Tony Deppen wants to inform you of some wrestlers on the independent scene you should be keeping your eye on.
Major League Wrestling‘s Tony Deppen recently sat down with WrestleZone Managing Editor Bill Pritchard. When asked where his mannerisms and facial expressions come from, Deppen said he believes it comes from watching a lot of heels back in the day.
“I honestly don’t know,” Tony Deppen said. “I’ve had a lot of people talk to me, like after they watch a match, and they’re like, ‘Have you ever acted?’ and I’m like no, and they’re like, ‘I don’t know what it is about you, but you know how to work that reaction on your face.’ I think it’s just growing up watching a lot of the heels back in the day, just watching their reactions and kind of taking a little bit of that and sprinkling it into my own world.”
When asked what song was going through his head when he did his shimmy dance in the ring against Mansoor in Game Changer Wrestling, Deppen said it’s funny because he’s extremely reclusive outside the ring.
“It’s really weird, like, I know seeing that it seems like I’m this eccentric, outgoing person, but I’m extremely reclusive. I don’t like to act like that,” Tony Deppen said. “But I don’t know what it is. It’s a performance art to me. Wrestling is like an athletic competition and a form of theater that I absolutely love. And it’s just — I don’t know what, it just comes over me.
“There’s nothing going on in my head. There’s nothing, like, I don’t plan out how I’m going to act. It’s literally on a whim. When I was going over stuff with Mansoor, he was just like, oh, well, make sure you’re like this. I was like, I don’t really put anything in my head. I just freelance it to see how it goes, and normally that’s where I get my best reactions. The organic stuff is what makes wrestling to me.”
Tony Deppen says to keep an eye on Jason Furious
When asked if there is anyone in Major League Wrestling on the independent scene has his eye on that no one is really talking about, Deppen pointed out Jason Furious, Rocket, and Unbreakable Andy Harner.
“There’s plenty of people like that,” Tony Deppen began. “What sucks is there’s so many ways to get eyes on you now in the wrestling world. I really don’t know if some of these people are just not getting booked because they have a bad attitude or like something to do with money. I really don’t know because it’s really hard to not be seen today.
“Especially with the advent of streaming devices and stuff like that, so I don’t really get it. But one guy, I do like him because I’ve known him for a very long time. He does crazy shit when it comes to bumps, and he’s just awesome. His name’s Jason Furious. He always does shows for us when — because I own a brewery and we run shows at our brew fest.
“And he always wrestles, and he has had a few good matches with Rocket; they’re awesome. They just go wild in front of people that don’t care about wrestling and they love it. So I’d really like to see him get out there out there a little bit more. Rocket would be cool to see because he just does some stupid stuff. He’s just wildly talented and athletic.
“Another guy that people know of, I’m trying to get him to come back into wrestling. His name’s Unbreakable Andy Harner. He’s the guy that everyone should know about. He actually taught PAC how to do flips via Yahoo mail or something.
“It was back in the early or late ’90s because I used to be a backyard wrestler with Andy, and Andy used to be the dude that did all the flips before everybody else did them. And PAC would ask them like, hey, how do you do these flips? And Andy would just guide him via some form of social media. So it would be cool to see him get his flowers because that guy deserves it.”
You can check out our complete interview with Tony Deppen in the embedded video below.
READ MORE: Tony Deppen Pitched Ron Funches Winning GCW Match, Wanted It To Be Most ‘WCW-esque Match Ever’
What do you make of Tony Deppen’s comments? Who are some of your favorite wrestlers on the independent scene that not enough fans are talking about? Let us know your thoughts by sounding off in the comments section below.
If you use any of these quotes, please credit WrestleZone with a link to this article for the transcription.
