The 40 Year Old IRONMAN
Local Pro Wrestler Defies Odds, Slams Critics

Robert Evans (40) of Swansea, Massachusetts, better known by his ring name; “Brutal” Bob Evans, has been a professional wrestler for over 20 years. Evans is one of the most respected grapplers on the New England independent circuit; the network of smaller wrestling events which inhabit the local VFW halls and National Guard Armories in several towns across the country that serves as the wrestling fan's fix when the global juggernaut, World Wrestling Entertainment's (WWE) events are either out of town or just too expensive to attend. The New England region has produced some of the biggest names in the history of the Pro Wrestling and while many wrestlers from the region have climbed the ladder of success over the years, Evans has remained on the "indies": wrestling and promoting his own events with other local WWE hopefuls for over two decades, awaiting his chance at becoming a world-wide superstar. That chance, at least in Evans' case, is something that will likely never come.

The WWE is notorious for signing athletes over six feet tall, weighing over two hundred-fifty pounds, with looks and personalities that can be fed into their global marketing machine. The feeling of rejection by the national companies of professional wrestling is one that often leads to bitterness, contempt and most often, wrestlers simply quitting the business. Bob Evans: six feet tall, pale, bald and ginger has taken all of those traits and has embraced it as his wrestling persona; a bitter, ugly old timer who takes his frustrations out on his opponents. "I know I'm not easy to look at and I don't fit the WWE's vision of what a "superstar" should be but I'm a damn good wrestler who deserves a spot" said Evans during his pre-match exercises. In what can be considered the cruelest of all ironies, Evans’ most successful protégé, “The Prodigy” Mike Bennett, is a wrestler blessed with what most men could only dream of having; Hollywood good looks, a million dollar physique, athletic talent and now to top it all off; a Playboy Playmate for a fiancé. “Bob is my best friend.” said Bennett while watching his trainer take another young wrestler down to the mat. “He’s taught me everything I know and I always make sure to keep him close as I never know when I’ll need his guidance.” While Bob uses his frustrations of mediocrity to his advantage in the ring, he also uses them to motivate him to achieve feats that a man of his age and position in the business shouldn't. Last week was no different, as Bob set out to do what many of his critics said was impossible; to wrestle in seven, sixty minute matches in seven days, in a personal challenge that he called; “Iron Week”.

Last Sunday morning after an overnight shift at his regular job as supervisor of a local newspaper distribution center, Bob set out for his first of two trips to Bristol, PA; where two of his seven matches took place. The “Ring of Honor Dojo”; a wrestling school owned and operated by Ring of Honor Wrestling (third ranked wrestling company in the U.S behind WWE) played host to the matches, one of which was against the current Ring of Honor Television Champion, Adam Cole. Cole, (23) of Panama City, Florida had never wrestled a sixty minute match before and this was one of the biggest challenges of his young career. “It’s really difficult to prepare for…Bob’s in great shape and half my age, I’m in for a long hour.” The match went the full hour, with Cole getting the best of Evans. Both men showed mutual respect for the other; “Adam’s a great kid with a great future in this industry and I’m glad we got to do this” said an exhausted Evans minutes after the bout.

Bob Evans would travel a total amount of one thousand, five hundred and eight miles during the seven day period, wrestling seven different wresters at five different locations on the east coast; all while maintaining his regular work and home life routines. “I planned this all around my work schedule and making sure I was home to take my kids to school in the morning and pick them up in the afternoon. I’ve proven that I’m one of the best professional wrestlers in the world today and nobody can take what I’ve accomplished away from me.” “Brutal” Bob has certainly proven that heart and passion conquers physiques and fame. Evans continues to train up and coming wrestlers at the Ring of Honor Dojo and plans on re-launching his own local promotion in 2013. “I’m not beating myself up over “What if?” and all that; I’m focused on making sure that there’ll be a future of this business. That’ll be my legacy.”