The current trend in professional wrestling is to draw on its historical successes. Many wrestling stars from the ’80s, including Roddy Piper and The Road Warriors, have recently been brought back to TV much to the delight of nostalgic fans. Meanwhile, veterans like King Kong Bundy and Terry Funk are mainstays on the independent scene, while talk of their return to the big time is always close to the surface. Clearly it seems that the spotlight will once again shine brightly on the names from the past.
Chris Sabin, on the other hand, would rather concentrate on “The Future”. A standout star on the independent scene, Sabin has been enjoying some great career success as of late. Only 21 years old, his career highlight list reads like that of a veteran twice his age. His most recent accomplishment was unifying the WWA Cruiserweight and the NWA-TNA X-Division titles at the last WWA pay-per-view in Australia. An impressive feat to say the least, particularly since only three years ago, Sabin wasn’t sure that the wrestling school he was attending was going to provide him with any opportunities at all.
“The school I was in was having some problems. They couldn’t get buildings, the whole thing was kind of iffy, so I didn’t feel like I was learning as much as I could have been. Luckily, a guy came over, by the name of Amazing N8 (Nate Mattson), and he started training me, and then brought me over to the Can-Am Wrestling School where I learned from Scott (D’Amore). Scott took me under his wing, taught me tons, threw me in his ring, and it took off from there.”
D’Amore saw huge potential in Sabin and was thoroughly impressed by the youngster’s motivation and commitment to his training. According to D’Amore, Sabin was the best student he ever worked with. “He’s focused and dedicated to improving his ring work and on spending the necessary time in the weight room. He’s as solid on the mat as anybody around, can fly with the best of them, and has a great ring presence.”
After graduating from Can-Am, Sabin quickly made a name for himself on the independent scene, where he’s competed for various promotions in Ontario, Michigan, and Ohio, in addition to D’Amore’s Border City Wrestling (now Maximum Pro Wrestling, or MXPW). He rose up the ranks quickly and won several regional titles along the way, including the NWA-Great Lakes Heavyweight and Light Heavyweight titles. His matches frequently stole the show, and as a result his name and reputation grew and grew, until he was eventually called to wrestle a match on NWA-TNA’s weekly pay-per-view show for their X-Division. It was a perfect match for Sabin, whose style fit in the division perfectly.
“The X-Division is some of the best wrestling I’ve ever seen,” he says. “It’s really innovative, it’s like an entirely brand new style of wresting. It’s an honour to be part of it.”
It didn’t take long for Sabin to make an impression, winning the title after a mere handful of matches. Being that the X-Division is considered by many to be the most exciting aspect of the industry right now and houses many of the stars expected to lead the sport someday, Sabin’s win could position him for even greater things in years to come.
“I hope to continue doing this for a long time,” he says. “Down the road, well, it’s everyone’s dream to ultimately be in WWE.” Should Sabin ever get the chance, he would love to compete against Jamie Noble, who he is a big fan of, or Dean Malenko, who he says is one of the best workers of all time. Until he gets that chance, Sabin is glad to continue with MXPW (he is the current TV Champion), NWA-TNA, and anywhere else he can, in order to keep improving his game and honing his abilities.
With the majority of his career still yet to go, Sabin will have plenty of chance to see all of his wrestling dreams come to fruition. And if his past performance proves to be any indication, Chris “The Future” Sabin is certainly on his way to making them all come true.
RELATED LINK
