Dominic Sanders: A True Hero
Apr 26, 2019 18:45:02 GMT -6
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Swango, Kyle Gautier, and 2 more like this
Post by Dominic Sanders on Apr 26, 2019 18:45:02 GMT -6
The following documentary as narrated by Christoph Waltz is being brought to you by the EWC Network.
"Dominic Sanders. Excellence. Heart. Desire. Champion. This is a story of a man who started wrestling as a teenager... only to find his way to super-stardom here in the Extreme Wrestling Corporation. Years and years of ups-and-downs couldn't prepare him for the moment of a lifetime... or could it? This is: 'Dominic Sanders: A True Hero.'"
"Born in Anaheim, California, Dominic Sanders was your average, ordinary child. He laughed. He played. He got into trouble. He kissed girls behind garbage dumpsters on the playground. Everything about Dominic Sanders was the norm."
"Dominic ALWAYS had a heart of gold."
"He helped kids on the playground if they fell down. He tutored the younger children. He is, and always has been, so smart, that Dominic. I remember one time when he was in third grade he came home and told me about how he taught a young first grader, Clifton, how to write in cursive. He was always way ahead of his time intellectually. His father might tell you that HE'S the reason why. But I know better than to believe that. If his father spent more time involved in Dominic's life and less time running around with girls half his age then he would know a little bit more about his own son."
"Yes. It is true. I was not around in Junior's life very much. In fact, when he was about six years old he told his mother that he no longer wanted to have "Junior" associated with his name. But damnit, that boy is the fruit of my loins. He wouldn't be here if it wasn't for me, so I will call him whatever the f[bleep] I want to. I know his mother and I do not get along - we haven't for a long time. But that is no reason for him to cut me out of his life. Lucky for him, I have not cut him out of my life. I turn the television on every week to watch him wrestle. I couldn't be any prouder of my son, whether he wants any part of me or not."
"The days of Dominic Sanders' youthful nature came to an end when his best friend Charlie passed away. At the age of fourteen, Dominic Sanders dropped out of his freshman year of high school and became a shut-in. He wanted no part of the outside world. He locked his mother out of his room and wouldn't talk to anyone except for the occasional comments with his brother, Kevin."
"Losing Charlie... that was tough. We'd been best friends for the longest time - ever since we were about three years old. We lived down the block from one another and would always go over to each other's houses. Our favorite thing to do was to throw those little green Army men with the parachutes off of the pier of Huntington Beach and watch them float into the ocean and away out of sight. We'd BEG our parents to drive us there at least once a week. Then, one day as we were freshmen in high school....... he was gone. Passed away in his sleep because of heart complications. That... that just killed me. I didn't want to go to school. I didn't want to talk to my mother. All I did was sit in my room and watch television. But, I suppose, if it wasn't for that then I never would have gotten into wrestling."
"I really, really struggled to get through to him. I constantly knocked on his door. Being three years older than him, I tried to relate the best I could. I had a car. I offered to take him places but he said 'no.' At least he accepted me enough to open the door when I would bring him food. Dom is smart enough to know you can't cut EVERYTHING out of your life. But he really never opened up and talked to me about anything, especially not Charlie. And he wouldn't talk to mom, either. He knew all she would do is make it worse. That's what moms do, right?" *laughs* "It wasn't until one day when I happened to yell at mom down the staircase about going with some friends to a wrestling event at the Arrowhead Pond in Anaheim. Suddenly, Dom's door creaks open."
"I opened the door and looked at Kevin. I said, 'Wrestling?' And he said 'Yeah, bro. You like wrestling?' And I looked at him and said, 'Yeah, Kevin. I do. It's about all I watch in my room.' And he said, 'Well, Dom, you're in luck. I have an extra ticket. Brian bailed. You wanna go?' Now, at this point, I hadn't REALLY left the house in about... oh, I don't know... a month and a half? But I knew what he was going to see that night. I knew he was going to see the OWF at the Pond where the Canadian Superman Lance Storm, Edge and Christian, Taz... all of them were going to be there. I looked at him and said, 'Hell yeah, Kevin. Let's go.'"
"I hadn't been that excited in awhile. Dom was finally doing... SOMETHING. We loaded up the car and drove on down the road towards the Arrowhead Pond."
"It was what happened later that evening that would change Dominic Sanders' life for forever."
