It’s time for another interview here at SLTD Wrestling, with another international wrestling star, CAM!!ikaze. He’s based out in Canada and been to TNA Gutcheck, as well as FCW, tryouts over the last couple of years. Believe me, this guy is talented. You don’t get into Lance Storm’s training school if you don’t have something about you and with advice from the likes of Jim Ross, Dr Tom Prichard, D’Lo Brown and Dusty Rhodes ringing in his ears, he’s got the drive, ambition and talent to make it all the way to the top. CAM!!ikaze had a lot to say when I spoke to him, so let’s get to it!
Tell us a little bit about how you got started in wrestling and who your influences were when you started watching it?
My Dad is a huge wrestling fan. I first remember watching wrestling when I was a little kid with my dad and sister when Superstars was on every Saturday. I loved Hulk Hogan. One memory that really sticks out to me as a child was when Earthquake crushed Jake Roberts’ snake in the bag. I’ll never forget that. Then I fell out of it until I was 12 years old. In 1998, my sister and I would spend the evening at my dad’s every Monday night and we’d sit together to watch RAW. That’s when I really got hooked and decided that’s what I wanted to do for a living. I was a big Mick Foley Fan and I loved Steve Austin too. Wresting was so hot then; it was really cool and more accepted back then. I remember in the school yard, kids everywhere were doing the DX Chop and giving each other Stone Cold Stunners all the time. It was a great time to be a fan. In 1999, my Grade 8 Teacher was a big wrestling fan and he told me about ECW. I checked it out one Friday and I was hooked. I loved ECW. I was turning into a big Jeff Hardy fan, but once I saw Rob Van Dam perform that changed everything. I wanted to be just like him.
When did you decide that you wanted to be a wrestler?
At 12 years old, I was already looking into where I could train in Canada to become a wrestler. Without any luck, and learning that you had to be 18 to get into a school, I decided to start back-yarding with some buddies of mine. My mom hated it, but my dad loved it! I couldn’t wait; I wanted to start wrestling right away! My dad turned my trampoline into a ring, with legit steel cables that were run through pieces of garden hose for ring ropes. I practised and perfected all the high-flying stuff on those ropes. We had different outfits and characters, and we filmed every show we put on. We back-yarded from age 12 to 18 and by the end of it all, we were performing in front of as much as 173 people in my backyard and had 25 VHS tapes in total when it was all said and done. Basically, you can watch me grow up on those tapes. I can’t help but take pride in it. At the time, it just felt right and it held me over until I was old enough to start training. We tried to be as professional and safe as we could. We would study tapes all the time and put things in slow motion, seeing exactly how to execute certain moves and stuff. We were pretty serious about it. I can honestly say that I had an amazing childhood and was already taking the steps to try to live my dream.
When I was about 16 or 17, I was exposed to Japanese wrestling. I fell in love with watching guys like Tiger Mask and Dynamite Kid. It was at this point that I started to appreciate the wrestling aspect more than the performance. I became a huge fan of Chris Benoit; the guy was a wrestling machine and just amazing. I also loved Jushin Thunder Liger, Ultimo Dragon, Great Sasuke and so many others. There’s too many to mention! Haha.. I started becoming a big fan of the Cruiserweights and just guys that could actually wrestle.
For anyone that hasn’t seen you wrestle, how would you describe your style?
I’d describe my style as technical. I love to go to the mat and wrestle, but I mix in some high-flying action as well.
What are your memories of your first match?
I have 2 first match stories. One where I was untrained and the other when I was trained haha! I was 17 at the time and found out about Monster Pro Wrestling in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. I contacted the promoter, Sean Dunster, and basically lied to him. I said I was 18 and had been training for a while, but I think he knew I was kinda bullshitting him a bit. It was for a free show held in their training centre, called Camp Wars, for the guys to stay fresh and get experience. He probably figured I was either gonna be alright or shit, so being on a free show, not many people were gonna see it, so it wasn’t too much of a big deal! I think in Sean’s mind, he was either gonna acquire a new talent by either using me on shows or getting money from me to start training, or he was just gonna give me a reality check and the wrestling world would never hear from me again!
