A familiar show was brought back to Marshalltown on Saturday. The host just had a different name.

RUGGEDPro Wrestling adopted the name Live Pro Wrestling (LPW) at the end of March. Founder Austin Fouts said despite the name change, wrestling fans will still see the same quality shows with their favorite wrestlers.

The name change was the idea of Andee Martin, who is now running the liver shows. He saw the words “live pro wrestling” was usually at the top of all of RUGGEDPro’s flyers.

“Andee said, ‘Hey. I get it, but when people think rugged, they don’t really think kid-friendly,” Fouts said. “Every single poster says ‘live pro wrestling.’ Why are we wasting our time and not calling it Live Pro Wrestling?”

Martin said many people also type in “live pro wrestling” when searching online for shows to go watch.

“In my opinion, I thought why not just call ourselves Live Pro Wrestling, so when they look it up, we will be one of the first things they see,” he said.

Fouts, who started RUGGEDPro six years ago, said running all aspects of the business – the shows, the training and the merchandising – became too much. He knew he had to bring in help. So, Fouts contacted Martin, who is an alumni of the Forge, Fouts wrestling training school.

“We brought him in two months ago, and he is one of my original students from the original camp,” he said. “I really just sunk my teeth into the training side of things. Andee stepped up and has taken over the live shows and Mark Drury is taking over the merchandising side of stuff.”

On Saturday afternoon, Fouts hosted a Forge Train for a Day school, which he said serves as a professional wrestling recruitment tool.

“It’s a chance for people, before they pay full tuition for the 15-week camp, to come in for a day, take a couple falls and learn how to do that stuff before they figure out if this is really for them,” Fouts said.

Four potential wrestlers signed up for the Saturday training, which is a good number as Fouts said they want to keep the single-day training small. That way, high-stress situations can be avoided. During the training, students learned how to fall safely, also known as “taking bumps.” They also learned how to run the ropes and take some slams, Fouts said.

“It sounds like there’s not a lot they’re doing, but when you break it down, you’re learning how to fall and not give yourself a concussion,” he said. “There’s a lot of work that goes into it. You’re breaking all of those habits your body has. If you slip on the ice, the first thing you do is put your hand out to catch yourself. You do that here, you’re going to break your arm. So, you need to learn how to land safely and not harm yourself.”

Clash at the Coliseum

Since Martin is in charge of the live shows, he brought Clash at the Coliseum to the Veterans Coliseum on Saturday. The Clash featured nine bouts and 28 wrestlers, and a five-on-five match. Both Fouts and Martin said it was bigger than previous wrestling events in Marshalltown. Fouts said Martin has really “changed the game.”

One of the first things he did was contact Arc of Marshall County to raise funds for the organization, which received 50 percent of the Clash proceeds.

“We want to try to do good for the community,” Martin said. “Everyone within Marshalltown knows Live Pro Wrestling and has a connection with our wrestlers. A lot of our wrestling fans are dedicated to seeing us wrestle. Some will travel all the way to Fall City, Neb., which is four hours away. Getting them to come here for a great cause is amazing.”

In addition, he said one of the Clash sponsors, Yah Boyz Toyz, donated proceeds to Arc as well. Martin actually owns Yah Boyz Toyz, which brings and sells collectibles at LPW shows.

Keeping the same familiar wrestlers was also important to Martin.

“He was a big advocate for keeping the stars which the fans know and love,” Fouts said. “My job now is to make new stars. It’s more of a partnership between companies, between the Forge and LPW. They’re two separate companies now which work together.”

Having the separate companies and the extra people running different aspects will be beneficial, as the wrestling business has grown significantly since Fouts started it six years ago. Hundreds of fans showed up to the Clash at the Coliseum.

“It’s family fun,” Martin said. “It’s an event you can bring the whole family to. It’s not going to be an absolute madhouse. Some wrestlers will pick on someone, but then we have a nice, good guy to come out to cheer everyone up. Fans will say ‘Oh, I like that guy. He gave my son a high five and a hug. It’s awesome.'”

According to Fouts, Marshalltown has been instrumental in the growth. He recalled when RUGGEDPro gave a free, live performance during Oktemberfest. The majority of the new Marshalltown fans who watched that event told Fouts if the family-friendly material was provided, they would come to shows more often. Fouts told them the shows are usually family-friendly. If there is a chance for more graphic bouts, warnings are included in advertising.

“But we don’t have a lot of those,” Martin said. “We try to do those once in a while.”

No matter how much growth is to come, Fouts said Marshalltown will get first dibs on everything wrestling.

“I’m a big Marshalltown guy and Andee has made Marshalltown his home, too,” he said. “If we’re told we can only do one show a year, it will be Marshalltown.”

WRESTLING INFORMATION

Fouts said people who are interested in learning about professional wrestling can give him a call at 641-750-6762.

Martin said people can stay up-to-date on Live Pro Wrestling by visiting the Facebook page. They are also in the process of setting up accounts on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram.