“Nobody’s a wrestling fan, until they watch wrestling,” says Oliver Smith, Event Director of Porirua Rocks – the Rock ‘n’ Wrestling Craft Beer Spectacular coming to Te Rauparaha Arena this Saturday.
Smith speaks from experience. In 2016, he and his partner made an “off-the-cuff” trip to WrestleMania and returned to New Zealand “fully-fledged fans”.
Since then, Smith has set sail three-times on Chris Jericho’s Rock ‘n’ Wrestling Rager at Sea. Sound familiar?
“That’s definitely where some of the inspiration came from,” Smith tells NZPWI.
While Porirua Rocks aims to cater equally to fans of craft beer, rock music, and pro-wrestling, Smith is committed to spotlighting the in-ring action so others can have the same experience he had in the United States.
“It’s going to be quite a unique format as far as beer and music festivals go because there’s festivals around the country … that feature the wrestling but I’ve always found that it’s there as a sideshow,” he says.
“People enjoy it, which is great, but the point of difference for us is the ring is smack-bang in the centre of the room. There’s a giant lighting rig on top of it that’s sort of going to showcase it as the centrepiece. No matter where you’re stood in the room you can’t help but notice the wrestling is the centre of attention.”
Porirua Rocks will host six matches between 2:50pm and 8:30pm on Saturday.
Sir Mr Burns defends the CPW Championship against former ally Tim Warren, while wrestlers from around the country descend on Te Rauparaha Arena for the Porirua Rocks Invitational.
Cool Guy Sky vs. Jamie Tagataese, Horus vs. JK Moody, and K9 vs. Rowan Davis highlight the tournament’s first round, with the winner of a Battle Royal netting $5,000 prize money and the last spot in the four-way Invitational Grand Final.
“We tried to share the love around the country – some people coming down from IPW, some people coming up from SPW, Rowan Davis from CPW, so we tried to keep it broad in that aspect,” Smith tells NZPWI.
“But it’s kind of the start for if this event becomes a repeat thing every year – which is what we hope – and we invite promotions from around the country to put forward their own names.”
Porirua Rocks takes place this Saturday, April 27, at Te Rauparaha Arena in Porirua. Tickets are available from Ticketspace.
