World Wrestling Professionals

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World Wrestling Professionals (WWP) is a South African professional wrestling promotion founded in 2002. The nationally-televised promotion is owned by Mark Beale and Mike Msizi, and is heavily influenced by American mainstream wrestling. Starting from the third season, it has frequently featured international wrestlers such as Switzerland's Ares and Canada's Joe E Legend.

[edit] History

[edit] Establishment

WWP Thunderstrike was formed in 2002 by Nelson Mandela Metro councillor Mike Msizi and former professional wrestler Mark Beale, with the common goal of taking South African wrestling to another level. For a short time WWP ran road shows on a regional level in Port Elizabeth. After 19 months of hard work in the hope of getting their product noticed, their idea for a wrestling show was picked up by SABC2.

[edit] Training Facilities

World Wrestling Professionals has four training facilities scattered across South Africa. The Wembley Arena facility in Durban is managed by Tornado. The Roodepoort facility is managed by Ananzi. The Wynberg facility in Cape Town is run by Abdul Kader. And the facility in Port Elizabeth is managed by The Blacksmith. Shows are sometimes independently held by the training facilities in their respective regions showcasing their top students.

[edit] WWP Thunderstrike

The promotion, which is managed by Mark Beale, airs 1-hour pre-recorded episodes for SABC2 known as WWP Thunderstrike in the 10-11PM time-slot every Wednesday. It recently completed its third season, which began on November 1, 2006 and ended on February 27, 2008. The fourth season is due to be taped from 14 May to 22 May and will air from November onwards.

WWP Thunderstrike made its television premiere in December, 2004. After just four months of airing and being the top rated sports show on SABC2, Thunderstrike was pushed one hour forward into a primetime slot (from 14:30 to 15:30). Deon Potgieter, a renowned international sports writer and producer, was responsible creatively for the name along with many of the original storylines and wrestler personas in WWP Thunderstrike's early years. After 67 episodes of being involved with WWP, Deon Potgieter withdrew his involvement from the show. The creative team now consists of Mark Beale, Steve Debbes and Danie van der Linde.

Television tapings take place in the Urban Brew Studios in Johannesburg and each season is usually filmed for up to seven days in a row. The venue is referred to by the promotion as the Dome of Doom. The first and second seasons aired on Saturday afternoons. The third series then moved to a Wednesday night slot at 22:00, where the show attained its highest ratings to date.

[edit] Roster Split (2004-2006)

The roster was previously divided as per the concept created by Deon Potgieter into two factions, namely Alkebulan and Def Faxion. The factions adopted different cultural beliefs, with Def Faxion being based on modernity and materialism, while Alkebulan bore opposite traits, deeply rooted in myth and tradition. In late 2006, with the premiere of the fourth season, the factions were dropped and focus was placed on Heavyweight, Tag Team, Female and Cruiserweight divisions.

[edit] Touring

Despite the promotion being mainly a product produced for television, it regularly holds road shows in various regions of South Africa such as the Eastern Cape and Gauteng.

[edit] Championships

[edit] Active Championships

[edit] Inactive Championships

[edit] Roster

[edit] Active Roster

[edit] Heavyweight Division

[edit] Cruiserweight Division

• The Dealmaker
• Devon Shooter
• Du Congo
• Karwats
• The Lizard
• Rooivalk

[edit] Ladies Division

• Akilah
• Alicia
• Ashanti
• Black Magic
• Kiara
• Pippa La Vinn
• Venus

[edit] Tag Teams

• Kilimanjaro and Kwaito Kid
• Scorpion Kruger and Terri Middoux
• Jacques Roque and Xterminator
• Du Congo and Rooivalk
• Tornado and PJ Black

[edit] Factions

• WDP (Weasel Domination Party): Mark Beale, Joe E Legend, Jacques Roque and Ares

[edit] Other On-Air Talent

• Roland Gaspar (Ring Announcer and Backstage Interviewer)
• Elana Africa (Color Commentator)
• Mark Beale (General Manager)
• Mike Msizi (Chairman)

[edit] Alumni

• A.W. Bulldog
• Dameon
• Danie Brits

[edit] Key People

• Mark Beale (CEO)
• Mike Msizi (Chairman)
• Steve Debbes (Technical Co-Director)
• Abdul Kader (Technical Co-Director)

[edit] External links

• World Wrestling Professionals Official Website (Official Website)
• World Wrestling Professionals Roster Page
• WWP Official Message Board

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