It’s bound to happen when two alphas cross paths. They can only coexist for so long before one has to rise up and challenge the other. Things escalate. It becomes a sort of turf war. That’s what we seem to have going on between two stalwarts of the independent wrestling scene in the South, Tennessee’s Southern Underground Pro (SUP) and Georgia’s ACTION Wrestling.
You can trace this fierce rivalry back to early August in 2019. SUP presented All Hell Breaks Loose as the final event of SCI Weekend. Notorious ACTION Wrestling champion AC Mack had competed in several SUP matches prior to that show. But, he grew impatient at his lack of championship opportunities. After an absolute war that saw Brett Ison successfully defend the Bonestorm Championship against JD Drake, O’Shay Edwards, and Anthony Henry, Mack hit the ring and laid a beatdown on the champ that sent shockwaves through The Basement East.
The statement was made, and the statement was received. Mack was rewarded for his actions with a Bonestorm Championship match at You’re Next in October. Through questionable means, Mack actually captured the Bonestorm Championship.
It seemed like that might’ve been the breaking point for the foundational members of SUP. Here’s a guy who infamously takes cheap shots below the belt to win matches…who attacks people after grueling contests when their backs are turned…and he’s ridden this nefarious wave to capturing your championship in your building.
That didn’t go over well, and it appears it could’ve been the straw that broke the camel’s back.
In December, Ison paid the folks at ACTION Wrestling a visit, and exacted a bit of revenge against Mack. Just weeks later, Mack showed up with Alan Angels and Shawn Dean in tow, before being run out of The Basement East by Kevin Ku and company. The battle lines were clearly drawn. Ku would earn an ACTION title shot at the beginning of January, but Ison attacked Mack, causing the DQ.
At this point, things are out of hand.
Jaden Newman joined the fray for Team SUP that night, but now, we have a conflict on our hands that appears hard to resolve. ACTION Wrestling CEO Matt Griffin has sanctioned a six-man tag team match, pitting Team SUP (Ison, Ku, Newman) against Team ACTION (Angels, Dean, Mack) on the February 7th ACTION show.
We have a huge show coming up Feb 7th…..we have sold out of our Reserved seating, and if you've seen the last few ACTION crowds you dont want to be left missing out!
— ACTION Wrestling (@WrestleACTION1) January 21, 2020
Tickets are just $10 and are available at https://t.co/S3l0kgZ7MG! pic.twitter.com/4N8uiTDMRZ
There’s plenty of blame to go around when it comes to this situation blowing out of proportion. Could Griffin have done more to keep Mack in check when representing the promotion outside of Georgie? Was the decision to award Mack with a Bonestorm Championship match the right call by the SUP brain trust? For the love of God, why won’t anyone step in and stop these run-ins?!?!
It’s been a steady rise to this point, as it seems at every SUP or ACTION show, the stakes are being raised. This one promises to be a war, and folks, if this doesn’t settle things between these two factions, I don’t know that I want to see what does.
Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD and #BeBetter. “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Nashville, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley
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