Johnny Saint learnt the art of wrestling from the legendary Billy Robinson as a wide-eyed 15-year-old in Manchester.
The Man of 1000 Holds is one of the most well-known stars from the early days of British wrestling. While he didn’t have as much success as the likes of Big Daddy and Giant Haystacks, Johnny Saint’s work has gone on to inspire the likes of Bryan Danielson, Zack Sabre Jr and Colt Cabana.
His twenty-year World Championship reign (well, it wasn’t actually 20 years, as is often claimed) put him amongst the greatest Lightweights in wrestling history.
However, none of it would have happened without the training he received from the legendary Billy Robinson.
Robinson is one of the all-time greats in wrestling. He learnt his craft in the infamous Snake Pit in Wigan, where Billy Riley stretched him within an inch of his life to teach him how to become a top professional wrestler.
Billy Robinson became a huge star in Japan, helping create the “shoot-style” wrestling that saw promotions like the UWF and the IGF pop up over the years.
Johnny Saint spoke with Wrestling With Johnners and shared how his wrestling journey began. His mother introduced him to Billy Robinson, who taught him the art of catch wrestling in a local gym in Manchester.
“[Billy Robinson] came into my life when I was about 15 years old.” Johnny Saint said. “I lived on Belgrave Road in New Manchester, and four doors down, on the opposite side of the street, there was a corner shop.”
“It was a lady’s hairdressing salon, and my mother used to go there to get her hair done. Of course, mothers get talking, don’t they? And that’s how we met.”
When asked if training with the legendary Catch-As-Catch-Can wrestler was easy, Johnny Saint assured that it was anything but.
“No, not with Billy. It was a hard day at work — really hard.” He recalled. “Billy would really put you through the paces, definitely.”
The training did Johnny Saint well as he turned professional soon after. He turned pro at the age of 18 and wrestled his debut match following his training with Billy Robinson.
However, like many grapplers of that day, nobody had clued him into the idea that wrestling may not be the competitive sport many thought it to be.
The Wrestling Hall of Famer revealed that he was surprised to learn the fixed nature of the business. In his first few matches, he came out of the blocks fighting for his life, before being told to slow down and put on a show with his opponent.
“It was quite a bit of a surprise, actually, I can assure you.” Johnny Saint said about his first match in wrestling. “When I first started, I really got stuck in during my early matches. And he was like, ‘Whoa, whoa, whoa. I don’t want that. I don’t want to go on with him again.'”
“So, I learned slowly, I learned the hard way. I realized that it’s not just about being good at wrestling. You’ve got to sell yourself to the general public as well.”
If you use any quotes from this article, please give a H/T to BritWrestling for the transcription
