This big man is developing at an alarming pace, and he is another one that WWE should be keeping their eyes on, and dismantling fan favorite Jessica Love gives The Beast major momentum right now.
The hunger, spark and fire shown by young newcomers Jami Aalto and Joey Impact was a thing of beauty to behold in their match against Stark Adder and Ricky Vendetta. You can really see that these two rookies ”want it.” They want to grasp the brass ring and make a real impression on the fans, in their quest to become stars in this grappling game. Both Aalto and Impact showed incredible drive, heart and passion as they gutsily fought the experienced duo of Adder and Vendetta, who are the most cohesive unit in FCF Wrestling today and one mean team. I predict a bright future for these kids. Keep it up!
After suffering a brutal beating at the hands of ”Wildman” Heimo Ukonselkä, Mikko Maestro faces a transition akin to that undergone by Kurt Angle somewhere around the year 2000. Angle was a comedy wrestler in WWE at the time, and in his feud with Triple H, he had to step it up and find his serious game face. Maestro simply cannot continue as a light-hearted, fun guy after the way Heimo abused him. He will have to find the reserves deep down to become more that what he is now, if he hopes to stand toe-to-toe with Ukonselkä. Now is the time for Mikko Maestro to change his game.
Mikko Maestro brutalized by Heimo Ukonselkä (Photo: Mats Havia 2015)
The triple threat tag team match between HC Andersen & Robert Holmström, The Luupää Brothers and Murskaaja Mieto & Tohtori Ioni had one competitor outshine everyone. Vili Luupää showed the kind of timing, fire and fluidity in his hot tag comeback, that I have last seen Daniel Bryan do something similar when he was feuding with The Shield in WWE a couple of years back. I really have to give props to Vili Luupää, who is another one grasping for the elusive brass ring right now.
The women’s triple threat match was short and sweet, but the girls really showed some pizzazz and spice while they were in there. For a long time, pro wrestling has been coined ”the grunt and groan game”, and one thing that matches must have is audibles and noise (since no one likes to watch sports or movies with the sound turned off). Julia Kyy (main audibles here and best character presence overall), Sara Elektra and newcomer Regina really put in a spirited effort for the few minutes that they had, before Robert Holmström interjected himself in the match and drew the kind of heat from the audience that borders on being criminal. Holmström has that ”asshole” kind of quality to his ring character that people find easy to hate, and it should be interesting to see how he fares against the girls, because that seems to be his intergender modus operandi now.
France’s Jimmy Gavroche and FCF champion Valentine had one of the best pure wrestling matches that I have seen in a long, long time. I felt that Gavroche really pushed Valentine to his fullest potential and visa versa. It’s a thing of beauty to see the marquee done right, and the name on the marquee reads ”wrestling.” Tight ring work, well-paced and holding solid match psychology, this was a worthy main event. Gavroche has great fire and body language and I can understand why it is easy for the audience to get behind him, even if he is a foreign wrestler coming in against one of FCF’s own. There were so many false finishes in this match that it kept everyone on the edge of their seats. It was really something to see live, which is exactly how professional wrestling should be enjoyed. Big props to both men for an incredible effort. I also have to state, that I was really taken aback at how the fans responded to The Beast coming out after the match to stare down Valentine, as the audience erupted into a completely spontaneous ”Beast is gonna kill you!” chant that continued even after The Beast left the ring and went to the back. There’s something very volatile brewing here!
Be sure to come out for the next FCF Wrestling event in Porvoo, Finland on June 5 at the city’s #URBCULT happening, as there is nothing quite like the live experience that the game provides. Take a look at this fantastic video to see exactly what I’m talking about and we hope to see you next time!
Not many people understand the world of pro wrestling, as they either misconstrue it as completely bogus and a mock-sport or they don’t understand it at all. Let me say right out of the blocks, to quote former multi-time WWE/WCW champion Bret Hart, that “pro wrestling is a lot more real than people care to think.”
In this light, I offer up the following perspective read, as Sweden’s hottest rising star “The Beast” came to Finland last week for coaching with Yours Truly before facing transsexual wrestling standout Jessica Love at FCF Wrestling’s Jatkosota 2015 event in Helsinki this past Saturday, May 2.
In the fastest rise that I can personally recall, The Beast is stepping up his game like few others have done to date, making an indelible mark in his wake. As I’ve coached The Beast, I’ve witnessed him develop at an incredible pace.
