Viva Brighton Issue #77 July 2019

INTERVIEW
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Jack Sexsmith
Riptide Wrestling
How is Riptide doing as a new (ish)
promotion on the scene? Riptide is the best
promotion in the UK for looking after talent
and staff. They have a respect for those who
put their bodies on the line and a devoted
passion to marketing professional wrestling as
the art form it is. Visually, there is nothing like
Riptide anywhere in the world and I genuinely
believe they have the best production values
in the whole of independent wrestling.
Whether you like comedy wrestling, fast-paced
exhibitions or heartfelt emotional drama, you
will inevitably be treated to all here.
The July Point Break match will see you
fight longtime enemy, posh boy Spike
Trivet. Why do you hate him so? Spike vs I,
was the very first match in Riptide’s existence.
It has always been clear that we are two very
different people, from two very different
backgrounds, of two very different mindsets
and we were never destined to get on.
He has hired my friends as his hit men. He has
hired my idols as his hit men. He has paid off
officials to stop me from being victorious… but
he has never beaten me one-on-one.
When we first clashed in June of 2017, my
stock was sky-high and he was a developing
talent. Since then Spike has used his wealth to
conspire against me, usurping my status in the
process: he is a politician in every sense.
There was a flurry of national media
coverage in 2017 regarding you being the
‘pansexual star of UK wrestling’. How has
that affected your career? It was everything
I wanted and nothing I was prepared for. With
so many people knowing my name, pressure
intensified to not only put on better and better
Photo by Oli Sandler
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shows, but also I became scrutinised for how I
would represent the LGBT community even
more intensely. The wrestling was never an
issue but sometimes the challenge of being an
allegory instead of a human weighed heavy.
I released a video on New Year’s Day
highlighting how I was not going to allow
myself to be victimised or used as a marketing
tool any more. The ‘Pansexual Phenomenon’
was a name given to me to make that sweet
pink pound. Jack Sexsmith is a person, not an
act, not a device and no longer will I allow him
to be exploited.
What made you get into wrestling? I had
an epiphany moment at university where I
decided to stop denying who I am to myself.
Being active in areas that I am passionate about
became a clear goal of mine. So I started to
explore my sexuality and began training as a
professional wrestler.
What do you enjoy most about wrestling?
Generating a visceral reaction from an
audience of people. Being able to make people
cry with sadness or joy for a performance,
literally overwhelm them with emotion. That
sensation’s hard to describe.
Interview by Joe Fuller
July 5, Brighthelm Centre, 6pm