In this episode of New to Wrestling, we sit down with independent wrestling standout Joey Conway — “The Cause of It All.”

What starts as a conversation about presence and first impressions quickly becomes a deep dive into what it actually means to love wrestling while living inside it. Joey opens up about staying a fan in a business that can burn people out, why being a great heel is really about making everyone else better, and how character, intention, and detail matter just as much as moves.

We talk about his journey through the indie scene, adapting on the fly when plans change, learning through injury and setback, and why entering every room like nobody knows you is the key to earning a reaction anywhere in the world. From fur coats and grills to hardcore shows, international wrestling, and the art of making people agree to hate you — this is a raw, thoughtful, and unexpectedly emotional look at the grind behind the persona.

This isn’t just an interview about matches.
It’s about craft, community, and finding your place inside the chaos.

The New To Wrestling Podcast follows two friends who enjoy wrestling but are in different stages of their fandom. Xavier Cruz serves as your guide through generations of professional wrestling while Kelsey Silva experiences these matches for the first time. Climb into the ring weekly to relive the famous matches beginning with the Attitude Era!

This week on New to Wrestling, we dive headfirst into the May 18, 1998 edition of Raw Is War — an episode that somehow manages to be chaotic, hilarious, deeply cursed, and strangely heartfelt all at once.

Vince McMahon stacks the deck against Stone Cold Steve Austin yet again, the Stooges clock in for overtime nonsense, and Dude Love continues his deeply confusing villain era complete with gratitude speeches and… strong yet sensitive hands. We get the official (and highly suspicious) DNA reveal involving Kane and Paul Bearer, Val Venis makes his long-awaited debut, and DX and The Nation turn Monday night into full-blown gang warfare.

Along the way, Sable continues carving out her power era, Austin refuses to stay arrested, Al Snow and Head somehow evade all law enforcement, and Raw barrels toward Over the Edge with absolute confidence and zero adult supervision.

Some important community updates:
🧥 Our New to Wrestling Coat Drive is happening right now, and the response so far has been incredible. If you have gently used or new coats, hats, scarves, gloves, blankets, or winter gear, you can drop them off at DollyMoo in Montclair, NJ or The Coven’s Cupboard in Piermont, NY. We’ve got one week left, and every donation helps keep our community warm.

Plus, we check in on:
📚 The return of Reading the Ring with Becky Lynch’s Not Your Average Girl
🎙️ Our recent interview with Kevin Herrera Sanchez (Ringville)
💥 And what’s next as we keep building a more community-driven New to Wrestling

It’s loud. It’s messy. It’s very 1998.
And it’s exactly why we love this era.

The New To Wrestling Podcast follows two friends who enjoy wrestling but are in different stages of their fandom. Xavier Cruz serves as your guide through generations of professional wrestling while Kelsey Silva experiences these matches for the first time. Climb into the ring weekly to relive the famous matches beginning with the Attitude Era!

Welcome back to Reading the Ring, the New to Wrestling book club where wrestling is real and books are too.

This episode kicks off our three-week journey through Becky Lynch: The Man: Not Your Average Girl by Rebecca Quin, focusing on Season One: The Growing Years. From Becky’s childhood in Ireland to discovering wrestling during the Attitude Era, we unpack how belief, rebellion, and stubborn determination shaped the foundation of The Man long before the spotlight ever found her.

We talk early influences like Mick Foley, training without a ring, lying about her age just to get through the door, navigating a wrestling world with few women and fewer opportunities, and the complicated relationship between chasing a dream and protecting yourself while doing it. This section of the book is raw, funny, and deeply human — less about championships and more about why someone refuses to quit.

If you’ve ever chased something that felt impossible, doubted yourself mid-journey, or had to bet on yourself before anyone else did, this one’s for you.

📚 Reading the Ring — where wrestling stories live far beyond the ring.

The New To Wrestling Podcast follows two friends who enjoy wrestling but are in different stages of their fandom. Xavier Cruz serves as your guide through generations of professional wrestling while Kelsey Silva experiences these matches for the first time. Climb into the ring weekly to relive the famous matches beginning with the Attitude Era!

On this episode of New to Wrestling: After Dark, we’re joined by someone we’ve admired for a long time — Kevin Herrera Sanchez, the creator and host behind Ringville.

Kevin flips the script and joins us on the other side of the interview for a wide-ranging, thoughtful, and genuinely joyful conversation about wrestling, creativity, and building something meaningful from the ground up.

