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Local wrestler Matt Riviera to face WWE Hall of Famer

Posted: Jan 14th 2020 By: Travis Simpson

Matt Riviera had no idea he'd cross paths with WWE legend Jerry "The King" Lawler when he began wrestling when he was 21 years old -- but that's exactly what happened. In fact, Riviera has had a year's long feud with Lawler on the independent circuit, which will culminate in the Championship Wrestling of Arkansas "No Surrender" Event at the Maumelle Event Center on Jan. 18.

The event is billed as a "Title vs. Career" match, meaning Riviera will have to give up his Arkansas Heavyweight title with a loss, while Lawler will retire from professional wrestling with a loss.

"It should be a great event," Riviera said. "The last event there was standing room only."

Riviera graduated from Russellville in 2002 and quickly began pursuing a career in the wrestling ring. Now 36, Riviera still spends plenty of time in the squared circle.

"I had two trips to Japan where I got to wrestle in Tokyo," he said. "That was a need experience. Things have been good. I'm traveling a lot. Wrestling a lot. And this is not my first time to wrestle Jerry "The King" Lawler, but hopefully, it will be the last. We have fans coming from five states to see what will happen."

Lawler is a color commentator with the WWE. He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2007.

Riviera said Lawler at age 70 is as good a wrestler as anyone he's ever faced. But what makes a good wrestler?

"A great wrestler fills arenas," Riviera said. "A lot of people will pay a lot of money to see them. That doesn't mean you win matches all the time. It means you entertain people to the magnitude that they will put their hard-earned money down for the entertainment experience and to forget their problems for a little bit."

Some fans come because they want to see you win, Riviera said. Others come because they love watching you lose. Either is fine.

Throughout his career, he's mostly been a heel -- which is industry-speak for a bad guy.

"I'd say about 70 percent of the time I've been a heel, and the funnest place to be a heel is in Alabama because you can show up wearing Arkansas Razorback colors and start each match calling the hogs, and they don't take too kindly too that," he said. "They don't like it and will pay money to watch you get beat."

"No Surrender" is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. with a VIP Meet and Greet scheduled for VIP ticket holders at 5 p.m. Tickets are available at www.cwatix.com or by calling 479-518-5205.

Riviera said wrestling has taken him all over the country, but Russellville is always home.

"I appreciate the continued support from Russellville, Arkansas," he said."And everywhere I've been and wrestled, from California to Las Vegas to Tokyo, they announce me as Matt Riviera from fabulous RussVegas, Arkansas, and that's how they'll continue to announce me until I retire."