Beast’s MMA and submission wrestling background, along with his past as a TV Gladiator, has definitely worked in his favor. Beast took a couple of nasty hits in training that would have put any normal man on the sidelines, nearly tearing his latissimus muscle and cracking his spine, but this guy pulled through on sheer focus and guts alone. Talk about Teflon!
My faith in the man rose considerably after I saw him persevere regardless of the immense pain he was in due to the mishaps in training. Beast has shown an great amount of coachability and humility, absorbing his schooling like a sponge. Regardless of his past sporting and media merits, he leaves his ego at the door when it comes to learning the craft of pro wrestling, and that is a very honorable trait. Like legendary Four Horsemen member Arn Anderson once said, “It’s gut check time!”, and every single pro wrestling trainee and active wrestler alike will get to this “gut check” stage in their grappling trek when the pain is so great that you question going on. The Beast had his first serious gut check this past week, and he persevered without flinching or shying away from taking the next step in his training. Read Beast’s blog on the matter (in Swedish) HERE.
This guy is one to watch. I wrote a blog about him over a few weeks back, and it bears to mention that promoters out there should be keeping their eyes open with this big guy. If his heart stays in the game, regardless of whatever setbacks might come his way, he is going to really become something in this game.
Today marks my 42nd birthday. I don’t feel so young anymore, nor do I feel very old. I’m somewhere in between.
Like most folks out there, I don’t fancy the limitations and slowing down process that age brings with it. I’ve strived to reach the upper echelon in all things that my heart has burned after, and I have held nothing back. I’ve been all around the world, reached pinnacles that many only dream of, becoming a star player in my chosen sport far and wide. I’ve toured many lands with my various rock bands, been here, there and a little bit of everywhere.
So here at 42, on April 24, I look back on what has been and ahead to what lies in wait. As a lone wolf, not part of any clique out there, I’ve done a hell of a lot in my 42 years. Everything I’ve achieved, I’ve earned with hard work, honesty and reputation. Not by kissing ass, playing politics or stabbing other people in the back. For that, I am proud.
I achieved my dream of superstardom in Japan as a wrestler in 2010-2011, which was my career goal, and everything from here on out is a bonus. I garnered three European wresting championships during my career so far, and I am happy with that number. It’s a magical number; three. Anything above that is also just a bonus. I’ve wrestled in 19 countries over the past 21 years, and I’d like to add a few more before I hang the boots up one day, so that is something to still strive towards.
I have no idea how long my saga on this Earth will be, but I can honestly say, that I have lived the life of a journeyman, the life of a wayfarer, the life of legend. If all of this were to end tomorrow, I would have to be happy, content that I went out there and actualized my dreams. I didn’t just talk the talk, I walked the walk.
It’s a sad day in the world of pro wrestling. As I got up today, I received the news of the passing of Perro Aguayo Jr. in the middle of a tag team match in Tijuana, Mexico. After getting dropkicked in the side of the head by Rey Misterio Jr., as Misterio set Aguayo up for his trademark 619 maneuver, Perro fell against the ropes lifeless, unable to move from thereon out. It’s hard to say whether it was the kick from Misterio, or the whiplash effect from hitting the middle rope, causing trauma to the cervical spine, that led to the premature death of Perro Aguayo Jr. A freak accident, yes. But just another reality of the physical toll of pro wrestling.
For the first time in a long time, this news put pro wrestling (or Lucha Libre, as the game is known in Mexico) on the sports pages en lieu of the entertainment section in the news. For so long, pro wrestling has been balked at as not being a legitimate sport by critics and the opposition at large, but no one can deny that we, as athletes, endure great physical risks in being a part of this ”sport of kings.”
On a personal note alone, I have gone through eight concussions in my wrestling career since 1994 worldwide. Add to that a broken left ankle in two places with eight screws and three plates to reconstruct it, a torn right rotator cuff, a herniated disc in my neck, torn ligaments on two occasions in my right foot and bone chips in my left elbow, a missing tooth, and yeah … I don’t see where pro wrestling is ”fake”.
