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Ardmore Company Making A Comeback

Posted: Jun 27th 2011 By: CMBurnham

Hello fans! I'm writing this article today as Al Santos, the man not Al Farat, the performer because I wanted to express myself concerning a matter that has caused me some reflection.

As you all know I have been involved in pro wrestling for damn near 25 years and for about 7 of those years I've worked in the Ardmore, OK area as trainer/booker and it has been a pleasure for me to do so. We've had our ups and downs trying to make things work there and as some of you may know it's a very time consuming labor of love more than a money making venture. Mistakes are certainly made along the way but as long as we learn from them we'll always have a chance to do it better the next time. After several different owners and name changes the company we all tried to keep afloat simply went under. Too many conflicting ideas and people with their own agendas is what I believe was the downfall to the company. Although money plays a major part in keeping the doors open it was other factors that ultimately made it unsuccessful. Now we have that 2nd chance to do it right. Will it succeed? Who knows! What I do know is we're certainly not starting on the wrong foot so what I want is to address the company name!

First I want to make it very clear that the owner, Mr. Jerry Bostic and I are very close friends and I know him to be one of the most understanding and honest men I know. Although we haven't always seen eye to eye on alot of things ultimately it's always his call on any last decisions in regards to the company. When he approached me about re-starting UWF I was all for it and still am. Although it was never my idea to call it UWF06 I was still on board just like before because I believe it could succeed. Although we initially decided to go with UWF06 we knew it wasn't the same so we decided collectively to change the name to give it a fresh new start...again! When deciding on a name I was asked for advice so I gave a few examples of what I thought were great names never used. None were used which didn't really bother me because I have always respected the promoters decisions in any company I work in even if I didn't agree with it. That's what has made me successful and has provided me the opportunity to work with many companies across the U.S. and overseas. So UWE was the name chosen and at that time I was unaware that there was another company using that name in Oklahoma. I got home, looked it up and sure enough there was. That weekend I had a show in Ft. Smith, AR and expressed to Mike Iles, (TCW announcer at the time) how upset I was about it. While I don't agree we should continue using that name I want to re-assure you all it wasn't done with ill will or malice on Mr. Bostic's part. It was simply a mistake and it's being rectified.

I wanted to address this issue with not only the fans but the workers in the state simply because I work with so many of you and I certainly don't want you all to think that it was part of my doing because you all know that I know better. We're sorry for the confusion it may have caused and a change will be announced soon by the company owner. Thank you and we hope to see you soon down Texoma way!

Al Farat Santos