Magazine Archive By Matt Cardona: The Michael Jordan of Wrestling Figure Collecting

As first seen in FightfulMag.com issue 2!

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People always ask me, what was the first wrestling match that I ever watched? Or what was the first wrestling figure that I ever played with? I wish I could remember, but I can’t. All I can remember is being obsessed with professional wrestling since I was a baby. My childhood memories are filled with moments involving wrestling. Renting wrestling VHS tapes, watching wrestling on Saturday mornings, playing with wrestling figures, wrestling with my brothers. That was my life.

The WWE LJN series was the first line of figures that I played with. I still have my childhood collection. They are in horrible shape. Most are missing the majority of the paint, and some even had their fingers chewed off! Those LJN figures were indestructible and perfect for a young kid recreating what he saw on television.

Surprisingly, I had almost the entire collection. Thanks, Mom and Dad! Even as a kid, I was a completist. I needed the entire roster for my figure federation. I knew I was missing The Ultimate Warrior and “King” Harley Racebecause my neighbor had them. I have a vivid memory of being in Toys “R” Us and my dad not letting me get Strike Forcebecause I already had the same Rick Martel and the original Tito Santana in his purple trunks – even though the Strike Force one was in white. In the early 1990s, my grandmother found Hakuat a garage sale. My world was rocked. Who else was I missing? My local comic book store eventually got the other new characters from the Black Card series, or series 6. While they were way too expensive for my parents to buy me, I now knew what a holy grail was.

The WWF Hasbro line changed the game. Now wrestling figures could actually perform moves. They were the first wrestling “action” figures. I was the type of kid who never played with them like the ones in the commercials. For example, I wouldn’t pull the spring back on Jake “The Snake” Roberts’ arm for him to throw a punch. I would play much more realistically. Jake didn’t have a spring in his arm in real life! Now, as an adult, I fully appreciate the actions in these figures. It wasn’t until I was in my twenties that I realized you could actually perform the Perfect Plex with Mr. Perfect!

Growing up, the only Hasbro figures I was missing were the three mail-aways (Hulk Hogan, The Undertakerand Bret Hart) and the 1-2-3 Kid. I’ll never forget Christmas morning in 1995. I saw a wrapped present in the shape of a wrestling figure and assumed it was 1-2-3 Kid. Who else could it have been? I had collected all the others! I saved the best present for last. And when I finally opened it, I was devastated that it was a WCW Original San Francisco Toy Makers version of Jimmy Hart! It took me three years to save up enough money and to even find a 1-2-3 Kid Hasbro figure. It was my first-ever eBay purchase. I still have that exact figure and recently got it autographed by Sean Waltman, aka 1-2-3 Kid himself.

The Bone Crunching Action line by Jakks Pacific might be some of my favorite figures of all time. These were the first WWF figures to have articulation that was common in other types of toys. You could have more realistic matches in your figure federation. A wrestler could sit in a chair. Speaking of a chair, we finally got weapons and accessories. Tables, ladders, chairs, and so much more. We even got a kitchen sink. Jakks made so many figures during this era. There are way more re-paints and re-releases than previous lines.

When I was a teenager in high school, it wasn’t exactly cool to be playing with or collecting toys. I would collect through my youngest brother. I would make sure he always had the newest figures. And of course, I’d be playing with them too. Now, the figures looked more realistic than ever, with the real scan technology to capture the likenesses of all of the wrestlers.

In 2003, I started training to become a professional wrestler. It was then that I met Brian Myers. At first, we hated each other. We were each other’s competition. But when we realized we were both 18-year-olds who still loved wrestling figures, we became the best of friends. No longer was I embarrassed by my collection. Although I admit, I’d ask for a gift receipt at Toys “R” Us so they wouldn’t think the toys I bought were for me. I started to buy more and more. I rebought my childhood figures in mint condition. I couldn’t have beat-up figures on display. Who am I, Sam Roberts? I eventually set up my bedroom, so all of my figures and wrestling collectibles were on display. Brian and I got signed to WWE in 2006, and our obsession with wrestling figures got even worse!

Fast forward to the summer of 2018. After months and months of trying to convince him, Brian finally agreed to start a podcast with me about wrestling figures and collectibles. The Major Wrestling Figure Podcast was born! It became our escape and our creative outlet. We knew there were a lot of adult collectors out there. What we didn’t predict is that we would get wrestling fans who collected as kids to start collecting again. Also, we never could have imagined that someone who had never collected before would start setting up displays in their homes with wrestling figures. We preached to “Scratch That Figure Itch,” and our “Major Marks” were doing it with us.

In a little under three years, our 30-minute podcast about wrestling figures has turned into an entire podcast network, called the Major Pod Network. We have a YouTube channel, our own merchandise, and a line of wrestling figures. We bring the show on the road and have live podcast events all over the United States. We even just had our first ever live wrestling show.

The wrestling figure community is special. The “Major Marks” in our Major Pod community are diehard fans and very loyal. We are so grateful for them. Without their support, we wouldn’t be where we are today. It would just be Brian and I talking about figures in a hotel room or on a video chat.

I call myself “The Michael Jordan of Wrestling Figure Collecting.” It’s just a nickname. It’s just a gimmick. I don’t think I have the best wrestling figure collection out there. In fact, I think the true beauty of collecting is that nobody has a better collection than anybody else. People can make their own individual rules. They can be completists or pick and choose what they like. I think collecting is a way of expressing your passions and interests. There’s no way to value one’s passion over someone else’s.

However, I do have a lot of very rare pieces. Some of them are unreleased prototypes. There’s nothing better than a hand-painted prototype - the type of figure you’d see in a magazine advertisement or on the back of one of the toy boxes. In the next few months, I’ll take a deep dive into how I found some of these rare items. I may be Alwayz Readyin the ring, but I’m also Alwayz Readyto find the next holy grail!

Matt Cardona is a professional wrestler and host of The Major Wrestling Figure Podcast. His childhood dream was to become a professional wrestler. He signed with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) in 2006 and won numerous championships in his 14 years there.

Twitter:@TheMattCardona