After a bit of recon in Mexico on Saturday night, Show-Me State Wrestling liked what it got from the crowd.

The Jefferson City-based company held its first show in Mexico at the Mexico National Guard Building, entertaining the crowd with six singles matches and a tag-team main event. Mexico was chosen for one of the monthly shows the company runs from March to November. 

Fulton native Jeremy Harrison and Salem native Gordon Atkins are co-owners who started their wrestling careers training in the same building in 1997. Harrison said the memories came back once they got there. 

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“Our first bumps in the ring were in this building, so it was important to come back here,” Harrison said. “When we set the ring up that night, the ring collapsed on us. That’s what they get for putting people who didn't know how to set up a ring on it.”

Harrison also remembers filming the show while sitting on three tables stacked on top of each other in the building as “not particularly skinny” 15 year olds. He expressed his worry to Atkins that they were going to fall that night but ended up OK. 

Saturday’s show didn’t fall through either as Harrison said it was a nice showing for the first time. He said Show-Me State Wrestling gives a town at least two shows, so Mexico should expect a return and hopefully double the crowd size next time. 

“The crowd was great,” Harrison said. “Everyone seemed happy. Overall, it was a good show so we’re happy.”

Harrison included the wrestlers in that sentiment despite the building being warm due to the elevated heat outside. He said the Show-Me State wrestling talent is “talented, young, hungry and they listen.” They are open to teaching because they want to put on the best show possible, and that means keeping the crowd engaged by talking to them and responding to cheers or jeers from people. 

“They’re very fan-oriented,” Harrison said. “That’s a lost art. There are a lot of times when people get in the business, and they don’t think about that the crowd is going to react to the moves but you also have to engage them. Half of your match is you telling your story on who you are. If you can’t do that, they don’t care.”

Dustin Dickler manages Blaire Dior as “the mouthpiece” of the Golden Reserve while adorned in a gold jacket and golden shoes. Prior to Dior defeating Slammer on Saturday night, Dickler has had a long career in the wrestling business that he said includes three years with Show-Me State Wrestling but dates before 2004. He said he started in Mississippi around the Memphis territory.

“Every franchise has a good salesman and every brand has that face that speaks for that brand,” Dickler said. “I speak for the Golden Reserve. If you can’t tell a story with both your voice and your body, you’ve got problems. The audience needs to hear it, they need to see it, they need to be told and they need to be shown. You get a healthy blend of that at Show-Me State Wrestling.”

Dickler said a vast majority of his career was in the mid-Atlantic and Memphis territories. During that time, he had the opportunity to learn from legends Jerry Lawler and Bill Dundee.

“Bill and I go way back,” Dickler said. “I learned a lot from Bill. He was a pain in the butt sometimes, but he was a good mentor and he had a lot of good ideas.”

Dickler said while he found some of Dundee’s ideas "antiquated,” there was plenty of wisdom in what Dundee taught and he is grateful for Dundee volunteering his time to help Dickler early in his career. With the younger guys in Show-Me State Wrestling, Dickler admits some of them might find his ideas antiquated and expects them not to listen to everything. 

Regardless, Dickler wants to be there as a veteran they look to for advice. The current pro wrestling generation has more athleticism than the one Dickler grew up around, he said, so they can learn from each other.

“All of my old mentors have retired, gotten hurt, have died or something like that,” Dickler said. “While I’m here and working with these kids today, I’m learning as much from them as I hope that I’m able to pass on to them the lessons I was taught.”

Harrison said their wrestlers are all good people who were even willing to drive two hours to pick up others after their car broke down on Saturday. 

“It’s a brotherhood,” Harrison said. “They like each other, they want each other to succeed, and they’re willing to go the extra mile.”

Harrison wants to thank the National Guard for being helpful with setup and tear down during “a long day,” sponsors like The Drunken Pig and Dos Arcos, and Mexico fans who came to enjoy what is hopefully the first show of a “permanent home once a year.”