AL: Did you ever think, when you started out, that you could be the LWF champion?

Boz: No way. Nope. It's funny. Next week I'll have been here two years and I never thought I'd be in the title picture now. Look at my first four matches. The first six months I was here, I was a jobber. That helped get me over, but it also taught me a lot. It makes you respect it more when you're on the other end. Coming from the bottom end up, it's a lot better.

AL: Yeah, because your first title was quite different than this one.

Boz: The Hot Potato. I was the first-ever Hot Potato champion.

AL: How did that come about?

Boz: Whack came to me. Me and Grudge were getting ready for our first match. Grudge was going to become the first champion, but they weren't sure which of us - ego wise - would take it better. Which of us would be willing to go through being a jobber. I volunteered. The rest is kinda history. It's like the game Hot Potato. Until you beat someone, you have to wear this goofy-looking belt with the smiley face. The Hulk Hogan air freshner.

AL: How long did you have it?

Boz: I had it through four matches, but it covered six months. And I beat Freak for my first win ever. Quite an accomplishment.

AL: I'm sure the smell was a lot worse at the time.

Boz: It reaked of Brut. Other companies have a jobber title. A lot of people will tell Whack he's not original. Whack's not really a wrestling guy. He doesn't pay all that much attention to what's going on all over the country. When he came up with the idea, he thought it was pretty original, and for our area, it was. I don't see Windy City having it, and that's not a knock on them. Whack just does things slightly different. A little tilted.

AL: So you didn't mind.

Boz: At that point, I just wanted to be on the show. I would have done anything. I debuted at Bloodbath 99, and I was only 4 weeks into training. I came in with Grudge, Mini Jones, Freak and the Latinos. They actually didn't want me and Grudge in the battle royale. Maverick came in and destroyed the wh ole battle royale. So they wanted me under a mask. That's how I got my gimmick.

AL: How you got your name?

Boz: Everybody thinks it's from Steve Boz. No disrespect, but my gimmick is nothing to do with him except for the name.

AL: It can get confusing.

Boz: I know, and that's why I fought the name. We had different spellings. I spelled it B-A-Z. We were trying everything. LWF fans aren't Windy City fans. We don't have a lot of crossover fans. The fans are really die hard. Some come for the soap opera. Some come because maybe they know Maverick. Now with CM Punk, we'll have a lot of fans. Charkoal, attendance went up with him. They didn't know who Steve Boz was. The way I got it was after the split (laughing) if you look at what I wore. I came out in khakis and a sweater vest. It was a mockery of Brian Waz. I had to come out and talk in a high pitched voice. It was supposed to be a one-show thing. It was supposed to be a way to take a shot at those guys. I got so much heat. And then eventually, Jimmy Blaze and Kingpin came in and stuff, they needed someone to work. And I was dying to get out of those khakis. I was getting enough heat with the Hot Potato belt, and by now, a lot of our fans have forgotten who Brian Waz was. I needed something to keep me going. And I had nothing against the guy. Whack and Venom just wanted to do a little rib on them.

AL: They don't have problems addressing issues like that.

Boz: When I walked out, people thought I was him until they got a good look at me. A lot of the old fans were there and they hear the name. From a distance, it did look like him. ... I was in the Bloodbath battle royale in 99, and then in Christmas Card 2, I was one of the lumberjacks in the lumberjack match between Brawn and Double M. I debuted at Bar Room Brawl in February, against Grudge, for the Hot Potato.

AL: That was your first match?

Boz: Until recently, every match I did against Grudge, loser gets the belt. At Crestwood, I beat him and he goes on to beat Jensen. Grudge was the first guy I met, literally. It's so strange. He's moving on. I wish him all the luck.

...

