FUTURE WRESTLING

Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 83, 5 October 1931, Page 9

FUTURE WRESTLING

N.Z. CHAMPIONSHIP

UNION'S DECISION

.A'decision to stage a Nc\y Zealand, professional wrestling.championship tin? year was reached by tho .executive of the Dominion of New Zealand /Wrestling Union at a meeting to-day. This move on the part of tho union is a timoly one, and it is confidently expected by prominent officials that it will lead to a great revival of'public interest in the sport, which has been ny danger of Jagging. Under,the conditions which havo. been-drawn up to govern the contests, unemployment funds will benefit by at least 10 per cent, of tho net takings at each contest. The winner of the championship, the union has decided, will be presented with a gold medal or an inscribed belt. Tho championship, of course, will be conducted along ordinary elimination lines, but in the event of. a full series of elimination matches not. being completed the union reserves the right to nominate the champion at theymd or the season. The first series of elimin£; tion matches is to commence on 12tn October, and the union will make all matches, allocating them to the various centres at its discretion. DIVISION OF GATE MONEY. ~ The division of the gate money, is to be worked on different lines than at present. After the expenses of the association staging any match.have been deducted the net takings will be divided as follows:-—SO per cent, will be divided among tlie wrestlers on the basis of 60 per cent, to tho winner and 40 per cent.-to tho loser; 10 per cent, will go to tho unemployment relief funds; and the remaining 10 per cent, to the local association. In the case of a final being reached the match will be staged at cither Auckland or Wellington. The winning wrestler will receive a guaranteed purse of £250, and the loser, who will, of course, bo the runner-up in the championship, will draw £100. Whichever association puts on this match undertakes in the event of the wrestlers' share of tho gate money not reaching a sum sufficient to pay these purses to make up the deficiency out of its own funds. The wrestlers will,, however, be compelled to pay 10 per cent., of these particular purses to the unemployment relief funds, which also, in the.case of this particular match, will gain 10 per cent.- of the net takings, as in other contests. , . ' From now. on until the end of tho season, thorefore, all wrestling matches (unless specified as extra) willhavo a direct bearing on the championship, and they, will be advertised as "championship contests." . . - j