Most people get high-school graduation presents like a new car or some money, but all I wanted was a bus ticket to Edmonton to have my first wrestling match and that’s what I got! Now, from back-yarding all those years, I kinda thought I could just ease into the pros pretty easily but I learned very quickly that wasn’t the case! Sometimes I actually held my own, just through studying tapes of how to execute things, but it wasn’t nearly enough. I needed to be trained properly. It was a good reality check. Right after my match, I came to the back and the first thing Sean said to me was “You need to get trained” and I agreed with him!
I honestly don’t think he was expecting to see me again and even on the bus ride home, I was debating if wrestling was what I wanted to do, but I decided to stick with it. I graduated high school and was looking into where to get trained. I went to a Stampede Wrestling show and enquired about their training. It was closer to Medicine Hat (where I lived). Even though the camp was in Calgary, they wanted American money from me, which was made it more expensive so I didn’t go down that road.
I’d heard that Monster Pro Wrestling were holding a 2-day minicamp for people thinking about getting into the business in Edmonton, so I showed up to that. A lot of people, including Sean, who never thought they’d see me again were surprised. Sean actually let me crash on his couch for that camp. It was at that point I think they knew I was serious after taking another 12-hour bus ride to Edmonton for some training. I told Sean I would move to Edmonton that summer and start training with him full time.
I went to college in Medicine Hat taking Drama and Acting (if I didn’t love wrestling so much, I would’ve been an actor). I also worked as a dishwasher at a pizza place to save enough money to train and live in Edmonton. As soon as I saved enough money ($1000), I moved to Edmonton a week before my 19th birthday. I couldn’t even stay that extra week to celebrate my birthday with friends and family, I just wanted to start living my dream! Sean put a roof over my head and let me stay with him and his girlfriend. I’m very grateful for that, because he didn’t have to do that. Living there was by far the craziest time of my life and a real reality check to the “real world”.
There were a few ups and downs in that house, but despite that, I’ll always credit Sean for helping me. For giving me my break, teaching me the basic fundamentals and putting a roof over my head. I’m always thankful for those things. At the time when I moved in, 20-year wrestling veteran Chi-Chi Cruz was living with Sean, so I was in the right place at the right time. When I started training in June 2005; the ring was in Sean’s backyard (something I was kinda used to already haha!). I worked construction job working 12-hour days 6 days a week. I didn’t have a car so I rode my bike everywhere. After a 12-hour day and a 45-minute bike ride home, Cheech would already have class going on, so I’d basically ride home and pretty much hop right in the ring! It was exhausting!
After training in the ring, I’d grab a quick bite to eat then get the bus to the gym. I’d train at the gym, finish up pretty late and sometimes I’d have to walk home before doing the same thing again the next day! I don’t know how I did it, but like I said, I was in the right place at the right time. Chi-Chi Cruz had been wrestling for 20yrs and I learned so much from him. I really credit him for training me. Sean taught me the basics and psychology but Cheech had his hands on me every day in that ring and spent the most time with me. I’m very lucky to have learned from him.
I trained for 3 months from June to September and made my second debut on September 3rd 2005. I caught on pretty quick with a lot of things, which I credit to being a fan and all of the backyard wrestling that I did. My debut went great! I felt good. I was already used to performing in front of people, either in my backyard or acting on the stage. Cheech told me it was one of the best debut matches he had seen and, from that point; I earned the nickname of “the Rookie Sensation”.
Where are people most likely to see you wrestling?
People are most likely to see me wrestle in Canada. I’ve travelled all over Canada basically and worked some shows in the United States as well. I’m trying really hard to go international though! I’d love to wrestle in the UK, Japan, Mexico and, of course, more in the United States too.
