Bring the Pain

By Brad Stutts * Feb 23, 2002 from Indy Insiders www.indyinsiders.com

INSIDERS: It was January 26th in Graham, NC when FWA- Carolinas shocked the independent wrestling world by bringing back Cham Pain, first off, where have you been man?

PAIN: Well, I had to take a little time off. I had a bad time in my life, I had a little accident on a motorcycle and hurt my knee, and I was down and out. The business wasn't treating me too good, I had watched all my boys blow up and get big time and I got a little depressed to tell you the honest-to-God truth and so I retired from the business. I thought it was my time to be done. I thought about it and thought about it and ya know I love this sport. It's like a disease, you can't get away from it. And I am still young enough and in better shape than half of these jackasses out there trying to get into this business. I know I am a great performer. I can go out there and turn it out every night and love it. It's like a disease and you can't get over it. When I retire from this business the next time will be when I die. You won't quit this business until you're dead. I believe that.

INSIDERS: In your heart, did you feel like you’d be back eventually?

PAIN: Nope. When I say something I mean it -- usually. If I say I am gonna quit doing something, I quit doing it. When I say I am gonna start doing something, I start doing it. When I said it quit the business, it hurt me. I left SCW one night in Raleigh at a show and had tears in my eyes. I was a heel and told the crowd what was going on and the crowd stood up and applauded me. One of the best moments of my life, it was very moving. It was a good, good moment. I will never forget that feeling. As long as I live, I will never forget that one night when I was a heel and the crowd stood up out of their seats and applauded me as I left, because they appreciated me. If that won't bring a tear to somebody's eye, you're not a man.

INSIDERS: So now you are back and you're here in FWA- Carolinas, last month we saw you show up as a big surprise for everybody, were you pleased with the reaction you received?

PAIN: Oh yeah, very pleased. I didn't know how the crowd was going to react, ya know I left the business and when I came back it was a lot of new people but they popped really big, I was really pleased. I was pleased with the awards I received that night from the Independent Insiders and the Hardcore Fan Club, I was very pleased with that, it made me really happy. Ya know this is a new birth of Cham Pain, Cham Pain is gonna do some things differently and Cham Pain is still going to turn it out. Don't think that I have come back an old man and ain't gonna do anything. I am going to turn this place out, once this knee heals I am good to go brother.

INSIDERS: Tonight we saw you form a tag team with C.W. Anderson, is that something you are looking to do for the long-term or more like just a few spots here and there?

PAIN: For a show a while back, C.W. called me and said "Can you help me with this match?" and blah-blah-blah, so I did, and it went pretty well. We got together tonight and I think we're gonna get together again Thursday night (Feb. 28th) and do something, but yeah as long as it can last I'll run with it, but Cham Pain is pretty much a loner ya know. But as long as C.W. needs my help or I need his help I'd be glad to stand by him. I stood by him in ECW, we rode a lot of roads together, paid a lot of dues together, spent a lot of miles together, if he needs me, I'll be there for him.

INSIDERS: In the last few weeks, we've seen a rebirth of sorts of OMEGA wrestling, running every week, what do you think of the possibilities that could lie in a new breed of OMEGA?

PAIN: Yeah, OMEGA's going with a lot of young guys who are real hungry, and that's the way we were when we first started, all the old OMEGA guys. I'm not even going to name them off because you know who they are. But yeah, maybe it is (starting up again for the long haul) and maybe it isn't, we'll see. Time will tell on that one.

INSIDERS: Any comments in general you'd like to make now that you're back, where you hope to be headed, anything of that nature?

PAIN: Well of course, I want the Heavyweight strap. I want that whenever I go, every federation I'm in, I want to go for the gold. I want to show people that Cham Pain is back with a vengeance and he's on a tear and he's not going to stop until he gets his belts. At one time a while back I held four Heavyweight titles in four federations. I felt really good about that. The belt means a lot, but it doesn't ya know? As long as people know that I am out here battling and doing my best, that's what means a lot to me, I'll be here for them.

INSIDERS: Anything you'd like to plug, I know the House of Pain Wrestling Academy is starting up again, perhaps the weekly OMEGA shows being run now, anything like that?