THE PARKER HOUSEHOLD, BUTCH’S PERSONAL GYM
The smell of sweat is pungent in the personal gym of “The One Man Tartan Army” Butch Parker. The camera focuses on the centre of the spacious room where a makeshift Octagon has been built to help Butch train for his Lion’s Den match against Michael James for the HWA World Championship at Road to Ruin. In the epicentre of the eight-sided cage where Butch is naked from the waist up, his entire upper torso looking as if someone has decanted a bucket of water over his head such is the severity of his perspiration from his workout. He also sports another pair of Venum fight shorts from his personalised brand line along with a pair of boxing gloves designed for pad work. Butch knew he needed it though, this was the last chance he would get to do any sort of real training before he had to leave to do his media obligations for the build-up to Road to Ruin.
Butch is joined in the cage by one of his close friends and MMA middleweight fighter Michael “The Count” Bisping who is tooled up to the nines with a protective body pad and hand-pads.
(Bisping): Right, Butch, bring it again flying knee!
Butch takes a step forward to give himself some momentum and he catapults himself into the air, using his back leg for extra propulsion and slams the base of his left knee into the roof of pad that Bisping holds. The connection is so hard and powerful that itinvoluntarily causes the former Ultimate Fighter winner to be taken back a couple of paces; the noise of the contact with the leather material of the pad still reverberating throughout the room.
(Bisping): Excellent. Now, five punch combo with spinning back kick.
As soon as the pad drill is called, Butch immediately advances forward and slams a combination of punches which includes a left jab, right cross, left uppercut and right hook before he twists his body, turning his head to sight the target, chambers his right leg before extending it out with authority like a piston to complete the spinning back kick and the base of his foot smashes into Bisping’s midriff protected by the bodyguard.
(Bisping): Nice combo; great the technique my man! Now, Muay Thai clinch with knees!
Butch grabs Bisping by the back of the head, drawing him in close so he can't escape from his clinch and he begins to ram vicious Muay Thai knees into the body. Butch lands a good five or six knees before Bisping calls for the break and Butch cooperatively releases it.
(Bisping): Right, gloves off, let's do some proper wrestling and BJJ.
Butch grins as he unstraps his gloves and tosses them to the side and pulls on his fighting gloves.
(Butch): About time.
Bisping shares Butch’s grin as he shakes the pads off his hands and unstraps the velcro keeping his body pad in place.
(Bisping): Let’s go then, come on, let's see if you can take me down.
(Butch): You asked for it!
Butch feints a for a double-leg takedown which involuntarily causes Bisping to immediately shoot to a defensive posture which Butch knew would happen. Anticipating this, Butch immediately dashes to Bisping’s back and initiates a reverse waist lock. Bisping straightaway wraps his hands around Butch’s wrists and spreads his weight in an attempt to stifle as much offense from Butch as possible. However Bisping being a middleweight at just under two hundred pounds is giving out almost a hundred pounds in weight compared to Butch’s two-hundred-and-eighty-pound frame. Using this to his advantage Butch lifts Bisping high into the air and slams him down on the canvas before transitioning quickly into an armbar. As it is a sparring session, Butch doesn't alleviate too much pressure but enough to cause Bisping to immediately tap Butch’s leg with his free arm. He instantly relinquishes his hold on Bisping’s arm and helps him to his feet.
(Bisping): Christ Almighty, I knew you were good but Goddamn, you've some skills. Why are you not wreaking Havoc in the heavyweight division. Between you and Brock Lesnar both sticking with wrestling, I'm surprised Dana’s not doing what he can to get you in!
Butch laughs lightly in irony at Bisping’s statement, notably at the mention of the now former WWE World Heavyweight Champion. He grabs a towel that hangs over the leather exterior that surrounds the circumference of the cage and mops the excess sweat from his face, arms and upper body.
(Butch): Believe it or not but Brock came to see me a couple of days before WrestleMania.
(Bisping): No shit! Training?
(Butch): Nah, Brock and I go way back. He and Rena were having dinner with Wisdom and I. Brock was wanting my advice about what to do in terms of re-signing with WWE or going back to UFC. In all honesty, my reasons for continuing to rebuff Dana, who asks me every week if I want to ditch Senester and the whole HWA thing to compete in the cage full-time.
(Bisping): Remind me again why you keep turning down the chance to fight for real, earn amazing money and work for a boss who acknowledges your talent and actually cares for your wellbeing as opposed to having to watch your back twenty-four-seven and work for a boss who is hellbent on making your life miserable?
Again Butch can't help but laugh at Bisping’s analogy.
(Butch): As unique and different Senester may be, for lack of a better word, I'm a glutton for punishment. I've been in HWA for almost half of my career and I've established something great than I never imagined I could replicate from what I accomplished elsewhere.
