Wrestlezone’s Top Ten: A Beginner’s Guide to Indie Wrestling

Variety

There are a LOT of indie pro wrestling companies out there. I'm not going to spend too much time talking about them, but there are many that don't do iPPV or on-demand service that actually require you to be in close proximity to their shows. You can find those out on your own. Usually there are flyers up in gas station windows, or on bulletin boards at Starbucks. If your town has a bingo hall, they probably do wrestling. 

What I care more about are the shows you CAN watch online, or at the very least, through DVD. There are dozens of them, and it can be hard to decide which ones to invest in. You wouldn't believe how many promotions ask me to review their shows, or even yell at us because we aren't covering their product enough – turns out it would cost us hundreds of dollars every month to follow all the bigger indie wrestling companies, at no financial benefit to us.

(SIDE NOTE: To people who run indie promotions – send us iPPV streams and DVDs and we'll put you over; WWE does it, so can you!) 

So what should you watch? 

Ring of Honor is always a good place to start. Their website is decent and easy enough to navigate. They have a large on-demand service, and their weekly TV show (eventually) pops up online for free. If you are lucky enough to have a network that carries them, you can also watch ROH on television. Most of their live events are available on DVD and on-demand, so if you see a card you really like the option is always there to watch it. 

My advice is, if you live in a populated area, find a promotion that runs shows close to you. If you live in New York, this is beyond easy. Pro Wrestling Syndicate is great. Live wrestling is always better than taped wrestling. Always. Figure out where ROH is going to be, and go to their shows. If you're near Raseda, CA go watch PWG. Find a show you can invest in locally, pick the wrestlers you like, and follow them to other shows. If you live in the middle of nowhere, there's always the internet. 

TRENDING