We recently had the absolute pleasure of catching up with one-half of the tag team #NeverSayDie, Alex Cupid. Here is what he had to say about his career so far as well as his work with Young Minds!
Firstly, could you give us a bit of a background on Alex Cupid outside of the wrestling ring?
Well...I'm very lucky to have the role as a YoungMinds Activist. Activists help to raise awareness and directly improve the lives of young people in UK. I'm privileged to be able to bring that side of me into the squared circle. I work as a Teaching Assistant as my main form of income and I eventually hope one day follow in my Uncle RJ Singh's footsteps and become involved in a management role in a school i.e Head teacher.
When did you first become interested in wrestling and who were some of your favourite wrestlers at that time?
Like most people...As a kid my family was wrestling obsessed and loved the WWE so naturally I followed suit and grew up being terrified of Kane and The Undertaker. My brother's obsession with The Rock transferred over to me so The Rock became one of my favourites along with Test, Mark Henry and Chris Jericho.
Are there any moments as a young fan growing up that made you think "I want to become a pro-wrestler"?
Honestly, none at all. My dream from the age of 5 to 16/17 was to become a professional footballer so it's crazy how things can change.
When did you first start training and how did you go about finding a school?
I saw some really really bad British wrestling online and I was like..."This exists over here?" My mom then told me about World Of Sport and my mind was blown!
I searched "Pro Wrestling school london" and IPW came up. On the website I saw then All England Champion Sha Samuels and saw Darrell Allen and RJ Singh and I was like...."I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS ACTUALLY EXISTS!!" I searched further and I ended finding the Progress Wrestling School, and the rest is history!
Have there ever been any aspects of training that you've liked or disliked more than others?
I loved every part of training. I enjoy looking back at old pictures and seeing my development from chubby kid to somewhat stocky kid. I enjoyed the friendly atmosphere and the friends I made. I do wish that we didn't take this sport so seriously as I imagine I would still be friends with those people today (:
When did you make your debut and what are your memories of that match and show?
At a Phoenix Promotions Camp Show.
At a Vintage Steam Fair in Faversham.
Myself, Dillion and Earl Black Junior formed the Reggae Boyz Via Leeds....
Yeah...
You made your PROGRESS chapter debut alongside your Never Say Die tag team partner Dillon D'Angelo. When did you first find out that you'd be wrestling on that show and what was the experience like wrestling against James Drake and Zack Gibson?
We both found out about 2 or 3 weeks before and honestly it will forever be one of the defining moments of my life. We entered the Electric Ballroom as plucky trainees and left as established competitors. Gibson and Drake are marvellous wrestlers and deserve the best going forward.
Never Say Die teamed up with Connor Mills at Chapter 56 to face Aussie Open and Omari in an awesome contest. How important was it for all six of you guys to wrestle each other and to be able to show the world what you're all capable of doing in the ring?
So my motto for #NeverSayDie has been as follows: "We don't bitch and moan. We fight and win."
That day everybody in that match won. A lot of people give myself and Dillion crap. Yet...we constantly prove people wrong. It's incredible that 700 people stood up and erupted into support for all of us.
No one can take that back.
You have your own YouTube channel where fans can find matches of yours against the likes of Rob Sharpe and Darrell Allen among others. How big of a platform is YouTube for you and do you feel it's something that is underused by wrestlers looking to make a name for themselves?
I use YouTube to answer listener questions as alot of people confide in me as a trusted person.
I use the topics to create helpful content that gives the viewer a different perspective. Not advice...just a different way to view things.
I'll occasionally post wrestling stuff and it honestly is dependant on what you want to get out of it. It's underutilised by me at the moment but hopefully I'll be using it more soon.
You're an advocate for Young Minds. What advice would you offer to anyone who thinks they may be struggling with mental health problems?
Talk to someone. Even DM me on Twitter.
The worst thing you can do is bottle it up and hope it'll go away.
If you could pick just one, what would be your favourite match that you've been involved in so far?
At a charity show in Dudley I felt like everything clicked in a match against Sean Kustom. It flowed well and even though the ceiling was low I hit Cupid's Arrow and won.
#LiveatTheDome #NeverSayDie faced M&M (Conner Mills and Maverick Mayhew) in what some have described as a match of the year contender. Still gobsmacked by that. It's crazy how fun wrestling for Progress is.
What advice would you give anybody looking to get into wrestling?
Find a good school and listen to your trainers and have fun. That's what I'm doing!
Can you tell us of any other shows you're scheduled to appear on in the coming weeks?
So I'm answering this question while on the way to Falling Starr in West Lynn.
The day after I'm at a University fair in Leicester for Wrestling Resurgence - #NeverSayDie vs The Henchmen!
Lastly, if you could name one person who has had the biggest impact on you in and out of the ring, who would you name?
RJ Singh. Hands down. Stupidly underutilized as a performer. Yet constantly level headed and understanding especially during my not so great times. Pretty the blueprint for how I'd like my adult life to be. So yeah!
Thank you so much to Alex for agreeing to this interview and for being so awesome to work with. It was a pleasure to set this up with him. Below is a video of how Alex became involved with the Young Minds charity. Please spend another couple of minutes on this page to learn more about Alex's story.