We talk about Kevin’s journey into wrestling fandom, how independent wrestling reignited his love for the art form, and why he chose to focus on interviews, production, and community rather than stepping into the ring himself. Kevin opens up about starting Ringville with no industry connections, teaching himself how to be comfortable on camera, and doing everything himself — from research and lighting to editing and outreach.

The conversation dives deep into:

• What makes a wrestling interview feel authentic and human
• Why in-person conversations matter so much in wrestling media
• The crossover between film, photography, and wrestling storytelling
• Kevin’s philosophy on creating safe, creative spaces for indie wrestlers
• How community, generosity, and curiosity drive everything he builds

We also get into favorite matches, the power of tag team wrestling, dream interviews, creative risks, tooth gems (yes, really), and what “success” actually means when you’re telling wrestling stories with care.

To close things out, we highlight a cause close to our hearts:
🧥 The New to Wrestling x DollyMoo Coat Drive, benefiting Toni’s Kitchen in Montclair, NJ — a reminder that wrestling communities don’t just show up online, they show up for each other.

DROP OFF LOCATION: DollyMoo (217 Glenridge Ave, Montclair NJ)

This is a conversation about wrestling — but also about creativity, confidence, and building something real.

🔗 Follow & Support Kevin Herrera Sanchez

Ringville / Wrestling Content

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kevinherrerasanchez_?igsh=b3htN3RuczRhNTl2
• TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ringville?_r=1&_t=ZT-92tikws5Uwx
• YouTube: https://youtube.com/@kevinherrerasanchez?si=YjTed83BQaJQqD3t
• X (Twitter): https://x.com/RINGVILLE
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/14R3bV7c6CN/
  
  

Personal Instagram

• https://www.instagram.com/notbadkev?igsh=b2MzbWx0aGkyYmRy

The New To Wrestling Podcast follows two friends who enjoy wrestling but are in different stages of their fandom. Xavier Cruz serves as your guide through generations of professional wrestling while Kelsey Silva experiences these matches for the first time. Climb into the ring weekly to relive the famous matches beginning with the Attitude Era!

This week on New to Wrestling, we dive headfirst into the May 11, 1998 edition of Raw Is War — an episode that feels like the entire WWF hit the gas at once and refused to slow down.

With Over the Edge looming, nearly every major storyline collides in one chaotic night: Vince McMahon stacks the deck against Stone Cold Steve Austin, Dude Love spirals deeper into an identity crisis, DX continues their unhinged cross-company invasion tour, and the Nation of Domination officially collides with DX in a faction war that’s been building for weeks.

We break down a brutally satisfying Sable vs. Marc Mero segment that marks the true start of Sable’s power era, the return of Vader with a dangerous unmasking stipulation on the horizon, Al Snow’s gloriously unhinged re-debut, and a deeply personal Dustin Rhodes promo that burns Goldust to the ground — literally.

The night ends exactly how the Attitude Era demands: chaos everywhere, bodies flying, and Stone Cold refusing to bow to anyone — even when Vince McMahon is forced to stand beside him as an unwilling tag partner.

Plus, we spotlight our New to Wrestling x DollyMoo coat drive, benefiting Toni’s Kitchen in Montclair, NJ — because wrestling is better when it shows up for its community.

It’s loud. It’s messy. It’s deeply 1998.
And it’s one of those episodes that makes the Attitude Era feel unstoppable.

The New To Wrestling Podcast follows two friends who enjoy wrestling but are in different stages of their fandom. Xavier Cruz serves as your guide through generations of professional wrestling while Kelsey Silva experiences these matches for the first time. Climb into the ring weekly to relive the famous matches beginning with the Attitude Era!

This week on New to Wrestling, we take a surprise detour — and somehow end up deep in the wild, confusing, and endlessly fascinating world of WCW Monday Nitro.

Thanks to technical issues (a recurring character on this show), we pivot from our usual Raw coverage and drop into the May 11, 1998 edition of Nitro — a three-hour episode that immediately makes Kelsey feel like a brand-new wrestling fan all over again.

What follows is a whirlwind tour of everything WCW did right… and very wrong.

We break down:

• The split of the nWo into Hollywood and Wolfpac, with Kevin Nash at the center and Bret Hart existing in a constant state of “are you with them or not?”
• Disco Inferno’s baffling fashion choices and WCW’s chaotic undercard energy.
• The Nitro Girls — unexpected, delightful, and oddly essential to WCW’s vibe.
• Goldberg’s unstoppable undefeated streak and the terrifying efficiency of the Goldberg Formula™.
• Chris Jericho being effortlessly hilarious while terrorizing the Cruiserweight division.
• Raven weaponizing contract language in one of the most “Raven” segments imaginable.
• WCW’s recurring production issues that slowly reveal how a company with unlimited money can still feel completely unstructured.
• A genuinely excellent Benoit vs. Booker T match that reminds us where WCW truly shined.
• Hogan vs. Macho Man (again), Bret Hart interference (again), and chaos setting the table for Slamboree.