Canada has a long history of producing great wrestlers like the Harts, Edge, Christian, Lance Storm and Chris Jericho. What do you put that down to and who do you think is the best Canadian wrestler of all-time?
I think it stems from Stampede Wrestling and the Harts. Anyone who survived the dungeon really knew how to wrestle and work, and were trained properly. You knew your craft when you left Calgary and I think that’s been passed down from generation to generation, especially in Western Canada where Stampede Wrestling flourished. At one time, so much talent came through Calgary. You had the British style from Dynamite Kid and Davey Boy, and lots of Japanese influence as well, from all the workers who made stops in Calgary. As for the best Canadian wrestler of all-time? That’s a tough one. Bret Hart has to be at the top of the list, but others like Chris Benoit, Owen Hart, Chris Jericho, Lance Storm, Edge and Christian are all great too.
When I was looking into your career, it’s amazing to see how many legends you’ve trained with. People like Harley Race, Ricky Steamboat, Lance Storm, Dusty Rhodes, Fit Finlay and Jim Ross are just a few of them. Who would you say that you’ve learned the most from and who gave you the best advice?
I’m currently training with Lance Storm at the Storm Wrestling Academy and he’s a phenomenal trainer. It just goes to show the calibre of the talent we’ve got here in Canada. I’ve been very fortunate and lucky to have trained with so many legends and established stars. You can never stop learning in this business. Once you think you know it all, you better just get the hell out because you can never know it all.
I have tried very hard to get my name out there and learn from others, so I’m all about attending different training camps and seminars that happen all over North America. Because of that, I’ve gotten the opportunity to rub shoulders with, train and learn from some pretty big names in the industry. I’m very thankful for that, but what people don’t realise is that a big part of it is that you have to go out there and do it yourself. They’re not going to come to you and if you wanna learn and get better, you have to travel, get out there, learn and be seen.
I’ve learned something important from everyone I have gotten to train with, but last year I got to train with Rowdy Roddy Piper for 2 full weeks on a wrestling reality show that aired in Canada. I learned a ton from Roddy about the business side of our profession. Another person who I’m learning a ton of things from is Lance Storm. I’ll be working with him 5 days a week for the next 3 months and the opportunity to do that is just amazing. I thank God everyday for the opportunities I have and that I’ve been given.
Sean Dunster is someone that you owe a lot to and he gave you your start in the business. How close are you with Sean now and how do you think that things would have worked out if he hadn’t have played such a huge part in getting you your start in the business?
Yes, Sean Dunster helped me a lot when I first got started. Like I said, he put a roof over my head, gave me my first break and drilled into my head how important working out is in our profession. I looked at a lot of things that happened in that house as just paying dues, cause all I wanted to do was just wrestle. I would put up with, and go through, anything to do that and I certainly did! Our relationship now as far as I know is good. He always makes me laugh; he’s a funny, funny man. I couldn’t be happier for him right now. He’s doing the best that I’ve ever seen him and it puts a smile on my face to see that.
Wrestling doesn’t come easy to a lot of people, so did it come as a surprise when you had your first match just 3 months after you started training?
I wasn’t too surprised having my first match with only 3 months of training behind me. I was catching on very quick. I was determined. I ate, slept and breathed wrestling. I still do today. Not to mention that wrestling was all I wanted to do since I was 12 years old, so at that point, it was almost like second-nature. But I thank God for the abilities and talents that I have been blessed with. I just wanna use them as best as I can, live my dream and do what I love to do for a living.
What’s the best thing about being a wrestler and knowing that you’ve got the crowd in the palm of your hand?