"As I looked up into the ring and saw the Canadian Superman giving a promo, I thought to myself 'I can do that.' So I turned to Kevin and said, 'Hey, Kev. I think I know what I am going to do with my life.' He looked at me and I nodded. 'I'm going to become a wrestler.' And the rest... as they say... was history."
"Dominic Sanders' desire to become a professional wrestler didn't take very long to come to fruition. Given the fact that he was smart, hard-working, and had a way with words that was nearly unfathomable for a fourteen year old, he blew people away at the OWF tryouts only a few months later."
"The kid had serious potential. Was he going to step right in and challenge for World Titles? Hell no. But I knew that some day, somewhere, he would be special. It may have taken awhile for him to get there, but he's finally where I pictured that he would be."
"Things most certainly started off rough for the youngster from Anaheim, California. Branded as 'Riptide', Dominic Sanders struggled to gain any momentum in the wrestling business for nearly two years. Riptide fought with some of the biggest, baddest names in the game... only to be stifled on nearly every occasion. He won a Hardcore Championship soon after the OWF re-branded itself as the NOWF, but that was about all he would muster in the early stages of his career. It wasn't until the year 2000 that Riptide would head into the new millennium as a fifteen year old... one who was beginning to become frustrated with being anybody but himself."
"I was pretty sick of the Riptide gimmick. They had me as the company ragdoll for so long. I guess, since I was only fourteen-fifteen years old, they felt like that was their prerogative. They even went as far as to have me be the 'captain' of Team R. Team R was my stable. My stable had about ten personas in it. Riptide, MiniRip - who was a hand puppet, and about eight or so imaginary 'friends' of mine. I was the laughing stock of the NOWF. I had to get out of that before my career would be ended by the embarrassment that I carried on my back. So I finally went into the corporate office and told them that it was time for me to be who I wanted to be. I wanted to be me. No gimmicks. No goofy names. No hand puppets. I wanted to be Dominic Sanders."
"His hard work and dedication to the NOWF for the better part of a year and a half urged the company to grant his request. Now operating under his real name, Dominic Sanders set forth to be the best that he could be while simply being himself. It wouldn't take long for his new image to take flight. He soon captured the NOWF Intercontinental Championship. Unfortunately for Sanders, the NOWF was a dying company. Being one of the final members of the roster, Sanders was forced to find work elsewhere when the NOWF shut its doors in 2001. However, his talent and reputation landed him a spot quickly in Supreme Championship Wrestling only days after departing from the only home he had ever known."
"When I got to the SCW, there were a lot of familiar faces from my days over in the NOWF. I thought that it would be a positive, as I didn't have to re-familiarize myself with the competition. But the management in the SCW wasn't ideal. They had a tendency to push only certain talents. Being relatively new to the game, I wasn't on that level yet. Sure, I won the Television Championship. But the company didn't let me go much farther than that. So I had to find somewhere that I could start over fresh. Somewhere the management wouldn't have as much to do with the outcome that the SCW did."
"It wasn't long before Dominic Sanders found himself signing with the Professional Wrestling Federation in 2002. The PWF offered Sanders more money than he had ever seen before. However, they had one requirement: they asked him to go back and finish high school. Sanders, always one to do things his own way, had a better idea."
"I asked President Pelican, 'Why should I stop doing what I love just to go back to a place that I hate?' The memories of Charlie and my high school were way too much for me to handle at the time. It's almost funny, looking back at it. But I pitched an idea to Pelican. 'How about I work for you WHILE I finish high school? I'll job. I'll do whatever it is that you want. And at the same time I will study and take the GED. Once I get my high school equivalency, then I will begin to do things my way."
"Dominic Sanders handed the PWF an extremely talented jobber on a silver platter. Not only would they be able to do what they wanted with him, but they had the comfort of knowing that he was one hundred percent on board. For the remaining part of 2002, Dominic Sanders wrestled for the PWF while cramming four years of high school knowledge into his schedule. By his eighteenth birthday on December 27th, 2002, he was a high school graduate. Then came the time for Dominic Sanders to shine."
