Is Richard Holliday the next big free agent in the world of professional wrestling?
Major League Wrestling CEO Court Bauer was a guest on Busted Open Radio with Dave LaGreca and Mark Henry to discuss a wide variety of subjects. When asked about the status of Richard Holliday, Bauer revealed that he’s currently a free agent and his contract expired during his cancer treatment.
“Yeah, I mean, he’s a free agent now. His contract during his treatment expired, and so he’s technically not with MLW,” Court Bauer revealed. “But we stay in regular touch. We wished each other happy Easter last week. His recovery has gone well; we told him there’s a seat warm for him if he wants to come back as a free agent.
“When he was trying to figure out what this thing was, he started to share in confidence with me, like he was just lagging. He didn’t have the energy, and you can see he looked pale. His matches weren’t clicking. He was blowing up fast. And we were literally the two of us, a promoter and wrestler, were Googling, [Web]MDing this thing, trying to figure out what is going on. Is he anemic? What is it?
“And he barely got through a June match against Hammerstone, a Falls Count Anywhere match, which was amazing. It was an amazing match, the best match of his career. And afterward, I said, man, you left it all out there, but he was on his back after that match in the dressing room. I said no, put him in the dressing room right next to me because the show wasn’t over. We had some other stuff to do, the Battle Riot and stuff. Put him right next to me with the doctor. I wanted to eye him as I was managing the rest of the show just to make sure he was okay.
“I knew something was wrong. I knew something was off. You could see it; we just couldn’t tell what it was. He was very hollowed-eyed. He just wasn’t the same guy. And then, through the summer, he did a battery of tests, and by September, he determined what it was. On the one hand, it’s shocking and jarring. It’s upsetting, on the other hand; at least we know what’s the cause of this, and he attacked this with the most positive outlook you could have.
“He just was like, ‘I’m not gonna let this bring me down.’ And he just hit chemo really hard and just kept training through most of it. And he just had the most positive approach. And he was basically cleared and testing great by February, and then in March, he was in the clear to kind of get back into heavier training. And if you see him now, you would think you’d never went through that.
“So it’s a miracle. It’s the power of positivity, but also to see someone like that go through that. Someone that’s really one of the best people I’ve ever worked with that I can say was probably one of the closest guys I’ve been in terms of friendship in the locker room. I mean, he had been with MLW for like four or five years. So I knew him very well. And you know, so to see him go through and come out the other side. It’s just such a relief, and I’m so happy for him. And I am the biggest Richard Holliday fan in the world. So you know, it’s nice to see those kinds of things happen.”
When Mark Henry said that Bauer helped protect Holliday from himself, Bauer said they both knew ahead of time that he wasn’t going to try and wrestle through this.
“Well, yeah, I mean, I think when it comes to this too, it’s like you have to be careful. He wasn’t going to try to wrestle through this,” Court Bauer said. “He knew he had to just put everything on hold during this. But at the same time, I could see that this guy really, really wanted to get that comeback and envision and everything.
“It’s just a matter of the timing of everything. But we’re excited to see what’s next for Richard Holliday. He’s a good dude, and I think he’s in his late 20s, a great athlete, played college football, and is so passionate about the business and just having seen the guy go through what he’s gone through. I’m just so happy to see that chapter is ending; now a new chapter starts.”
READ MORE: Richard Holliday Finishes Treatment For Hodgkin’s Lymphoma
What do you make of Court Bauer’s comments? Do you think Richard Holliday will return to Major League Wrestling? Let us know your thoughts by sounding off in the comments section below.
If you use any of the quotes above, please credit Busted Open with a link back to this article for the transcription.