Bandaging myself up to close a head wound after a physical match (photo: Lasse Arkela)
What happened this past weekend in Tijuana, Mexico is another grave reminder of the incredible physical demand that pro wrestling takes on our bodies. Every single one of us that climb into that ring to make the fans yell, scream and cheer should be applauded for putting our health and lives on the line time in and time out. Most times for completely inadequate compensation, be it noted. And what about the retirement and pension plans for pro wrestlers? Are you kidding me?? What about solid insurance policies to cover mishaps and injuries? Good luck in finding coverage that will actually go up to bat for you when the shit hits the fan. I got lucky in the last department, when a decade back I was able to score a comprehensive insurance policy through a gym client of mine, after my former insurance provider screwed me over after suffering my fifth concussion in Italy.
John Cena being stretchered out after a legit injury in 2008
The bottom line is, pro wrestling has long suffered from lack of respect from the media and public at large for not being ”pure sport”. That is not, nor has it ever been, the point. The point is that pro wrestling is the equivalent of gladiators in modern times. It is the art of battle. In battle, one is bound to get battle scars. To quote bygone wrestling great ”Dr. Death” Steve Williams, ”This ain’t ballet.”
Methinks pro wrestling and wrestlers at large are long overdue for a heaping load of respect from the day and age and world et al that we live in.
At the end of last month, I traveled to Vesileppis Sport & Spa Hotel in Leppävirta, Finland, where I was filmed with the Vesileppis mascot for a funny set of commercials promoting the establishment and its services. These commercials have now been released, and can be seen below:
Just a few days ago, Finland’s leading dairy manufacturer, Valio Ltd., released their latest television ad campaign, featuring the most celebrated NHL hockey player ever out of Finland, the legendary Teemu Selänne. Teemu lives nowadays in California with his family, and is retired from the sport of ice hockey. He made a name for himself as a Stanley Cup champion (2006-2007) with the Anaheim Ducks (defeating the Ottawa Senators) and nowadays owns and runs a steakhouse out in California.
I was chosen to play one of the roles in the new Valio advert, which you can view below:
It was a pleasure getting to know Teemu, who was very down-to-earth and a good guy, his success not having gone to his head at all.
I have an inspirational story, one which will both enamor and enthrall a lot of readers. As everyone knows by now, I am the pioneer of professional wrestling in Finland, dating back to 2003, when I became the first person ever in Finland to take the grappling game to a learning level. I’ve coached pretty everyone and anyone who has ever come onto the scene out of Finland. Back before we started domestic Finnish pro wrestling, it bears to be mentioned that there were a few strongmen and bodybuilders, who, being daring showmen as well, dallied in what very well may be considered as backyard wrestling to a large degree in the late 1990s.
There was a circle of four guys: strongman and former amateur champion Jouni Morsky (who wrestled as Normann the Viking), Tony Halme (who wrestled to international fame as WWF’s Ludvig Borga from 1994), bodybuilder Jyrki Savolainen (nicknamed “Indian” RIP; was trained for pro wrestling in Australia in the mid-’90s) and a guy called Boogie “Commando” Mustonen (who was a Finnish and European bodybuilding champion). Out of the four, I got to know every one of them at some stage during 1997 through their “promoter”, a shyster-kind of fellow who had a few dealings with the Russian mafia. His name was Jussi, and he was actually put down by the Russians after a deal of some sort went bad. But it was Jussi who introduced me to Mörsky and to Boogie during the spring of 1997.
Boogie Commando from around 1996-1997
When I first met him, I thought Boogie “Commando” Mustonen was a big-headed bastard, who thought he knew everything there was to know about the wrestling business. He had been trained by a bald-headed Andy-something-or-other in Australia in 1993. I have no idea what this Andy fellow taught Boogie, because he didn’t know anything about the business, period. The “matches” that the four various Finnish guys were having amongst themselves were far from professional wrestling. They pretty much consisted of three moves, done to overkill: a bodyslam, a clothesline and an elbow smash. Everything else was ramshackle brawling. I was going to the referee between Mustonen and Mörsky in a 2/3 falls match that they’d have in Äänekoski, Finland that summer. Boogie came across as proud, a real peacock, someone who just let you understand that you were beneath them. That was 17-years ago, and now, after I met the man again this past week, I am glad to say that he has changed for the better. Really, there has been a complete turn-around in the person of one Boogie Mustonen.
