Your questions answered here by Gabe Sapolsky!

gimmick

Hopefully in the first of a series of Q&As, former ECW hand, ROH booker and current DGUSA/Evolve booker Gabe Sapolsky has agreed to do an exclusive Q&A session with our board.

Post your questions for him here. Please, do not ask any insulting questions as I obviously will not be posing those.

waltersobchak

WOW!! Thats FN awesome!

Gerard.C

Jesus that'd brilliant, fair play gimmick!!!!

My question is - Given the potential he had around this time last year to get over as a huge star, what would Gabe have done differently in booking Randy Orton over the last year or so?

waltersobchak

My Question is- If Gabe was booking TNA..How would he have kept the momentum from January 4th up until now. And who in TNA (other than the OAPS) Has the potential to make TNA more popular

flahavaj

Fair play to you gimmick, thats quite a massive coup for the board. I have a rake of questions for the great man, I'll post them later. I hope plenty of others do the same.

Bubs101

How can companies like DragonGate USA, ROH and Evolve attract new fans outside of the die hard indie fans and what does he think the ceiling is for those companies?

Jolt2007

Wow, this is cool. After the recent situation with Davey Richards will the way you deal with wrestlers change at all in the future? Also, favourite story/incident from the ECW days?

D2D

How you managed this gimmick is beyond me. Fair play to ya.

My question(s) atm would be: How does he think WWE should push Bryan Danielson when he's added to the main roster and what position does he see Dragon Gate USA and EVOLVE being in a few year's time

chordtype

Quite a coup.

My questions: (Feel free to edit)

What trends (if any) are developing in Pro Wrestling that should be curtailed?

What effect is the increasing rate of piracy having on promotions like Dragon Gate USA? How can promotions tackle this?

What can Pro Wrestling learn from MMA or should it even bother?

flahavaj

Given the physical and tragic toll that working a praticular style had on the likes of Guerrero and Benoit, do you ever think about encouraging the wrestlers you book presently to work a less risky style?

What is the greatest wrestling match and who is the greatest wrestler of all time in your opinon?

If you weren't in your present position as booker or Dragon Gate USA/Evolve and TNA called tomorrow and offered you total creative control would you take the job?

How much of an input do you give into the actual way a match is mapped out, or do you levae it to the workers to work it out themselves?

If there was one match you could have booked in ROH that you didn't get to do what would it be?

What is your biggest regret or mistake (if any!) from your time booking ROH?

How is Jimmy Bower these days? Are you still in touch. Please give the best wishes of the boards.ie PW forum.:)

Machismo Fan

What was it like having to deal with and adjust to the loss of key talent to WWE and TNA?

Bubs101

In a recent interview with Bryan Alvarez, Lance Storm said during his time at ECW he once saw New Jack play the piano with his cock. Were you there and if so any memories?

Diabhal Beag

Ask him the funniest Teddy Hart stories he knows please

Mr.Nice Guy

That's great for the board to get an interview. Fair play. My question for Gabe would be...

- If a British TV station were to make a serious attempt at producing a weekly wrestling show for TV does he think it would stand any chance of success? Or is the US wrestling scene too popular to contend with?

The Volt

Having been voted 'Best Booker' from 2004 to 2007, what do you cite as the high point during this period and was there anything you were doing differently that got you this recognition?

Vince135792003

Bubs101 wrote: »

How can companies like DragonGate USA, ROH and Evolve attract new fans outside of the die hard indie fans and what does he think the ceiling is for those companies?

I don't want to screw the thread up but he answered this recently. His basic point was that DargonGate, ROH etc.... are purely niche promotions.

Who in his opinion are the best bookers in the history of pro-wrestling besides Vince McMahon?

How challenging is it to book constantly year after year?

gimmick

If you still had the ROH book, at what stage, if any, would you have pulled the trigger with Tyler Black?

starviewadams

What was it like working with Paul Heyman in ECW?

Fozzy

Will you be sending Davey Richards a Christmas card?

Or...have you learned anything from the Davey situation that you think will help you in the future?

John 187

First thanks Gabe for all your hard work in ROH and in other places.

If you had to do another Guest Booker DVD which company and timeline would you take a stab at?

gimmick

Right, thats enough, so not want to be bombarding the man too much. Ill post up Gabes thoughts in due course.

gimmick

With great thanks to all the questions asked and especially to Gabe Sapolsky himself.....................

