London, England. Friday 14th July (Off-Camera)
The Mecca of European professional wrestling is located in England, and sadly, Rodrigo had no choice but to fly there to make his dreams come true. Of course, he had been training at the wrestling school since he was twelve years old. However, he mostly came during either half term or school holidays because he still went to school in Portugal and always saved money each time to fly to England to get lessons, or if he couldn't get enough money saved in time, his parents paid for the trip.
Due to his size, Rodrigo wasn't the kind of kid that would be trained to be a professional wrestler. Still, they exempted Rodrigo when he kept trying to be ready and showing up, especially coming from a country outside the United Kingdom and Ireland.
His trainer, Lee Baker, had always been high on Rodrigo, and this was all a week before he had to go to the United States for the X-Games Skateboarding Street competition. However, Rodrigo was also going to attempt Skateboarding Vert to qualify as he had been practising back at his Lisbon home as his parents made a skateboarding park for him.
However, while he loved skateboarding and it did manage to get him the house he needed in America, he lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts, which he brought a few months ago as it was cheap, but at the same time, a place where there'd be no hurricanes taking place. Inside the Bulldog Wrestling Academy were Rodrigo and Lee Baker inside a large office for a short discussion after years of hard work.
Lee Baker: "Now you're eighteen, you can make your own path as a wrestler."
Rodrigo Afonso: "Finally, after all these years of being here, along with my other sport, I still do because I could do that at a young age."
Lee Baker: "I realise you're doing X-Games next week, but you can always come back here anytime to get the extensive training you'll need. Just because you won't be here as much anymore doesn't mean you're not allowed back."
Rodrigo Afonso: "I was concerned about that, but glad I can return and rework things I need to do. I did discover recently that while there are so many wrestling companies to pick from in America, there is one in particular from Las Vegas I discovered online that are desperate for male wrestlers, Sin City Wrestling. What do you think of me joining there?"
There were a lot of wrestling companies in America, that's given, and obviously, Mexico nor Japan were suitable places for him because he couldn't speak the Spanish or Japanese language, only Portuguese/Brazilian and English. What many people remember about Rodrigo was that he wasn't a British wrestler, and being a wrestler who wanted to live his dream from Portugal did make him stand out; heck, there's a Portuguese flag to represent Rodrigo. Lee went to look at the company, Rodrigo stated.
Lee Baker: "I can see why. They do need male wrestlers especially, and they seem to have an outstanding reputation, despite the gender separation they have, but I like to think that's pretty realistic. It makes it even more challenging for you to beat the bigger guys as a small guy."
Rodrigo Afonso: "Yeah, don't remind me."
Lee Baker: "Being a small guy, as I keep saying to you, is not that bad. I get it because your family are more known for being gymnastics Olympic champions. It's wise of you to go out of your way to fit in the family mould of being a gymnastics champion and know that skateboarding in the Olympics was significant for you, even taking an interest in you doing stunts.
Rodrigo Afonso: "It's why I took an interest in wrestling because I love the stunts the smaller wrestlers get to do, and I feel that is more like gymnastics more than anything."
Lee nodded in agreement with Rodrigo, and even he couldn't understand why more people from the gymnastics world didn't think to take part in the wrestling business. Granted, Rodrigo wasn't a gymnastics guy, but he came from a family that all but him were gymnastics Olympic champions. Lee looked more into the site and the company history and nodded.
Lee Baker: "You have my permission to complete a form to get you into the company. I also think they lack small-guy wrestlers and good guys, and you're perfect for them. I suggest you contact Christian Underwood and get a request to sign a contract. Sin City Wrestling seems professional, and I know they will take you seriously."
Rodrigo Afonso: "That's what I thought, and I may go to another wrestling school over there to see what I could combine my high flying and technical wrestling skills I have, although my technical skills are more based on how to handle bigger wrestlers than myself and based on the traditional European wrestling style."
Lee Baker: "Yes, but I still want you to have skateboarding attached to you because that will make you stand out from every other wrestler in that company."
Rodrigo Afonso: "Oh no, I'm never retiring from skateboarding or my dreams of getting another Olympic gold medal in Paris next year. I know my skateboarding fans won't be happy with me. I will always do it and attach this face paint on my face while doing skateboarding and wrestling professionally."
The other thing that made Rodrigo stand out from his Portuguese accent and size was his face paint. It was his trademark, and he was the only guy in skateboarding history that not only became a skateboarding champion from Portugal but was the only one to achieve that with face paint on his face. Even in interviews and Olympic opening and closing ceremonies, everyone knew who Rodrigo was and could tell it was him from the face paint.
Lee Baker: "Never allow anyone to tell you differently, although I know the actual reason why you wear the face paint. There are wrestlers out there who are themselves at the same time."
Rodrigo Afonso: "I don't care what they say. I'm ignoring every criticism I get about my face paint and my skateboarding/wrestling lifestyle, but at the same time, if they beat the hell out of me and say something else about me, I will be pushing right back, which I'm not afraid of doing."
Lee Baker: "Anyway, you have my permission to sign with Sin City Wrestling and the freedom of coming back here at any time to continue on things you may need to work on. You are ready to become a professional wrestler. Also, if you lose your first match, don't feel too bad about it because highly anyone expects you to win in your first professional match-up."
Rodrigo Afonso: "It's fine; normally, people lose their first match, especially when my opponent is bound to be an experienced wrestler."
Lee Baker: "Exactly. Just relax, and the wins will eventually come to you. Good luck with your debut in Sin City Wrestling. I will at least be watching you. I will tell the others to watch your first match too."