I love the fan interactions. I love talking to them and meeting them, especially kids. I’m very open with them about doing what you want to do in life. I always tell them that nothing is impossible, be an individual and always follow your dreams. There’s nothing better than having the crowd right where you want them in the match. This business is about telling a story and getting the people emotionally attached to what we’re doing. It’s like going to see a movie, but we’re live, in your face and only have one take. Wrestlers are the best one-take performers anywhere, bar none. I love the rush right before I make my entrance. To be honest, I’m usually scared and nervous as hell, but I need that feeling and I thrive off that nervous energy. When I was acting. I’d get the same way too. If I’m not nervous, something’s wrong. I also just love the physicality behind it all; it’s the most physical form of entertainment anywhere. It s a true art form that you never really perfect. You can always learn and get better, that’s why I love it!
Lance Storm is widely respected as one of the smartest men in wrestling. What was it like to work with him at his wrestling academy?
Training with Lance just shows me how important it is to be trained by a credible trainer. There are so many guys out there getting trained by Joe’s instead of pro’s and Lance is a true pro. He’s honest and straight forward. I thank God everyday when I’m in the ring with him for the opportunity I have. I’ve been learning so much from him. He’s amazing and such a great guy too. I can’t say enough good things about him and his school. For anybody who wants to get into wrestling, I’d recommend Lance right away!
You’ve also trained at TNA as well as WWE’s developmental territory FCW. What was the difference between the two?
Yeah, I’ve been to TNA’s Gutcheck and FCW’s Tryout camps as well. Again, just to try and get my name on the radar and to learn more. Both camps were awesome. TNA’s was only for a day, but D’Lo Brown was great. I learned a ton from him and got some good feedback and advice. FCW’s was crazy! They had 4 rings set up, with over 50 guys trying out, but they managed everything very well. I had the privilege to learn and train with Tom Pritchard and Steve Keirn, work with Dusty Rhodes on promos, as well as learn from Billy Kidman and Finlay. With guys like that, you can’t help but learn and get better. I gave it everything I had and don’t regret anything that I did. I got some good advice and feedback from them as well. I’ve not been back for a second tryout, but I’m planning to do it in the very near future, to show how much I’ve improved and show that I took their advice and used it.
I also did a ROH tryout, held by then booker Adam Pearce. I ended up being the standout and earned a dark match on a ROH show in Toronto. It went very well, but the booker had changed from Adam Pearce to Delirious and I don’t think Delirious was too familiar with me. It’s funny! That was the first time where I thought: “This is it, I got my break” because Pearce liked me and told me he can see me working with a lot of his guys on his roster. 3 weeks after the tryout camp, I read Pearce was no longer the booker and I was like “uh-oh!” Adam Pearce is an awesome guy. I learned a ton from him and he was nice enough to still let me work the dark match, even though he wasn’t in charge anymore. Adam Pearce was the first guy to give me that big opportunity and I’ll always be thankful for that. I can make the excuse that Delirious wasn’t familiar with me, but I guess I just didn’t impress him enough, so I gotta keep on trying, learning, getting better, and I’m going to!
FCW gets a lot of crap from some fans because it seems like WWE just want the same type of wrestlers to come through. How was your experience of working down there with Steve Keirn and Dusty Rhodes?
I do get the impression sometimes that a lot of talent coming out of developmental is getting more cookie-cutter and generic. That’s not the fault of the talent necessarily. It really comes down to what direction the company wants to go with their product. I have several friends working down in NXT right now and in developmental. They’re all very talented and deserve to be there, but when the office says “Hey, we want you to do this, change that, act like this and we’re gonna pay you X amount of dollars”, I suppose you do it. This is a business and at the end of the day, it’s about making money. I don’t think you can question the passion a lot of guys have for this, but the main goal for most is to do what they love to do for a living. They want to make enough money to support themselves and their family doing their chosen profession. I’m not saying they should be yes men or women. A person still needs to stick up for themselves and stand up for what they believe in, but at the end of the day, with all the punishment your body takes doing this, you wanna walk away with some security and the ability to put food on your table or else you’re killing yourself for nothing.
What sort of feedback did you get from TNA/WWE (if any) when you were at their training camps?
