In the late 19th century, carnivals routinely traveled the American countryside. These were the days before television or radio, days when the carnivals were a primary source of American entertainment. As part of their attraction, many carnivals had what were dubbed "athletic shows" where prize fighters and wrestlers would take on all-comers for cash wagers. The athletic shows were not only a source of entertainment, but also a way for the locals to interact with the performers, test their skill, and perhaps win some money in the process.

In their earliest stages, athletic show wrestling competition rules were offshoots of traditional wrestling rules, with each person trying only to pin the other. But as time went on, locals became more ruthless, and it wasn't uncommon to hear stories of a local trying to gouge out a wrestler's eyes during a challenge match. In addition, disputes often arose as to whether a person was actually pinned (not surprising considering there was money on the line), and whether the referees were calling the matches fairly. The traveling wrestlers developed concession holds, or "hooks," both to protect themselves from injury and to eliminate any doubt as to the victor. The wrestlers would stretch and crank their opponents, making them shout a loud concession of "uncle."

As time passed the men became even more skillful at hooking. The rules of the challenge matches were often tipped to favor the local challengers--akin to giving a handicap, or odds. Depending on the carnival or match, the wrestler could lose a match by being hooked, pinned, or even simply thrown or taken down. Thus, in order to survive, hookers became extremely proficient at controlling and hooking their opponents and defending against all methods of attack.

Under the most narrow of rules, wrestlers would lose matches if they failed to defeat their opponents within a certain time. Now, not only were these men becoming masters of wrestling, control, and hooks, they were also developing the skill to execute their technique extremely quickly and efficiently.

Men such as martin "Farmer" Burns, Frank Gotch, John Pesek, Ed "Strangler" Lewis , Ray Steele, and many others all "made their bones" as carnival wrestlers. This was a piece of Americana that we shouldn't forget.

This is the story of Catch-As-Catch-Can wrestling, or Catch Wrestling. From an offshoot of traditional wrestling burgeoned an art of well-developed submission technique, executed quickly and efficiently, against any and all challengers.

WHAT IS A HOOKER?

A hooker is a person with the wrestling and hooking skills to control and submit an opponent quickly and effectively. The hooker also possesses the tendon strength to absorb punishment that ordinary practitioners of grappling could not. He also is never content to find himself on his back, for this was a way in which a hooker could lose a match. He is a master of controlling his opponent and applying hooks from any position, even if the position is considered "inferior" in other grappling arts.

A hooker could be described accurately as more crippling than a practitioner of other grappling arts. His moves are controlled and designed to inflict quick permanent damage. He is a traditional wrestler with a near limitless knowledge of body mechanics, joint and body manipulation, positioning and control. Just imagine an Olympic level wrestler with an arsenal of submissions and you should start to get the picture.

These men possessed strength, speed and stamina to pull off concessions from every angle, against any opponent. Contrary to popular belief, most great hookers weighed well under 200 pounds. Training was long, hard, and often times dangerous, and consisted of drilling fundamental wrestling science well before learning hooks.

Spine locks, shoulder locks, neck and face cranks were commonplace, along with arm and leg holds. Chokes were also employed, although they were usually not permitted in bouts unless it was stipulated as an "all in" contest.

WHERE IS CATCH TODAY?

Athletic shows and traveling carnivals slowly dissolved as the 20th century rolled along. By the late 1950's it was just about all gone. Guys like August Sepp, Vic Short, Ben Sherman, Dick Cardinal, and others spent many years on the circuit. It was a time that we'll never see again.

Today, Tony Cecchine is one of a few who carries on the tradition and knowledge of Catch Wrestling. With the recent success and popularity of nhb events and the emphasis on groundwork, perhaps the lost art of Catch Wrestling will once again surface in the hands of young, experienced fighters.

WHAT IS CATCH'S PHILOSOPHY?

In a street fight, no-holds-barred competition, or Catch match, the basic strategy remains the same: to hook (submit) your opponent as quickly as possible while absorbing the least amount of punishment. Catch Wrestling teaches one to control an opponent, concentrating on balance, leverage, and technique to control one's opponent and ultimately hook him.

