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“SARGE” DWAYNE BRUCE RESPONDS TO DAVE BATISTA’S HARSH COMMENTS ABOUT HIM, DAVE’S LACK OF UNDERSTANDING FOR WRESTLING TRAINING, AND MORE WITH GLACIER AND JAMES GUTTMAN
By WorldWrestlingInsanity.com
ClubWWI.com has been bringing members star-hosted shows for years and “Breaking The Ice” hosted by former WCW star “Glacier” Ray Lloyd and James Guttman has been providing fans with many stories and tips they can’t find anywhere else. Now, Ray and James are joined for a rare 68 minute interview with the power behind the WCW Power Plant, “Sarge” Dwayne Bruce. The former Sgt. Buddy Lee Parker is more than the trainer of champions. He’s the trainer of almost everyone. Dwayne speaks to Guttman and Lloyd about a ton of topics including The Awful Tryout Video John Cena Sent The Power Plant, The Full Story Behind His Infamous Appearance on Louie Theroux BBC Documentary, What Wasn’t Showed on TV, The Origins of the State Patrol Gimmick, The Role Bruce Hart Played In The Gimmick, WCW Power Plant: The Reality Show, Keeping Kayfabe, WrestleMania Rehearsals, Why Dwayne Attended The WWE Hall of Fame Ceremony, Marrying His High School Sweetheart, His Sons, Poor Training vs. No Training, Selling Out The Monitor, Filming The Pilot For His Wrestling Show on The Same Day His Mother Passed Away, and more. For a full list of topics, head to http://www.worldwrestlinginsanity.com/am2/publish/newsnotes/bri32312.shtml
Fans of World Wrestling Insanity and Glacier can check out Ray’s new video blog: http://livingthedreamwithglacier.tumblr.com/ and the Insanity Facebook Fan page at: http://www.facebook.com/WorldWrestlingInsanity
The biggest question that most fans might have for “Sarge” Dwayne Bruce is about Dave Batista. In his book, Dave said that during his WCW tryout, Sarge worked him out until he vomited, told him he’d never become a wrestler, and had a “Napoleon Complex.” James Guttman tells Bruce that he knows he’s often asked about the harsh comments, but has a different spin on the question. James mentions how he took some classes at a local wrestling school before he began writing about wrestling. The experience taught him to respect even the simplest of bumps but also included some insane training methods. The first day, the trainers had everyone running until they threw up and all Guttman could think was how awful the trainers were as people. But, as James got older, he understood the reasoning. After pledging a fraternity, being the new guy in different situations, and just learning more how the wrestling business worked, Guttman had a better understanding of why the trainers did what they did and what they were preparing their students for.
This leads to the question. Batista’s harsh comments about Sarge’s training didn’t come out early in his career. In fact, they came out years into his big time run. Guttman asks Bruce if he was surprised that, by that point, Dave Batista still hadn’t “gotten it” or if that’s common. Dwayne doesn’t feel it is and asks ClubWWI.com host Glacier if he agrees.
“No, that’s not…I wouldn’t say…Ray, do you think that’s common for people not to ‘get it’ that far into their career? It just went along with the training, didn’t it? You know what? I told everybody at every tryout that they would never be a wrestler. Listen, if I can tell anybody anything to get a little more out of them, and believe me, I’ve evaluated every person that tried out. What their strong points were, what were their weak points, what we had to work on – throughout the tryout, I did that every night. They talk about squats and all that, but listen brother, I did that with them.”
The proof is in the pudding and even in the infamous Louie Theroux documentary that Sarge discusses in-depth during his ClubWWI.com appearance, you can see him working out alongside the hopefuls. It’s how he runs his training session and those who studied under him can attest to that.
“I lead by example and, the thing is with Batista, I don’ t really remember him trying out. That’s how much he stuck in my mind from the tryout. Yeah, I guess I did tell him he was never gonna make it and all that and whatever. But maybe he’s blessed that he didn’t make it through the Power Plant. I think he turned out OK… You’ve got to be mentally tough. You’ve got to be physically tough. If you’re not mentally tough, it’s so easy to get led astray. That’s another reason why the Power Plant was so hard…I guess I told him all those things. But you’re supposed to be smart enough that by the time you made it through and you’re making the kind of money that he was making, at the time (he wrote his book), I guess he should have gotten it. But some people never get it.”
As the ClubWWI.com interview continues, Dwayne reminds us all that wrestling is constantly changing. Some of the intense training methods are put into play to gage whether someone can stick with a business that often sticks it to you. Bruce once again shows that he lead by example – even when it came to TV time.
“Ray’s put all his heart and soul into everything. Even as gimmicks change. My gimmicks changed. Hell, I’ve been a freakin’ leprechaun. What the hell? (laughs) You’ve got to take everything at face value and know there’s a price. Blood, sweat, tears is what you have to pay.”
As mentioned, although the show covers a ton of topics, there are always more, and Bruce says he looks forward to returning to ClubWWI.com for another show with Ray Lloyd, who he has nothing but respect for.
“I’m so honored to be on your site. I’m so honored to be on the show with Ray. I’m out for anything that Ray does. I can truly say this, from the bottom of my heart, Ray is family and I consider him like one of my boys. He’s always been a true friend to me through the years. He’s a genuine person. It’s been an honor and a privilege.”
Remember, this discussion with Ray “Glacier” Lloyd, “Sarge” Dwayne Bruce, and James Guttman goes on for over an hour and is just one hour out of thousands available the second you sign up on ClubWWI.com – featuring tons of audios and hundreds of top wrestling stars in uncut shoot interviews for less than the price of a magazine!