Darren Dyer
Firstly, could you give us a bit of a background on Alex Cupid outside of the wrestling ring?
Well...I'm very lucky to have the role as a YoungMinds Activist. Activists help to raise awareness and directly improve the lives of young people in UK. I'm privileged to be able to bring that side of me into the squared circle. I work as a Teaching Assistant as my main form of income and I eventually hope one day follow in my Uncle RJ Singh's footsteps and become involved in a management role in a school i.e Head teacher.
When did you first become interested in wrestling and who were some of your favourite wrestlers at that time?
Like most people...As a kid my family was wrestling obsessed and loved the WWE so naturally I followed suit and grew up being terrified of Kane and The Undertaker. My brother's obsession with The Rock transferred over to me so The Rock became one of my favourites along with Test, Mark Henry and Chris Jericho.
Are there any moments as a young fan growing up that made you think "I want to become a pro-wrestler"?
Honestly, none at all. My dream from the age of 5 to 16/17 was to become a professional footballer so it's crazy how things can change.
When did you first start training and how did you go about finding a school?
I saw some really really bad British wrestling online and I was like..."This exists over here?" My mom then told me about World Of Sport and my mind was blown!
I searched "Pro Wrestling school london" and IPW came up. On the website I saw then All England Champion Sha Samuels and saw Darrell Allen and RJ Singh and I was like...."I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS ACTUALLY EXISTS!!" I searched further and I ended finding the Progress Wrestling School, and the rest is history!
Have there ever been any aspects of training that you've liked or disliked more than others?
I loved every part of training. I enjoy looking back at old pictures and seeing my development from chubby kid to somewhat stocky kid. I enjoyed the friendly atmosphere and the friends I made. I do wish that we didn't take this sport so seriously as I imagine I would still be friends with those people today (:
When did you make your debut and what are your memories of that match and show?
At a Phoenix Promotions Camp Show.
At a Vintage Steam Fair in Faversham.
Myself, Dillion and Earl Black Junior formed the Reggae Boyz Via Leeds....
Yeah...
You made your PROGRESS chapter debut alongside your Never Say Die tag team partner Dillon D'Angelo. When did you first find out that you'd be wrestling on that show and what was the experience like wrestling against James Drake and Zack Gibson?
We both found out about 2 or 3 weeks before and honestly it will forever be one of the defining moments of my life. We entered the Electric Ballroom as plucky trainees and left as established competitors. Gibson and Drake are marvellous wrestlers and deserve the best going forward.
Never Say Die teamed up with Connor Mills at Chapter 56 to face Aussie Open and Omari in an awesome contest. How important was it for all six of you guys to wrestle each other and to be able to show the world what you're all capable of doing in the ring?
So my motto for #NeverSayDie has been as follows: "We don't bitch and moan. We fight and win."
That day everybody in that match won. A lot of people give myself and Dillion crap. Yet...we constantly prove people wrong. It's incredible that 700 people stood up and erupted into support for all of us.
No one can take that back.
You have your own YouTube channel where fans can find matches of yours against the likes of Rob Sharpe and Darrell Allen among others. How big of a platform is YouTube for you and do you feel it's something that is underused by wrestlers looking to make a name for themselves?
I use YouTube to answer listener questions as alot of people confide in me as a trusted person.
I use the topics to create helpful content that gives the viewer a different perspective. Not advice...just a different way to view things.
I'll occasionally post wrestling stuff and it honestly is dependant on what you want to get out of it. It's underutilised by me at the moment but hopefully I'll be using it more soon.
You're an advocate for Young Minds. What advice would you offer to anyone who thinks they may be struggling with mental health problems?
Talk to someone. Even DM me on Twitter.
The worst thing you can do is bottle it up and hope it'll go away.
If you could pick just one, what would be your favourite match that you've been involved in so far?
At a charity show in Dudley I felt like everything clicked in a match against Sean Kustom. It flowed well and even though the ceiling was low I hit Cupid's Arrow and won.
#LiveatTheDome #NeverSayDie faced M&M (Conner Mills and Maverick Mayhew) in what some have described as a match of the year contender. Still gobsmacked by that. It's crazy how fun wrestling for Progress is.
What advice would you give anybody looking to get into wrestling?
Find a good school and listen to your trainers and have fun. That's what I'm doing!
Can you tell us of any other shows you're scheduled to appear on in the coming weeks?
So I'm answering this question while on the way to Falling Starr in West Lynn.
The day after I'm at a University fair in Leicester for Wrestling Resurgence - #NeverSayDie vs The Henchmen!
Lastly, if you could name one person who has had the biggest impact on you in and out of the ring, who would you name?
RJ Singh. Hands down. Stupidly underutilized as a performer. Yet constantly level headed and understanding especially during my not so great times. Pretty the blueprint for how I'd like my adult life to be. So yeah!
Thank you so much to Alex for agreeing to this interview and for being so awesome to work with. It was a pleasure to set this up with him. Below is a video of how Alex became involved with the Young Minds charity. Please spend another couple of minutes on this page to learn more about Alex's story.
Darren Dyer