Brock chose WWE because it was more worthwhile in the long run for the sake of his health and his family and in all honesty I guess you could say the same for me. In theory I could easily go to UFC, dominate the heavyweight division, win the title and become a MMA legend but at what cost to my personal health? Yeah I've been in some hellacious matches in my wrestling career but legitimately fighting full time in the octagon is completely different. Besides, and Senester would probably call me out on this but I'm selfish.
(Bisping): How so?
(Butch): I have a legacy I want to build on in HWA. I want to be remembered as the best, the last man standing. All the greats that have established the foundations HWA was built upon and even those who took the ball and ran with it - Buff, Dredge, Hollis, Lenny, Punisher, Jay, Maniac - they're all either gone or wilting away. Yeah I've had my periods of exile from the business here and there but I'm a stalwart and I want to remain that way. I want to beat Buff's World Title record, I want to be the first man to win Ring Master twice, I want to be a grand slam champion. I want to be the best damn wrestler in the world and be remembered for it. That's why I won't leave the HWA for UFC, for WWE, for no one.
(Bisping): Don't tell me WWE wanted you?!
(Butch): Are you kidding me? Vince and Triple H personally flew to LA from Stamford to visit Senester at Dark Horse Towers to try and buy my contract out. They wanted me in programs with Punk, Cena, Brock, there was even talk of me breaking Undertaker's streak last year.
(Bisping): Nah, you're bullshitting! Surely?
(Butch): No bullshit, honestly!
(Butch): I didn't get a chance to; Senester humoured them and flat-out refused any figure Vince threw at him to buy my contract out.
(Bisping): Christ, can you imagine your music hitting and you coming out on Monday Night Raw and go face to face with the likes of Taker?! That would've been awesome.
Butch screws his face up in an unconvinced expression.
(Butch): Ten years ago maybe but I don't buy into the product Vince advertises these days. It's not pro wrestling anymore, it's all about sports entertainment. I mean Kudos to Brock and everyone still doing their thing there but it's not me. I'm old school wrestling and the companies I competed in before had that edge to them and HWA is the only wrestling entity that still sticks by that philosophy like a religion.
(Bisping): Well as long as you're happy doing what you're doing, I suppose that's all you can ask for.
(Butch): For now. I mean I love Wisdom and Evina with all my heart and truth be told, in an ideal world I'd be spending the rest of my days with them and running my wrestling school but if I permanently retired now, I'd always be left wondering what if.
(Bisping): That's why I'm keeping on fighting. I know if I retired, I'd keep asking myself what if you kept at it and missed the opportunity to win that elusive World Championship.
(Butch): As long as you keep training and fighting, I know it'll happen one day, mate.
(Bisping): That's what I keep telling myself anyway. Well, thanks for the training session, I really appreciate it, Butch.
(Butch): Not at all, I should be the one thanking you. With Wisdom out of the house, it's difficult to find a competent sparring partner in sparring partner on such short notice.
(Bisping): Don't mention it, if I've helped in anyway to you getting revenge on that scumbag at Road to Ruin, then all the better for it.
(Butch): Believe me, mate, it's more than revenge I'm after; its a reckoning.
(Bisping): Well I'll be sure to tune in and see it first hand. Anyway, I best be shooting off, I've got to see a man about a dog.
Butch smirks at the British turn-of-phrase as Michael Bisping gathers together his training gear, shoving it in his gym bag.
(Butch): Yeah I've got some tidying to do before I head for the airport, pay-per-view time in HWA is manic, so many axxess events, autograph signings, que-and-eh sessions and that's all before I head to the arena to go over the event itinerary.
This time it's Bisping's turn to smile wryly as he hefts his bag on to his shoulder and begins making his way up the stairs out of the gym and into the main body of the house, with Butch behind.
(Bisping): The life of a pro athlete eh.
Butch jokingly shrugs his shoulders.
(Butch): Someone's gotta do it though I guess.
By the time the two friends finish conversing they reach the front door of Butch's house.
(Bisping): Well thanks again, Butch, and good luck for Road to Ruin.
Bisping holds out an open hand which Butch grabs in a show of camaraderie. They let go of their man-shake and fist bump before embracing briefly.
(Butch): Thanks man, and good luck to you at Fight Night. If you need a corner man, just say the word.
(Bisping): That'd be awesome, man, I'm well up for that. I'll let you know closer to the time about travel arrangements etcetera.
(Butch): Definitely, should be a blast. Until then though, take it easy and look after yourself.
(Bisping): You too bro, laters.
(Butch): Later, man!
Butch finishes his goodbyes with Michael Bisping and once the car leaves the driveway, he closes the front door behind him and heads upstairs to take a shower as the scene fades to black.
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