Long before he was the fearsome hard-man that Extreme Championship Wrestling fans would grow to admire, and even longer before the man was the fun-loving announcer that would (often unintentionally) crack fans up alongside Michael Cole when broadcasting Smackdown, Taz was given the rather cheesy name 'Kid Krush'. Working out in Puerto Rico for the World Wrestling Council, Kid Krush was a face-painted grappler who was actually a lot more high-flying than a lot of fans will probably remember Taz being. Performing moves such as cross body blocks and various other top rope moves, this was the kind of Taz that wouldn't have really made it beyond the mid-card in North America. Quickly, the man would create the 'Tazmaniac', a wild man character which saw him tweak his ring style to lessen the high-flying elements and focus more on ground-based offence and brawling. It was during these years that Taz started to become more akin to the wrestler most fans know.
Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.
