I am sitting here in my beer stained $19.99 swivel chair and I'm getting phone calls and instant messages from various people in the wrestling world, and it's all about the same subject- The ROH Situation. Alot of people have asked what I think on this, and what's the DOI stance on this. Obviously, the DOI is not just one person, so I can't speak for everyone on this site when I write this, so the following are just my opinions only. All I can say is that the DOI will still cover Ring of Honor and not cut them off like other websites.

The beginning of March was the beginning of one of the biggest scandals in the history of pro wrestling. Robert Feinstein, the promoter of Ring of Honor, and the owner of RF Video, was featured on a Perverted-Justice.com story which claimed that Rob Feinstein had several conversations with someone who Rob thought was a teenage boy. From these conversations, the infamous quote which will never be forgotten by ROH fans, "lol i'll pretend u said 18" was born. Visual proof of Rob Feinstein running away from a camera crew into a silver Lexus is an image I'll never forget. Rob Feinstein, the self-made millionaire, who was on top of the wrestling world, had just blown up his wrestling promotion, wrestling tape business and his reputation in one single act. Rob Feinstein will never be looked at the same way again.

The immediate aftermath of this story is well known. Silent investors became public, as Cary Silken and Sid Eick were revealed as the money behind Ring of Honor. More silent information became public as it was revealed to wrestling fans that Doug Gentry was Rob Feinstein's roommate. Gabe Sapolsky, the ROH booker, became the voice of ROH and did whatever he could to make this mess resolve. Gabe was put in a very tough spot as he had no clue that Rob was having these conversations in gay chatrooms. The rumor before "Feinsteingate", was that Rob Feinstein was a homosexual. After all, he really did nail the Fun Athletic Guy (FAG) gimmick in JAPW. He was a pretty boy and had lots of homosexual stereotypes in the way he carried himself. The bottom line was even if it was a rumor that Rob was gay, it didn't mean shit. If you're gay, you're gay, that's the way you were born. Whatever Rob did on his off time was no one's concern. The big problem is that Rob was portrayed as an alleged pedophile due to the Perverted-Justice.com story. The reason I use words such as portrayed and alleged, is because outside of the Perverted-Justice.com story, Rob Feinstein was never charged with any crimes. While the evidence against Rob is very strong, no law enforcement action was taken. No children have come out and accused Rob of sexual crimes since this incident became public. The one true fact in all of this is that Rob Feinstein, whether he ever committed a pedophile crime or not, will never be taken for the same person again. He will be the butt of many jokes for some time. He has lost respect by many of his peers, wrestlers and fans alike.

So what was ROH to do? Obviously Feinsteins name was the name that owned ROH and all of ROH's and RF Video's assets. ROH officials claimed that everything was going to be changed, but nothing was ever done legally. Check today with several agencies in Pennsylvania, and you'll find out that Rob Feinstein is still the name of ROH. Fuck, call RF Video today, and get their answer machine- you'll get Rob Feinstein's voice as the voicemail. Despite the split that just happened, you think something as getting Rob's voice of the answer machine would've been taken care of.

Gabe Saplosky really had to work alot of sleepness nights. His friend was accused and somewhat proven that he preys on children. That alone will make you stare at your bedroom ceiling in deep thought for many nights. Gabe was now the voice and face of ROH. Gabe told us that everything was going to be taken care of. In reality, what Gabe was trying to do, was sweep everything under the mat and go back to business. And really, who can blame him? He's a business man protecting his business. The ROH message board was deleted due to the scandal and a new board was created after the initial story broke. Gabe swore up and down in numerous columns and interviews that Rob Feinstein was gone from the company. People were skeptical, but for the most part, people accepted Gabe as a man of honor. They respected Gabe, and Gabe said what they wanted to hear. Everything somewhat back to normal until a few weeks ago, when the RF Video/ROH split was announced.

One question before proceeding was why did people just accept Gabe's comments so willingly? One reporter, Anthony Diblasi of www.wrestling-news.com would not accept Gabe's comments. He proved that Feinstein's name was on numerous ROH dealings. The fans didn't care though. The direct result of why the majority of the people following the story went back to watching ROH like nothing happened, is due to the current state of pro wrestling.

Wrestling is down. Wrestling on free TV isn't fun anymore. Between people raping dead corpses, a lactating Aussie, big stars leaving to do other things, and lack of creatitivty, the WWE has seen a decline in business. This allowed ROH to develop a cult fan base. Based in Philadelphia, like a promotion that most people in ROH and follow ROH respected and loved, ECW, Ring of Honor presents an innovative concept. ROH was great for wrestling. ROH made wrestling fun again. During Pre-Feinstein Gate, ROH had some of the best shows in history. Guys like Samoa Joe, Low Ki, Homicide, Spanky and others became the new generation of wrestling. They were the wrestlers. Casual fans were trading in their Austin 3:16 shirts in for ROH tapes at the RF Video table. ROH revolutionized wrestling and made wrestling a sport, not an entertainment spectacle. Fans whether they realized it or not, loved and still love ROH, and did not want to see their number 1 source of entertainment and interest go away. So when Gabe said RF was out, Gabe wasn't questioned or pressured by fans. The fans wanted to forget and go back to kick ass wrestling shows. Factor in that most wrestling fans are single without children, then this issue wasn't as serious to them, as it was to wrestling fans with chidlren.

