Added 08/08/2018 by Will Cooling

Dear Kid Lykos

​As a child of the Attitude Era, it takes a lot for pro-wrestling to make me sad. But the news that a freak accident has put you on the sidelines again has hit me hard. And if you’d bear with me, I’d like to explain why.

I had just been to the first night of Fight Club Pro’s Dream Tag Team Invitational 2017, and I really wanted to see how the rest of the tournament went. So, I made sure to buy the DVD, and saw you become one-half of the tournament winners. That first DTTI was so great on DVD, I promised myself I would go to all three nights of the sequel. But then my children’s mother said that she couldn’t get a flight on Monday as planned, and the only possible date was Saturday.

I said that’s fine, but I’m taking the kids to the pro-wrestling on Sunday. She wasn’t thrilled, but she really wanted that holiday, and never has a little boy been happier. Why was he happy? Because of you. Because when I had put that DVD on, he loved yours and Chris Brookes matches. He loved your mask, and we had fun banter about you being a real wolf, building on the fact that I had showed him wrestling bear matches. Even now he doesn’t know that your name is Lykos, he calls you “wolfie”. To the point that when I showed him a Wolves in Wolves Map, he asked where you were!

When we went to DTTI 2018 Night Three, your inability to perform was the one sour note of what was the perfect introduction to live pro-wrestling a ten-year old could ask for. Actually, that’s not true – I had forgot to pack his Lykos mask for him to wear!

But then we got a second chance. His mother went to see family in South Africa, just before International Trekkers. So once again the kids came with me to the WrestleHouse. But this time he brought his mask, and this time you got involved in the action. More than that had changed of course. We went from the NEC to the Diamond Banqueting Hall. Whereas the former had families and travelling fans enjoying the best promotion going, this was Fight Club Pro’s regular audience. Whereas before he could easily see everything on a TV screen, now he had to sit on the top of a chair to catch the action.

And what did he do? He wore his mask, and cheered Chris Brookes on, because Chris is your friend. He even cheered Kris Wolf, rationalising that true love will win out in the end! When you got involved in the action, he was almost beside himself. Seriously, this ten-year old, probably one of the five youngest people in the audience, was shouting back at adults booing you. Afterwards, whilst we were waiting for our taxi as the clock approached midnight, he wore his mask and told departing fans why you were his favourite.

But he is not a heel fan. When I told him Shinsuke Nakamura had turned heel on AJ Styles, he cried. He couldn’t believe that Nakamura had became a bad guy. But for you, an exception was made. Why? Firstly, CCK are the gold standard for treating fans right when they come the merch stand. Taking the time to talk to him, take photos, and give him free stickers meant the world. Every pro-wrestler is somebody’s favourite, and despite being some of the best heels in the business, you know better than to turn your back on those who love you. If you had have rejected him he wouldn’t love pro-wrestling as much as he does now.

But there’s a deeper reason. You’re really fucking good. When he was telling the crowd off for saying you were a shit wolf, he was saying the truth. I remember the first time I saw you wrestle on Lucha Forever’s debut show. The heat you generated was incredible, but the tightness of your ringwork and the depth of your character work shone through as well. But above all, you were hilarious. Few are better at playing to the crowd, and nobody has better comedic timing when playing off their fellow pro-wrestlers.

The reality is that we all pretend to hate you, but Braden really loves you. And whenever you’re healthy enough to wrestle again, I’m going to make sure he finally gets to see you wrestle a match.

Get well soon, shit wolf, both your no friends, and your biggest fan, will be waiting for you.

Kid Lykos is unfortunately becoming acquainted with the American healthcare system, so please buy merchandise from him at https://kidlykos.bigcartel.com/. CCK’s t-shirts are some of the best looking in the business!

Will Cooling is a regular contributor to Fighting Spirit Magazine, the UK’s biggest and best pro wrestling magazine, which is available worldwide at https://pocketmags.com/fighting-spirit-magazine. He is also the co-host of the It Could Be Wrestling podcast, which you can find on iTunes or real computers. You can follow him on Twitter at @willcooling or harangue him at w.cooling@gmail.com