INTERVIEW WITH IZW TAG TEAM CHAMPION DAMON WINDSOR

 

by Drew Archer

 

“The IZW World is finally starting to realize that Impact Elite is just that, the most elite group in IZW history.”

 

The year of 2012 has been a colossal year for IZW. The

Lawton, Oklahoma federation has continued to produce its innovative weekly television series on GFL as well as expanding to Comcast and Comcast SportsNet (home to 21.9 million households) on a monthly basis. As things tend to do in pro wrestling, everything revolves around the in ring action and very few wrestlers in the industry have had a bigger year than Damon Windsor. One half of the IZW Tag Team Champions, Big Business (along with Kevin Morgan) and founding member of Impact Elite, Windsor’s year has mirrored the rise of IZW and there doesn’t seem to be anything that can stand in the way of the 6’7” wrecking machine.

 

“I’m in a fantastic position within the company right now. I’ve been in and out of IZW since 2007 and this is certainly the most success I’ve had here. This year has been an opportunity for the young talent of IZW to show their worth and myself, Kevin Morgan and Jordan Jacobs jumped at the opportunity,” Windsor said.

 “We joined forces and when Aaron Neil was placed as our figurehead, the group took off. Being a part of Impact Elite most certainly has its privileges. We’ve all shown that we have Elite Status and now with Madame Commissioner Erica, ‘The Number 1’ Shawn McHale, ‘The Golden Goddess’ Venus, ‘The Bronze Bull’ Aaron Neil, ‘The Brass Bull’ Bobby Star, ‘Lights Out’ Jordan Jacobs and Big Business, we’ve got a supreme contingency. We’re on top of the IZW World and we don’t plan on going anywhere”, Windsor continued.

 

But like anything in life that is worth achieving, it takes time and dedication. Windsor is not an overnight success story. His rise to the top of the IZW food chain took years of hard work, dedication and perseverance. In fact, it all started as a youngster where Windsor learned the realities of a profession that requires constant travel.

 

“I grew up all over the place, honestly. My father was a salesman and he went to whichever branch of the company they needed him in, so we moved several times during my childhood. Since I was five years old I’ve been a rabid fan of professional wrestling. On several occasions I got grounded because my parents came home and I had a friend in the sharpshooter. I got in pretty big trouble for that.”

 

“I never really got into backyard wrestling or anything like that. Plus, I always felt like wrestling should be left to the trained professionals. My professional training started when I was 23 and I started going to a local training school at the Mid-South Wrestling Alliance. After that, I worked a few shows here and there before starting up with Impact Zone Wrestling in 2007. I learned a lot more once getting here and doing some training under Aaron Neil,” Windsor remembered.

 

“At the beginning of my career, I was ‘The Playboy’ Damon Windsor. That was given to me by a friend who commented on the fact that I had a new woman on my arm every time she saw me. Around 2010, after I had moved to Los Angeles, California, that changed to ‘The Big Picture’ as I felt it was time to focus my energy on bigger and better things and I felt it was time for the world to take notice and see the big picture if you will.”

 

Fans of IZW know that the “Big Picture” is more than just a professional ass kicker inside of the squared circle. His talent and skillset have opened up other opportunities for the premier Southwest promotion. “Actually I’ve already gotten involved in several aspects of the business. In my time in pro wrestling I’ve made flyers, been a ring announcer, commentated live IZW shows, IZW DVD’s and hosted Impact Television. I’ve had amazing opportunities here at IZW to do a wide array of things within the business.”

 

But not every organization or every wrestler is as dedicated to their craft as IZW and its talented roster. Through the years traveling up and down the roads of America, Windsor has witnessed his fair share of wrestlers with varying degrees of skill and aspiration. For every Aaron Neil, Double D or Jermaine Johnson, there is a wrestler at the other end of the spectrum.

 

“Some people wrestle for, what I would consider, the wrong reasons, like to make themselves feel important when they don’t have anything else going for them. Those are the guys you see get on the terrible shows, get to the top and just stay there because they are content with being the best of the worst. Others of course blaze their own path and become successful promoters because they have a different vision from the WWE or TNA.”

 

IZW is one of those successful promotions that is forging its own path and using alternative means to deliver top rate wrestling to the masses. “I think IZW’s future is brighter than it’s ever been. In two years we’ve gone from a high-grade live show to having our own weekly regional TV show, to streaming our iPPV’s, then streaming our full, live weekly show on GFL.tv and now we’re nationwide on the Comcast Network and Comcast SportsNet. It’s a huge deal, we have been at the top of the independent wrestling scene for a long time and with the new Impact Arena and production quality, it was time that the world got to see just how compelling and action-packed IZW really is. We now produce more original, high definition content than any other company other than TNA and WWE. And honestly, with the drive and determination of the roster and all the people involved with promoting and running the company, I don’t see our progress slowing down any time soon. We mean it when we say we are Changing the Wrestling World,” Windsor added.

 

With only a few months left in 2012, Windsor reflects on all the damage he’s done during the year and tries to pinpoint a wrestler or feud that sticks out among the stack of broken bodies left in his wake. “That’s a bit of a tricky question. When we [Impact Elite] were Impact Inc., we had a hellacious feud with the ‘Johnny Z Approved Impact Inc’ that culminated with a 10-man Impact Chamber Match. Big Business, myself and Kevin Morgan, have also had a vicious rivalry with two different incarnations of the Old School Suckas. But personally for the better part of the year, myself and Randy Price have been trying to take each other out. We’ve done devastating things to each other but neither of us seems ready to back down any time soon.”

 

Windsor’s next huge challenge will come the way of IZW’s next iPPV on November 3, Halloween Hangover, which will be highlighted by a main event featuring all of the wrestlers competing in a Monsters Bash Battle Royal, where reigning IZW World Heavyweight Champion Double D will be defending his title.

 

“IZW’s next iPPV is Halloween Hangover and Double D is going to defend his IZW Championship against the entire IZW roster, most importantly, every member of Impact Elite. Being the fighting champions that we are, Big Business would normally defend our tag team titles against any worthy team but honestly, there just aren’t any worthy teams,” Windsor quipped.

 

But in recent weeks, that might have changed as Big Business has been defeated two weeks in a row in non-title bouts by Aerial Assault and the team of Cody Jones and Copycat, two fast moving, high flying teams that might have caught Big Business off guard. Expect Big Business to look to settle up at Halloween Hangover with one or both of these teams as Windsor and his tag partner Morgan have a mean streak a country mile long and they don’t forget, especially when it involves the championship gold that hangs around their waist.

 

Fans might not always agree with everything Damon Windsor and his faction do inside and outside of the ring. But it’s hard to argue with the results. Impact Elite has held every title in IZW at one time or another this year, and to hear Windsor tell it, that trend will continue.

 

“They’re [fans] realizing that Big Business will continue to dominate the IZW Tag Team division. It’s a tough pill to swallow for some but others, The Elite Army, are backing us and showing us love on Twitter. I see plenty of haters and a few smart ones @DamonWindsor and on my Facebook at Facebook.com/RealDamonWindsor. To the IZW fans I say keep your eyes on the screen, keep watching GFL.tv, keep checking your local listings and catching IZW on The Comcast Network and Comcast SportNet. And make sure to catch Halloween Hangover where Impact Elite will right all the wrongs in IZW and bring the IZW Championship back to the Bronze Bull.”