Rivet

Rivet vs Stevie, Mat Rats 157 (Thunders Arena)

New hire Rivet wipes the mat with the butts of his challengers Stevie and Cason, two of my favorite Thunders Arena wrestlers. At 6'2", 200#, the newcomer joins the roster with a bang. Rivet punks down his opponents, escaping the usual hazing underground wrestlers give newcomers. I am impressed - and turned on. Stevie is relatively new to the Arena, but he has twelve matches already. At other underground wrestling sites, it would take a wrestler from two to five years to accrue such a number. Cason, still top of the heap as far as I'm concerned, follows, evidently intending to put Rivet in his place, but at the end of a rough fight, he's another notch on Rivet's belt.

I like the folded curtains behind them. Old 8mm living-room wrestling reels would stage contests in front of drapes like these. The relatively small wrestling mat gives the boys less space to grapple and necessitates the occasional roll onto the carpet. It took me a few minutes to realize the setting is a hotel room, presumably in Las Vegas (the Arena's second home).

Rivet makes it look easy to bust loose of Stevie's holds. Rivet is bigger, but Stevie is thickly muscled and devious. Cason is a tougher challenge for the new guy. Cason is only an inch shorter, but he carries 35 more pounds, all muscle. Rivet's lucky to survive a fight with Cason, but he seems to know at least the basics of wrestling, if not more, and he definitely does not back off from a tough challenge.

Rivet vs Cason, Mat Rates 158 (Thunders Arena)