This past Thursday, I played a leading role in a television commercial shoot for a Sport & Spa hotel named Vesileppis, in Leppävirta, Finland. It’s really an amazing complex, complete with a 1.4 km ski-track deep underground that you can use even in the summertime, a year-round ice hockey rink, full-blown pool and spa area and tons of outside sports activities and possibilities. It’s like a nexus, a center for sports in the eastern Finnish province and area in which it is located. In the commercial, I play myself, complete in wrestling gear, alongside the Vesileppis mascot, which is a ladybug.
The Vesileppis mascot named Spa and me, as I play Sport
Well, Boogie Mustonen literally lives across the road from Vesileppis Hotel, where the wife and I were stationed during my commercial shoot. The owner of Vesileppis Hotel, a nice guy named Kimmo, wanted to organize a meeting between me and Boogie. Kimmo told me that Boogie had changed a lot, that he had an entirely new lease on life, after going through some horrendously hard times in his personal life in recent years. Mustonen has endured bowel cancer, he has had a kidney replaced, and he has gone through a blood poisoning episode, which led in turn to partial paralysis from the waist down for a period of six weeks. In addition, he has a faithful, old English Bulldog named Möykky, who is on his last legs now.
Boogie’s old, faithful buddy Möykky is on his last legs
Now at age 50, the shit hit the proverbial fan for Boogie this past year, when after going through kidney replacement surgery, he still wanted to compete in bodybuilding one more time at the upcoming annual Fitness Expo in Lahti, Finland. That is when his wife, Marjo-Nina, served him with an ultimatum, that she would file for divorce if he decided to risk his new, replacement kidney through bodybuilding competition anymore. The bottom line is, that the worst thing you can do to a kidney is to deplete it of hydration, which is exactly what happens when competitive bodybuilders diet down to the bone, draining their bodies dry to be as cut and lean as possible. Boogie saw the writing on the wall: game over.
Boogie poses with multi-time Mr. Olympia, Dorian Yates of the UK
Yesterday, as I was visiting Boogie at his home gym, he told me that he tried getting excited about discus throwing after his last bodybuilding aspirations went down the drain. Discus didn’t do it for him, Mustonen knew it wasn’t his game. Deep down, Boogie Mustonen knew who and what he was: a showman. He was an entertainer, who loved being in the spotlight. And something still ate at him, like acid on the soul. It was his last match, a July 1997 bout against Tony Halme in Joensuu, Finland. I was referee for their match, which can be seen in the three links below. It’s not a good match by any stretch of the imagination. It’s really quite terrible, a complete mess. It also happened to be, unbeknowst to Mustonen, his try-out match for Otto Wanz’s gigantic CWA (Catch Wrestling Association, in operation 1973-1999) promotion out of Austria. Had Boogie made good in the match against Halme, he very well might have gotten signed with Wanz, and he could have ended up making money in our business, but it was not to be.
Halme cursed underneath his breath to me after the outing, “Have you ever seen such a shit match?!”
He was right. It was downright drivel. Not the way a man wants his career in any field to be remembered. No, everyone out their wants their last standout memory from whatever etaph along the road of life to be a proud one. A tale that you tell excitedly about to your grandchildren one day. That is the marker that you want to leave behind.
Boogie Mustonen never got to clear the table, nor to give his soul rest in this matter. He never got to wrestle another match, a better match. A good, final memory.
Tony Halme vs. Boogie Mustonen in Joensuu 1997, with me officiating
So here we are, in the year 2014, 17-years after the fact, and Boogie tells me that he wants it now. He wants to come back and clear his name and wash clean his memory of the flop against Halme. I am astounded as I listen to him. He has passion in his voice, a determination. He really wants this. At 50, he’s not going to be denied.
So I tell him, “I will train you.” I have the track record to make him take me seriously. Boogie understands, that StarBuck IS professional wrestling here in Finland. If you want to go to the top, you have to learn from the best. And today, even at age 41, I can still say that with the knowledge that I have, I am the best here in this game. So we did a trade: being a former bodybuilding champion, Boogie coaches me in fine-tuning my body, my chassis, with which I ply my trade. In turn, I coach him in making a comeback match in Finnish professional wrestling.
Fine-tuning muscle-building techique with bent-over rows
I hope that Boogie Mustonen has the heart and drive to pull this one through. Bygones are bygones. The big-headed bastard from yesteryear has disappeared. In his place stands a humble, ambitious, grown man, who wants to do his soul and pride right. I want to support him every step of the way.
It’s like the past never happened, Boogie is a great guy!
starbuck.fi 