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 screwjob.de: The first question is always the same i guess. When, where and why did you get into wrestling?
Mike Quackenbush: I first started wrestling in 1991. I didn't get very serious about it until 1994 or 1995. I was inspired by the work of Jushin Liger and other early-90's aerialists.
screwjob.de: Now, you came back from a serious injury about a month ago. What exactly was your injury about and how is your state of health at the moment?
Mike Quackenbush: I had surgery on my back, wrists and right foot to remove a number of cysts before they became cancerous. I'm about 75% right now. My doctors told me not to wrestle until June. But I couldn't wait to get back in the ring.
screwjob.de: Who was your trainer? (if you had anyone who trained you)
Mike Quackenbush: A lot of what I know I was taught by Ace Darling, and later, Jorge Rivera.
screwjob.de: Did you always wrestle as "Mike Quackenbush" or did you start with some crazy gimmick?
Mike Quackenbush: For a few years, I was just "M. Quackenbush." In 1997, I changed to "Lightning Mike Quackenbush." I wrestled for a little while in 2004 as Spyrazul.
screwjob.de: Do you wrestle with a gimmick anywhere today?
Mike Quackenbush: No.
screwjob.de: Your style of wrestling is quite "different". Tell us about your influences.
Mike Quackenbush: I like to mix styles. Mexican Lucha Libre and British Lancashire and Japanese Puroresu and German Catch. I want to mix everything together to make something new.
screwjob.de: Obviously as a wrestler you developed a lot during your years in the business. Would you say you are at your prime right now?
Mike Quackenbush: I feel like I was at my best right before my surgery. The singles match I had with Chris Hero in Essen, in December of 2005, was one of my best ever.
screwjob.de: Tell us a bit about your home fed CHIKARA. What stile do they offer, what’s up with the name, etc.
Mike Quackenbush: CHIKARA is the Japanese word for "power." We chose that name because it doesn't sound like anything else. It's not Chikara Pro Wrestling, or Chikara Championship Wrestling...it's just CHIKARA. I like that. You sort of have to figure it out on your own.
screwjob.de: Some people say that CHIKARA is too much about the Comedy factor and that it is not serious enough. What do you respond to that?
Mike Quackenbush: We do have a sense of humor. But we can also out-wrestle 99% of the other companies on the planet. For example, we once brought a CHIKARA 6-man to wXw in Germany. I teamed with Gran Akuma and Jigsaw against The Wild Cards and Hallowicked. The match lasted about 36 minutes. There was a lot of action. The fans laughed, because sometimes there was a bit of comedy. There was a lot packed into that match. The best performers can do it all.
screwjob.de: What other feds do you wrestle for regularly besides CHIKARA?
Mike Quackenbush: A small company here in Pennsylvania, PWE. Before my surgery, I was also a regular for CZW in Philadelphia.
screwjob.de: You have a very special relation to Germany. I noticed the German flag on the new Chikara Tag Belts. Your idea?
Mike Quackenbush: Yes, that was my idea. I wanted the German, British, Japanese and Mexican flags on there. There is no American flag on the belts.
screwjob.de: When did you get in touch with Germany and wXw first?
Mike Quackenbush: I first came to Germany in April of 2003 for a few days. I got to wrestle Swiss Money Holding, and against one of my great rivals, Claudio Castagnoli.
screwjob.de: What happened that makes you love Germany so much?
Mike Quackenbush: For many years, my dream was to leave the United States, and wrestle in other countries. I tried for many years, but no opportunities came my way. Then, I got the chance to wrestle for wXw. I was very nervous. This was my dream coming true. I wanted to show the fans my style, let them see what I could do. I didn't know if they would like it. For many years I would wrestle all over America, and the fans did not enjoy my style very much. But in Germany, the fans gave me a great response. They liked my style of wrestling, and they were great fun to entertain. When it was time for me to leave, the fans called out "Please Come Back," and because of that, wXw did bring me back to Germany. The fans did that, and I will always remember it.
screwjob.de: Will we see you in Essen again in the near future?
Mike Quackenbush: Yes, I hope so. I know it is expensive to buy flights from the US to Germany, but I wish I could wrestle there every month.
screwjob.de: Do you think anyone you noticed in Europe could make it in the US, like Claudio Castagnoli for example?
Mike Quackenbush: Claudio is already a star here in the US. I think he will go to the WWE soon. He is a very talented wrestler.
screwjob.de: What's the difference between wrestling in Europe and the USA?
Mike Quackenbush: Wrestling in the USA is my job. Wrestling in Europe is fun.
screwjob.de: Getting back to the USA, i read you did not want to participate in the current RoH vs CZW angle. Why is that and what do you think of it in general?
Mike Quackenbush: There is more than just an angle there. It's getting bad between the wrestlers, and I don't care for that.
screwjob.de: Currently the Necro Butcher gets booked about almost everywhere. Lately he was at ROH, CZW, IWA, PWG and even CHIKARA. What is it that makes this man such a star on the Indys? After all there are quite some people who don't like or even hate the guy.
Mike Quackenbush: Necro is one of the smartest men you will ever meet. He is very nice. Very intelligent. But, he is also a savage. He is perhaps the toughest man I've ever met. He destroys people, and sometimes, he gets destroyed to. There's something very magnetic about him, and that dichotomy.
screwjob.de: How come a man of your talent was never booked by ROH?
Mike Quackenbush: I think if the fans want to see me there, I will go. When the fans speak, we listen.
screwjob.de: As many people don't know most Indy wrestlers have a normal to work besides their wrestling. How hard is it to be a wrestler?