Boz: There was the split. Everybody talks about how bad it was, but it wasn't such a bad thing. You look at CM Punk, he finished training. He works every weekend now. Look at Eric Priest, he's the AWA champion. Brutal Brad works for Steel Domain. Billy Whack had to learn how to be a businessman. Jensen and Acid and Maverick, they all moved up from lower mid card guys to main event guys. Double M became a singles wrestler and a champion. And a lot of us got our chances. Maybe I wouldn't have got a chance until a year ago. I got to get in there early. Granted, I was in too early. Me and Grudge will tell you, we weren't ready yet. We made the most of it and a year later, we were two of the major guys in the company.

AL: You were his first match, now sort of his last match.

Boz: Everyone thinks we scheduled that match because he was leaving for the superfed. I was scheduled to wrestle him, we just had to move it up. Everything got accelerated. We weren't worried he was going to leave with the belt. ... We wanted to give him the freedom. If they needed him to go. That's a once in a lifetime chance.

AL: And he really doesn't have anything to lose.

Boz: No, he's 19 years old. He can take a year off school. Make some money, see the country. Who knows? Maybe he'll never have to go back to school.

AL: I know you were a fan before you became a wrestler. What got you into it?

Boz: It's funny. When I was in college, one of my teammates at Aurora University, on the football team. His brother was wrestling at Windy City at the time. ... Lance Christopher was his name. He'd always want to get us to join. I almost went to Windy City, but I was at school and I couldn't afford it. So I finished school and got my degree. I started my actual career and I hooked up with a guy who kept bothering me - you've got to see the LWF. I said no. I thought it was just a bunch of backyarders. I thought I'd see kids hitting each other with pizza tins. I went to a show in Lemont. I walked in and I couldn't believe they had 400-500 people there. I thought, wow, this is the real deal. I saw the action, there was stuff that wasn't tight. I mean, I'd been watching wrestling for a long time. I went to watch the old AWA shows. The wrestling wasn't up to regular indy standards, but the action and the whole show, I was just blown away. I looked at the size of the guys, and it was obtainable for me. I was bigger than most of the guys and I felt I could physically handle myself. I called for a tryout, bugged Charkoal all the time. Well, the split happened, and I got a call. He said you gave your information, I couldn't tell, is this for LWF or Firepro? It turned out to be Acid. I couldn't believe the first few nights, I'd tell my friends. I was working out for LWF and I was marking out for it. I'm up here 4-5 days a week. It's a bug that's into me.

AL: It doesn't seem you're forced to be here.

Boz: I'm either here or at a show. I go to every show I can, not just our shows. I like to see what the other companies are doing. I also like to see who else is hot, say hey Whack, this guy is good.

...

Boz: I'm a wrestling fan. And guys like Danny (Dominion) ... I'd never seen him live until I saw him at Taft High School for Windy City. And he wrestled Steve Boz. He played such a heel. There were no massive high spots, but the crowd popped every time they were supposed to. It was great psychology in a match and you don't have to do moonsaults into the crowd. ... I'd rather do that, tell a story, than just diving through a table.

AL: Grudge all but apologized for his match against you.

Boz: It wasn't all his fault. The guy hadn't slept for two days. He was working the overnight shift, then he fulfilled his commitment to the "superfed" at the press conference, then came to do the show. The guy had no sleep. ... He held his own. It wasn't a bad match, but if we could have wrestled like we wanted to, it would have went over a lot better.

AL: How long did you go?

Boz: About 12-15 minutes. I know our cardio wasn't where it should have been.

AL: Well, it's obvious that he's building a certain body type and if there's an area he's neglecting, it's cardio.

Boz: Cardio is the only thing he's neglecting. That kid, when he walked in, we thought he was in his mid-20s. ... He's got a long, long career ahead of him.

AL: What about you? You didn't walk in with the same kind of body shape you have now.

Boz: No, actually, I walked in with a football player's body. You look at Steve Williams, Steve McMichael. In football, it's more for function than form. You're looking for power movement. For wrestling, it's more of a body building training. It's the way you want to look. I had to change my diet and not worry about bulking up. The cut - it just makes you look more athletic.