Rodrigo nodded and shook Lee's hand; after researching Sin City Wrestling and approving of him being in the company to wrestle his first match, he got his things and left the Bulldog Wrestling Academy for the last time, at least as a full-time trainee. He got his skateboard and skated to his hired apartment he was staying in for a bit. Then he flew straight back to Cambridge, Massachusetts, the next day.
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Cambridge, Massachusetts. Tuesday 1st August (On-Camera)
Cameras open to Rodrigo grinding down the stairs and doing many lip tricks on benches and tables in a local skate park he had found a month after he moved, with his face paint on. You can see the gold and bronze medals of his success in the X Games this year. He does a handstand on the ramp, then does another grind trick on the railing, and then goes up the ramp, and the magazine and sponsors stop filming Rodrigo and put his thumbs up at them. He leaves the skate park and sits on the benches, facing right opposite the skate park. He pulls the phone out of his pocket and goes live on his youtube channel that either he or his social media crew film for him when he does his skateboarding skills.
Rodrigo Afonso: "Usually, wrestlers sit or stand behind a Sin City Wrestling banner behind them and talk. However, that isn't what I'll do because that's not who I am, and I will never be a robot kind of guy. I'm Rodrigo Afonso, from Lisbon, Portugal, with all my family members being well known for being gymnastics Olympic champions. I recently belonged to the family list of an Olympic champion back in twenty-one as the skateboarding street gold medallist. See where I'm going with this? That's right, I became a professional wrestler because I loved the varied gymnastics you could do in a ring instead of doing varied disciples of stuff you have to do."
That made Rodrigo special as he took a quick breath in and out.
Rodrigo Afonso: "I'm not the typical made wrestler, and my opponent Eddie Lyons will see that style along with being a high flyer. I know the guy has had experienced being in the wrestling ring already, and already, being in a family of wrestlers, I say that's respectful. But then again, coming from America, the easiest country in the world to get into professional wrestling with so many wrestling schools located here. I had to go to the Mecca of Professional Wrestling in Europe, London, England, to get wrestling training there because Portugal, for now at least, isn't well known for wrestling."
Rodrigo nodded, being as serious as he could be, focused on the camera.
Rodrigo Afonso: "Now, Eddie, I heard you're a respectful guy; I like to think I am too. I won't speak badly to you because I don't know you apart from what I know. It's a shame your PWE career was short-lived due to a company closing down. But you got another chance to make a name for yourself with your family."
There was a local drinks machine at the outdoor gym he saw. Rodrigo walks to the outdoor gym, puts money in the machine to get himself a sports Gatorade drink, returns to take the cap off, and sips some of it down after an exhausting day at the skate park. He continues with the video.
Rodrigo Afonso: "I, on the other hand, have no experience with this sport; I have had zero matches, this match with you in Peru is my first ever match professionally. I've been training all this time and only recently turned eighteen years old as I wasn't allowed to join the sport earlier, but I'm already well known for my skateboarding career, even with this face paint on. Why do I have it? Because I saw flashes of death in my eyes when I was ten years old and almost died in a house fire, until at the last second, after coughing fumes from the fire, I was pulled by fire officers to get me out of the house. Was a scary moment for sure for me."
It was hard, and he did fear fire because of his past, and the face paint attached to him was trying to help him overcome that emotional attachment. He shook his head.
Rodrigo Afonso: "I don't know what to expect coming from a guy who seems to be a well-rounded wrestler, something I couldn't be because of my size, but saying that, I got high-flying skills suited for me and other smaller wrestlers, but at the same time, due to how much Europeans value this technique, my wrestling school in London, England taught me to do technical wrestling moves also to use it against bigger guys mostly."
It was mostly going to be short and brief, as most debuts are, because wrestlers need to learn more about each other, although people know more about Eddie than Rodrigo in professional wrestling.
Rodrigo Afonso: "I already know how much this match will mean to the both of us, more me because this is my first match in professional wrestling history. I know many wrestlers have had matches before, but I haven't. I'm looking forward to facing everyone on the male roster; some I grew up watching like J2H, the Harris family, Goth, who I heard is coming back soon, Austin James Mercer, Alex Jones, and a wrestler I was inspired by that everyone talks about in Bulldog Wrestling Academy who's the main star for England, Miles Kasey."
Nodding his head, knowing Miles Kasey would be the guy Rodrigo would love to face the most because of having the same wrestling styles as each other. He took another two sips of his Gatorade drink.
Rodrigo Afonso: "I know Eddie Lyons and I will bring the best out of each other and make this the best debut match Sin City Wrestling has ever had because although we both are serious wrestlers, the pressure is more on Eddie than for me because of his world-class wrestling experience. I've never been to Peru before, and although I'm not there yet, I'm going there tomorrow and doing all the gym and skateboarding workouts I can to prepare for this tough match I know I will be in with Eddie. I don't need to say I hope because I know he'll bring out the best in me, and I'll gain a ton of wrestling experience just from this match alone."
He hadn't thought about winning because this match was more or less a trial for Rodrigo in his mind, but at the same time, he knew the loss wouldn't affect him nearly as much as it would for Eddie.
Rodrigo Afonso: "What I do hope for is to win the match, obviously, but more or less to gain so much experience by wrestling you and to grow and improve from this opening match we will have. However, I need to win so my country, Portugal, can grow and inspire wrestlers to get their mark made. Because many people neglect wrestlers coming from Europe outside the UK and Ireland. I'm only focusing on this match and bringing the win home for Portugal and myself. Good luck, Eddie, because you will need it."
That was all Rodrigo had to say because he needed more information on Eddie Lyons, and Eddie didn't have any info about Rodrigo. The pressure Rodrigo knew was more on Eddie than him due to experience. Until Sunday night in Peru, nobody truly knew what Rodrigo could do in the wrestling ring, which would be essential for the kid. The camera goes black.