Another point to consider is the wrestlers involvement. I might get backlash for saying this, but wrestlers are whores. If wrestler A, B and C, who were ROH wrestlers, left due to this, there would be 100 wrestlers looking to fill those spaces. With so many wrestlers, and so little respected promotions today, wrestlers are forced to compromise values for exposure. After all, exposure is what brings in the money and notoriety, not values. And that's a true fact, no matter how fucked up it may be.

This takes us to 2 weeks ago. It was rumored for some time, but finally reported on PWInsider and here on the DOI that RF Video and ROH were breaking ties. Doug Gentry would head up RF Video, and change the name of the company. Gabe/Cary/Sid would run ROH. Both sides could not get along for awhile, and it even got so bad that locks in ROH owned offices in Langhorne, PA were changed. Both parties have alot of bad blood between each other. Doug Gentry was unceremoniously ousted from Ring of Honor by his former associates. It was reported that RF Video would go back to its roots of taping indy shows and other wrestling shows. RF Video would no longer be taping ROH events. On the other side of the fence, ROH will be opening up their own tape company, just to soley produce ROH tapes for the time being. With Ring of Honor tapes being one of the reasons why RF Video made so much money, and with Ring of Honor tapes being one of the biggest money makers for the ROH Promotion, it should be interesting to see what the fall out of these decisions are.

After all this is more. It happened. It was reported on 1wrestling.com (with no credit given to any given reporter) that Rob Feinstein said "They knew" (about being involved in ROH) when talking about Gabe and others. The first question was how credible is 1wrestling, due to the fact that Bob Ryder, who works for TNA owns half the site. The other fact about 1wrestling is that they said they'd stop covering ROH, but put up this newstory when something negative happened. Despite that, the 1wrestling.com story was legit. Rowdy Roddy Piper confirmed that even after Feinsteingate, that it was Rob Feinstein, not anyone else, who was making plans for Piper's appearance for the 3/13 ROH show. Piper, a family man, told Rob thanks but no thanks, and Dusty Rhodes took the spot.

It hasn't been officially reported yet, but from what I'm hearing from people who wish to stay annonymous, is that Rob Feinstein has proof that Gabe, Cary and Sid all knew he was part of ROH during his scandal. There are phone bills proving this. In fact, one of the major reasons for the split was due to Gabe trying to distance himself away from Rob. From what is being told, Rob was upset that he was kept out of the loop on some booking decisions. Gabe, who put business and morality over friendship wanted nothing to do with RF. ROH is also Gabe's baby. Gabe has been great for ROH and he doesn't want to see it disappear due to his former friend's horrible decisions. No matter what anyone fucking says, you don't go into any sort of controversial chatroom, whether it be a gay chatroom, confederate chatroom, terrorist chatroom or anything else, especially under your own name. I mean some people denied the story when it first broke because the person doing it was under an AOL IM Name that could've been easily forged to make it look like RF. How fucking stupid can one be, to go under their regular name to do these things? I have been told that Rob Feinstein was in a gay chatroom, not a pedophile chat. I can also confirm that RF has told people in wrestling that he is gay and that was why he was in that chat. More on this later.

So now we are at today. Gabe/Sid/Cary own and operate ROH. Doug Gentry owns RF Video. What do both companies still have in common? Rob Feinstein owns both of them. Let's be honest, does anyone think that a self-made millionaire is going to watch both his companies get taken away from him? I think RF would rather put both companies out of business before transferring ownership to someone else. My prediction: expect this Fall of 2004, alot of fucking lawsuits. There will be alot of suing and countersuing going on, and I'm not talking about someone suing the DOI Message Board. Rob will come out and speak soon one has to believe. I don't see Rob laying down and giving up his company.

So who's the fucking loser in all of this? Without a doubt it's Doug. Doug Gentry has always been a favorite of not only fans, but people in the business. On various message boards and in the wrestling community people have and still today, bash Rob Feinstein. They bashed Rob before this, and now they have a bigger reason to. Gabe Sapolsky has also felt the wrath of angry message board posters as well as wrestlers. Gabe and Rob were never liked by everyone. That's where Doug stands out. You have never heard one bad thing about Doug. Wrestlers and fans alike respect and like Doug. One of Doug's biggest flaws might be his loyalty, but how can you blame him? Doug, who should be doing an interview with the DOI soon, has told me that he is still friends with Rob Feinstein today. Doug has been a true friend through thick and thin, and now through the best times and worst times for Rob Feinstein. It's hard to throw away alot of years of friendship. What Doug is doing for Rob, whether it be counseling or support, is what friends do for each other in tough times. It's sad to see Doug be ousted out of the company that he presented so well. By making an unpopular decision, and holding up his friendship to Rob, Doug put himself at not only at financial loss, but his reputation took a hit. That is a true friend that RF is lucky to have. I understand why Doug kept his friendship with Rob, and it's admirable but also, bad for business.