To a hooker, fights should never last for 2-3 hours. That is left to the "performer" or "worker". True shoots were generally short-lived affairs. Learning to control from the feet to the ground is the key to ending a fight quickly. If you can't control a man, you can't submit him. And if you are finding yourself fishing for a submission for hours or even many minutes on end, you are probably not properly controlling your opponent. Control is far more than holding a man down. Control is getting him to do what you want him to do.

Finally, hooks differ in kind from those taught in jiu-jitsu and judo. "use your whole body as a weapon, use his whole body as a target" is the motto. A Catch Wrestler should be close to a hook at practically all times, in any position. You can submit a person using your back, knees, head and shins. Hookers employ more crippling holds and fewer slow, gradual pressure holds. As judo and jiu-jitsu are the gentle arts, Catch Wrestling can be viewed as the antithesis. It is not for everybody, but there is no question that it is effective. Styles all have benefits to offer. Instead of labeling one "better" than the other, appreciate the differences and continually strive to improve.

Stated in the most simple terms, Catch Wrestling teaches you how to effectively, efficiently, and quickly control and defeat your opponent.

HOW DOES TONY TEACH CATCH?

As the name suggests, Catch Wrestling's foundation is in traditional wrestling. Thus, a Catch practitioner must as much learn takedowns, control, and positioning as hooks. To "use your whole body as a weapon and his whole body as a target" you must first learn control. Endurance and conditioning training, rooted in the basics of takedowns, defenses, and control, are the first concepts drilled and learned.

Striking, gouging and nerve attacks also come right away as part of conditioning. The sooner you start having it done to you, the sooner the body adjusts.

Lastly, hooks are learned. But they are not learned as a separate entity. They are "baked" into the style like baking an apple pie. The main distinction between amateur wrestlers and Catch Wrestlers is that there are no illegal holds. There is so much more to hooking than arm bars and chokes. A Catch Wrestler should understand the science behind body manipulation. Leg locks, shin locks, hip cranks, forearm locks, bicep compressions, and neck cranks are all incorporated into Catch training. It doesn't matter if you are on top, bottom, sideways, or upside down. Once you understand the physiology behind hooks, you can apply them from any position, in a powerful and crippling manner.

In its ultimate form, Catch Wrestling is as much a psychological battle as it is a physical one. You train to bait your opponent and continuously control. You train to hook your opponent from any position. You train to maintain control and dominate from beginning to end.

WHY IS CATCH SO DEVASTATING?

Simple. Because it had to be. Catch wasn't designed for use against guys with no ground experience; it wasn't developed for points. It wasn't practiced in air-conditioned gymnasiums on thick ply mats. Often times matches were contested on surfaces ranging from dirt floors to rock hard pavement...and everything in between. These men didn't have vcr's , TV's, or even radios. Their daily lives were often as rough and tumble as their wrestling matches. Life was different...training was different. These guys honed their wrestling and submission skills against live challengers in grappling matches all over the country and the world.

Well over a hundred years ago, carnivals routinely traveled across America. As part of their attraction, they had Athletic Shows, or AT shows, where prize fighters and wrestlers would take on all-comers for cash. The AT shows were both a source of entertainment and a way for locals to try and tear the heads off of traveling Catch Wrestlers.

In the beginning, AT show wrestling competitions had rules much like traditional wrestling. You won with a pin. But when money was on the line, bad blood in the air, and locals more ruthless, challengers would try to gouge out wrestler's eyes. Fights broke out over whether a man's shoulders actually touched the mat and whether referees were calling the matches fairly.

So, to take away any doubt as to who was the winner, and remove any question as to whether Catch Wrestlers were the toughest men alive, the carnival wrestlers developed crippling "hooks." Put on nicely, these were concession holds aimed at ending the match by stretching, cranking, or locking up their opponents, making them shout a loud "uncle." Put on with bad intent, these were devastating hooks aimed at ending a man's career - or worse yet, his life.

