I Trained at the Vietnam Pro Wrestling Academy

What happened when a 40-year-old man headed to Vietnam’s best pro wrestling school?

Like many people, deep down I always fancied being a wrestler. Problem was I allowed life to get in the way or chickened out on many occasions from thinking I’m too out of shape, busy with studies, partying, or these days adulting to commit. So I couldn’t miss the very rare opportunity I had to join an open session at the brand new VPW Academy a couple of weeks ago. With John Cena retiring in a couple of weeks, clearly wrestling needs another hero.

The new location is very central in Ho Chi Minh City and right next to their home base of VAIB Studio (which luckily happens to be an area I spend a lot of time in). It was really easy to find, which made the process a lot less anxiety-inducing for me, and I was pleased to be welcomed like an old friend arriving, as the last time I tried to join a training session (in the UK 20 years ago) I was ignored and even grunted at for just being there.

Head trainer Dokuga took a methodical approach to starting this beginner session by leading us into some mobility exercises, stretches, and warm-ups to ensure we were ready and he didn’t need to be mindful of any issues. Luckily for this old-timer, my body suddenly came to life as if the motivation from doing something new had greased the joints.

Through the first half of the session, we learnt some fundamental carries, holds, and rolls on the mats, with Dokuga supporting, explaining, and guiding participants to improve. Before each exercise he explained with great detail and patience — something I could quite honestly take back to my real life as a teacher. Then he gave us clear, supportive feedback for improvement, which we were able to take on and use instantly. I had some issues with my side rolls, but with Dokuga’s support I was able to sort my wonky feet positioning out quickly.

The second half of the session was the bit I had dreamt of ever since I watched Rock vs Triple H in 2000 — getting in the ring and doing something. My new favourite teacher reminded us that we are in the ring, accidents happen, and we must be respectful to each other. After that, we were put through our paces with a drop-roll-drag drill that gave us a sense of ring positioning and bumping in the ring without taking any risks. Having VPW’s newest standout, The Meteor Kid, in there with us really added to the experience.

We then finished off with a guide to running the ropes, where more VPW faces like Billy, Damien, and some guy called Jody gave extremely sound advice to the aspiring rookies in the ring. There’s no hyperbole necessary when I tell you that this session was the most fun I’ve had in a long time. Something about the camaraderie from the VPW regulars, the supportive environment, and the adrenaline from the physical activity gave me a huge serotonin boost.

It’s worth mentioning that at no point did I ever feel out of my depth in this session. As advertised, the Vietnam Pro Wrestling Academy will truly support all if they have a passion for wrestling or they simply just want to try something new, fitness-wise.

As an almost lifelong wrestling fan, I learnt some big lessons about this sport that day. I expected after hours of watching to be moving around the ring slowly and fairly easily, but struggle with athleticism and stamina. However, it was the other way around. While I would definitely blow up after 5 minutes in the ring with someone as quick as Hy Draco, it was the technicalities of wrestling as a performance that I took some time to get used to. Every single thing matters: where your feet are, hand positioning, head height. If one of these is wrong, then you could hurt yourself or your opponent easily. Wrestling sometimes gets called a dance, and that’s exactly what it is (sorry if you still think it’s 100% “real”) — a cooperative performance where you take care of each other. To get natural and speedy with this takes some reps, and we should all give props to any wrestler who does this in front of a live audience. A special note to the Vietnam Pro Wrestling roster, who began their journey learning to do this without any support and only hard judo mats to fall on [learn more in SEA Wrestling Issue 6].

So will you be seeing Simon from SEA Wrestling on a show in the future? Let’s be honest, probably not, but I will come back to the VPW Academy next year either in group classes or private sessions if my schedule doesn’t work out. If you’re in Ho Chi Minh City and have ever dreamed of wrestling stardom or want to challenge yourself in another way, then drop them a DM.

Find out more about Vietnam Pro Wrestling Academy on their Facebook page.