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Matt,
My name is Bobby Blaze Smedley and I wrestled over 15 years professionally. I know Ian Hodgkinson (Vampiro) and I know Darren (William Regal) and they are both class acts. I was glad to hear Regal is doing so well. When I broke in pro wrestling in Tampa, Fl, Professor Boris Malenko taught me many of the exercises that I use today, especially those in your excellent book Combat Conitioning.

Malenko, taught me the importance of conditioning being your best hold in wrestling, a fact he had learned from Karl Gotch, who I had the pleasure of meeting on two occassions. I also witnessed a Karl Gotch student hold a neck bridge for 30 minutes while touring Japan with him.

I no longer watch pro wrestling and could care less about the pumped up steroid users that seem to be injured ever other week or hooked on pain pills. I still love getting in the ring, and I love being in condtion due to Combat Conditioning. My hats off to Regal and wish others had half the talent he has in his little finger, maybe then would I tune back into pro wrestling. Of course, I'm more impressed about his comeback and his health.

Sincerely,
Bobby Blaze Smedley

Matt,
Here is my response to the guy who said it is embarrassing that you associate in the least with pro wrestlers. My name is Ian Hodgkinson, and I have been a professional wrestler for 20 years as "Vampiro/"

I have known Matt and been a customer of his since 2000, when I broke my neck and thanks to Matt, he saved my life, my career, and made me a better person all at once. Now about these remarks ... my first thought was quite profane ... then I went to all the different ways I could hurt you and leave you disabled for the rest of your life, then I just plain felt offended.

Thanks to pro wrestling I have been able to provide for my family and make sure that my daughter has a future. How dare you call being associated with me or anyone else who does what I do embarrassing. I am a certified reality based combat and anti assault instructor and I train military and federal police here in Mexico, as well as children and have my biggest project to date in the state of Juarez, Mexico, for women because of all the murders that have been committed there over the last three years.

By the way I was contacted by the Governor of the state because he knew of me through pro wrestling.

Do pro wrestlers take steroids? Like candy. Do they abuse pain pills? More than you can imagine. Why? Unfortunately that's part of the game.

In wrestling you don't get paid if you don't work, so if you are hurt, you can stay home and lose your spot, or do what you have to do and get paid and feed your family. If you ain't a monster and if you don't draw people to the arena or get TV ratings, you're gone, so you gotta grow.

There are a number of guys who can hurt you: Kurt Angle, Brock Lesner, Eddie Guerrero, Chris Benoit, William Regal and yours truly.

Half those guys have been collage champs,and one got the gold in the Olympics. Good thing its fake huh? William Regal, well he learned in England, from all those old English guys that Matt wrote about so long ago, and he can turn you in to a pretzel in a heart beat.

Chris Benoit, he went to Japan and lived in a dojo and got his ass beat for a year buy psycho Japanese wrestlers who had him doing thousands of Hindu squats, Hindu push ups, and bridges all day, everyday, and he is ready to fight anyone, any time, and then there is me.

I trained senshido after my broken neck and became very skilled in reality base combat, but it wasn't until I trained with Matt that things changed. What I learned from Matt through video and books and reading his writings changed my life.

I, too was a drug abuser, but when I learned the right way to take care of my self, I slept better, stopped taking pain killers, became strong as a bear, and most of all had amazing confidence.

Thanks to Matt I did not give in, even after I suffered a broken neck. Only months later I won the Canadian BBJ championships, in the open weight division!

Then I got to meet Matt. Let me tell you, I learned more from Matt in 6 hours than I learned anywhere else in my life, traveling the world for 20 years. That says a lot. Not just the knowledge, but the spiritual trip of being around someone who really, really knows, someone who believes because he has been there. It was awesome; jaw dropping.

If you can, spend the money, don't bitch, go be around Matt when you can, you will change as a person.

Anyways, when I got back to Mexico I started to train the way Matt showed me,and little by little the guys would come around and ask me what the hell I was doing and I tried to explain and showed them some stuff.

They said but your so big and strong, that's all you do? Bodyweight exercises?

Now three years later everyone in my company does Combat Conitioning, and they are so much better for it. Less injuries, better work rate, better bodies, all that.

Matt Furey has a DAILY Politically Incorrect fitness tip for you! Name: E-Mail:

I have small groups of AFI POLICE SQUAD here in Mexico, and those guys are the best there are down here; fearless and they go in to life or death situations 5 to 7 times a day, everyday, and I have them so fit, all thanks to Matt.

Whenever I teach, I alway say where I learned from and who, and I say it with Honor.

I save peoples lives, and I teach people how to save their lives and others and I am proud of that.

I help school children who take my course with there self-confidence, make them look and feel good about themselves, and I am proud of that.

I have made my name known world wide and I have supported my family and I am proud of that.

I have helped people quit taking drugs and get turned on to fitness, and I am proud of that.

I have helped my ex-wife believe in herself and become the most sought after yoga teacher here in Guadalajara, thanks to Matt's methods on business and personal training, and I am proud of that.

And here in Mexico, and you ca check it out for yourself, I have a million fans.

I get to do TV shows, public stuff like fund raisers for children's hospitals, homeless kids, people out of work, and I am awesome in the ring, and I am proud of that.

And I thank Matt with all my heart, and I say that with pride, oh yeah, the big one, Matt saved my life, and because of that, I get the greatest reward ever in the history of the human race. Every morning on cue, my three year old daughter comes in my room and tells me she loves me and gives me a hug.

For that, Matt, I thank you. And so, if it is embarrassing to be associated with people like me, well, so be it.

Ian Hodgkinson
aka "Vampiro"