Along the way, we talk crowd energy, nostalgia, missed opportunities, and how WCW somehow managed to be electric and exhausting at the same time.

It’s messy. It’s loud. It’s fascinating.
And it answers the question: “What was WCW actually like week to week?”

🎙️ New episode out now — and yes, this might lead to a Slamboree follow-up.

The New To Wrestling Podcast follows two friends who enjoy wrestling but are in different stages of their fandom. Xavier Cruz serves as your guide through generations of professional wrestling while Kelsey Silva experiences these matches for the first time. Climb into the ring weekly to relive the famous matches beginning with the Attitude Era!

New to Wrestling Podcast: Raw Is War — May 4, 1998 | Community, Chaos, and the Cost of Wrestling

Before we even hit the opening bell, this week’s episode of New to Wrestling reminds us why wrestling is more than just what happens in the ring.

We kick things off with a community-first announcement: a coat drive in partnership with Respect Wrestling, collecting winter coats, blankets, and accessories for Tony’s Kitchen in Montclair. Wrestling has always been about community, and this is our small way of giving back — with a little incentive (yes, there’s a Hot Girls Like Wrestling shirt involved).

Then we dive headfirst into the May 4, 1998 episode of Raw Is War, an installment packed with Attitude Era excess, emotional whiplash, and storylines that somehow manage to be hilarious, disturbing, and compelling all at once.

On the card:

• Mick Foley spirals as Vince McMahon demands more violence, setting up a brutal No Holds Barred main event with Terry Funk.
• Stone Cold Steve Austin turns commentary into a personal beer-fueled throne.
• Owen Hart settles into life with The Nation of Domination.
• DX talks a lot, LOD talks better, and chaos follows everyone backstage.
• Kane and The Undertaker’s feud escalates, with Paul Bearer finally getting what happens when you talk reckless about someone’s dead mother.
• Val Venis somehow wins us over (against our will) with peak 90s commitment to the bit.

As a bonus conversation, we also step out of 1998 to talk about John Cena’s final match, wrestling tradition, and why going out on your back isn’t disrespect — it’s the point. We unpack the backlash, the symbolism of Cena tapping out, and why building the next generation matters more than fan-service endings.

It’s an episode about legacy, chaos, and wrestling’s strange ability to hold both absurdity and meaning at the same time.

🎧 New episode out now — and don’t forget to bring a coat.

The New To Wrestling Podcast follows two friends who enjoy wrestling but are in different stages of their fandom. Xavier Cruz serves as your guide through generations of professional wrestling while Kelsey Silva experiences these matches for the first time. Climb into the ring weekly to relive the famous matches beginning with the Attitude Era!

The Attitude Era didn’t just go off the rails this week — it begged Vince McMahon to hold its beer while it jumped the guardrail and stole a tank.

We’re back from our accidental holiday-season hiatus (small business girlies, we survive by vibes alone), and diving straight into the chaos that was Raw Is War: April 27, 1998 — an episode packed with invasions, betrayals, unhinged promos, and one of the funniest JR commentary nights in wrestling history.

Inside this wonderfully deranged time capsule, we break down:

• DX rolling up to WCW’s front door like AEW Twitter with a megaphone, complete with fatigues, fake artillery, and “Billy on the Street but for wrestling beef” energy.
• Owen Hart turning heel so hard he basically auditioned for Interview With a Vampire, biting Ken Shamrock’s ear straight off the continent.
• Dude Love’s chaotic era, complete with chicks, tie-dye, and being fired up that his title shot is being derailed by Vince’s nonsense.
• Sable entering her ‘I don’t need a man, but I will beat my husband’s ass in two weeks’ era.
• Stone Cold clashing with Vince, a deranged Gerald Briscoe refereeing like a man possessed, and Dude Love adding fuel to the custody-battle-from-hell energy.

This episode is packed with some of the best (and absolute worst) of ‘98 storytelling — but above all, it’s fun, unhinged, deeply iconic wrestling television.

If you’re a lifelong fan, a lapsed fan, or brand new to wrestling, this one is a ride.

The New To Wrestling Podcast follows two friends who enjoy wrestling but are in different stages of their fandom. Xavier Cruz serves as your guide through generations of professional wrestling while Kelsey Silva experiences these matches for the first time. Climb into the ring weekly to relive the famous matches beginning with the Attitude Era!