I got lots of great feedback doing the camps. The biggest plus for me is just getting more matches under my belt. I have to travel more and get out there more, which is what I’m trying to do. You can’t stay in one place forever. You gotta spend your entire career moving. I got lots of pointers on psychology and the little things that will make things matter a lot more in a match. I learned a ton and am very thankful for all the feedback.
Of all the matches you’ve had in your career so far, which one stands out to you most and which one are you most proud of?
I have had some really good matches with a wrestler by the name of Nite. We’re both very unique characters and we always think outside the box, so we always get creative and put on a good show. I love working with him. A match that really stands out to me was last year when I won the Prairie Wrestling Alliance Cruiserweight Championship from Alex Plexus. We had a long 6-month feud where he ripped my mask off and stole it. We did some really cool stuff playing mind games with one another, and I always got screwed out of the title whenever we wrestled. We had a mask vs title match and he screwed me again, which is where I lost my mask. I cut a really emotional promo, and then unmasked and the place went nuts! I had one more shot at him the following month in a No DQ match. I finally was able to beat him and turned into a bloody mess in the process. I bled the hard way too! We told a really good story from top to bottom and we had the fans attention for the entire 6 months that we feuded. It was a lot of fun.
Apart from yourself, is there anyone you’ve worked with on the Indy scene who you think has the potential to be a mega-star if he’s used properly?
I think Chucky Blaze from Alberta is extremely talented. Danny Duggan and AJ Sanchez from Manitoba. Michael Elgin, who I worked with at the FCW camps, is awesome too, and he’s already doing well for himself in ROH. T-Bone from Newfoundland is another talented man. In my opinion, he’s the best Storm Wrestling trainee that Lance has had so far.
Is there anyone you haven’t had the chance to wrestle yet that you’d love to work with?
I wanna work with everyone haha! I wanna work with people that are better than me, so I can get better and learn from them. I love the clashing and meshing of wrestling styles when you work with somebody. it’s always fun putting together your match and trying to figure out what story you are going to tell that night. It’s awesome.
Let’s pretend for a second that I’m Vince McMahon. I call you up and say “I want to give you a match at WrestleMania against any wrestler in the world, from the recent past or present”. Who would you want to face on that stage and why?
I’d love to wrestle Dynamite Kid or Tiger Mask, because I idolized them the most. Mick Foley would be up there too.
And finally, have you got a message for all your fans?
I just want to say thank you and please continue to support myself and Indy wrestling. I wanna do this for a living. You guys buy the tickets and buy my merchandise, which pays my bills and puts food on my table. In return, I’ll give it everything I’ve got every time I go out there to entertain you and take you on rollercoaster ride. I’ll make you forget about everyday life for a while and suspend your disbelief. Without the fans, I’m nothing! I need your help in order to succeed and live my dream. Nothing is impossible, never forget that!
That ladies and gentlemen was Canadian wrestling sensation CAM!!ikaze. It was amazing to read about how his dreams of being a wrestler have become a reality. Some of the stories he’s got are incredible and I suppose the one thing that really came across to me in the interview was just how humble he is. He knows that, as far as he’s come so far, he’s still got to keep learning if he wants to go as far as his talent deserves. It was awesome to talk to Cam and hopefully he goes all the way to the top.
If you’ve read the interviews we’ve done in the past, you’ll know that we normally shamelessly plug the wrestlers’ social media accounts and today isn’t any different, haha!! Before I get into that though, I need to thank Dave Webber (@ecwdave) for putting me in touch with Cam and letting me know about him, so cheers Dave! Right, on to Cam’s social media accounts, you can find him on Twitter @KazeCMF4Life, like his Facebook page, or check out his official YouTube channel. For any promoters out there interested in booking him, send an e-mail over to KazeCMF4Life@hotmail.com.
That’ll wrap this international edition of “In Profile” right here on SLTD Wrestling. Keep checking out the site for more interviews coming soon!
George
SLTD Wrestling brings you all the greatest wrestling content. from blogs, to podcasts to exclusive Predictions and Fantasy Leagues.
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