People who are reading this column may think I have let RF off the hook. If you remember when this first happened, I blasted Feinstein for his actions. All I know from my dealings, is that Rob is claiming that he was set-up. How was he set-up? Hopefully we find out soon from Rob, as no other answer will do. Obviously whether he was set-up or not, really doesn't make a difference. That allegation and story is out there and no matter what, that is how people will look at RF. The evidence against Rob is overwhelming. As someone who tries to stay clearheaded, I'm willing to hear RF's story. RF recently rejected an interview with Mike Johnson due to Mike wanting to ask about RF's trip to that house that day. RF refused to talk about that, and that's his mistake. RF owns not only the ROH fans, but the wrestlers he fucked over with an explanation of his actions. Of course, no one will come out and say "Hey I like children!" but Rob needs proof that he wasn't going for kids, or else he seriously needs to be locked up. Rob- it's time to face the public and answer all the questions. Defend yourself, every other passed day makes your case look worse. Rob owes the fans, the wrestlers, and everyone else in pro wrestling an explanation. Whether it's an admission of guilt or him disproving Perverted-Justice's story, Rob needs to come out and tell us why he put his companies in such jeopardy. Wrestling fans suffer enough from non-wrestling fans. This was a black eye fans didn't need in wrestling, and Rob needs to put the ice on this black eye with a full explanation.

At the last ROH show, 6/12 in Dayton, Ohio, Gabe held a locker room meeting, admitting that Feinstein was involved and trying to cover it up. The wrestlers listened to Gabe's speech and sided with Gabe. Whether anyone realizes it, Gabe made choice wrestlers look like liars.
Does anyone remember Samoa Joe saying if he found out that RF was still involved that he'd melt down the World Title and turn it into a golf club? RF was involved, and instead of hitting the links, Joe is having 60 minute matches with CM Punk. Hey Joe- there is a PGA tournament going down in Long Island right now. I'd love to see you there with a golden golf club. You have made your comments public, and I think you should tell everyone why you have a belt not a golf club right now.

Obviously, I'm not trying to take a shot at Joe, but what about these wrestlers who said they'd leave if RF was found to be involved? Allison Danger? Danny Maff? Where do they stand now? Gabe admitted that RF was still there. You guys said you would take a stand and not put up with any more lies. I'd love to know what you guys think now. Do these wrestlers who went out publically feel foolish that RF was involved the whole time? Obviously when Joe, Maff and Danger came out with their comments, they did it to keep ROH unified. They did it to prevent bad backlash. They were company people. I respect all three of them. I enjoy their work. But just looking at all of this, it doesn't make you guys look so hot. RF's actions trickled down, and when you guys were trying to keep wrestling true by preserving the sport and being the glue of ROH, RF was counting his money off of you guys. Now whether or not RF did anything or not has yet to remain seen, as no charges have been pressed or filed, and we don't even know if the Perverted-Justice transcript was edited or placed out of context, but those were your words. I also spoke very negatively of RF, and to be honest, I don't think much of him. He hurt the people closest to him and put alot of people in jeopardy. I can see why Rob is overprotective of his companies, but by telling people you're still involved, you are hurting those companies even more.

Buildings have cancelled on ROH due to the RF fiasco. RF Video has lost money due to the RF fiasco. How long will either company last? Will RF come out and ban Gabe and the others from running ROH shows? Will Doug Gentry, who's broken off from ROH start his own promotion? Will RF ever return to wrestling? Will Rob talk about this? Who will go bankrupt? Who will be successful? Who wins? Who loses? All these questions will be answered in the upcoming weeks and months.

As a true wrestling fan, it's sad to see what was the number 2 promotion to alot of people, get blown to shit, not due to outside politics or lack of funds. They didn't get blown to shit due to a dry market or uninterested fans. The RF empire imploded due to RF's actions, and he is soley responsible. ROH now has a taint, and that taint is going to be very hard to remove. I personally wish ROH well as they better wrestling but have other fans been turned off already? How about RF Video? Can anyone buy a tape there again knowing that your money is going towards Feinstien's gas for his silver Lexus? It's going to be tough for your indy fan, and is a position no fan should go through, nor wrestler.

In closing, I am offering an open invitation to Rob Feinstein and Samoa Joe to come out and speak on this forum about all the recent activity. I think people want to know what Joe, who is the leader of the ROH locker room, is thinking right now. Like I have presented my opinions in this column, anyone is welcome to offer theirs by either posting on the message board or emailing me.

For more on ROH go to www.rohwrestling.com
For more on RF Video go www.rfvideo.com

Sean "The MiC" McCaffrey