NO HOLDS BARRED

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with Dan Kanagie of the North American Catch Wrestling Association (NACWA).

He updated us on the next event for the NACWA, called the Virginia Shooter's Challenge, which will take place this Saturday, April 5. It will be held at the Amherst County High School, 139 Lancer Lane, Amherst, Virginia 24521.

The Virginia Shooter's Challenge is a regional qualifier for this year's NACWA national tournament, the Liberty Bell Classic, which will be held later this year.

This tournament will be held under traditional American catch wrestling rules, where you can only win by submission or pin. The matches will not have any points scored, as they are based on a win, lose, or draw format. There are no divisions by experience level in order to stop sandbagging. All kinds of submissions are allowed, except groin attacks, fish hooking, spitting, biting, eye gouging, hair grabbing, intentional striking, and kicking. Athletes from all styles, schools, and organizations are welcome.

We spoke with Dan Kanagie by phone Wednesday.

"Things are looking good for our second event," he said. But he is realistic that the revival of catch wrestling is just in its earliest stages. "Being new and doing the whole grassroots thing, we're not actually expecting a massive turnout in the thousands, but for being our second event, it's looking really good."

With about 20 wrestlers already pre-registered, he said, "That should be a nice turnout, double the size of the last one."

Later this month, he will also start teaching regular catch wrestling classes at the Primal Gym in Lawrenceville, New Jersey.

We also discussed how grapplers from various styles are adapting to the rules and techniques of catch wrestling, the issues of governance and a governing body for catch wrestling as it continues to develop, and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

ONE Fighting Championship. ONE FC is Asia's largest and most prestigious mixed martial arts event. ONE FC features the best Asian fighters and has initiated the ONE Asia Partnership Network, which includes most of the major MMA promotions and MMA gyms in Asia. For more information, go to their web site, at ONEFC.com.

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.

Labels: Dan Kanagie, Eddie Goldman, grappling, NACWA, No Holds Barred, North American Catch Wrestling Association, submission, Virginia Shooter's Challenge