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Pick My Brain:

Matt Henstock

Canadian Wrestling Expert

October 19, 2002

Canada has always been a huge part of professional wrestling.  They've given us Bret Hart, Chris Benoit, Owen Hart, and countless other icons of this business.

It's time we pay their wrestling scene a little respect.

I did an interview with a fellow named Matt Henstock awhile back, so he's returning the favor.

Here now is an interview with one of the foremost EXPERTS on the Canadian wrestling scene... Matt Henstock.  Matt has some pretty controversial comments about the War on Terrorism, but everyone is entitled to their own opinions, right?  Sit back, relax, and enjoy some international cuisine.

1. First things first. Plug all your sites to everyone reading this interview, most of whom don't bother to even know where Canada is on a map.

All of my sites? Wow, that's a lot. Well, I currently run The Canadian Indy, which is located at http://thecanadianindy.cjb.net, which is a site dedicated to Canadian independant wrestling scene, and has been the victim of not getting updated that frequently lately. I run a personal website that has really nothing to do with wrestling, but more of me ranting and complaining over at http://bigshotmatthenstock.cjb.net, and then there is Eastern Canada's favorite wrestling website, www.newscott.com, where I do the famed Twenty Questions segment with Canada's hottest indy stars. And then there is The Henstock Report over at www.realactionwrestling.com, where I write a column about the WWE, even though I should probably write about Real Action Wrestling sometime, on account of it being their website. My work has also been posted on the Pro Wrestling Torch, as well as Bob Ryder's 1Wrestling website, which I don't think need plugging.

2. Lots of these questions will be based around your "Top 15" rankings of WWE wrestlers, which I found very controversial. You ranked Rock #1, but called him a "sellout." Why do wrestling fans resent a guy for making a lot more money for taking a lot less bumps and a lot less road travel? Wouldn't you do the same?

I'm glad someone liked my Top 15 rankings! The reason why the Rock was ranked #1 was simply because my rankings system was based on points being award each match. However, I saw it fit to give my little opinion on each worker as well. Is the Rock a sellout? I'd say yes. Should fans resent him? You're damn right they should. I'm not saying that the Rock doesn't respect or love the business, but what really burns me is the fact that the week after Steve Austin walks out on the WWE, The Rock makes a huge return, and does a passionate speech about if you're not serious about making WWE number one, blah blah blah, then go home. Two months later, The Rock is off filming yet another movie. He's a sellout, plain and simple. Also, I don't think that most fans resent The Rock, only the internet fans, who, seem to hate everyone...but I guess I'm one to talk...

3. Regarding Chris Benoit, you said, "He's not that good." Regarding Billy Gunn, you said he's an "Awesome wrestler." What exactly is going on with those Canadian TV stations? Do they not air the blown spots and dead heat Billy Gunn offers us, and did they edit out all of Benoit's ****+ matches from the past 15 years? How dare you mention those 2 in the same breath?

Haha, when I said Chris Benoit wasen't that good, I think I was talking about his character, not his ability. I'll be the first to admit that Chris Benoit is one of the best workers in the world right now as far as the main stream wrestling scene goes. With that said, there's no hype around Chris Benoit. There's no reason for me to tune into Smackdown each week to watch him. In a nutshell, Chris Benoit is an awesome wrestler, but like a lot of people in the WWE, his gimmick just plain sucks. As for Billy Gunn, I don't know what he did to make everyone hate him. I've always been a fan of Billy Gunn. Sure, he screws up now and then, but who doesn't? I say give him a break...he could probably kick half of your reader's asses, and he's in great shape...good for him.

4. You called Bradshaw, "Ignorant, rude, and stupid" and said he is the type of person the UnAmericans' speeches are directed toward. How can Bradshaw be stupid and ignorant when his stock portfolio has outperformed 90% of the experts', when he doesn't even need to work for money, and when one of the people calling him stupid is someone with the intelligence of Andrew "Test" Martin?

Ok, when you're comparing my intelligence to the level of Mr. Martin, I think you're crossing the line. Bradshaw is an ignorant American, sorry, but he is. I know it's hard for most of your readers to understand this due to having the media throw propaganda at you daily through television and radio, but he's an ignorant, dumb American, and he's the reason why the rest of world hates your country's guts, mine included in some cases. He can have all of the money in the world due to stocks, and I'm glad he's booksmart, but it still makes no difference. I recall after September 11th, Bradshaw would get on the mic at house shows saying the USA should nuke and bomb the "Arabs" for what they did, then, when Bush accused the Taliban of harbouring Bin Ladin, all of a sudden it was the Taliban who did the horrific attack on New York. Bradshaw buys into blind patriotism way too easy. Still not convinced? Think of it this way...although the events of September 11th were very horrific, let's be honest...stuff like this happens almost every day in countrys like Israel. As a matter of fact, if you take the death toll of civilians killed in Israel by suicide bombers in the last two years, it's probably higher than the death toll of people killed on 9/11. I don't think that Bradshaw's ignorance let's him see that, and due to the fact that he went apeshit when this happened in the US, even though it was still very horrific, he didn't, and continues not to, give a rat's ass about the hundreds of people being killed each day from terrorism in other countrys. Bradshaw is a figurehead of what a lot of Americans seemed to present to the rest of the world in not really acting majorly against terrorism untill one of their civilians were killed...it almost seemed like they were making out to be that Americans were better then the rest of the human race, but that's just how I saw it. A lot of Americans think this way (not all, but a lot), and the other nations know this, and it kind of pisses them off.

