Veteran local wrestler eyes a comeback

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Rob Begley (far left) teaching wrestling students in South Glens Falls (Photo courtesy of Jon Spoor).

A Warrensburg native is looking to revitalize his professional wrestling career and prove all the naysayers wrong when he participates in the National Wrestling Alliance’s Crockett Cup tag-team tournament on March 19-20 at the Nashville Fairgrounds in Nashville, Tennessee.

Competing for a large trophy and a future title shot at the NWA Tag-Team Championships, Rob Begley, better known as “Vik Dalishus” in the squared-circle, has faced trials and tribulations over the course of his 20-plus year career.

The tournament can be seen on FITE TV and the pay-per-view can be purchased online at https://www.nationalwrestlingalliance.com/ppv.

The opportunity presented to Begley, who is now billed from Poughkeepsie, in the 36-year-old single-elimination tournament is one he and his tag-team partner “Hale Collins” look to capitalize on as a part of their gimmick, “The NOW.”

“To be in the Crockett Cup and recognized, and there’s 16 teams, to be recognized as one of the 16 teams, you have to think of that as some of the best in the world. To be on that radar and have the opportunity with that focus that weekend is everything I could have asked for because there’s been a lot of times in my career where I was like, ‘well if only I could have got this chance, or only if they could have seen me do this or only if I looked this way then’ or whatever the case is,” Begley said.

“This weekend is going to be the perfect storm in my life and the focus is going to be on that match. We’re in the best shape of our lives. Athletically, we are 1000% clicking as a team and I can’t imagine a better spotlight and better chance and time because the time is now. It’s so corny to say but you can’t write that movie.”

The script has seen plenty of plot-twists for Begley within the last five years.

In 2017, Begley shattered his leg into 15 pieces during a match in Waterbury, Connecticut and was told there was a very high probability he would never step foot in a wrestling ring again.

After being cleared to walk, Begley fell and broke his leg again. Complications in installing a metal rod in his leg were multiplied when his leg became infected.

“Wrestling was something that wasn’t even going to be on the plate for me,” he said.

Couple the physical pain with emotional pain, as Begley went through multiple losses in the form of his father-in-law’s death and the process of a divorce.

However, there’s some natural instinct for wrestlers to find the will to kick out at 2.99 seconds.

Begley’s slow “toe-dipping” back into professional wrestling broke a mental barrier when he did a forward roll in a wrestling ring in the backyard of a home in Newburgh and realized he could live out his passion once more.

Begley said he remembers growing up spending many years and memories in the North Country and Hudson Valley areas, hunting, fishing and where he got his first job at the Sagamore in Bolton Landing and met Mel Gibson and DMX.

“I could do all of the things a kid could want,” Begley said.

Fast forward to 2022, where Begley is a “wrestling ghost” with his lessons learned from some of the greatest minds in the professional wrestling business like Dr. Tom Prichard and Tommy Dreamer and wrestling industry icons CM Punk, Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart and Sabu, as well as up-and-comers Darby Allin and Brian Pillman Jr.

Begley wasn’t kidding when he said the spotlight will be on his match, as representatives from top promotions World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), All Elite Wrestling (AEW), IMPACT! And New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) among others will be watching closely.

The 15th seed team of “The NOW” will take on the kings of the independent wrestling tag-team scene for more than a decade, “The Briscoes”, ranked second in the tournament and widely regarded as one of the best tag-teams in the world.

The bracket for the NWA’s Crockett Cup tag-team tournament will see the 15th seed duo of “The NOW” taking on popular two-seed “The Briscoes” on March 19 (Photo Courtesy of FITE TV).

“This is the match that the both of us (Collins and Begley) had put out into the universe as the match that we wanted out of coming back as a tag team together and doing this at a high level,” Begley said. “We were very clear that we wanted to wrestle those guys.”

The match with “The Briscoes” ironically falls on the anniversary of Begley re-breaking his leg as well as the birth of his partner’s daughter.

A reminder of perseverance and new source of inspiration.

Recently, Begley has partnered with Whitehall’s Jon Spoor, who has a diverse background in mixed-martial-arts and professional wrestling.

Spoor is excited to launch his wrestling studio within the Chase Sports Complex in South Glens Falls where he can produce, edit, film and train professional wrestlers on the ins and outs of the business.

Begley viewed this as an amazing opportunity to get high-quality film of ready-wrestlers out to bigger promotions as a visual resume of what they are capable of. The two keys Begley wanted to emphasize were exposure and professional guidance.

Rob Begley and Jon Spoor at the wrestling studio in South Glens Falls (Photo Courtesy of Jon Spoor’s Facebook page).

“We really wanted a place where we could do both,” Begley said. “I just love being in the Adirondacks and this allows me to be up there.”

Seven months into his venture that was birthed out of wanting to better himself on the logistics and behind-the-scenes work of professional wrestling, Spoor was able to take his self-taught background in graphic design and editing and put it toward his passion of wrestling.

“These skills I’ve been using for so long, it was easy to utilize when I got into pro wrestling,” Spoor said.

Spoor’s first promoted event took place on Sept. 24 titled “Wrestler’s Wrestling” put on by Spoor’s company, Standing 8 Entertainment, that aims to “provide entertainment that will create happy memories.”

“I really hope we can pull off a show in May, that would be really cool,” Spoor said.

Both Begley and Spoor have envisioned a revitalization of purpose in upstate New York’s professional wrestling scene and are looking for like-minded individuals to come on board.

“We just went through a period of time where we were lacking a tremendous amount of contact with people. Professional wrestling not only gives you the comradery of being around people and fellowship but it also gives you an escape. It gives you a release from the reality that is around us right now,” Begley said. “I just want everyone in the area to know how grateful I am for them and their support all the time.”