In a recent interview with Bryan Alvarez, Lance Storm said during his time at ECW he once saw New Jack play the piano with his cock. Were you there and if so any memories? Do you have a favourite story/incident from the ECW days? What was it like working with Paul Heyman in ECW?

-Well, I'll give you all the credit in the world for starting things off by asking a very original question along with a question I've answered 1000 times. To answer: 1) No, fortunately I did not witness that. 2) This covers a lot of ground, none that I can really discuss now. 3) It was incredible.

Given the potential he had around this time last year to get over as a huge star, what would you have done differently in booking Randy Orton over the last year or so?

-I haven't really followed his booking closely enough to comment on it. He seems super over and the fans see him as a legit top guy so whatever they have done has worked.

If you were booking TNA..How would you have kept the momentum from January 4th up until now? And who in TNA (other than the OAPS) has the potential to make TNA more popular?

-Well, TNA can pay me to answer that lol. I think they have a tremendous amount of talent and potential up and down the roster. I would really push Desmond Wolf to the moon now, he has that main event presence on the show. They really have a great roster of fresh talent and veterans now and hopefully they make the most out of it.

After the recent situation with Davey Richards will the way you deal with wrestlers change at all in the future? Have you learned anything from the Davey situation that you think will help you in the future?

-Yes, I try to learn from every experience good and bad. I definitely have learned from this one, but for now I'll just keep those lessons to myself. The bottom line is that all these lessons are used just to make whatever I'm involved with better for the fans. I promise we'll just keep improving DGUSA and EVOLVE for the fans.

How does he think WWE should push Bryan Danielson when he's added to the main roster?

-I think they should give him a slow push, but be careful not to make him into a jobber in the fan's eyes, but at the same time they shouldn't shove him down people's throats.

What trends (if any) are developing in Pro Wrestling that should be curtailed?

-Hmmmm, that is a really good question. I think we've seen a lot of positive trends in wrestling lately. You see new faces given a shot all over the place, wrestlers are working safer and smarter, those were my main negative trends a few years ago. Nothing is really coming to mind now.

What effect is the increasing rate of piracy having on promotions like Dragon Gate USA? How can promotions tackle this?

-Well, there has always been piracy. I just think its up to the promotions to step it up and give people a product worth buying. For instance, DGUSA DVDs are now double disc sets to make sure there is the best picture quality, they have deluxe packaging so it is a collectible, we throw some other free collectible stuff in the orders, we have optional commentary and we really load up the bonus features. For instance, "Open The Freedom Gate," which we are now taking pre-orders on at DGUSA.tv, has 4 1/2 hours of total footage on it with the main card, bonus matches and other extras. We put all this together at a reasonable price of $20. I just have to hold on to the belief that if you bust your ass, put a lot of love and care into your product and give the fans a good deal they will support it. If they still choose to bootleg it then maybe it's time to find another line of work and there won't be these promotions anymore.

Given the physical and tragic toll that working a praticular style had on the likes of Guerrero and Benoit, do you ever think about encouraging the wrestlers you book presently to work a less risky style?

-Yes, it is always a concern and today's wrestlers definitely work much smarter and safer. They are also much more educated. In the days of Benoit in New Japan, a concussion was seen as nothing more than a headache and you were told to tough it out and get right back in the ring. There is no way that is the case anymore. There have been many positive developments in making sure the wrestlers are safer and more educated.

What is the greatest wrestling match and who is the greatest wrestler of all time in your opinon?

-That's really hard to say, there are so many. I could go on forever.

What can Pro Wrestling learn from MMA or should it even bother?

-I think there are some lessons to be learned, mainly about presentation and pacing. We are trying some of that in EVOLVE now. I think fans are used to shorter matches and quicker bursts of intense action due to MMA. However, MMA is much different than pro wrestling and trying to do "fake" MMA won't work. I might have grown up watching Ric Flair go 60 minutes, but now fans are educated to see 30 second explosions of action. I think things like that have to be considered and we are trying out some modernized approaches in EVOLVE now.

If you weren't in your present position as booker or Dragon Gate USA/Evolve and TNA called tomorrow and offered you total creative control would you take the job? Yes/No?

-I don't know. It seems like a pain in the ass there. I like creating something from the ground up, developing it from nothing, nurturing it and watching it grow. I like being the high quality, five star restaurant that just tries to serve its exclusive customers rather than run a gigantic chain that looks to appeal to the masses.