(Armpit: Matt misunderstood my question here.  I wasn't saying he had the intelligence of Test, I was saying how could someone of Test's intelligence insult someone with Bradshaw's intelligence.)

5. You're a teenager still in high school, and for your age, you possess an impressive amount of wrestling knowledge. How did you manage to educate yourself on the glorious decade of the 80s, considering you were about 5 years old when Ric Flair and Rick Steamboat were having the best wrestling matches the world has ever seen?

That's simple. I simply borrowed old tapes from my cousins, and had the advantage of watching the original Four Horsemen, Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka, and plain out crap like Strike Force (the gimmick, not the wrestlers, suck.), and the AWA Great American Turkey Challenge (oh yeah...I saw that too).

6. I must say, the Canadian crowds provide heat that is off the charts. You also remember wrestling history better than the WWE does. Why do Canadian fans have longer memories than American fans, and why are the Raw crowds so dead that you could hear a pin drop?

That's a tough question. I think that both Canadians and Americans remember the past of wrestling, however, the reason why I think us Canadians are more vocal about it is simply due to the fact that if you look at the two types of fans on a majority scale, the Americans are more into wrestling for the entertainment, and the T&A. Canadians, on the other hand, prefer actual wrestling, as opposed to sitting through promo after promo of Triple H and The Undertaker giving the same garbage they've been feeding us since 1999. Plus our crowds like to have a bit more fun, so we like getting the old "Meat", and "You Screwed Bret" chants going just for the hell of it. Why are Raw crowds so dead? Simple...the same matches repeated week after week. The shows are always based around Triple H and Ric Flair, who the crowd is sick of, and, in my opinion, people pay money to sit in the crowd to watch wrestling...not a live show on the TitanTron full of backstage vignettes.

7. Grade the following legends from Canada on a scale of F to A+

Bret Hart: A (I would add the +, but I'll always remember Bret Hart on a sour note, the Screwjob, and it's his fault I'll remember that, due to the fact that between 1997 and 2002 he wouldn't stop bitching about it!)

Chris Benoit: A

Test: B-

Chris Jericho: A+ (He has what Benoit lacks...charisma, and matches in talent.)

Edge: A

Christian: B+

Owen Hart: A

Val Venis: B

Lance Storm: A

8. Longtime wrestling fans love '87-era Stampede Wrestling from Calgary. It featured such superstars as Brian Pillman, Owen Hart, Beef Wellington, Hiro Hase, Pat Tanaka, Chris Benoit, Jushin Liger and a slew of others. What Canadian indie guys are going to be the stars of the future?

A lot, actually. In my opinion, Scott D'Amore, Gary Williams, Skott Phenoix, Bobby Rude, and JDL. Looking at the ladies, Precious Lucy, Sweet Sarah, and Badd Dolly for sure. Oh yeah, and who can forget SledgeHammer Spike (*laughs hysterically*). Why am I laughing? Head over to Twenty Questions sometime to read about the funniest rib in WWE history concerning the Maritime's wrestling hero, SHS.

9. Who screwed Bret?

Bret screwed Bret. Why? Not because Vince McMahon said so, but because Bret let politics put him into the position he was in (refusing to drop the title in Canada, and refusing to drop the title to Micheals), and it was those same politics that got him screwed over in the long run.

10. Which famed wrestling trainer would win in a 3-way street fight between Al Snow, Taz, or Stu Hart?

Stu would make Taz and Al just another victim...trust me on that.

11. Do you honestly expect American rock n roll fans to forgive your country for giving us Rush?

Who the hell is Rush? Sounds like some O-Town cover band...

12. In America, independent promoters rank right up there with used car salesmen. How sleazy and corrupt is the Canadian independent scene?

I dunno...I haven't really came across any overly sleazy promoters yet, but there must be some out there.

13. In 1998, wrestling was red-hot among high school students. I was told pimply teenagers would walk the halls and proclaim, "Suck it!" to all the teachers while doing the crotch chop. How "hip" is wrestling among high school kids today?

It's funny, I don't think wrestling has lost a lot of teenage fans, just a lot of them have gone back into the closet as far as wrestling fans go (no pun intended).

14. Supposedly you have an outside venture where people pay you to embarrass someone. If you could be so kind as to give us a freebie, can you embarrass Vince Russo??