"On New Year's Eve of 2002, I was given the opportunity to fight for the PWF Intercontinental Championship. Finally, I was getting to get back into my element. I won that match. Hell... I don't even remember who I beat. Maybe it was the Brooklyn Brawler or Doink the Clown or something. But, at that point, the entire PWF was on notice. Later that year, I was given the opportunity to challenge Marcus Bagwell for the PWF World Championship. My first chance ever. I was pumped about it. There was no way I was going to let him beat me. But outside interference would cause it to be a no-contest. I was so angry that I punched a wall backstage and broke my hand like an idiot. Just a dumb eighteen year old move, you know? President Pelican issued that there would be a rematch between Marcus Bagwell and myself. Luckily for me, I was becoming very popular in the PWF world... so much that Pelican was willing to wait for my recovery and promised that it would still happen when I returned."
"As had happened before, however, bad luck would strike again. February 21, 2004, only two days before Dominic Sanders was scheduled to challenge Marcus Bagwell in a Steel Cage for the PWF World Championship, the Professional Wrestling Federation declared bankruptcy. Another promotion had shut its doors on Dominic Sanders... as well as his chances at becoming the World Champion for the first time in his career."
"It sucked, you know? I was finally going to get to that crowning moment and the company shuts down. At nineteen years old, I didn't know what to do anymore. So, like the immature kid that I was, I threw in the towel."
"Dominic Sanders walked away from the world of professional wrestling, that day. He decided to start a completely new life for himself. He moved to Aledo, Texas, just miles west of Fort Worth. He began working on a ranch helping an elderly couple tend their cows, care for their dogs, make deliveries, run errands, and so forth. It wasn't ideal for Sanders, but on July 28, 2006, Dominic's life would make a complete turnaround."
"I met Hannah at the Zimmerman ranch one day. She was their granddaughter. Absolutely stunning. Brunette. Tall. She had come to visit them from out in Amarillo where she lived with her parents on their ranch. She was a freshman at Texas Tech University. Everything about her was just... wonderful. So, one day, I asked her out. She said 'no,' but come on... you know me. I'm a persistent bastard. I finally got her to let me take her to dinner. From that moment on, I knew I had a chance. We went on our first date that September. We dated for about two years. And then, on May 3, 2008, we got married in Aledo on her grandparents' ranch. The next year, we had Michael. Michael was my pride and joy. I'd never loved anyone so much."
"For the next nearly eight years, Dominic, Hannah, and Michael lived in the Zimmerman ranch once Hannah's grandparents had both passed away in 2009. They left the ranch to the Sanders family in their will. Michael loved baseball and was a member of the Aledo youth teeball league. Hannah stayed at home while Dominic went to work in a corporate office in downtown Fort Worth. Life was good for the Sanders family. That is until one day when Dominic Sanders began to get the itch."
"I missed wrestling a whole hell of a lot. There's something about working in a cubicle on the 28th floor of a building where you don't have access to a window or anything on the outside world that makes you really appreciate stuff you've left behind. I went home one evening and Hannah and I were sitting around watching television. Michael was asleep. I turned to Hannah and said, 'I am thinking of getting back into professional wrestling.' She wasn't exactly wild about the idea, but Hannah had never been one to shut the door on someone else's dream. She said, 'Oh really? And why's that?' And I told her that my professional life had never been anywhere close to as good as it was when I was in that ring. I told her, 'I love you and Michael to death, but there's just something missing for me. I never came close to accomplishing what I wanted to do on a professional level.' And I will never forget what Hannah said to me next. She looked me right in the eyes, kissed me on the forehead, and said 'Then go do it.'"
"In December of 2016, Dominic Sanders began his training all over again. He watched countless hours of wrestling on YouTube and on television. He needed to know how the world of professional wrestling was today as compared to twelve years prior. Knowing it was very different, Sanders pushed himself harder than ever to get back into the game... and he loved every second of it."
"In the first weekend of March in 2017, Hannah, Michael, and I took a family trip back to my hometown of Anaheim. We saw some family, saw some old friends, and we even went to Disneyland."
"Little did I know... I didn't know that that would be the last family photo we would take."
"Dominic Sanders signed with the Extreme Measures Federation a week prior to their Anaheim vacation. He opened his career in the EMF with a victory over Booker King on March 11, 2017. Despite a victory here and there, Dominic Sanders struggled to gain his footing in the company. He had been out of the game for so long that everyone seemed to be just a step faster than Sanders. On June 17, 2017, Dominic Sanders competed in a triple threat match with The Joker and Marcus O'Hara. Sanders came away with a win, but the celebration wouldn't last long."