Boz: You go back to my first match with Grudge. It was so early and we didn't even know what a rest spot was. Our rest spot was I threw him out of the ring and I played to the crowd. He went to get back into the ring and I kicked him out, saying too early, too early. That'll tell you. ... I go back now and I look at it, it wasn't a horrible match. We've gotten so much better, we watch that tape and we just get embarrassed.

AL: So what's your favorite match?

Boz: It's a toss up between two. First time I wrestled Double M, about a year ago, September. He was the first guy of the upper class that I wrestled, my first feud. The first experienced guy. He really showed me a lot. He also took me to the limit. Most of my matches were 4-6 minutes. We ended up wrestling 20-something minutes. And when you wrestle Mike you don't have any idea you're out there that long.

AL: He doesn't seem to have any problems with it.

Boz: No, he has no problems at all. He loves it. The guy has just got wind. He's smart about it. He really knows how to place a match. He plays the crowd well. I learned a lot from that match. And he is so over with the fans, you say anything negative about him and you're gonna get heat. In MCW, it's the same thing. He's just over. The second match would have to be from Christmas Card 2000 against Floyd Turbo. Oh my gosh, he spent 90% of the match humping me, and fondling me and putting women's underwear on my head.

AL: You're going to really have to clarify why that match is one of your two favorites.

Boz: You know what? It was so funny. I'm playing this straightlaced jagoff, and here he is prancing around. It was the contrast of styles. He'd put me in hilarious situations. It was back and forth. I put him out of wrestling with a piledriver, ripped his mask off.The EMT covered his face. The last thing, as I was outside the locker room. This lady was telling me I was gonna burn in hell for doing that. I was like, calm down. Turbo was a great worker, he really was. He had some personal issues here. He went on and did his own thing. I wish him all the luck. I haven't seen him wrestle over there yet, but I've heard nothing but good things. He was a good worker here. I think he felt underappreciated, and that was it.

AL: Your roster does get crowded.

Boz: Yeah, and it's getting even more crowded. It's cut throat here now. ... He's one guy I'd like to see come back. I'd have no problems working him again. I'd have no problem - really - working anyone again.

AL: You get along with people.

Boz: I like people. Almost everybody I've worked - when I was Hot Potato champion - none of them are even here anymore.

AL: So you're the survivor?

Boz: Me and Mini Jones. When we first went to our first tryout, it was 50 people. There was Grudge, Freak. The Latinos were in my group. A lot of guys were there for 1-2 shows.

AL: And it's pretty cut throat now, and you're the champion. How did that work, to go from the Hot Potato - in theory, the worst - to where you're at now?

Boz: You mean from the outhouse to the penthouse. Yeah, it's funny, Now, it's even harder, I've got to try to maintain my spot. Once you get down, the guys want to push you further down. Everybody wants to be in the limelight, no ifs ands or buts. A lot of guys are really starting to come through. Guys like Stryc-9, Machine really want to move up into that upper spot. ... Bringing in guys like Brandon, Vic, Airborne, CM Punk, Cabana, who knows who else. I'd love to see some of those other guys from IWA or MAW, I'd like LWF to be the place, I've heard so much about this guy or that guy. It's good for us, and for them.

AL: Fans are looking forward to seeing Punk. You've had a lot of connections with your past.

Boz: And you've got Charkoal, and he hasn't done anything yet. And he always seems to come out where that title belt is. Then you've got guys like Mimic and Havok, I'm sure he'd like to get it. You never know who else. Got Maverick.

AL: You've got a lot of people who could make a plausible champion.

Boz: Yeah, and then there are the people who might just like to see me get my ass kicked. Mini Jones and Bill Munoz, they just don't like me.

AL: Now why wouldn't they like you?

Boz: I've taken Bill Munoz out, quite a few times. I was his first match and I interfered in the match he almost had. I'm sure he'd like to see that. A lot of the wrestlers just don't like you.

AL: I would say Ryan Boz might not be the most beloved character in the LWF.