Wow...you know about Embara-Greetings. Jeez, the Wrestling Professor knows all. To answer your question, it would be easy to embarass him. Tie him to a chair, and make him sit through hours after hours of excellent creative ideas like the Godwins, the WCW Title in a Box Match, Jeremy Borash doing commentary, and Bruce as the Miss-TNA Champion.

15. Your "20 Questions" interviews see you ask poignant, direct questions at various indie folks. Aside from myself, who was your best interview subject?

My top three Twenty Question subjects would have to be female hardcore legend Precious Lucy, legendary referee Frank Parker, and my number one subject would have to be Devin Chittick, a promoter who answers all of my questions upfront and never holds anything back.

16. If a legit brawl broke out between the Raw and SmackDown rosters, who would emerge victorious?

Damn...hard question, but I'll go with Raw, simply because a lot of Smackdown are nothing but Cruserweights.

17. I'm always hearing about Canadian station TSN editing out relatively tame segments and angles. Why are those TV execs such pussies?

It's not the TV executives, it's some dumbass council called the Canadian Radio and Television Council (CRTC for short), much like the Parents Television Council in the States, only, unlike the PTC, the CRTC's opinion is respected and enforced by the government. CRTC are pussies because they're run by grannies and old people from Ontario who think that wrestling is morally wrong.

18. Which do you prefer, Chet Coppock or Michael Lansfield?

I think you mean Micheal Lansberg, lol. Lansberg is annoying as hell, but he does his research, so I'll take Lansberg.

(Armpit: Yes, we did mean Lansberg.  Our mistake.)

19. During the late 90s Hart Foundation angle with Bret, Owen, Davey Boy, Neidhart, and Pillman, Canadian fans did themselves no favors in the Reputation Department by giving brainless promos before the TV tapings and PPVs filmed there. Please, defend your country's fans from the critics.

I think that the WWF aired only the ignorant Canadians with half a brain, simply so that they could get the American fans to hate us a bit more, and it worked. They did the same thing with you guys on the Canadian versions of Raw too.

20. According to your website, you recently enrolled in kung-fu lessons. However, kung-fu fighters are always defeated in UFC matches by Brazilian jiu-jitsu fighters. Would you consider switching over to jiu-jitsu lessons?

Nah, I like the stretching in Kung Fu. I tried Jiu-Jitsu and I just didn't click into it. UFC is so rigged anyway *laughs*.

21. If these people walked the streets alone in a dark alley in Calgary, who would get murdered first?

Vince McMahon

Earl Hebner

Shawn Michaels

Earl Hebner. Vince is still Vince McMahon in all of his glory, and he was just trying to help his company. As was Shawn, and Earl. But Earl stabbed Bret in the back by giving his word he wouldn't let anyone screw him, and he was the one who did it.

22. What is your opinion of these American flag-bearers, and how phony was their patriotism?

Hacksaw Jim Duggan: Mixed feelings.

Kurt Angle: For real.

Justin Bradshaw: For real.

Patriot Del Wilkes: Who?

Col. DeBeers: PHONY

Sgt. Slaughter: For real

US Express (Barry Windham & Mike Rotunda): Phony

23. Bret Hart has not had the best string of luck lately. He got screwed by Vince, got a concussion from Bill Goldberg, lost his brother Owen, lost his mother Helen, lost his nephew Matthew, lost his brother-in-law Davey Boy, and recently suffered a stroke. Don't you think an excellent wrestler like Bret, who has been the prototypical company man and given us countless classic matches, deserves better?

I actually feel bad for Bret Hart...he certainly doesn't deserve all of the bad luck he's received since 1997. Bret Hart was an awesome wrestler, and, assuming you can get past the Survivor Series Screwjob, he is what Canadian wrestling stands for. Bret Hart is a legend, and he does not deserve what life, and other members of his family, have thrown at him.

24. Why doesn't your country's government support us going into Iraq? And do they realize that the US will get the job done alone if we have to?

We do not support the Americans in their campain against Iraq, simply because our country, along with a lot of other countrys, have not been provided with any evidence at all that Iraq holds weapons of mass destruction. The only thing that the USA have shown us in their campain is that "Iraq is bad", and "Iraq harbours terrorists", with of course, no back up what so ever. George Bush is simply doing this because he has a personal agenda with Saddam Hussien, and he simply wants to do what his dad couldn't...wipe him out. Furthermore, despite the propaganda that CNN and other American news stations throw at you every day about Iraq, I'm not totally sure that the majority want a regime change in that country anyway, because if they did that bad, wouldn't they had of done it back in the early 1990's when the USA gave them the chance? But you guys are simply going to force it on them. As for the USA getting the job done alone? If you look at it in the long, I highly doubt that.

25. Finally, how long before Val Venis runs for public office, and would you vote for him?

Soon, I hope. Hell yeah I'd vote for him! He really knows what he's talking about with politics and has some great ideas!

Oh boy, let the hate mail pour in.  Hey, don't get mad at me, I just ask the questions.  Thanks a lot to Matt for agreeing to do our interview.  You can send all comments to Matt at matthenstock@hotmail.com.