How much of an input do you give into the actual way a match is mapped out, or do you leave it to the workers to work it out themselves?

-It depends.

If there was one match you could have booked in ROH that you didn't get to do what would it be?

-There was a whole bunch with Low Ki that was left on the table that we could have done.

If a British TV station were to make a serious attempt at producing a weekly wrestling show for TV does he think it would stand any chance of success? Or is the US wrestling scene too popular to contend with?

-Anything has a chance of success if it has a competitive advantage and brings a quality product to the table.

Having been voted 'Best Booker' from 2004 to 2007, what do you cite as the high point during this period and was there anything you were doing differently that got you this recognition? How challenging is it to book constantly year after year? What is your biggest regret or mistake (if any!) from your time booking ROH?

-Well I was just fortunate I was booking at a time when Paul Heyman, Jim Cornette, Bill Watts and all the other great bookers were on the sidelines. I'm not in their league. It was very challenging. There were regrets of course, you aren't going to bat .1000. I just like to put those behind me, learn from them and move on. If I would pick a high point it was the Cage Of Death match. That was the pinnacle of my time in ROH. I can safely say that now.

What was it like having to deal with and adjust to the loss of key talent to WWE and TNA?

-It was difficult, probably the most challenging part of the job and it could be frustrating, but I always booked with losing talent in mind. I would always work to have the next class ready to move right into the spots. It was definitely a priority. The ironic part is I feel that one of my downfalls in ROH was signing everyone to contracts and having to use the same crew for two years on every show. I think losing talent was actually a strength of ROH for years as it gave hungry guys a chance, let new stars be made and most importantly kept everything fresh. It also pushed me as a booker to come up with different stuff and think outside the box rather than get comfortable in a routine. I think this will now be a strength in EVOLVE as we'll constantly feature hungry talent that will go that extra mile to make their reputation. It really makes for an exciting product.

Who in his opinion are the best bookers in the history of pro-wrestling besides Vince McMahon?

-It begins and ends with Paul Heyman.

If you still had the ROH book, at what stage, if any, would you have pulled the trigger with Tyler Black?

-At Final Battle two months after I was fired.

If you had to do another Guest Booker DVD which company and timeline would you take a stab at?

-Maybe the UWF/MidSouth invasion of NWA.

And finally......... how is Jimmy Bower these days? Are you still in touch.

-He's homeless somewhere, probably drooling on himself right now

.

Gabe Sapolsky is current head booker of DragonGate USA. Visit their website http://www.dgusa.tv/ and try and support a great upstart US promotion. You will not regret it.

flahavaj

Wow, he went above and beyond to even bother doing this and I'm very impressed with some of the in depth answers. Its a mark of the calibre of man to be honest that he'd take the time out of his schedule to do this. My respect for him has gotten even higher. If a couple of posters are inspired to watch some DGUSA or Evolve then it'll have been worthi his while anyway.

Interested in his answer to the question about getting guys to tone down their style as to be honest, if you look at the way he booked ROH, theres little evidence to show this. Examples would be the Briscoes/Steenerico ladder war and the insane Liverpool match between Nigerl and Dragon, both examples of matches where they went too far with the violence IMO.

Interesting that he mentions Low Ki as a guy he'd like to have booked more. Th one match I think I regret not happening most was Ki/Joe II. The first was just unreal. Also a Ki/Homicide feud would have bee epic.

You're an absolute hero gimmick btw for including the New Jack question, not to mention having it as the opening question! He won't forget this interbiew in a hurry anyway.

Thanks for doing this and hopefully we'll get a some more of these. Poor Jimmy Bower, I hope he's OK.:pac:

Mr.Nice Guy

Yeah I enjoyed reading that. Gabe seems like a cool, humble guy. Well done gimmick on getting the interview.

gimmick

Time to unstick this. Hope to have a new interviewed lined up soon.

Bounty Hunter

gimmick wrote: »

Time to unstick this. Hope to have a new interviewed lined up soon.

I missed when this was announced as i was away but i gotta say Kudos man on getting the interview and it would be really good if anything similar is done again as suggested, infact if there are a good few then id probably preserve them in the links thread beside each other as im doing for the SOTW threads.

Gerard.C

Gabe put the q&a up on his facebook, fair play to him!

kmart6

....and twitter!