As time went on these Catch Wrestlers honed their submission skills and perfected their technique against dangerous local wrestlers and prides. To give the locals any chance, the rules were often tipped in their favor. A Catch Wrestler could now lose by simply being thrown, pinned, or submitted. Under these rules, the Catch Wrestlers became deadly accurate, controlling and hooking their opponents in record times. Time limits were always in effect so the carnival wrestlers learned to work fast when the money was on the line.

Despite the rumors, most of these men weighed well under 200 pounds. This is not an art of strength. It is an art of technique, precision, speed, power, and, most importantly, a complete art that teaches you to dismantle an opponent, in record time, from foot to head.

So, this is the story of Catch-As-Catch-Can Wrestling. Catch is not a sport for the faint-hearted. It has few rules, and it is vicious.

WHAT MAKES CATCH DIFFERENT?

Catch's philosophy is unlike any grappling art out there. It is not simply meshing some submissions into amateur wrestling. Catch is an art in and of itself. There are no points, and it emphasizes control and submission, at all times.

Some people aren't comfortable fighting from their backs. Some people are. Everyone is different. Catch teaches you that controlling your opponent is much, much different from simply having a position on him. You can be submitted by a man who has a "inferior position" if you lack the proper control. The style of Catch is geared towards aggressively seeking and end to the encounter. You will NEVER hear the words, "that's against the rules" or "that's dirty" coming from a Catch Wrestler. The term No-Holds-Barred was coined for Catch-As-Catch-Can matches over 100 years ago. It means literally that....no hold is barred....catch any hold you can.

Catch is different because it is a complete submission wrestling style that focuses equally on the standup and ground part of wrestling. It employs fishhooks, elbowing, gouging, striking...literally anything that will facilitate a desired finish. Each move is designed to get you closer to ending the match, not just to gaining better position. Again, it's about control and submissions. That is the beauty of the style. It is savage, it is complete, it is Catch-As-Catch-Can.

WHO IS TONY CECCHINE?

Tony Cecchine is the foremost practicing authority on American Catch As Catch Can Wrestling (Catch Wrestling). He has recently been recognized as the leading exponent of Catch Wrestling by the World Head of Family Sokeship Council, an organization that reviews and votes on the absolute greatest martial artists of different styles. Its members include such luminaries as Wally Jay, Helio Gracie, and Ernesto Presas. The late, great Lou Thesz, considered by many as the greatest Catch Wrestler of all-time, dubbed Tony Cecchine a "Hooker," recognizing Tony's submission and wrestling skills as the highest a Catch Wrestler could achieve. Tony has received praise from other luminaries such as Doug Blubaugh, and "Judo" Gene LeBell, to name a few.

Tony began studying Catch Wrestling when he was only 13 years old. Old-time strongman and wrestler Stanley Radwan spent five years teaching Tony the secrets of Catch Wrestling. He quickly learned the importance of conditioning and mastering the basics. In the years that followed, Tony learned all of Catch Wrestling's devastating arsenal; arm locks, chokes, neck cranks, leg locks, spine, hip, muscle attacks, strikes, gouging, rips and much more. He didn't learn from books or tapes - he spilled blood, broke bones, and paid his dues.

For the nearly two decades that followed, Tony continued practicing his skills in real life situations, while teaching a myriad of stylists of different arts. He has had the opportunity to use his techniques while acting as bodyguard, bouncer, security, and escort. No other Catch Wrestler remotely approaches Tony in "real world" experience.

His knowledge of street fighting, tactical skills, and combatives have led to significant praise from martial arts circles. He's continued his study of Catch Wrestling, developing new and unique approaches to modern day situations. Tony has successfully used and taught his techniques to members of the police, armed forces, and other civil organizations. Tony has also trained countless men from styles such as BJJ, Boxing, Judo, Karate, Sambo, and amateur wrestling. He's trained in amateur boxing and traditional martial arts and is an avid powerlifter and coach.

Tony's tapes have received the absolute highest reviews from some of the martial arts communities' most well-respected members. He trains professional Mixed Martial Arts fighters and other professional athletes. As one online reviewer said of Tony Cecchine and his art, "his philosophy is simple.... ..submission, submission, submission."