"Dom and I... we were sitting in our locker room in The Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. He had just gotten done beating The Joker and Marcus O'Hara. And suddenly his phone rings."
"Hannah and Michael... they were involved in an accident. A... pretty brutal one."
"I rushed to the airport, flew a private jet back to Meacham Airport in Fort Worth, and got driven to the hospital as fast as possible. As I arrived, I was informed probably... the worst news that I have ever heard."
"Michael Sanders was pronounced dead on the scene of the crash. He had just turned eight years old a few weeks prior. Hannah Sanders was in critical condition. Dominic was able to see Hannah one last time before she passed away on June 18, 2017 while holding his hand in the hospital."
"Hannah and Michael meant the world to Dom. I know he and I aren't exactly friends anymore, but I had become close to them in the three months I knew them. They were awesome human beings. Heaven gained some perfect angels that night."
"Convinced that there was nothing left to live for other than wrestling, Dominic Sanders did exactly what he thought Hannah and Michael would want him to do: he continued his path towards the elusive World Championship. On July 30, 2017, Dominic Sanders dedicated his EMF Intercontinental Championship victory over Logan Riley to his late wife and son. He would hold onto that Intercontinental Championship until his final night in the EMF on September 24, 2017, a night that changed the career of Dominic Sanders forever."
"I was set to face off with Priest, Logan Riley, and Zach Ryder in a Fatal Fourway. The EMF World Championship was on the line. The EMF Intercontinental Championship was on the line. First fall wins the World Championship and second wins the Intercontinental. For the second time in my career, I failed to win the World Championship. But I was certainly poised to walk away having retained the Intercontinental Championship. Then, out of nowhere, my so-called 'friend' Daryl Prichard comes out of the crowd and takes my knee out. This allowed Ryder to take advantage and steal the Intercontinental Championship. I was no less than furious, to say the least. But my MCL was shot. I had to have surgery. I was going to be on the shelf for a few months."
"They repaired my MCL, cleaned up some other crap. Told me I would be on the shelf for about four months. Could have been worse, I suppose. But as I sat at home and watched the EMF plummet deep into the earth, I flipped the channel one day and found some new programming: The Extreme Wrestling Corporation. It was probably the best wrestling I had seen in over a decade. It had everything to offer and then some. It was the place for me. I told 'President Mike' over at the EMF to shove it and I signed with the EWC once I was cleared for action. It was possibly the best decision that I've made for my professional career."
"As we know, Dominic Sanders would make an immediate impact in the EWC. A complete resurgence of his career and, possibly, the pinnacle would come over the course of the next ten months. A brief co-Television Championship reign. An International Championship reign. A Rumble in the Bronx win. A StableWars survival. All would culminate on December 17, 2018 when Dominic Sanders took on Candy for the EWC Undisputed Championship."
"The moment I heard the referee's hand hit the mat the third time in Barcelona at Camp Nou, my mind exploded. I had done it. I had won my first ever World Championship... Undisputed Championship... Heavyweight Championship... call it what you will. I'd done it. And I did it by myself. I didn't need Gil Griffin. I didn't need Daryl Prichard. I didn't need Team R. I just needed Dominic Sanders and the drive of doing it for Hannah and doing it for Michael in the back of my head. I got it done."
"There are those that say Dominic Sanders is the hero that the EWC needed."
"Dominic Sanders has made this place a better place! He has saved this company!"
"There are some whose lives have been touched by Sanders on a more personal level."
"I was on my way downhill fast, yo! This f[bleep]in' guy! He came in when I was about ready to sell my body for money! I was about to do some crazy ass s[bleep]! Dominic Sanders saved my life. He is my f[bleep]in' hero!"
"Some don't know what to think."
"Dominic Sanders? Yeah f[bleep] that guy. Did you see what he did to me? But really, he's an alright guy. Good Champion. I like him alright. He owes me some money and some smokes. But he's okay in my book."
"Some who show him a professional level of respect, despite their differences."
"Dominic. The epitome of champion. Face of the company. He checks all the boxes. That's good, I guess. Despite everything, wish him the best going forward."
"And some who don't."
"Dominic Sanders? Y'know he can get f[bleep]ed, right?!"
"But to many, he's exactly what this company has been looking for: A True Hero."
The preceding documentary as narrated by Christoph Waltz was brought to you by the EWC Network.
