Insane Lane on the Past, Present and Future of Deathmatch Wrestling
All Guts, No Glory Interview #3
A career, especially in professional wrestling, often has more than one act. It’s not uncommon for someone to step away from the ring for months, years or even longer, only to return when they feel the conditions are better.
Insane Lane was active in the deathmatch and hardcore scene in the mid-2000s, making his name in promotions like IWA Mid-South and Deep South, occasionally appearing on the East Coast. He wrestled only a few matches from 2008 to 2015, when he began his first attempt at a comeback run. That brief run didn’t satisfy Insane Lane for various reasons, and he still had things to prove. He returned for his third run in March 2021 in the best shape of his life.
We talked about his roots as a hardcore wrestler, fighting for respect as a Southern deathmatch guy and how the deathmatch scene has changed since the 2000s. You can support Insane Lane at his merch store and follow him on Twitter/IG.
Where did you start in the world of pro wrestling? Did you always want to work a more hardcore style?
I started out for a small promotion in North Alabama run by the late Alvin Wallace. It was once an NWA affiliate.
I was always attracted to hardcore and bloody matches since I was a kid reading wrestling mags with Abdullah the Butcher and Bruiser Brody, and later on with ECW. Starting out, I did traditional style matches with a few brawls thrown in. I found the more violent it got, the more fun I had.
You were a pretty active deathmatch wrestler in the early/mid aughts, then you slowed down and stopped before picking it back up in 2015, where you wrestled a bit until 2017. After that, you hung it up and came in 2021, working a steady—if not super active—schedule to the present day. What’s called you back multiple times?
I stopped initially because I was becoming a dad for the first time and starting a family. I tried a comeback in 2015, but I was out of shape and was dealing with personal family issues. My wife and I divorced soon after and my life fell apart. I was a single dad taking care of my son with no help. It wore me down mentally and physically.
Eventually, I stopped feeling sorry for myself and got my act together. From 2019-2020, I shut myself off from the world and whipped myself back into shape. I lost 120 pounds during that time. I got healthy for myself and my son and stepdaughter so I can be around for them. However, I was ashamed of how my return in 2015-2017 turned out. I looked terrible, and so did a lot of my matches. I did not want fans to remember me in that way. I've been quite fortunate to be able to write more chapters. I missed it. I have been a wrestling fan since 1984 as a five year old. It keeps calling me...
You first showed up in IWA Deep South at King of the Death Matches 2005, so you’ve been around the deathmatch scene in its more nascent days as well as the present day. In your perception, how have things changed?
The style has definitely evolved. I'm a "Cro-Mag Deathmatch Wrestler," a Neanderthal compared to the death stars of today. I came from an era where most of us were 250-plus pounds and just slugging it out with fists, feet, slams and weapons. Nothing too fancy about it.
Over time, the competitors have gotten smaller, agile and bring a more athletic pace to it. The stipulations have also become much more creative/dangerous. If anything, whether it be a species or a movement, is to survive, it must evolve. I'm glad to see deathmatches going strong in 2023.
The majority of your career has taken place in the southern United States, though you’ve also wrestled for promotions like CZW and ICW No Holds Barred. Do you think not coming from the East Coast made it harder for you to make a reputation as an ultraviolent wrestler?
ABSOLUTELY! I honestly feel ostracized a lot because of where I came from. I started in the south. I was persona non grata in the south at one time because deathmatch wrestling in the 2000s was frowned upon in those parts. I was "ruining wrestling" according to hardline traditionalists. It didn't help matters either that I got my start in deathmatches with a promotion that had a promoter who couldn't keep his mouth shut about his personal views on the world. I feel like I am being punished for that. I'm not one of them, I guess. I have never felt like I've belonged anywhere, to be honest. I've lived a nomadic life as a wrestler.
You’re in your 40s now. How much gas do you have left in the tank? What’s on your to-do list before calling it a day?
My mind keeps telling me I'm still 26 and have the time. However, my body says I'm over 40 years old [laughs]. Time and personal tragedies have taken its toll. I got bit by the injury bug a bit last year and things didn't go as well for me in '22 as they did in '21.
I made a promise to myself that if I didn't make any decent waves by the time I'm 45, I'm out. I'll be 44 next month. I've gone on record as saying 2023 could be my final year. If this year goes well, and I am still in capable shape... I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.
If anything, I would like to go overseas and do a tour before I go. I have a few bucket list opponents as well. Really, I just want to do some cool matches before I go. I want fans to remember me now, at my best, and not what I was in the first return. The older fans remember me and know I can go. The newer ones that saw the initial return got jipped. This time, I'm making it right with all.
What’s the hardest part of being a professional wrestler that we don’t see as fans? Is it mental, physical or something else?
I'm a glutton for punishment. I wake up every morning feeling sore. I know I'm gonna be needing some joint replacements one of these days.
With all that said, it's the mental part that's hard for me. It takes some serious mental discipline to do what I do. To know you're gonna get in the ring with someone and willfully be torn to shreds with barbed wire, glass, tacks, gussets, etc. and not take it personally. To possibly drive hours there and back right after the show beat up, covered in blood and knowing you got life responsibilities waiting for you at home to be done. Happens when you fly, too. The unread and the "Lemme get back to you" booking inquiries I send out. And the ultimate pressure to perform for the fans that paid their money to see a great show and forget about their issues for a while is always a stressor for me. I've had moments after shows where I'm depressed and I just don't want to do it anymore because this style of wrestling takes so much out of you.
If someone isn’t familiar with Insane Lane, what matches should they watch to get familiar?
I've had some pretty solid ones as of late.
You can check out my recent matches from CZW's Tournament of Death 19 where I faced Brad Cash in a shark tooth bat match and Mickie Knuckles in a wild brawl.
My match with Neil Diamond Cutter from ICW NHB 14 is a fun one as well. I also had a wild one with SHLAK at IWA-MS KOTDM in 2021, too.