Boz: Please, they'll be making plush toys out of me. It doesn't bother me. That's the one thing we were missing, we didn't have the one major heel. We were missing the huge, huge heel. It kinda just got slapped on me. When you're sitting in the lowest spot possible and you say you're better than anyone else, people tend not to like you. Then I started winning matches. And I mean, I'm bigger. I'm bigger than the average human being. ... I can actually move, for a big, tall, dopey guy.

AL: So for the 27th, it's you and Supreme for the title.

Boz: He's got a big mouth. He thinks that I screwed him by taking the challenge for the belt. He thinks I double crossed him and went with the Whack Pack. Grudge was never part of the Whack Pack, I was. Now Supreme has got his ire up, and he wants "his" belt back. I've never beaten him, but his last win was me getting disqualified, because I was beating him up so bad, the ref had no choice. ... He gave me one shot at his belt and he knows I pinned him. If Kingpin doesn't distract the ref, I have that belt. A year ago. I had him pinned for more than 10 seconds. It was a matter of time before I'd get the belt. Grudge and Maverick were the only ones that could stand toe to toe with me. By the end of this match, after I piledrive him, he'll probably be about 5-8 or 5-9.

AL: And you'll have the Whack Pack behind you?

Boz: We are the elite. This is the LWF I've been prophecizing about. Look at our look. We have great gear. We have physique. We're the best wrestlers in the LWF. I'm sure guys like Punk and Supreme and Havok, they might want to dispute it. Get in the ring with us. We'll show you who's better.

AL: So that is the idea behind the Whack Pack. It's guys with an agenda.

Boz: It's an evolution. It's Darwin's Theory. The smarter, stronger and quicker animals overpowered these guys. We are the dominant ones, and until someone proves us wrong, we'll stay the dominant ones. Bring in trained, professional wrestlers. Guys who are athletes, not a guy who thinks he's a lumberjack. These are legitimate wrestlers, and that's what the LWF is going to be about now. How many guys out of your Top 50 wrestled in the LWF in 2001. Probably more than half. Jayson Reign, Jensen, Acid, Vic Capri, Brandon Bishop. We had 1-2-4, CM Punk, probably 6 of last year's top 10.

AL: Yeah, and you've got #1 for September.

Boz: Where did you come up with that? I saw a lot of the other matches. Danny Dominion's match was incredible. Then Jayson Reign and Airborne. And you notice the Whack Pack's up there too.

AL: Yeah, and now you've got the "evil" Billy Whack.

Boz: He's not evil, he came to his senses. It's true. What have any of the people ever done for Whack. He lost his hair. So now he finally found out how he feels, and they turned on him. He brought in good wrestlers and gave them a better product. ... is it our fault we're better. We're better wrestlers, better looking. We're a hot commodity. Are we to be blamed for it?

AL: So what's up with the Alpha Male thing?

Boz: It's funny. I heard someone ripping on Limp Bizkit, they said it was alpha male music. The alpha male is the lead dog, the leader of the pack. ... It's the guy everyone hates, the football player who knocks everybody's books out of their hands. With my haircut, it just fit. My whole attitude kind of fit, being an elitist.

AL: Were you always monstrous?

Boz: No. My biggest knock my first few years in college was I was too small. My coaches always told me I was too small. In high school I was 6-1, 160 pounds. Until I moved on campus, I stayed around the same weight, then out of nowhere, I hit a growth spurt, got to 240 pounds and 6-3. I'm right under that weight.

AL: But when did they start calling you monstrous?

Boz: Monstrous Ryan Boz... you know where that came from? We had a promo tape we sent out as part of the package for venues and stuff. We had a tape, e dited by our video company, went through the characters. And Billy Whack's voiceover called me the monstrous Ryan Boz. I don't know why, I don't know how, but it stuck. Now he always calls me that. He'll call me on the phone at home, he calls me that. It stuck. Maybe it's the flat top, maybe I look like Frankenstein.