Mike Quackenbush: I have two other jobs, plus I wrestle, and I train at Chikara Wrestle Factory. For me, it's like having four jobs.
screwjob.de: Do you follow any feds you dont work for regularly? (e.g. do you know what’s going on in IWA MS at the moment?)
Mike Quackenbush: I follow CMLL in Mexico. I read up on WWE, TNA, New Japan, NOAH and all the major companies. It's important to know what the state of the business is.
screwjob.de: Do you watch either WWE or TNA? If so, what do you think of their product?
Mike Quackenbush: Every once and again, I am home for Monday Night Raw. It is usually very boring to me.
screwjob.de: Speaking of TNA, do you think they help the Indy circuit by offering contracts and thus guaranteed money, or do you think they are a threat which could develop into exclusive contracts for guys like AJ, Daniels, Joe, etc?
Mike Quackenbush: TNA is a good thing. Anything that isn't the WWE is a good thing, just because it isn't the WWE.
screwjob.de: Honestly, is Indy wrestling a way to make enough money? I heard even Super Dragon, who is a huge draw everywhere he gets, has a normal job over the week. So I guess if you aren't in the league of Styles or Joe you can't make a living of wrestling, right?
Mike Quackenbush: That is probably true.
screwjob.de: As a follow up question, what about CHIKARA and the money? Just for the shows, not the wrestling school. Do you make money with the shows, or are you happy if you get out of a show without a loss?
Mike Quackenbush: In 4 years, we have had two shows that made money. We've lost money on all the others. Especially in Pennsylvania, where there's an indy company every 100m, it's hard to make any money.
screwjob.de: Imagine WWE would offer you a contract. You know with your body you would be jobbing all year long on Velocity or Heat. Would you take the offer?
Mike Quackenbush: With my body, they wouldn't offer me a contract. And if they ever did, I wouldn't take it.
screwjob.de: Can you tell us a bit of the fascination that comes along with wrestling for WWE. Everybody wants to be there, but in fact most of the Indy guys would never make it to the main event. So what is so great about being a part of WWE?
Mike Quackenbush: I think some people grew up with that as their dream. That's why they got into wrestling. So maybe they don't care, as long as they get to fulfill that dream.
screwjob.de: What do you think about the current plans to bring back ECW? Vince seems to realize he can milk the franchise a bit more. A good move business wise?
Mike Quackenbush: It's too early to say. Once it gets started, then we'll see.
screwjob.de: I guess you follow Japanese wrestling a bit. What are the main differences between wrestling in the States and Japan?
Mike Quackenbush: Japanese wrestling is about emotion, about courage and spirit, about showing your best. American wrestling tends to be about angles and stories and promos.
screwjob.de: Would you say that there is a superior type of wrestling either in the US, Europe or Japan?
Mike Quackenbush: It depends what you like. I think Mexican lucha libre is brilliant. I think the World of Sport stuff from the UK is brilliant. But that's just what I like.
screwjob.de: Speaking of Japan, what are your thoughts about former WWE wrestlers coming in to especially New Japan and All Japan. In particular, what do you think about Brock Lesnar? First he "spits" in the wrestling fans' face and now he has one the most prestigious titles you can have...
Mike Quackenbush: Brock Lesnar is a star, and New Japan needs star very badly right now. I think that's all there is to it. Some people try to make it seem like Lesnar is the greatest modern pro-wrestler. Lesnar couldn't lace Tiger Mask's boots.
screwjob.de: Recently younger talent from Japan get a lot of spotlight in the US. ROH continues to bring in guys from NOAH and Dragon Gate, CHIKARA presented DDT and K-Dojo workers at the TWGP. What is your view on those guys? Are they stars for you? KENTA wrestled at the Tokyo Dome with 50000 people in attendance, so isn’t he a star? Or are they as "Indy" as you are?
Mike Quackenbush: Wow. That's a lot of questions.
screwjob.de: While wrestling japanese guys, are there communication problems?
Mike Quackenbush: Wrestling is a universal language. If you get kicked in the head, it doesn't matter if you speak French or Chinese.
screwjob.de: Have you ever been to Japan? What were your experiences there?
Mike Quackenbush: No, I have not had the opportunity to wrestle in Japan yet.
screwjob.de: Who do you think are the most underrated guys in wrestling right now? Doesn't matter where they come from or wrestle.
Mike Quackenbush: Skayde. Hallowicked. Turbo. Ares. Felino.
screwjob.de: Who would be your dream opponent for a match and why?
Mike Quackenbush: I would love to have a singles match with Christopher Daniels, or Jushin Liger. I think Daniels is the very best independent wrestler in the world. Liger has always been my wrestling hero, and I would love to wrestle him.
screwjob.de: I know, old question, but what was the best match you think you had in your career so far?
Mike Quackenbush: There are many that I enjoy. "Negative Balance" was CHIKARA's first ECW Arena show, I wrestled Claudio there on 8/13/05. My singles match with Chris Hero from Essen in December. There are many CHIKARA 6-man tag matches that I am very proud of as well.
screwjob.de: OK, now the word association thing...no, just kidding  . Anything you want to say to your (german) fans out there? Anything you want to promote or point out?
Mike Quackenbush: I am always grateful for your support and I hope I can return to wrestle for you again soon. It was a very emotional moment for me to stand in the wXw ring again back in March, and to capture the championship. I hope to do it again. Thank you, my friends.
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